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[RK9039]

Tell me more.

It adds to the immersion. If my character is naked then I should also be naked. It allows me to transport myself into another world where I am no longer just 'playing' the game, instead it becomes a case where 'I am in the game'.

Immersion.

 

[Foffy]

It adds to the immersion. If my character is naked then I should also be naked. It allows me to transport myself into another world where I am no longer just 'playing' the game, instead it becomes a case where 'I am in the game'.

Immersion.

So..if your character has sex...what do you use?

 

[cormack12]

Downloaded this before. I liked LoS1, felt the bit in the wasteland swamp thing dragged on a bit and didn't particularly like the music box puzzle, but still enjoyed it thoroughly.

Reading Edge's list though I have to offer some sort of riposte

- attacks feel weightless
Bit harsh. The claws especially have a satisfying weight crashing off the metal shields. The whip (or equivalent) is pretty similar to god of wars blades of athena/exile. The sword - kind of I guess, but still not sold. Also when you dodge you clatter into enemies and can send them sprawling/off-balance.

- lack of hit-stun on enemies
If you hit an enemy enough they are stunned so you can drink their blood. There's no beat 'em up type stun. It took a few seconds to get used to but I think it will be for the better. It makes you use the mechanics and time dodges a lot more carefully. I can see how people might think it a headache though

- no invincibility frames on dodge move
My own personal opinion won't carry much weight here. I don't think these are a really big deal. I don't like games where you have to take advantage of 'invincibility frames' anyway. It feels cheap to me. However, again this is a timing issue I thought. You have to wait a split second longer before dodging otherwise you get caught. Classic risk/reward system.

- wonky camera
Free camera? Not sure.


I thought it more likely to see comments about the enemies changing direction mid lunge, which was quite equalling but annoying. Likewise, when sent to the floor, despite using the quick recover enemies still got a surprising amount of second follow up floor stabs in. Sometimes the flashing of the claws/blades/whip also make it slightly hard to see enemies bearing down on you.

It says Press R2 to show paths as well, isn't that what the bats are doing though?

 

[Camp Lo]

God bless 'mersion

 

[RK9039]

So..if your character has sex...what do you use?

Anything.

That's when you have to be really creative. But it's only for people who are at that level of immersionness, like myself. I am an expert in this field. I am naked as I'm typing this.

 

[Sanctuary]

- lack of hit-stun on enemies
If you hit an enemy enough they are stunned so you can drink their blood. There's no beat 'em up type stun. It took a few seconds to get used to but I think it will be for the better. It makes you use the mechanics and time dodges a lot more carefully. I can see how people might think it a headache though

That isn't hit stun, that's just "they are almost dead, now finish them off".

- no invincibility frames on dodge move
My own personal opinion won't carry much weight here. I don't think these are a really big deal. I don't like games where you have to take advantage of 'invincibility frames' anyway. It feels cheap to me. However, again this is a timing issue I thought. You have to wait a split second longer before dodging otherwise you get caught. Classic risk/reward system.

The dodging is servicable, but even in the first game I kept thinking "What is the fucking point of this useless dodge?!" because of how often I would dodge while seeing the startup animation of a big or AoE attack, only to get clipped while dodging. In this day and age where almost every good action game has a dodge with at least a few i-frames, it's almost unacceptable for it not to be included, especially when you consider all of the games MS borrowed from.

On a similar note, because all of the parryable (is that even a word?) moves in the first game had the exact same animation as the unblockable moves, there was no reason to actually go for a parry. Sure, you had a second to see the flash of an unblockable to dodge, but it was so unsafe that it wasn't worth bothering with parrying at all and it was better to simply remain at a distance.

- wonky camera
Free camera? Not sure.

The camera in the demo was wonky if you didn't try adjusting it at all manually. Having to fidget with a camera though during combat is just going to bring back Ninja Gaiden nightmare flashbacks.

 

[Samir Sedlar]

New trailer highlighting the combat claws

Looking Awesome, Loves how Dracul evades and breaks that spear.

 

[Morrigan Stark]

It also seems like more often than not, the music keeps getting compared to what it's not, instead of judging it for what it is.

Nah, it's really just plain boring.

