Soul Calibur 3

[KentaRawr!]

Is SC3 accessible enough to be an "entry level" game for someone new to the series? I mean, in terms of gameplay and plot, would I be missing out on some integral knowledge by not having played the game's predecessors? Does it have plenty of longevity and replay value, both as a single-player and two-player game?
And lastly, but not leastly, the techniques used by the game's fighters. Based on real combat systems, or arbitrary creations inspired only by the look of traditional weapons? This is mainly a question for those who practise a blade-based martial art in real life. My only experience with Soul Calibur is from the demo version of SC2, playing as Cassandra or Nightmare against Raphael, Voldo and that large demon dude whose name escapes me. Cassandra's sword-and-buckler style has very loose, broad similarities to the real thing, but lacked the intricacies of the real combat systems - binds, shield knocks, stab knocks, and so forth. Forgivable, I think, given how hard that'd be to recreate in a game. But still, given that my experience is largely confined to medieval and renaissance European swordsmanship, it'd be nice to hear other fighters' opinions on SC3's combat...

Personally, I think that if you're new to the series, Soul Calibur 2 is the best game to start with. The Main Mode of the Soul Calibur 3 does NOT allow you to change the difficulty, and even though I find it to be extremely easy, some people have complained over it's challenge. And just going into the no-reward Quick Battle mode would be no fun, as you don't unlock any cool stuff. The game does however have great replay value. Finding new ways to go about the Main Mode of the game is just so much fun. Each way will almost always have different things to unlock. Plus there's Character Creation, or an even better description, "Dress up Barbie". It sucks in the beginning, but as you play, you unlock new pieces of clothing for your little guy to wear. But then there's the bad part. ... >_> <_<...

The mode where you unlock these new pieces of clothing is absolutely ATROCIOUS. It's boring, it sucks, and... it sucks. It's a total waste of time. Don't bother with it. It's terrible. Don't go in it. It will drive you insane. Don't go in it!

There's also a bunch of cool mini-games you can do. Like catching the shop-keepers, or smashing an enemy against the wall to do damage, rather than just pummel them the regular way. :mog:

If you're used to SC2, then you'll be very dissapointed to know that almost every character has been changed so much that they could have been brand new fighters. Curses. Luckily though, Kilik wasn't changed much. w00t.