Misplaced Pages

Nightmare (Soulcalibur): Difference between revisions

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
Browse history interactively← Previous editContent deleted Content addedVisualWikitext
Revision as of 19:02, 1 December 2005 editThewikipedian (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users1,991 edits metrication← Previous edit Latest revision as of 06:14, 26 December 2024 edit undoCitation bot (talk | contribs)Bots5,413,381 edits Added date. | Use this bot. Report bugs. | Suggested by Spinixster | Category:Male characters in video games | #UCB_Category 295/330 
Line 1: Line 1:
{{in-universe|date=April 2023}}{{DISPLAYTITLE:Nightmare (''Soulcalibur'')}}
{| cellpadding=2 cellspacing=2 align=right border=0 width=300px style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif; padding: 6px; margin: 0 0 1em 1em; font-size: 10px; background-color: #f7f8ff; border:1px solid #8888aa;"
{{Infobox character
|- bgcolor=#99B1FF
| align=center colspan=2|<font size="2">'''''Nightmare'''''</font> | name = Nightmare
| series = ]
|-
| image = SiegfriedNightmare.png
|align="center" colspan=2|]
| image_size = 270px
|-
| caption = Nightmare from '']''
|Age:
| firstgame = '']'' (1995)
|Existed since Ancient Times
|designer=Aya Takemura and Takuji Kawano<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zG-vETVBWUU&t=1m49s |author=Namco Bandai Entertainment America |title=SoulCalibur V - Behind The Game |website=] |date=6 July 2011 |accessdate=2023-04-26 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230425164431/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zG-vETVBWUU&t=1m49s |archivedate=2023-04-25 |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref>
|-
| voice = {{Collapsible list|title=]|Ted D' Agostino {{small|(''Soulcalibur II'')}}<ref name="behindthevoiceactors.com2">{{cite web |title=Nightmare Voices (Soulcalibur) |url=https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/characters/Soulcalibur/Nightmare/ |website=Behind The Voice Actors |access-date=16 September 2019|postscript=. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of the title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.}}</ref><br>Patrick Ryan {{small|(''Soulcalibur III'')}}<ref name="behindthevoiceactors.com2"/>}}{{Collapsible list|title=]|] {{small|(''Soulcalibur I-II'', ''VI'')}}<ref name="behindthevoiceactors.com2"/><br>] {{small|(''Soulcalibur III'')}}<ref name="behindthevoiceactors.com2"/><br>] {{small|(''Soulcalibur Legends'', ''IV'')}}<ref name="SCL">{{cite video game | developer=] | title=] | publisher=] | scene=Ending credits, 9:33 in, VOICE OVER ACTORS (Japanese) | year=2007}}</ref><ref name="behindthevoiceactors.com2"/><ref name="brokendestiny">{{cite video game | developer=] | title=Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny | publisher=] | scene=Ending credits, 5:23 in, VOICE OVER ACTORS JAPANESE | year=2009}}</ref><br>] {{small|(''Soulcalibur V'')}}<ref name="behindthevoiceactors.com2"/>}}
|Birthplace:
}}
|Unknown
{{nihongo|'''Nightmare'''|ナイトメア|Naitomea|lead=yes}} is a ] and the ] in the ] series of video games. The evil possessor of {{nihongo|]|ジークフリート・シュタウフェン|Jīkufurīto Shutaufen}}'s body, he later becomes an entity entirely separated from Siegfried in '']'' onward. Nightmare is the living incarnation of Soul Edge and a vessel for ].
|-
|Height:
|167 cm /5'6"
|-
|Weight:
|95 kg /209 lbs
|-
|Birth Date:
|Unknown
|-
|Blood Type:
|Unknown
|-
|Weapon:
|]
|-
|SC1~2 Weapon:
|Male Soul Edge
|-
|SC3 Weapon:
|Phantom Soul Edge
|-
|Discipline:
|Style memorized by the armor
|-
|Family:
|
* Servant: ]
|}
'''Nightmare''' is a ] character designed for the '''''Soul'' Series''' of ]. Nightmare made his first appearance in '']'' and has returned for both sequels: '']'' and '']''. He appears in Soul Blade as "Siegfried!," an extra costume for Siegfried.


Nightmare first appeared in one of the possible endings and as an alternative skin for the Siegfried character in the game '']''. In the sequel '']'', he was given a name and featured as a central character. Ever since then, Nightmare has been a major antagonist, with his ownership of Soul Edge making him the objective of many other characters in the story. Nightmare has served as a recurring ] in contrast to the ] role played by Siegfried, as well as serving as Siegfried's archenemy until '']'', where Graf Dumas (actually Raphael Sorel) becomes the new host for Nightmare/Soul Edge/Inferno. In '']'', which serves as a reboot, Siegfried is once again Nightmare/Inferno's host once more.
Western Voice Actor: '''Ted D'Agostino'''. Eastern Voice Actor: ].


Nightmare has appeared in all the sequels to ''Soulcalibur'' with visual differences between each game. His fighting style was altered from '']'' to ''Soulcalibur III'' after Siegfried became a separate character.