As awesome of a soundtrack that SoTN has, it definitely wouldn't fit on either of the LoS games.

of course it won't. LoS series try to keep a darker atmosphere so something from Sotn won't fit at all.

If you say so, yet the majority of the time what happens is people list games that had better music, and in general it was the rock/poppy kind.

You guys do realize SotN had other tracks beyond Dracula's Castle and The Tragic Prince, right? In fact, the majority of the tracks in SotN were dark baroque-like pieces and very atmospheric, not rock/pop. -_-

 

[Sanctuary]

You guys do realize SotN had other tracks beyond Dracula's Castle and The Tragic Prince, right? In fact, the majority of the tracks in SotN were dark baroque-like pieces and very atmospheric, not rock/pop. -_-

There are a handful of other songs that have a gothic metal or progressive sound to them. As a whole though, you're right, they aren't the majority.

Plus, I can only speak for myself, but when someone asks me to remember any Castlevania songs, the first that always pops into my head is This.

That's anything but atmospheric. Similarly, while Dracula's Castle might not be a good example for the entire SoTN soundtrack, it's definitely the one that stands out the most. And I actually only even bothered citing SoTN since the majority that bitched about LoS acted like no Castlevania games existed prior, and that the series was always a Metroidvania style. Then when people were bitching about the music, all they would post were the rock/metal/pop songs from the various releases from SoTN onward.

 

[Morrigan Stark]

Only if you engage in selective reading, because I posted tons of those atmospheric songs in past threads. I can link to them if you'd like.

 

[Facism]

no hitstun? I was hitstunning enemies out of their unblockables int he demo with the gauntlet Y attacks.

 

[Maedhros]

Only if you engage in selective reading, because I posted tons of those atmospheric songs in past threads. I can link to them if you'd like.

Oscar Araujo is a king, you can't badmouth him dude/dudette!

I don't really care if the soundtrack got awards, that just means that some influential people liked it, for me it's boring as shit. I hate to listen it outside the game and I don't remember a single one (even though I finished LoS just 2 months ago).

LoS 2 is shapping to be a bad game if the reviews continues like that. At least it's the end of this saga. I hope that they outsource the series to another developer who won't try to transform the game into something almost unrecognizable.

 

[Valnen]

no hitstun? I was hitstunning enemies out of their unblockables int he demo with the gauntlet Y attacks.

Not to mention you're supposed to parry/dodge, you can't just mash attack and win or only dodge and win. I'm not sure their complaints will hold up, but we'll see.

 

[jonno394]

Not to mention you're supposed to parry/dodge, you can't just mash attack and win or only dodge and win. I'm not sure their complaints will hold up, but we'll see.

Yeah I just re-played the demo and the enemies seemed to stumble under attacks, and the Y claw attack was the best at pushing guys back.

This guy is too sexy not to buy the game

 

[Ahasverus]

LoS 2 is shapping to be a bad game if the reviews continues like that. At least it's the end of this saga. I hope that they outsource the series to another developer who won't try to transform the game into something almost unrecognizable.

You wish. It's 2 out of 4. The others 2 being an 8 (from a gaffer for a dutch magazines) and a 9 (finnish magazine).

 

[ToraShiro]

I don't know who this Bergaron guy is but thanks for the confirmation. Maybe you should turn yourself over to PR while you are at it.

Followed up by reading his posts on the Castlevania Dungeon. I don't think he's with MS at all. I jumped the gun on my assumptions, and I apologize.

 

[Maedhros]

You wish. It's 2 out of 4. The others 2 being an 8 (from a gaffer for a dutch magazines) and a 9 (finnish magazine).

These two later reviews don't really have the same importance as the former two, which are much more accessed and popular.

Almost every game will have scores ranging from good to bad. Them problem is when the popular review sites start to giving the game bad notes. You can be sure it'll be negative toward the game AND series.

 

[nckillthegrimace]

It bothered me that the demo cuts off right before the fight with Goldar.

 

[Camp Lo]

It bothered me that the demo cuts off right before the fight with Goldar.

Those pesky cliffhangers.

These two later reviews don't really have the same importance as the former two, which are much more accessed and popular.

