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Talim (タリム, Tarimu) is a fictional character in the Soul series of video games. Created by Namco's Project Soul division and designed by Aya Takemura and Takuji Kawano, she first appeared in Soulcalibur II and its subsequent sequels with the exception of Soulcalibur Legends, as well as on various merchandise related to the series. She was voiced in Japanese by Yukari Tamura; in English, Talim was voiced by Julie Parker in Soulcalibur II and Hynden Walch for the remaining titles.

Talim is regarded as the first Filipina character introduced to the fighting game genre. In the character's native Tagalog language, her name means "edge" or "sharp".

Conception and history

As a character introduced in Soulcalibur II, Talim's weapons, a pair of elbow blades, were decided upon before other aspects of the character were. Originally considered for the first Soulcalibur game, the weapons were selected to be unique amongst the others characters' weapons in the title. Her design and concept were built to revolve around them, starting with gender, then physical measurements, and lastly background details. Once established her appearance and movement were fleshed out by the team's concept artist Aya Takemura and rendered as a 3D model by a design team that worked solely on the character. Talim was then animated by a motion designer using motion capture and working directly with the team. During this phase the team additionally worked with the Soulcalibur story creators, refining the character's own role in the plot as needed throughout development.

Talim's weapons were built around the concept of dual-weapon usage, with special emphasis that while bladed, the weapons themselves were not actual tonfa. During development it was considered to allow them to transform and be sentient, however the idea was abandoned. Talim's character concept was designed around the idea of introducing a young female character that the developers felt the series lacked, while at the same time making her appear androgynous.

Design

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In video games

In the Village of the Wind Deity, Samar (Nayong Anito ng Hangin), there lived a tribe of people who could control the winds. Talim was the granddaughter of this village's elder, Kalana, and daughter of its shaman, Lidi. Due to turmoil caused by the influences of Spanish and Portuguese culture, she was reared to be its last priestess (Babaylan). The day that the Evil Seed spread across the world, Talim felt the winds, and an evil aura that devoured everything in its path surged into her body, causing her to lose consciousness for days. Years later, when Talim was fifteen years old, a man from the west brought with him a strange metal fragment, claiming it to be a vitality charm. Talim, however, recognized the evil energy as the same energy she had experienced years before and left on a journey, believing that if she were to return the fragment to its rightful place, peace would eventually be restored, despite the elders' misgivings.

Having collected several of the fragments, she eventually learned that the source of the evil energy was an evil sword called Soul Edge. Sensing another source of evil energy, Talim traveled to a mountain range. She arrived at a watermill, home to a group of children. One of them was ill and giving off the evil aura, so Talim stayed to tend to him. A young man named Hong Yun-seong arrived later as Talim grew accustomed to life in the watermill, also searching for clues regarding Soul Edge, and came to stay with Talim and the children. To heal the child, Talim came up with the idea of passing the evil energy through her own body and out into the wind. Though she tried to release the evil gradually, both the boy and Talim suffered. Talim finally decided to release all of the energy from within the boy into the wind at once. When the ritual ended, not a single remnant of evil energy was left in either of their bodies. In the instant that Talim had opened her heart, something had exorcised the evil energy.

She then left the watermill with Yun-seong and continued to search for Soul Edge in Soulcalibur IV. They met Seong Mi-na on their travels, and together she and Talim tried to convince Yun-seong of the dangers in attempting to attain Soul Edge's power. However, Yun-seong vanished the next day, leaving both of them worried but hoping he would make the right choice. The two parted ways: Mi-na to look for Yun-seong, while Talim carried on the search for Soul Edge alone.

Gameplay

Talim wields Syi Salika & Loka Luha, a pair of tonfa-like weapons called Elbow Blades, used by the wind-worshipping people of Southeast Asia in ceremonial dances and thus are more ritual items rather than weapons. Her movement and fighting style were designed around her culture and a bird-theme, emphasizing close horizontal strikes upon opponents as well as freedom of movement. In Soulcalibur III, these weapons, and Talim's "Wind Dance" fighting style are available under the discipline Soul of Talim to characters created under the Saint class. The names of her moves are mostly in Filipino language.