==Conception and design==
==Biography==
{{expand-section|date=September 2023}}
The biographies of ] and Nightmare are the same up until the last paragraph, where they become separate and are able to co-exist simultaneously.
During the development of ''Soulcalibur'', Nightmare's helmet went through several iterations with an aim to give a sense of "pressure" and "emit an atmosphere that terrifies anyone who sees them."<ref name="sc1-artbook"/> The finalized design was modeled after a unicorn, while his armor implemented imagery of a dragon, which the development team felt symbolized "evil, chaos and power".<ref name=tweet>{{cite tweet |title=This is the concept art of Nightmare. The armor is a refinement of SC1's "unicorn" inspired design. His armor is decorated with a dragon, a symbol of evil, chaos and power. The final image was clear from the beginning. So his design was finished on quickly. #SOULCALIBUR Early |user=Soulcalibur |number=1318029410688065538 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20220706153854/https://twitter.com/soulcalibur/status/1318029410688065538 |archivedate=2022-07-06}}</ref> Early drafts of his design took inspiration from a ], with a lion's head on either his shoulder or chest, and one design featuring a snake in place of his right arm, and considered the idea of either head breathing fire or being able to bite opponents. They instead shifted took a more traditional look of a "]" with a large mutated arm gripping his sword. Said mutated left arm originally took inspiration from a fiddler crab, giving what the developers felt was a "heteromorphic" appearance to the character. While in the concept artwork Nightmare is depicted with his left arm mutated to hold the sword, in some early designs fused with the sword itself,<ref name="sc1-artbook"/> in the final design his right arm is mutated instead, despite still wielding his sword with his left.<ref name=tweet/>


As for the weapon itself, while at one point they considered a coiled lance, most iterations kept the large ] sword Siegfried had used in the original ''Soul Edge''. Though there were concerns that early sketches of it being too big, the development team noted that by the final they made it even larger. Earlier drafts of it were given red pores and veins, meant to resemble a plant and to let one "feel the beauty even in the midst of fear" when looking at it, while elements such as a mouth and eye were added to give it a more organic appearance.<ref name="sc1-artbook">{{cite book |title=Legend of Soulcalibur |language=Japanese |publisher=Honored |author=Namco |date=1999 |isbn=9784877196608 |pages=128–131}}</ref>
During the late ], the oppressed peasants of ] were revolting against the ]. With its forces weakened by the ], the ] peasants finally had a fighting chance. One of the champions of the people, a brave ] named Sir Frederick Schtauffen, met and fell in love with a woman named Margaret while on campaign; and they spent the night together. When Frederick returned after nine months of battle, he rejoined Margaret, having given birth to a son, who he named Siegfried, after the famous hero. Over the course of the next ten to fifteen years, Frederick spent a lot of his time teaching his son swordsmanship. Embarking on a foreign ], Frederick promised Margaret that he would return; unfortunately, without his father's guidance, Siegfried began to socialize with an edgy clan of teenagers, and he soon became the leader of their band of thieves known as "Schwarzwind," meaning "black wind." In a misguided act of national pride, the band devised a plan to attack the ] who ran away from the ], as they were bound to carry valuable possessions, and were too cowardly to deserve respect in any case. That night, the "Schwarzwind" ambushed a group of war-weary ], too tired to retaliate. Siegfried even managed to kill the ] himself; but as he held the ] severed head in triumph, the moonlight shone on its face, and Siegfried screamed as he realized he held the head of his own father. In mere seconds, Siegfried had snapped and ran straight into the forest, becoming more and more insane as he ruminated over his previous acts, until he came to a point at which he psychologically convinced himself that his father's murder was actually someone other than himself. And in this newfound delusion for revenge, Siegfried decided that his father's murderer must only be defeated by a specific weapon so that the vengeance would remain all the more satisfying; that weapon was the Soul Edge. He traveled first to Ostrheinsburg Castle, the refuge of the ] Sir Stefan, who he believed to be the possessor of the Soul Edge; and he joined in its forces, rising in its ranks with the hopes of acquiring Stefan's self-proclaimed legendary blade. During a siege on the castle, Siegfried saw an opportunity to take Sir Stefan's prized possession, the sword Grimblade, and killed him, running off with it into the Black Woods nearby the castle; but the sword held no power. Frustrated, he continued to search for weeks for the Soul Edge, growing increasingly more insane for its power as time passed. He finally managed to come across the legendary weapon Soul Edge, lying next to the defeated corpse of the dread ], ]. But as he reached for it, the corpse lit up in a hellish blaze of fire and attacked him. Siegfried Schtauffen raised his ]--appropriately named ]--and defeated the fiery ], earning the right to wield the Soul Edge for himself.