Almost every game will have scores ranging from good to bad. Them problem is when the popular review sites start to giving the game bad notes. You can be sure it'll be negative toward the game AND series.

I hope it doesn't affect the series, I need another CVHD. I spent hundreds of hours farming in that game.

 

[Ahasverus]

These two later reviews don't really have the same importance as the former two, which are much more accessed and popular.

Almost every game will have scores ranging from good to bad. Them problem is when the popular review sites start to giving the game bad notes. You can be sure it'll be negative toward the game AND series.

That's what worries me about all. I can enjoy the game enyway (I liked Curse of Darkness) but its failure supposes risk of death for the entire series.

It bothered me that the demo cuts off right before the fight with Goldar.

Goldar lol

 

[Sanctuary]

Not to mention you're supposed to parry/dodge, you can't just mash attack and win or only dodge and win. I'm not sure their complaints will hold up, but we'll see.

Did you actually play the first game? Enemies would knock you out of combos left and right without any problem, while you had to constantly remain at a distance, hitting and rolling. It has nothing to do with "mashing attack" either. What exactly is the purpose of 90% of combos or specials (good luck EVER getting the 9x combo off on anything) if you can't even land them on anything?

Eventually the game would devolve into hitting either X or Y and then A to lift all enemies up with you using the upward guillotine (or just doing Ultimate Light, Ultimate Dark). That move also put you above many of the attacks that enemies would bat you around the screen with any time you'd jump, prior to it unlocking.

The irony is, because the combos were so badly implemented and the hitstun virtually non existent (it would *sometimes* give you a 1-2s advantage against trash like small werewolves or goblins at max range), it made playing on Paladin a joke, since the gameplay didn't really change from Knight. Same thing applies to the no upgrade runs. It all boiled down to hit, dodge, hit, hit dodge and you were better off just ignoring the rune bar and throwing every weak enemy.

 

[TheFLYINGManga_Ka]

Played it on a PC! Glorious at max settings.

 

[Necromanti]

Played it on a PC! Glorious at max settings.

I'm trying to do this, but it crashes every time I change the resolution. (I wish there was a way to access that menu without having to skip through the first cutscene as well.)

 

[Parsnip]

These two later reviews don't really have the same importance as the former two, which are much more accessed and popular.

On the contrary, I kind of couldn't care less about what GI or Edge have to say, but that Finnish review I do care about.

 

[BPoole]

The only overly positive thing I can say about it is that it looks fantastic on PC. I did have some issues with textures flickering and menus popping up for a split second and closing. Combat seemed a bit improved over the first, but it's still nothing to write home about. The gold armor boss was simple and the climbing on the titan thing was just tedious. I'll probably buy it during the summer sale when it's ~$30

 

[Sanctuary]

On the contrary, I kind of couldn't care less about what GI or Edge have to say, but that Finnish review I do care about.

Pretty sure he was talking about a popularity contest. And in that, sites like Edge, Destructoid, RPS, Polygon (bleh), IGN + Gamespot (especially) hold more weight for the masses than an obscure-to-most review from overseas.

 

[Parsnip]

Pretty sure he was talking about a popularity contest. And in that, sites like Edge, Destructoid, RPS, Polygon (bleh), IGN + Gamespot (especially) hold more weight for the masses than an obscure-to-most review from overseas.

Perhaps.
It feels great to not be part of these masses.



I think the franchise will survive regardless of how LoS2 ends up being in the end. If CV can survive Harmony of Despair and Judgement, it can survive anything.

 

[Wonko_C]

Perhaps.
It feels great to not be part of these masses.



I think the franchise will survive regardless of how LoS2 ends up being in the end. If CV can survive Harmony of Despair and Judgement, it can survive anything.

Harmony of Despair was actually a success.

 

[Necromanti]

I'm trying to do this, but it crashes every time I change the resolution. (I wish there was a way to access that menu without having to skip through the first cutscene as well.)

Finally got that working. I still got quite a bit of screen tearing, though, even with V-sync enabled. Not sure why.

Anyway, hopefully the Void Sword is nerfed in the final game. It makes things way too easy and makes feeding irrelevant. The game mostly looks really good, though. I can't say I was too hot on the platforming or protracted zoom-in hints, but it wasn't difficult, at least.