Promotion and reception

Talim has been received warmly, with reviews of Soulcalibur II naming her "a welcome addition to the line-up" as well as a "speed demon". GameNOW described her as "profoundly unique not only to SC2, but to fighting games in general." GameSpy stated Talim's "unpredictable nature" made her interesting, though added "she's almost too cute to fit in with the rest of the SCII crew". Insert Credit's Tim Rogers called Talim "the cutest of the young girl characters in ''Soulcalibur II'' by far," and a preference for her symmetrical outfits. The New York Times noted that her speed and "expertise" compensated for her small stature. The Manila Bulletin described Talim as "a very beautiful young girl with very fast circular attacks", noting her speed compensates for her small stature.

Electronic Gaming Monthly noted a positive impression in her ability to fight against the title's much larger male characters, an effect University of Delaware professor Rachel Hutchinson described as "entertainment through deviation from the norm" against stereotypical gender expectations. Despite her age, Talim has been utilized in material revolving around her sex appeal as a female character, such as PSM's swimsuit issues and Play's "Girls of Gaming" publications. Reviewers have noted concern over the character's portrayal in such material, describing it as "troubling".

References

1. Game Credits for SoulCalibur II. MobyGames. Retrieved on 2009-04-08
2. ^ OPM staff. Behind the Game: Soul Calibur III. 1Up.com. Retrieved on 2008-07-30
3. Staff (2000-01-01). Soul Calibur II Review. 1UP.com. Retrieved on 2008-12-03
4. 開発者公募１. Namco Bandai. Retrieved on 2008-09-06
5. De Marco, Flynn (2007-09-20). Tgs07: Soul Calibur Director Katsutoshi Sasaki on Weapons, Characters and Storyline. Kotaku. Retrieved on 2008-07-30
6. CVG staff (2005-10-10). Soul Calibur III Interview. CVG. Retrieved on 2008-09-05
7. ^ 「ソウルキャリバーII」開発者インタビュー. Impress.Watch. Retrieved on 2008-10-18
8. Soulcalibur II, Talim Character Profile
9. Soulcalibur III, Talim Character Profile
10. Soul Calibur II review. talkxbox. Retrieved on 2008-08-30
11. Soul Calibur II video game review. Game Revolution. Retrieved on 2008-08-30
12. GameNOW staff (September 2003). "New to SC2". GameNOW
13. Nutt, Christian (2003-08-26). Soulcalibur II Review. GameSpy. Retrieved on 2008-08-24
14. Rogers, Tim (2003-04-07) Soul Calibur II Review. Insert Credit. Retrieved on 2008-08-04
15. Kasavin, Greg (2003-08-26). Soul Calibur II (Xbox). The New York Times. Retrieved on 2008-09-03
16. Staff (2004-04-14). "Great Games (Must have games for the PS2); Soul Calibur II". Manila Bulletin. Manila Bulletin Publishing Corp. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
17. Eliot, Shawn (2000-01-01). Soul Calibur II. 1UP.com. Retrieved on 2008-12-17
18. Hutchinson, Rachel (2007). "Performing the Self: Subverting the Binary in Combat Games". Games and Culture. 2 (4): 283. doi:10.1177/1555412007307953. Retrieved 2008-12-17. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
19. PSM Staff (June 2003). "Girls of Summer". PSM
20. Play Staff. "Girls of Gaming 5.5". Play
21. Hodges, Gary (2008-08-06). Lightsabers and Tits in Soul Calibur IV. Village Voice. Retrieved on 2008-11-25

• Female video game characters
• Fictional priests and priestesses
• Fictional shamans
• Fictional women soldiers and warriors