With ''Soulcalibur V'', the character's appearance was changed dramatically, now designed with a bat motif in mind that designer Hirokai Kado suggested was significant, but did not clarify as to why.
At the precise moment that ] obtained the cursed blade, the Evil Seed emanated from him in a beam of light that rained pain and despair across the entire world, leading only to death and destruction. But ] was concerned only with his own quest, to bring his father, Sir Frederick Schtauffen, back to life with the power that the Soul Edge had promised him and to avenge his father's murderer--even though he was the murderer himself but had forgotten due to self-induced psychological ]. He thought that if only he could devour enough souls, his father would be resurrected; and by the time he finally remembered that it was he who had actually killed his own father, the sword had totally enslaved him with its power. In his first three years as the azure ], Nightmare, he gathered together a group of followers: the ] ], the lizard man ], and ], the unknowing daughter of ]. Each of them aided him in the Soul Edge's quest to devour souls for a rejuvenation ceremony to be performed in his chosen stronghold, Ostrheinsburg Castle. But as the ceremony was about to take place, the clan was quickly laid to waste. ] had been defeated by ] for kidnapping his foster son, Bangoo; ] had been killed by ] for murdering his crew in an ] port town; and ] was considering abandoning the clan after learning the shocking truth of her horrifying past from the Fu-Ma ], ]. Nightmare did succeed in resurrecting his father, but as Nightmare battled viciously with ] holy ] Kali-Yuga, he came to the realization that this resurrection was merely an illusion of his own weakened soul, and he was too distracted to invest his full energy into the fight. ] eventually defeated him, and as his wounded body lay on the ground, ] began to become the dominant force in Nightmare's mind again; and he witnessed the fateful battle between the holy sword Soul Calibur and the ] of Soul Edge. After the wielder of the Soul Calibur, ], left with her companion, ], ] regained his sanity, becoming his former self.


== Appearances ==
As Siegfried Schtauffen lay wounded on the ground, having been defeated by ] holy ] Kali-Yuga, he gradually began to become a prominent force in ] mind once again. During this time, he witnessed the banishment of the blazing ] of Soul Edge into the void by the holy sword Soul Calibur, and the Soul Calibur's fall into the void along with its counterpart. And he watched as its former wielder, ], quietly left the castle, aiding her wounded companion along the way. Siegfried meditated on all he had seen and eventually learned to accept responsibility for his sin. He planned to return to his mother, who had no knowledge of anything that occurred during or after that fateful night three years ago; but just as he was about to knock on the door, he could hear his mother praying, and concluded that if he was to be successful in his new resolve, he must distance himself from society so that he never kills again. He could not see his mother until he was fully redeemed; but he knew he was not yet atoned for, for every time he awoke from a night's rest, he found his new ] ] bloodied, and he was surrounded by the corpses of victims he had presumably murdered in his sleep.
Even though Nightmare originally debuted in '']'', its predecessor, '']'', featured a prototype of his character. In the home version, an extra character named "Siegfried!" was added as an unlockable character. "Siegfried!" was an alternate version of normal Siegfried taken from his no-input ending, where he was consumed by the cursed sword Soul Edge. This early version was much different from the former Nightmare, having crimson armor and a more flesh-like design, almost as if he were part of Soul Edge itself. He has no story nor ending, and only used Siegfried's Soul Edge without effects. In the conclusion of ''Soul Edge'', ] battled with the corrupted pirate ] and eventually came into possession of the Soul Edge with its lingering spirit, Inferno. Soul Edge tempted Siegfried to wield it with a promise to resurrect his dead father in exchange for gathering souls for its consumption. Not knowing that he is just being used, Siegfried agreed and started killing people to gather souls. Eventually, Soul Edge consumed him and Nightmare is born.


Allying himself with ], ], and ] in the city of Ostrheinsburg, Nightmare attempted to completely restore Soul Edge. However, the attempt failed when his castle was attacked by ], ], and ], causing his allies to abandon him. Nightmare was eventually defeated by Xianghua, which caused Siegfried to realize that he is the one who killed his father. This allowed him to temporarily break free from Soul Edge's control. He then hid the sword and himself out from civilization to atone his sins that he committed when he was consumed by Soul Edge.
] was aware that although he had regained his sanity and learned to accept his past sins from three years ago, he was not yet fully redeemed. Every morning, as he awoke from rest, he would find the corpses of helpless victims lined around his body. He knew that the Soul Edge still held power over him, but now it used its strength in his sleep, and no matter how hard he tried not to fall asleep again, he would always eventually give in, and the darkness would continue to operate at night in his subconscious. He tried to forsake civilization as far as he could go so that no person could be corrupted by the dark energy of the Soul Edge, but never to any avail. Four years passed, and he had eventually assumed the azure armor for a second time, becoming Nightmare all over again, desperately pursuing fragments of the Soul Edge that he might fully restore it. As he plundered powerful souls and recovered shattered fragments of the sword, the cracks in the Soul Edge's surface healed one by one. His goal of reviving the sword was nearly complete, and he returned to his old stronghold, so that he may be in the Ostrheinsburg Chapel when he restored the blade to its true power. But just as he was about to begin his ceremony, he was interrupted once again, this time by a lone ] from the ]--the exiled son of the Sorel ], ]. At the end of the fierce battle, Nightmare stood victorious; but just before he administered his finishing blow, the wounded man muttered something incoherent. Deep within the azure helmet, a faint hint of the will of ] emerged and attempted to fight off the Soul Edge's influence for a second time. The battle between the two personalities waged in the mind of the singular being, causing the azure ] to stand motionless in distraction. Unknown to him, the fallen body of the ] ] had been conjuring up all of its remaining strength to unleash a desperate pierce into the center of Soul Edge's eye. Nightmare let out an inhuman cry, and as the will of Soul Edge desperately clawed to keep its grasp on the azure ], the time had come for ] to re-emerge and reclaim the body as his own.