I'm not sure what I expected. The concept of the game, at least, seemed really strong. I guess I will wait for further impressions of the game before I can cement a better opinion.

 

[Riposte]

Is there anything that functions like the magic system in the first one?

 

[Fimbulvetr]

Is there anything that functions like the magic system in the first one?

You mean the Focus Meter and orb collection? If so, it's still there, just not until Gabriel loses his powers apparently.

The Void Sword and Chaos Claws are essentially the replacements for Light and Dark magic.

 

[emag]

Is there anything that functions like the magic system in the first one?

Yes. The sword and claws have magic meters associated with them. Sword heals, claws so extra damage. In the demo, the meters ate unlimited, but presumably not so for the bulk of the game.

 

[Sanctuary]

I'm just hoping there's a dash attack with either of the melee weapons. Sure, you can simply "dodge" forward and then attack, but it's not the same thing and felt really cumbersome against the boss trying to play that way.

 

[Nordicus]

SO i've read the review. PC gamers might want to see the review as a 5/6 seeing as EDGE reviewed the PS3 copy and some of their grievances were related to poor textures, 720p resolution, fog, loading times etc. Judging by the demo, this will look and run beautifully on a good PC.

Not even a good PC is necessarily needed. My GTS450 ran the demo like a dream on high settings. I was legit surprised

 

[Parsnip]

Harmony of Despair was actually a success.

Financially? Sure, I'll buy that. People bought it because it looked like the Iga games they loved.

My impression of what happened afterwards is obviously colored by my immediate peers, but I observed a huge backslash because the game wasn't at all what they were hoping for. And it was also shitty. I even know a handful of people who wrote off any and all CV games because of it. Major overreaction for sure, and I imagine some of these people went back on their word when LoS was revealed.

Anyways, Castlevania survives.

 

[Samir Sedlar]

Pretty sure he was talking about a popularity contest. And in that, sites like Edge, Destructoid, RPS, Polygon (bleh), IGN + Gamespot (especially) hold more weight for the masses than an obscure-to-most review from overseas.

This is true, but didn't these sites favor DmC so much ?!, yet the public didn't and it wasn't that big of a success, same can be said about Bayonetta 1 to a degree, and worst of all Resident Evil Operation Raccoon City which scored way low and was really bad, yet was a huge success for Capcom ((I know Resident Evil name sells))

Anyways, Castlevania survives.

Agree it will.

 

[CouchMaster]

no hitstun? I was hitstunning enemies out of their unblockables int he demo with the gauntlet Y attacks.

IMO its not about hit-stun but that fact that you can not stop an attacking enemy with your own attack. Only way you can survive is either evade or block and wait till his combo ends, which should not be the case. If my hit connects while the enemy is still mid-animation, it should stop the attack and cause a stumble unless it is some superheavy mini-boss hammer swing.

 

[Samir Sedlar]

For all European PS3 players, pre-order #CVLOS2 on the PSN and get a free copy of Mirror of Fate HD. #BloodIsEverything

https://twitter.com/konamieu/status/434327507890745344

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A great deal, but I kinda wish it was also with the disc release.

 

[jonno394]

https://twitter.com/konamieu/status/434327507890745344

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A great deal, but I kinda wish it was also with the disc release.

Damn, wish we had that on STEAM. Great deal.

 

[Violater]

Can't say I was overly impressed with the demo, also do you guys think the combat could benefit from some sort of lock on mechanic?

 

[Jimmyfenix]

https://twitter.com/konamieu/status/434327507890745344

=======================
A great deal, but I kinda wish it was also with the disc release.

Good deal!

 

[Szadek]

Can't say I was overly impressed with the demo, also do you guys think the combat could benefit from some sort of lock on mechanic?

Either that or put the attack commands on R1 and L1,that could work, too.

 

[hey_it's_that_dog]

There wouldn't happen to be a way to skip cutscenes without pausing and selecting skip, would there? Most of the little interruptions in the demo are skippable (thankfully), but you have to pause to do it.

Can't say I was overly impressed with the demo, also do you guys think the combat could benefit from some sort of lock on mechanic?