By ''],'' Soul Edge was able to take over Siegfried's mind. At first it was for short periods of time during his sleep, but eventually it took Siegfried's body completely and used him to cause destruction once more. ], a former French nobleman pursuing the blade for his own scheme, challenged Nightmare. He was defeated, but managed to pierce Soul Edge's eye with his rapier. This caused the sword to lose control over Siegfried, and allowed him to defeat Inferno and break free once again. Siegfried then discovered Soul Calibur, released from Inferno's body after its defeat, and impaled Soul Edge's eye with it. With both swords sealed, Siegfried abandoned his old armor and left with them.
Siegfried Schtauffen had re-emerged to reclaim his body as his own for the second time--this time, he hoped, for the last time. And when he had become separate from his azure identity, Siegfried quickly thought back in a daze over all he had done; it had been a reflexive action. Just then, a sword had appeared within the light: the holy sword Soul Calibur. It had been trapped inside the Soul Edge all this time, waiting for a force strong enough to free it for its fateful battle to occur. As if guided by a mysterious force, he grabbed the Soul Calibur by its hilt and drove it into the evil eye that was the core of Soul Edge.


In '']'', ] revived "Nightmare" in essence. Created as an avatar for a disembodied Inferno using the original armor as a shell, he pursued and eventually recovered his true body, Soul Edge. Nightmare also met ], who became his servant and manipulated others into protecting Soul Edge and sacrificing souls for Nightmare, to eventually become sacrifices themselves. Meanwhile, Zasalamel manipulated Siegfried, leading him to Nightmare, and wielding Soul Calibur, he clashed against Soul Edge. At the moment the swords struck a burst of energy was released; Siegfried was mortally wounded, while Soul Edge and its body were pulled into a warped dimension, eventually returning to Ostrheinsburg.
''At this point, the biographies of Nightmare and ] become separate and are able to co-exist simultaneously.''


In '']'', Soul Calibur revived Siegfried, while Inferno restored Soul Edge fully and strengthened his hold over the animated armor that was Nightmare. Inferno then claimed the entire city of Ostrheinsburg as a vessel due to the fact that Nightmare lacked the capacity to contain his consciousness, and as a result, the city became cursed and many of its inhabitants were corrupted. Tira continued serving Nightmare and manipulating ], ] and others into serving Soul Edge, in order to weaken Soul Calibur and provide Nightmare with the strength necessary to destroy the spirit sword. Nightmare would then clash against Siegfried in a final duel, though his plans were interfered with the appearance of Algol and the Tower of Remembrance.
In the instant that the Soul Edge was pierced by the holy sword Soul Calibur, no one noticed the evil ] dwelling within the Soul Edge flowing out. Throughout its long history of slaughter, the sword had obtained its own immortal soul. This invisible entity--the will of the cursed sword--chose to cling to the remains of the azure armor strewn on the ground, the armor of the former azure ], Nightmare, who had unleashed his reign of terror across ]. The evil soul flowed into the armor, desperately trying to manipulate its bodiless host to devour more souls. But the absence of a physical body held the spirit's potential back tremendously, and it was unable to accomplish anything. All it could do was resign itself to its current fate and wait for an opportunity to arise. Some time later, an ] man bearing a large ]--the enigma known as ]--visited Ostrheinsburg Chapel where the strewn armor remained. He could read what had happened by studying the armor and the evil energy hanging in the air. In the thick fog, the spirit of the evil sword had an unspoken conversation with him; and ] agreed to aid the sword in its resurrection. He performed an ancient ritual, using powerful words to distort the laws of nature. The unsteady energy of the weakened sword was woven together and bound to the remains of the azure armor. The revived being clad in azure armor shone as new, with not a trace of damage remaining. Out of its hand oozed a tremendous sword which resembled the previous incarnation of the Soul Edge. But ] had plans of his own, and with his newfound control over the will of the sword, he ordered the entity to create havoc in the name of one ]. The azure ] soon made its presence known as a disciple of fear, death, and devastation as it devoured countless souls, attacking and consuming all it encountered on a pure impulse to destroy. Not even death could quell the revived evil. But more and more souls would not be enough, and the spirit knew that it was in desperate need of stronger souls. Ultimately, however, the raging ] regained its independence and decided to free Soul Edge on its own as rumors of the terror of the azure nightmare spread throughout ] once again.


As revealed in '']'', Soul Edge is shattered and Nightmare ceases to be during his final duel with Siegfried. However, the blade is brought back to life by pieces collected by its servants. Nightmare is reborn in the body of Raphael and assumes the alias of Graf Dumas. From there, Dumas works his way into the graces of the ] and is installed as the ruler of ]. Dumas ] to consume more souls and initiate a widespread search for the remaining fragments of Soul Edge. Unknown to him, his former servant Tira had been working to create a new Nightmare as she is not satisfied with Dumas.
==Character Analysis==
In ''Soul Calibur II'', Nightmare is considered a ] character. Although he has a strong "step" and does heavy damage, his attacks lack the speed and initiative of other characters such as ] and ]. Though his Zweihänder swords have huge range, most of his move at that distance are unsafe. His ideal range is mid.


Dumas manipulates one of his soldiers, ], into killing people corrupted by Soul Edge known as Malfested in exchange for help in his search to find his missing sister, Pyrrha. Patroklos revolts and flees from service. Dumas later discovers Patroklos and Pyrrha and reveals himself as Nightmare. He forces Pyrrha's hidden Soul Edge power to consume her, causing Patroklos to abandon her. Nightmare then initiated a war throughout Europe with his newfound power, but is eventually struck down and killed by ], a young man whom he previously tried to hunt. Though Pyrrha Omega kills Z.W.E.I., Inferno makes her the new host for Soul Edge. She is defeated by Patrokalos and both Soul Edge and Soul Calibur are sealed in the Astral Chaos.
Nightmare is a stance-based character, having a total of five, through which he can transition seemlessly by either manual control or through attacking. One of his staple attacks is his primary launcher ''Sky Splitter'' (a.k.a. 3), which goes into '''Night Back Stance''', followed by ''Terror Stomper'' (B). Since Nightmare is relatively slow and does not have strong pokes, his game is based punishing-and provoking-mistakes. Nightmare has a strong wake-up game due to his ability to mixup Sky Splitter, throws, and low attacks.


Nightmare returned as a playable character in '']''. The game revisits the events of the original ''Soulcalibur'' and shows Nightmare possessing Siegfried once more.
==Series' Appearances==
* '']''
* '']''
* '']''


=== Other appearances ===
==External links==
Outside of the ''Soul'' series, Nightmare appeared in ] where the player can obtain him as an "ally" and use his armor along with Soul Edge. Soul Edge also appeared as an enemy in '']'' where its shards became ] and was fought as enemies, and made a cameo in '']''. A Sackboy costume of Nightmare was released as a DLC for '']''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://store.playstation.com/en-pl/product/EP9000-CUSA00762_00-LBPDLCNBSCCO0003|title=SOULCALIBUR™ Nightmare Costume – LBP™ 3|website=PlayStation™Store|language=en-PL|access-date=2018-08-18}}</ref>
*
*
*


In 2000, Epoch C-Works released a series of action figures based upon the original ''Soulcalibur'', amongst them Nightmare. The semi-posable figure came with equipable weapons from the title in the same package.<ref>. Hobby Search. Retrieved on 2008-09-07</ref> In 2003, ] released a Nightmare sculpture amongst a set of five based on characters from ''Soulcalibur II''. The immobile figure was modeled after his primary outfit and stood six inches tall with a base.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080914021512/http://www.spawn.com/toys/product.aspx?product=1880 |date=2008-09-14 }}. Spawn.com. Retrieved on 2008-08-02</ref>
{{Soul series}}

Siegfried and Nightmare both appear in ''Soulcalibur'' manga and make a guest appearance as cards in a mobile video game ''Outcast Odyssey'' and in many cards in '']''. They are also both featured on the official ''Soulcalibur VI'' arcade stick.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.inside-games.jp/article/2018/06/13/115411.html|title=『ソウルキャリバー VI』デザインのアーケードスティックが登場！人気キャラクターをあしらったオリジナルモデル {{!}} インサイド|work=インサイド|access-date=2018-08-17|language=ja}}</ref>

==Promotion and reception==
In 2000, Epoch C-Works released a series of action figures based upon the original ''Soulcalibur'', amongst them Nightmare. The semi-posable figure came with equipable weapons from the title in the same package.<ref>. Hobby Search. Retrieved on 2008-09-07</ref> In August 2003, ] released a Nightmare ] amongst a set of five based on characters from ''Soulcalibur II''. The immobile figure was modeled after his primary outfit and stood six inches tall with a base.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080914021512/http://www.spawn.com/toys/product.aspx?product=1880 |date=2008-09-14 }}. Spawn.com. Retrieved on 2008-08-02</ref> Nightmare's likeness was used as the basis for a costume for ] in '']'', as part of a ''Soulcalibur'' themed costume pack for the title.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://store.playstation.com/en-us/product/UP9000-CUSA00473_00-LBPDLCNBSCCK0001 |title=LittleBigPlanet™ 3 SOULCALIBUR™ Costume Pack |author=Sony Interactive Entertainment |website=PlayStation Store |accessdate=2023-04-28}}</ref>

The staff of ] praised him as the best character in the series, stating "Was there ever really any question? Not for us", and further praising his role as a playable "badass" villain.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080901232936/http://www.ugo.com/games/soulcalibur-best-characters/?cur=nightmare |date=2008-09-01 }}. ]. Retrieved on 2008-08-29</ref> IGN listed him as a character they wished to see in '']'' as a playable guest villain, though noted he was also "too extreme" for the series.<ref>Thomas, Lucas M. (2007-06-27). . ]. Retrieved on 2008-09-13</ref> In a later article on the ''Soul'' series itself, they noted "a ''Soul'' game simply feels incomplete without an appearance by the warring personalities of Siegfried and Nightmare", and praised the contrast between Siegfried's ]ic figure and Nightmare's ]ic form.<ref>Schedeen, Jesse (2008-07-30). . ]. Retrieved on 2008-07-30</ref> In '']''{{'}}s 2009 list of best fighting game characters, Nightmare placed second.<ref>{{cite magazine|date=August 2009|title=Top Ten Best Fighting Game Characters|magazine=Game Informer|publisher=GameStop Corporation|issn=1067-6392}}</ref>

In a 2002 poll by ] prior to the release of ''Soulcalibur II'' regarding their favorite character, Siegfried placed ninth with 2.5% of the tally, tied with Mitsurugi.<ref name="ps2.ign.com">. Retrieved on 2008-08-02</ref> In ]'s 2015 poll, Siegfried was voted the sixth most popular characters from the series, followed by Nightmare.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.3djuegos.com/noticia/152834/0/soul-calibur/personajes-mas-populares/|title=Talim es coronada como la protagonista más popular de la franquicia Soul Calibur|work=3DJuegos|access-date=2018-08-17|language=es}}</ref>