I never had any issues with targeting in this demo or LOS1. (Unless you're talking about as a way to manage the free camera during combat, in which case, I don't have an opinion based on the demo, but it might be handy when shit gets crazy later.) I think the main problems with the combat will be the questionable utility of longer combo strings given the propensity for enemies to interrupt you, and the extremely flashy visual effects that obscure your opponents almost completely. Once again, Mercury Steam has made their combat system as much a test of your eyesight as a test of your reflexes and tactical ability.

 

[ZeroX03]

Glad to see they got the MoF pre-order bonus in there somehow. Really tempted. It's $20 cheaper than any retailers here are selling it for on PS3. But at the same time, I love physical for PS3, but my computer plays this wonderfully and it's cheaper, but I also have a trophy fetish. Decisions...

 

[Samir Sedlar]

Can't say I was overly impressed with the demo, also do you guys think the combat could benefit from some sort of lock on mechanic?

I am not sure about the lock on thing, I like it when it is free more.

There wouldn't happen to be a way to skip cutscenes without pausing and selecting skip, would there? Most of the little interruptions in the demo are skippable (thankfully), but you have to pause to do it.

Personally that is for the best, so that I don't skip something by mistake, and you can pause the cutscene if you need to do something.

There is no way around it that I am aware of, though I'd love for other devs to do a similar system where I can pause any cutscene.

 

[Violater]

Either that or put the attack commands on R1 and L1,that could work, too.

I never had any issues with targeting in this demo or LOS1. (Unless you're talking about as a way to manage the free camera during combat, in which case, I don't have an opinion based on the demo, but it might be handy when shit gets crazy later.)

Exactly what I was thinking. the introduction of the free camera system while good might open up other issues when dealing with large groups of enemies on higher difficulties.

 

[hlhbk]

https://twitter.com/konamieu/status/434327507890745344

=======================
A great deal, but I kinda wish it was also with the disc release.

Where is this on the PC Konami? Unacceptable.

 

[hey_it's_that_dog]

I am not sure about the lock on thing, I like it when it is free more.


Personally that is for the best, so that I don't skip something by mistake, and you can pause the cutscene if you need to do something.

There is no way around it that I am aware of, though I'd love for other devs to do a similar system where I can pause any cutscene.

It's not for the best, it's annoying. Bayonetta allows you to pause during cutscenes but also has a 2-button command that instantly skips them. I don't need to see a group of 3 knights jump down into the arena for the 3rd time in 2 minutes.

Granted, I just want to skip things in the demo so I can play the action parts again. I wouldn't skip everything if I were playing the full game for the first time. But if it actually turned out to be a good action game, then I certainly would want to play it again and skip all the bullshit.

 

[Sanctuary]

This is true, but didn't these sites favor DmC so much ?!, yet the public didn't and it wasn't that big of a success, same can be said about Bayonetta 1 to a degree.

Some people just want to watch the internet burn. DMC doesn't deserve all of the hate at all. It has its issues (namely bosses), but it's a good action game. It's just not what the vocal minority screamed for, who in turn set forums ablaze with negativity. You'd think with all of the bitching that it was as bad as something like FFXIII. At least it mostly stayed true to its roots.

IMO its not about hit-stun but that fact that you can not stop an attacking enemy with your own attack. Only way you can survive is either evade or block and wait till his combo ends, which should not be the case. If my hit connects while the enemy is still mid-animation, it should stop the attack and cause a stumble unless it is some superheavy mini-boss hammer swing.

That's pretty much what hit stun is. You should be able to "mini stagger" them with certain hits, which in turn allows you to continue a combo up to a point. Not exactly the same, but very similar to how it works in a fighting game. He's not wrong about the gauntlet Y attack stopping enemies that are throwing up unblockables though. I replayed the demo just to check on that, but then again I didn't use the Y attack that much in my first playthrough. That just seems like an odd outlier, because the whip never did that in the first game, doesn't do it in this game and the sword definitely doesn't do that.

 

[MYE]

This is true, but didn't these sites favor DmC so much ?!, yet the public didn't and it wasn't that big of a success

The "public" was wrong. DmC is great