In a retrospective of how his design evolved between the along the course of the series, Cecilia D'Anastasio of Kotaku stated "When I was a little gaming baby playing SoulCalibur II, Nightmare’s demonesque appearance and weird sentient sword freaked me out." She added that while his armor design in ''Soulcalibur'' wasn't very interesting, "it didn't have to be: his torso sized claw and gory sword said what it needed to say." Describing his ''Soulcalibur II'' appearance as his "signature look", she praised the additions of his long red hair and extra organic detail added to Soul Edge, and stated the return to element of this look in ''Soulcalibur V'' as looking "very '']'' here". Lastly, she was critical of his appearance in ''Soulcalibur VI'', saying the development team had "sacrificed grit for glitz in his design—he's way less scarier than he's ever been.<ref>{{cite web |last=D'Anastasio |first=Cecilia |title=How SoulCalibur's Nightmare Has Changed Over 20 Years |date=2018-01-30 |website=Kotaku AU |url=https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/01/how-soulcaliburs-nightmare-has-changed-over-two-decades/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180129234105/https://www.kotaku.com.au/2018/01/how-soulcaliburs-nightmare-has-changed-over-two-decades/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 29, 2018 |accessdate=2023-04-26}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|}}


{{Soul characters}}


] ]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]

Latest revision as of 06:14, 26 December 2024

This article describes a work or element of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. Please help rewrite it to explain the fiction more clearly and provide non-fictional perspective. (April 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message)
Fictional character
Nightmare
Soulcalibur character
Nightmare from Soulcalibur III
First gameSoul Edge (1995)
Designed byAya Takemura and Takuji Kawano
Voiced by English
  • Ted D' Agostino (Soulcalibur II)
    Patrick Ryan (Soulcalibur III)
Japanese

Nightmare (Japanese: ナイトメア, Hepburn: Naitomea) is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the Soulcalibur series of video games. The evil possessor of Siegfried Schtauffen (ジークフリート・シュタウフェン, Jīkufurīto Shutaufen)'s body, he later becomes an entity entirely separated from Siegfried in Soulcalibur III onward. Nightmare is the living incarnation of Soul Edge and a vessel for Inferno.

Nightmare first appeared in one of the possible endings and as an alternative skin for the Siegfried character in the game Soul Edge. In the sequel Soulcalibur, he was given a name and featured as a central character. Ever since then, Nightmare has been a major antagonist, with his ownership of Soul Edge making him the objective of many other characters in the story. Nightmare has served as a recurring antagonist in contrast to the protagonist role played by Siegfried, as well as serving as Siegfried's archenemy until Soulcalibur V, where Graf Dumas (actually Raphael Sorel) becomes the new host for Nightmare/Soul Edge/Inferno. In Soulcalibur VI, which serves as a reboot, Siegfried is once again Nightmare/Inferno's host once more.

Nightmare has appeared in all the sequels to Soulcalibur with visual differences between each game. His fighting style was altered from Soulcalibur II to Soulcalibur III after Siegfried became a separate character.

Conception and design

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (September 2023)

During the development of Soulcalibur, Nightmare's helmet went through several iterations with an aim to give a sense of "pressure" and "emit an atmosphere that terrifies anyone who sees them." The finalized design was modeled after a unicorn, while his armor implemented imagery of a dragon, which the development team felt symbolized "evil, chaos and power". Early drafts of his design took inspiration from a chimera, with a lion's head on either his shoulder or chest, and one design featuring a snake in place of his right arm, and considered the idea of either head breathing fire or being able to bite opponents. They instead shifted took a more traditional look of a "black knight" with a large mutated arm gripping his sword. Said mutated left arm originally took inspiration from a fiddler crab, giving what the developers felt was a "heteromorphic" appearance to the character. While in the concept artwork Nightmare is depicted with his left arm mutated to hold the sword, in some early designs fused with the sword itself, in the final design his right arm is mutated instead, despite still wielding his sword with his left.

As for the weapon itself, while at one point they considered a coiled lance, most iterations kept the large zweihänder sword Siegfried had used in the original Soul Edge. Though there were concerns that early sketches of it being too big, the development team noted that by the final they made it even larger. Earlier drafts of it were given red pores and veins, meant to resemble a plant and to let one "feel the beauty even in the midst of fear" when looking at it, while elements such as a mouth and eye were added to give it a more organic appearance.

With Soulcalibur V, the character's appearance was changed dramatically, now designed with a bat motif in mind that designer Hirokai Kado suggested was significant, but did not clarify as to why.

Appearances

Even though Nightmare originally debuted in Soulcalibur, its predecessor, Soul Edge, featured a prototype of his character. In the home version, an extra character named "Siegfried!" was added as an unlockable character. "Siegfried!" was an alternate version of normal Siegfried taken from his no-input ending, where he was consumed by the cursed sword Soul Edge. This early version was much different from the former Nightmare, having crimson armor and a more flesh-like design, almost as if he were part of Soul Edge itself. He has no story nor ending, and only used Siegfried's Soul Edge without effects. In the conclusion of Soul Edge, Siegfried battled with the corrupted pirate Cervantes de Leon and eventually came into possession of the Soul Edge with its lingering spirit, Inferno. Soul Edge tempted Siegfried to wield it with a promise to resurrect his dead father in exchange for gathering souls for its consumption. Not knowing that he is just being used, Siegfried agreed and started killing people to gather souls. Eventually, Soul Edge consumed him and Nightmare is born.

Allying himself with Astaroth, Ivy, and Lizardman in the city of Ostrheinsburg, Nightmare attempted to completely restore Soul Edge. However, the attempt failed when his castle was attacked by Kilik, Xianghua, and Maxi, causing his allies to abandon him. Nightmare was eventually defeated by Xianghua, which caused Siegfried to realize that he is the one who killed his father. This allowed him to temporarily break free from Soul Edge's control. He then hid the sword and himself out from civilization to atone his sins that he committed when he was consumed by Soul Edge.

By Soulcalibur II, Soul Edge was able to take over Siegfried's mind. At first it was for short periods of time during his sleep, but eventually it took Siegfried's body completely and used him to cause destruction once more. Raphael Sorel, a former French nobleman pursuing the blade for his own scheme, challenged Nightmare. He was defeated, but managed to pierce Soul Edge's eye with his rapier. This caused the sword to lose control over Siegfried, and allowed him to defeat Inferno and break free once again. Siegfried then discovered Soul Calibur, released from Inferno's body after its defeat, and impaled Soul Edge's eye with it. With both swords sealed, Siegfried abandoned his old armor and left with them.

In Soulcalibur III, Zasalamel revived "Nightmare" in essence. Created as an avatar for a disembodied Inferno using the original armor as a shell, he pursued and eventually recovered his true body, Soul Edge. Nightmare also met Tira, who became his servant and manipulated others into protecting Soul Edge and sacrificing souls for Nightmare, to eventually become sacrifices themselves. Meanwhile, Zasalamel manipulated Siegfried, leading him to Nightmare, and wielding Soul Calibur, he clashed against Soul Edge. At the moment the swords struck a burst of energy was released; Siegfried was mortally wounded, while Soul Edge and its body were pulled into a warped dimension, eventually returning to Ostrheinsburg.

In Soulcalibur IV, Soul Calibur revived Siegfried, while Inferno restored Soul Edge fully and strengthened his hold over the animated armor that was Nightmare. Inferno then claimed the entire city of Ostrheinsburg as a vessel due to the fact that Nightmare lacked the capacity to contain his consciousness, and as a result, the city became cursed and many of its inhabitants were corrupted. Tira continued serving Nightmare and manipulating Astaroth, Sophitia and others into serving Soul Edge, in order to weaken Soul Calibur and provide Nightmare with the strength necessary to destroy the spirit sword. Nightmare would then clash against Siegfried in a final duel, though his plans were interfered with the appearance of Algol and the Tower of Remembrance.

As revealed in Soulcalibur V, Soul Edge is shattered and Nightmare ceases to be during his final duel with Siegfried. However, the blade is brought back to life by pieces collected by its servants. Nightmare is reborn in the body of Raphael and assumes the alias of Graf Dumas. From there, Dumas works his way into the graces of the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II and is installed as the ruler of Hungary. Dumas exploits the war with the Ottomans to consume more souls and initiate a widespread search for the remaining fragments of Soul Edge. Unknown to him, his former servant Tira had been working to create a new Nightmare as she is not satisfied with Dumas.

Dumas manipulates one of his soldiers, Patroklos Alexander, into killing people corrupted by Soul Edge known as Malfested in exchange for help in his search to find his missing sister, Pyrrha. Patroklos revolts and flees from service. Dumas later discovers Patroklos and Pyrrha and reveals himself as Nightmare. He forces Pyrrha's hidden Soul Edge power to consume her, causing Patroklos to abandon her. Nightmare then initiated a war throughout Europe with his newfound power, but is eventually struck down and killed by Z.W.E.I., a young man whom he previously tried to hunt. Though Pyrrha Omega kills Z.W.E.I., Inferno makes her the new host for Soul Edge. She is defeated by Patrokalos and both Soul Edge and Soul Calibur are sealed in the Astral Chaos.

Nightmare returned as a playable character in Soulcalibur VI. The game revisits the events of the original Soulcalibur and shows Nightmare possessing Siegfried once more.

Other appearances

Outside of the Soul series, Nightmare appeared in Seme COM Dungeon: Drururuaga where the player can obtain him as an "ally" and use his armor along with Soul Edge. Soul Edge also appeared as an enemy in Namco x Capcom where its shards became Charade and was fought as enemies, and made a cameo in Retro Game Challenge. A Sackboy costume of Nightmare was released as a DLC for LittleBigPlanet 3.

In 2000, Epoch C-Works released a series of action figures based upon the original Soulcalibur, amongst them Nightmare. The semi-posable figure came with equipable weapons from the title in the same package. In 2003, Todd McFarlane Productions released a Nightmare sculpture amongst a set of five based on characters from Soulcalibur II. The immobile figure was modeled after his primary outfit and stood six inches tall with a base.

Siegfried and Nightmare both appear in Soulcalibur manga and make a guest appearance as cards in a mobile video game Outcast Odyssey and in many cards in Universal Fighting System. They are also both featured on the official Soulcalibur VI arcade stick.

Promotion and reception

In 2000, Epoch C-Works released a series of action figures based upon the original Soulcalibur, amongst them Nightmare. The semi-posable figure came with equipable weapons from the title in the same package. In August 2003, Todd McFarlane Productions released a Nightmare sculpture amongst a set of five based on characters from Soulcalibur II. The immobile figure was modeled after his primary outfit and stood six inches tall with a base. Nightmare's likeness was used as the basis for a costume for Sackboy in LittleBigPlanet 3, as part of a Soulcalibur themed costume pack for the title.

The staff of UGO.com praised him as the best character in the series, stating "Was there ever really any question? Not for us", and further praising his role as a playable "badass" villain. IGN listed him as a character they wished to see in Super Smash Bros. Brawl as a playable guest villain, though noted he was also "too extreme" for the series. In a later article on the Soul series itself, they noted "a Soul game simply feels incomplete without an appearance by the warring personalities of Siegfried and Nightmare", and praised the contrast between Siegfried's angelic figure and Nightmare's demonic form. In Game Informer's 2009 list of best fighting game characters, Nightmare placed second.

In a 2002 poll by Namco prior to the release of Soulcalibur II regarding their favorite character, Siegfried placed ninth with 2.5% of the tally, tied with Mitsurugi. In Bandai Namco's 2015 poll, Siegfried was voted the sixth most popular characters from the series, followed by Nightmare.

In a retrospective of how his design evolved between the along the course of the series, Cecilia D'Anastasio of Kotaku stated "When I was a little gaming baby playing SoulCalibur II, Nightmare’s demonesque appearance and weird sentient sword freaked me out." She added that while his armor design in Soulcalibur wasn't very interesting, "it didn't have to be: his torso sized claw and gory sword said what it needed to say." Describing his Soulcalibur II appearance as his "signature look", she praised the additions of his long red hair and extra organic detail added to Soul Edge, and stated the return to element of this look in Soulcalibur V as looking "very Dark Souls here". Lastly, she was critical of his appearance in Soulcalibur VI, saying the development team had "sacrificed grit for glitz in his design—he's way less scarier than he's ever been.

References

  1. Namco Bandai Entertainment America (6 July 2011). "SoulCalibur V - Behind The Game". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2023-04-25. Retrieved 2023-04-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. ^ "Nightmare Voices (Soulcalibur)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved 16 September 2019. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of the title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  3. Project Soul. Soulcalibur Legends. Bandai Namco Games. Scene: Ending credits, 9:33 in, VOICE OVER ACTORS (Japanese).
  4. Project Soul. Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny. Bandai Namco Games. Scene: Ending credits, 5:23 in, VOICE OVER ACTORS JAPANESE.
  5. ^ Namco (1999). Legend of Soulcalibur (in Japanese). Honored. pp. 128–131. ISBN 9784877196608.
  6. ^ @Soulcalibur (October 19, 2020). "This is the concept art of Nightmare. The armor is a refinement of SC1's "unicorn" inspired design. His armor is decorated with a dragon, a symbol of evil, chaos and power. The final image was clear from the beginning. So his design was finished on quickly. #SOULCALIBUR Early" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 2022-07-06 – via Twitter.
  7. "SOULCALIBUR™ Nightmare Costume – LBP™ 3". PlayStation™Store. Retrieved 2018-08-18.
  8. Nightmare (Completed) Package 1. Hobby Search. Retrieved on 2008-09-07
  9. Nightmare Soul Calibur II Archived 2008-09-14 at the Wayback Machine. Spawn.com. Retrieved on 2008-08-02
  10. "『ソウルキャリバー VI』デザインのアーケードスティックが登場！人気キャラクターをあしらったオリジナルモデル | インサイド". インサイド (in Japanese). Retrieved 2018-08-17.
  11. Nightmare (Completed) Package 1. Hobby Search. Retrieved on 2008-09-07
  12. Nightmare Soul Calibur II Archived 2008-09-14 at the Wayback Machine. Spawn.com. Retrieved on 2008-08-02
  13. Sony Interactive Entertainment. "LittleBigPlanet™ 3 SOULCALIBUR™ Costume Pack". PlayStation Store. Retrieved 2023-04-28.
  14. Top 11 SoulCalibur Fighters Archived 2008-09-01 at the Wayback Machine. UGO.com. Retrieved on 2008-08-29
  15. Thomas, Lucas M. (2007-06-27). Smash It Up! Volume 2. IGN. Retrieved on 2008-09-13
  16. Schedeen, Jesse (2008-07-30). Soulcalibur: The Top Ten Fighters. IGN. Retrieved on 2008-07-30
  17. "Top Ten Best Fighting Game Characters". Game Informer. GameStop Corporation. August 2009. ISSN 1067-6392.
  18. Soul Calibur 2 -- New Screens And Character Info. Retrieved on 2008-08-02
  19. "Talim es coronada como la protagonista más popular de la franquicia Soul Calibur". 3DJuegos (in Spanish). Retrieved 2018-08-17.
  20. D'Anastasio, Cecilia (2018-01-30). "How SoulCalibur's Nightmare Has Changed Over 20 Years". Kotaku AU. Archived from the original on January 29, 2018. Retrieved 2023-04-26.

External links

Soulcalibur
Games
Other
Characters
Guest
Related articles
Categories: