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[Ahasverus]

I remember

Spoiler

one of the soldier's diaries made it pretty clear regarding Carmilla

, and there are other clues here and there, including a line he says right when you first arrive on the castle's balcony.

Yep.

Spoiler

It's the castle who creates that illusion by himself, the place is real, but some of its inhabitants are manifestations of Dracula's power and memories. Dracula justhas the power to see the "real Castle" behind modern times

You can see that -SPOILERS!-

Spoiler

at the end of the second acolyte fight when Dracula takes him from the real world to the castle, so the Caslte is confirmed an actuall physical place, which only Dracula and who he deems so necessary can access

 

[brandonh83]

Game is nuts. I have no idea how far I am from the end.

Spoiler

I just started the "hooded man" chase, which is obviously Julius, and I jump up onto some roofage but I have no idea how to proceed

 

[Sanctuary]

I remember

Spoiler

one of the soldier's diaries made it pretty clear regarding Carmilla

, and there are other clues here and there, including a line he says right when you first arrive on the castle's balcony.

I think reading the

Spoiler

White Wolf Medallion

text would have been kind of a giveaway, and I'm not sure how I completely missed reading it; since I've read everything else.
Gabriel also asks

Spoiler

"is this just a dream?" when he's about to leave, and when he exits the portal for the first time, he says "Back to the real world".

Getting his powers, health and magic back

Spoiler

psychologically makes sense, but how do you explain all of the relics?

 

[PeregrinSe7en]

so the low review scores are unfounded then. ill take gafs word over the so called gaming journalism.

 

[Camp Lo]

Don't know how many hours I've put in but I'm tired of rats and I hate the fucking future. Beating this game is feeling like a chore now.

 

[K.Sabot]

Super critical bug during LATE GAME SPOILER

Spoiler

the zobek fight. If you get grabbed by the zombies in the second phase and you mist out of it, it can randomly soft-lock by not letting you get out of mist form.

This has happened to me a couple times and it's a bummer, this is PC version by the way.

Game's a treat so far, save for this terrible bug.

 

[Bloodworth]

Getting his powers, health and magic back

Spoiler

psychologically makes sense, but how do you explain all of the relics?

Spoiler

Because it's not simply imaginary. It's created by his mind, but it's very much a real place. Sort of calls back to how Dracula's castle reappeared when he came back in some of the older games. Not sure how much farther you've gotten, but you should see a bit more soon.
EDIT: If he were stronger, I wouldn't be surprised if the castle could actually impose itself back on the real world.

 

[Shinta]

You guys weren't kidding about the bosses.

Spoiler

Carmilla

was awesome.

Spoiler

Mist form

definitely is fun to use.

 

[Dartastic]

I haven't played much so far, but in the first hour of the game I can definitely see the complaint of a slooooow start. There's no immediacy. None. Blargh.

 

[-tetsuo-]

Mercurysteam needs to learn how to start games. After the first couple hours and first couple of bad modern day sections it is starting to pick up.

 

[K.Sabot]

Finished.

Was awesome. Spent a long time waiting for the part that I'd hate and never found it.

Spoiler

New Alucard design is awesome, knew that the general was alucard by his sword way early on but I assume they knew it was a surprise to no-one. That armor is sweeeet.

Victor was also a true bro to sacrifice his life for his ancestor he just met, sort of sucks that they had to delete him from the game so quickly.

Clocked in at 15 hours with like 2 health upgrades and 2 magic upgrades left. Will buy DLC with reckless abandon.

 

[Bloodworth]

Clocked in at 15 hours with like 2 health upgrades and 2 magic upgrades left. Will buy DLC with reckless abandon.

Great! So my time estimation in my review wasn't total crap. (I'm really bad at keeping tabs on my playtime on some games.)

 

[-tetsuo-]

lol this agreus shit is terrible

 

[BIONIC-ARRRMMM!!]

Game is pretty badass so far. Just beat the first acolyte.

I have no idea what the reviewers were smoking when they played this. It improves on the 1st in almost every aspect.

Combat is super fluid, platforming and puzzles are less annoying, and jaw dropping graphics.

Admittedly, the modern-day sections are noticeably worse than the castle sections, but definitely still fun.

4/10 my ass.

 

[Schlomo]

So the collectibles sometimes found in destructible objects are artwork? Are they random drops or always in the same place?

 

[Jarmel]

Oh man this last segment is so fucking awful. Like who the fuck thinks this type of shit is a good idea?

Edit:Alright, had to force a dialogue bit.

 

[Bor]

If i Start New game+ i keep my skills right? And how do you play the challenges?

 

[Tizoc]

I'd like some help please:

Spoiler

I am to find the antidote and made my way back into the science area. I got past the platforming segment with the large crates and now I reached an area with 2 golgoths and a 'rat transformation' portal. How do I get past this part of the game?

 

[K.Sabot]

I'd like some help please:

Spoiler

I am to find the antidote and made my way back into the science area. I got past the platforming segment with the large crates and now I reached an area with 2 golgoths and a 'rat transformation' portal. How do I get past this part of the game?

I think the rat thing isn't supposed to be used. Protip: Bats and possession.

 

[Tizoc]

I think the rat thing isn't supposed to be used. Protip: Bats and possession.

Well see I tried that; the other Golgoth shot and killed me as soon as I possessed the other one...

EDIT: Huh...it worked this time, maybe I mistimed my possession or something?

 

[Ragus]

Is the handholding as terrible in the full game, as it was in the demo?

 

[Ambitious]

I just watched TotalBiscuit's video about the game. During a fight, the names of the moves he used appeared in the top left corner of the screen together with a percentage next to each name which increased every time he used the corresponding move. What's this? A level-up system for moves?

Also, I presume it is possible to 100% the game post-credits?

 

[ZeroX03]

Is the handholding as terrible in the full game, as it was in the demo?

The demo is the opening tutorial, that's why it's handholding. The game does have hint prompts come up, but you can disable it.

I just watched TotalBiscuit's video about the game. During a fight, the names of the moves he used appeared in the top left corner of the screen together with a percentage next to each name which increased every time he used the corresponding move. What's this? A level-up system for moves?

Also, I presume it is possible to 100% the game post-credits?

It's not a level-up system, but if you use a move enough times you 'master' it. Master enough moves and you level up that weapon. Gives you more damage I presume. It's basically to encourage varying your moves and using everything, I like it. Every move has a purpose this time around.

Yes you get 'free roam' post-credits, so to speak, and NG+.

 

[Facism]

I just got to the Agreus stealth part that the Edge reviewer couldn't handle. Took me all of 2 minutes to do on my first try. The boss fight was pretty fun, too. Not a massively varied moveset but out to punish you and quick.

 

[Sanctuary]

Is the handholding as terrible in the full game, as it was in the demo?

As far as the platforming goes, yes. There are also a few times where the game zooms in on your results for no reason, and just sits on them for a few seconds. Like it's saying "see how using X produced Y result?!".

No shit.

It's not a level-up system, but if you use a move enough times you 'master' it. Master enough moves and you level up that weapon. Gives you more damage I presume. It's basically to encourage varying your moves and using everything, I like it. Every move has a purpose this time around.

The way you level up the weapon is a little obtuse. It tells you to use the skill so that you can eventually transfer, but it doesn't really say what that implies. You kind of have to figure it out on your own after the initial transfer. Plus, I didn't check the before and after damage when I leveled up my whip, but leveling it up also increases the particle effects.

 

[ZeroX03]

As far as the platforming goes, yes. There are also a few times where the game zooms in on your results for no reason, and just sits on them for a few seconds. Like it's saying "see how using X produced Y result?!".

You haven't done the optional/secret platforming sections yet, I take it? I'm doing them now and there's significantly tougher stuff than encountered in the main game. Less bats too.

 

[Bloodworth]

If i Start New game+ i keep my skills right? And how do you play the challenges?

challenges are in the mirror in the shop

 

[Sanctuary]

You haven't done the optional/secret platforming sections yet, I take it? I'm doing them now and there's significantly tougher stuff than encountered in the main game. Less bats too.

Maybe not. I beat the

Spoiler

Toy Maker

and then started over so that I could pay better attention to what was actually going on with the castle. Plus, I was wanting to unlock different skills earlier on instead of wasting so much on the 2k - 5k skills. Still, that's a good 5 - 8 hours of babysitting. I'm not sure the average human is that slow.

 

[ZeroX03]

Maybe not. I beat the

Spoiler

Toy Maker

and then started over so that I could pay better attention to what was actually going on with the castle. Plus, I was wanting to unlock different skills earlier on instead of wasting so much on the 2k - 5k skills. Still, that's a good 5 - 8 hours of babysitting. I'm not sure the average human is that slow.

I think you seriously overestimate how good most people are at video games. Most of my friends can't handle a controller properly. Even hardcore PC friends were struggling with stuff like Uncharted on Easy. Babysitting may not be necessary for GAF, but from what I've seen of the outside world (and I don't intend to go there often), it's still a necessity for a whole lot of people. I'm fine with the tough stuff being optional.

EDIT: I realize that sounds anecdotal, but I think the general trend of games being handholdy and easy these days is showing a trend of unskilled players. The reviews of this game seem to show the reviewers aren't too skilled either.

 

[Facism]

I think you seriously overestimate how good most people are at video games. Most of my friends can't handle a controller properly. Even hardcore PC friends were struggling with stuff like Uncharted on Easy. Babysitting may not be necessary for GAF, but from what I've seen of the outside world (and I don't intend to go there often), it's still a necessity for a whole lot of people. I'm fine with the tough stuff being optional.

A lot of friends are turrrible at videogames. Reviewers too, it seems. I'm seriously shaking my head at how anyone had serious issues with the agreus stealth. I got there expecting the worst. Ended up being the easiest stealth section in the game thus far. 2 whole fucking minutes to get past him. So hard amirite

 

[Tizoc]

Yo...C

Spoiler

armilla got dem bazongas

Game tells me I've completed an overall 30% of the game, which includes collectables.

 

[hengyu]

Modern sections are horrible, castle-ly sections are awesome.

 

[ZeroX03]

Gave the Kleidos challenges a try on Hard. They are not easy. Going for all them on Very Hard will be tough, especially if you have to complete all the criteria. They seem pretty good for grinding weapons though, rather than relying on random encounters.

 

[Volcynika]

Gave the Kleidos challenges a try on Hard. They are not easy. Going for all them on Very Hard will be tough, especially if you have to complete all the criteria. They seem pretty good for grinding weapons though, rather than relying on random encounters.

Good, I was hoping there would be a place to get the weapon skills up easier. Do you keep any exp you get from them if you don't succeed or whatever?

 

[Voror]

Hmm, if I missed an area where there was a rune for the Kleidos challenges, can I go back and get it?

Edit: Ah, never mind. Seems I ended up back here anyway.

 

[ZeroX03]

Good, I was hoping there would be a place to get the weapon skills up easier. Do you keep any exp you get from them if you don't succeed or whatever?

If you fail or restart a challenge, you still keep all EXP and weapon mastery learned. Perfect place to grind.

However, you also keep whatever magic or health you had. Which is incredibly strange, it'd make sense to refill those things as it's a challenge mode but nope... you have to go out, manually refill those things and come back in. Also for the trophies you have to fully complete the challenge criteria, not just beat them.

 

[Volcynika]

If you fail or restart a challenge, you still keep all EXP and weapon mastery learned. Perfect place to grind.

However, you also keep whatever magic or health you had. Which is incredibly strange, it'd make sense to refill those things as it's a challenge mode but nope... you have to go out, manually refill those things and come back in. Also for the trophies you have to fully complete the challenge criteria, not just beat them.

Yeah, sounds like an odd decision not to replenish your health and magic. But glad you can keep anything you get from it.

 

[Splatt]

Everything was gravy until I hit the stealth section.

Why Mercury, why...

 

[Finn of Ooo]

So the only thing I truly hate in this game is how close the camera is. Gives me seriously bad headaches and eye strain trying to look around.

 

[969]

Finished the game yesterday at around 3 am. I'll post my thoughts and impressions here trying to cover every aspect of the game. I played through the game once on Lord of Shadow difficulty trying to find/get everything destroying all breakable objects i could find and i even replayed a certain small segment to see if there was any difference had i made a different choice

Spoiler

(pre Nergal/2nd acolyte fight i went in the room to face the boss as i saw Trevor coming out. I opted to restart the chapter to see if following Trevor 1st before going in the boss room changes anything)

. It took me approx 20hrs

Spoiler

and i have not touched the Kleidos challenges yet

.

• Presentation
  The game is visually and aurally impeccable on the PC. Played the game maxed out at 1080p on a 24' 144hz monitor and at times i couldn't believe the visual splendor of the scenery that lay before my eyes. I know that this may sound dramatic but the attention to detail paid by the studio at the visual department is at least commendable. Disregarding the textures, the special effects and the shadows that i deemed to be impressive, the art-style in and of itself is superb and that's why the visuals struck me so much because you can have games that are insanely good looking like bf4 and crysis 3 but the art-style is so bland and perceptively familiar that it feels, to me at least like looking at an incredibly detailed real life object.
  
  What i found to be equally impressive is the fact that the audio is at worst on par with the visuals. The score itself is spectacular and ranges from sorrowful (several arrangements of "dying for a drop of blood") to epic (the siege titan) and it even branches out to techno at times in some of the modern day fights. Voice acting is also really well done with every character in the game from Dracula to
  Spoiler

  Satan
  sounding believable and true to their nature. What i found most impressive at times was that when Robert Carlyle for instance said a sentence in a certain tone, Dracula had the exact facial expression of what i imagined Robert's face to have at that time. I know that mocap is not a novel practice and i am assuming that's what they did to achieve this but the result is worth a mention to say the least.
  
• Story
  I have mixed feelings about the story. At times i was glued to the screen screaming internally like (MEGA SPOILERS DON'T CLICK)
  Spoiler

  the Alucard twist and the reveal of the plan
  and at other times i was in confusion as to why certain things were happening like (MEGA SPOILERS DON'T CLICK)
  Spoiler

  the Victor part for example. That segment starts off in such a promising manner with Vic coming out of Drac's hiding place just as Drac was going back in, ensuing in a feverish pursuit and culminating in a very enjoyable fight. Yet right after that Vic is like "i'll help you find the 2nd acolyte follow me" and he just goes on to sacrifice himself out of the blue. Why would he do that? I am aware that he realized who Drac was but what were his motives? Why didn't he explain them or why didn't the game explain in some manner why he did what he did?
  
  There were other parts in the story that had the same wtf effect on me and they were related to what the game asked of me to do in order to progress in contrast to what i had done so far.
  Spoiler

  If you've played the game you know i'm talking about the Golgoth Guards. I realize that at the beginning of the game Dracula is very weak and having him sneak through certain segments makes sense but having to hide from Golgoths after you've beat a towering boss like the Gorgon and Raisa Volkova ,one of the 3 acolytes and daughter of Satan himself in her 1st and her 2nd true form makes no sense to me. I read all of the creatures' lore pages and the Golgoth one mentions that they wear impenetrable armor but this sounds like a half-assed excuse to me. A high ranking soldier in the army of Satan is stronger than 2 bosses with one of them being a major villain? Come on... Also about the Argeus part while i didn't mind the gameplay it made no sense to me why you do fight him after you sneak past him. What changed? The bird had a part of the mirror, you get it and then you fight him but why? Why do you sneak past him in the 1st place? I know that Dracula said that he didn't want to fight him but if that's the reason for the stealth segment they should have constructed it better imo.
  
  On another note i found the lore to be well realized and i thoroughly enjoyed reading the monument scrolls that gave details about the city and its denizens. It showed how deeply Dracula had influenced that place and the world as a whole even centuries after his disappearance.
  
• Gameplay
  I'll focus on the combat here because i think that it's one of the strongest points of the game and because i found it to be both really fun and mechanically interesting enough to encourage me to experiment and to always make me look forward to and even intentionally prolong encounters.
  
  Starting with the simplest of things i thoroughly enjoyed the sheer number of combos in the game. Going in the weapon combo screen and looking at a whole page of combos for each weapon and even more so for the magical ones made me want to see each one of them in battle. What made me want to try each one of them again and again though was the mastery system. It encouraged me to approach each fight differently and even toy with my opponents at times in order to understand what a combo does, when i should use it and what set-up or follow-up i could use to string them together.
  
  Another aspect of combat that i thoroughly enjoyed was Dracula's abilities and especially
  Spoiler

  Mist
  . Having the option to either somersault over horizontal unblockables or to instantly
  Spoiler

  turn to mist
  at any time made me feel like a badass and when i was dashing from one enemy to another dishing out punishment and giving them those *NOPE* moments when they tried an unblockable only to see me
  Spoiler

  evaporate
  before their eyes and continue to lash out on them was priceless. It really reminded me of the LoS2 trailer where Drac annihilates a whole field of soldiers effortlessly and that is a big victory in my book for the game to make me feel this way.
  
  There were other little nuances that made me feel powerful during combat like weapons not using magic power unless they actually hit; save for some vortex and projectile attacks, magic moves consuming just the right amount of energy as i could use each move sufficiently but i could not spam it and finally being able to use
  Spoiler

  mist form
  again to counter some grapples as an alternate way to get out of these qte segments.
  
  The relics/items that Dracula can use were also more exciting to me than the ones Gabriel could use in LoS. While the health relic was pretty standard stuff and the Dragon form was cool as fuck yet mechanically identical to the demon shard in the first LoS, relics like the hourglass that slows down time on each enemy you hit, the seal of alastor that unlocks and upgrades all skills and the one that gives you full magic energy with very high refresh rate were very fun to use. Also the Dodo egg was a brilliant addition imo as it helped me discover some secrets that were hard to reach.
  
  Finally, the boss fights were really interesting and they get progressively more and more exciting, reaching orgasmic levels of epic-ness in the final two fights.
  
  On the platforming part things were pretty standard. I found it to be pretty much the same as the 1st LoS if memory serves me right except for some parts where you have to jump from cages or chandeliers or when you have to stray off the beaten path for a bit and be more creative in order to reach some secrets. Speaking of secrets the game has a ton of them and that is a good thing in my opinion but i'd have liked to see the iron keys implemented better.
  Spoiler

  The first time you see one it's used to open a mechanism in order to operate the elevator iirc but later on all they are used for is to help you gain some points.
  I'd have liked them to be more meaningful
  Spoiler

  like the Kleidos parts for example
  .
  
  Another major gameplay element are the puzzles and these include the stealth sections imo as i am in agreement with what other forum members seem to think of those. In my mind the stealth sections are basically puzzles with 2 variables (you and the enemy/ies) whereas textbook puzzles can be considered as a 1 variable "riddle". The stealth sections consist of a room where you either have to find a sequence in which you have to charm the guards to get past them, annoy them to mess their patrol routes, move from a certain point of interest to the other
  Spoiler

  (from one shapeshift spot to another)
  or use your powers to try and disorient your pursuer
  Spoiler

  (the infamous Agreus part)
  .
  
  While these parts are certainly ambiguous i had no trouble passing each one of them in 5' or less with no outside help as most of the set-ups made sense to me. Personally i would've enjoyed bigger fights with more interesting enemy set-ups, since i enjoyed the combat system so much, instead of pace-changers that i found inoffensive but mostly indifferent in terms of gameplay. What i did mind though was how much i found these segments to be in contrast to the progression of the storyline at times as i explained above.
  
  Another thing i'd like to point out is the type of exploration in the game or the metroidvania aspect. It's more akin to the Batman Arkham titles without all the side objectives, the 1st Darksiders, Tomb Raider, etc. It's not similar to Dark Souls where you can seemingly go wherever you want and the only thing that's stopping you from doing so is you being ill equipped. LoS 2 gives you a pretty set path which you'll have to tread, yet in that path there are some sidetracks that you can discover by either simply being observant or being observant and having a certain ability that lets you get to that spot. Progressing through the story line will give you the ability to either open or reach shortcuts that lead from one part of the map to the other so by the time you've finished the game you can see how the areas connect with each other. There are also some travel rooms lying around that will let you warp in between them
  Spoiler

  and there are also some wolf summon spots throughout the world that will let you travel from and to Dracula's Castle
  .
  
  The open setting didn't impress me, "aha" moments of discovering shortcuts with new-found abilities aside, neither did it sour me while playing through the story as the action developed in a linear fashion. When i did finish the game however, i found traversing from one area to the other all the while fighting groups of enemies that respawned, really interesting. It truly gave me that classic open-vania feel.
  
  As far as difficulty is concerned i found the LoS setting to be well balanced but easy. Had someone handed me the controller without me knowing which difficulty setting i was in i would've assumed that i was playing on normal. I would have really liked the LoS difficulty balance to have been the normal setting as i believe that the balancing is perfect for players that want a mild challenge. I hope that the PoD setting will be creative with its difficulty in terms of enemy waves and a little bit more aggressive with its balancing.

To recap:

Pros:

• Visuals: Artstyle, Fidelity. Visual Effects. Attention to detail.
• Audio: Soundtrack. Actor Performances. Audio Clarity. Audio FX
• Combat system: Mechanics, Feel, Rewards experimentation and variety
• Parts of the story: Surprising and smart plot twists. Lore fleshes out the environment.
• Boss fights get progressively more intense with the final two of them being both awe inspiring in terms of setting and immensely enjoyable in terms of gameplay design.
  
  System/User specific
  
• Non-existent to minimal load times.
• Excellent optimization.
• Stable/ only 1 minor bug encountered.

Cons

• Certain story parts, characters and motives are not explained well if at all.
• Story contrasts with gameplay. At certain times you are asked to sneak past opponents yet there is little to no explanation as to why you have to do it since you either fight those same opponents immediately afterwards or you have faced adversaries that are of greater significance and threat.
• Certain stealth/puzzle segments feel as too much of padding at times. While puzzles are a welcome change of pace occasionally, they do sometimes overstay their welcome and could've easily been replaced by combat sequences.
• Hard setting leans towards normal difficulty.

Proof of me playing the game.

Thanks for reading !

 

[Fbh]

One thing I haven't liked is that modern day setting doesn't really make me feel like Dracula.

I'm the "the dragon", the lord of night. But I hope the elevators have power or I'm screwed.

Also minor spoiler that shouldn't be a spoiler to people who have played the first game:

Spoiler

Thank god it's only satan who is trying to get back. The most powerfull demon of all is manageable, I'm just grateful it's not a security guard because then we would be screwed"

 

[Blades64]

Finished the game yesterday at around 3 am. I'll post my thoughts and impressions here trying to cover every aspect of the game. I played through the game once on Lord of Shadow difficulty trying to find/get everything destroying all breakable objects i could find and i even replayed a certain small segment to see if there was any difference had i made a different choice

Spoiler

(pre Nergal/2nd acolyte fight i went in the room to face the boss as i saw Trevor coming out. I opted to restart the chapter to see if following Trevor 1st before going in the boss room changes anything)

. It took me approx 20hrs

Spoiler

and i have not touched the Kleidos challenges yet

.

• Presentation
  The game is visually and aurally impeccable on the PC. Played the game maxed out at 1080p on a 24' 144hz monitor and at times i couldn't believe the visual splendor of the scenery that lay before my eyes. I know that this may sound dramatic but the attention to detail paid by the studio at the visual department is at least commendable. Disregarding the textures, the special effects and the shadows that i deemed to be impressive, the art-style in and of itself is superb and that's why the visuals struck me so much because you can have games that are insanely good looking like bf4 and crysis 3 but the art-style is so bland and perceptively familiar that it feels, to me at least like looking at an incredibly detailed real life object.
  
  What i found to be equally impressive is the fact that the audio is at worst on par with the visuals. The score itself is spectacular and ranges from sorrowful (several arrangements of "dying for a drop of blood") to epic (the siege titan) and it even branches out to techno at times in some of the modern day fights. Voice acting is also really well done with every character in the game from Dracula to
  Spoiler

  Satan
  sounding believable and true to their nature. What i found most impressive at times was that when Robert Carlyle for instance said a sentence in a certain tone, Dracula had the exact facial expression of what i imagined Robert's face to have at that time. I know that mocap is not a novel practice and i am assuming that's what they did to achieve this but the result is worth a mention to say the least.
  
• Story
  I have mixed feelings about the story. At times i was glued to the screen screaming internally like (MEGA SPOILERS DON'T CLICK)
  Spoiler

  the Alucard twist and the reveal of the plan
  and at other times i was in confusion as to why certain things were happening like (MEGA SPOILERS DON'T CLICK)
  Spoiler

  the Victor part for example. That segment starts off in such a promising manner with Vic coming out of Drac's hiding place just as Drac was going back in, ensuing in a feverish pursuit and culminating in a very enjoyable fight. Yet right after that Vic is like "i'll help you find the 2nd acolyte follow me" and he just goes on to sacrifice himself out of the blue. Why would he do that? I am aware that he realized who Drac was but what were his motives? Why didn't he explain them or why didn't the game explain in some manner why he did what he did?
  
  There were other parts in the story that had the same wtf effect on me and they were related to what the game asked of me to do in order to progress in contrast to what i had done so far.
  Spoiler

  If you've played the game you know i'm talking about the Golgoth Guards. I realize that at the beginning of the game Dracula is very weak and having him sneak through certain segments makes sense but having to hide from Golgoths after you've beat a towering boss like the Gorgon and Raisa Volkova ,one of the 3 acolytes and daughter of Satan himself in her 1st and her 2nd true form makes no sense to me. I read all of the creatures' lore pages and the Golgoth one mentions that they wear impenetrable armor but this sounds like a half-assed excuse to me. A high ranking soldier in the army of Satan is stronger than 2 bosses with one of them being a major villain? Come on... Also about the Argeus part while i didn't mind the gameplay it made no sense to me why you do fight him after you sneak past him. What changed? The bird had a part of the mirror, you get it and then you fight him but why? Why do you sneak past him in the 1st place? I know that Dracula said that he didn't want to fight him but if that's the reason for the stealth segment they should have constructed it better imo.
  
  On another note i found the lore to be well realized and i thoroughly enjoyed reading the monument scrolls that gave details about the city and its denizens. It showed how deeply Dracula had influenced that place and the world as a whole even centuries after his disappearance.
  
• Gameplay
  I'll focus on the combat here because i think that it's one of the strongest points of the game and because i found it to be both really fun and mechanically interesting enough to encourage me to experiment and to always make me look forward to and even intentionally prolong encounters.
  
  Starting with the simplest of things i thoroughly enjoyed the sheer number of combos in the game. Going in the weapon combo screen and looking at a whole page of combos for each weapon and even more so for the magical ones made me want to see each one of them in battle. What made me want to try each one of them again and again though was the mastery system. It encouraged me to approach each fight differently and even toy with my opponents at times in order to understand what a combo does, when i should use it and what set-up or follow-up i could use to string them together.
  
  Another aspect of combat that i thoroughly enjoyed was Dracula's abilities and especially
  Spoiler

  Mist
  . Having the option to either somersault over horizontal unblockables or to instantly
  Spoiler

  turn to mist
  at any time made me feel like a badass and when i was dashing from one enemy to another dishing out punishment and giving them those *NOPE* moments when they tried an unblockable only to see me
  Spoiler

  evaporate
  before their eyes and continue to lash out on them was priceless. It really reminded me of the LoS2 trailer where Drac annihilates a whole field of soldiers effortlessly and that is a big victory in my book for the game to make me feel this way.
  
  There were other little nuances that made me feel powerful during combat like weapons not using magic power unless they actually hit; save for some vortex and projectile attacks, magic moves consuming just the right amount of energy as i could use each move sufficiently but i could not spam it and finally being able to use
  Spoiler

  mist form
  again to counter some grapples as an alternate way to get out of these qte segments.
  
  The relics/items that Dracula can use were also more exciting to me than the ones Gabriel could use in LoS. While the health relic was pretty standard stuff and the Dragon form was cool as fuck yet mechanically identical to the demon shard in the first LoS, relics like the hourglass that slows down time on each enemy you hit, the seal of alastor that unlocks and upgrades all skills and the one that gives you full magic energy with very high refresh rate were very fun to use. Also the Dodo egg was a brilliant addition imo as it helped me discover some secrets that were hard to reach.
  
  Finally, the boss fights were really interesting and they get progressively more and more exciting, reaching orgasmic levels of epic-ness in the final two fights.
  
  On the platforming part things were pretty standard. I found it to be pretty much the same as the 1st LoS if memory serves me right except for some parts where you have to jump from cages or chandeliers or when you have to stray off the beaten path for a bit and be more creative in order to reach some secrets. Speaking of secrets the game has a ton of them and that is a good thing in my opinion but i'd have liked to see the iron keys implemented better.
  Spoiler

  The first time you see one it's used to open a mechanism in order to operate the elevator iirc but later on all they are used for is to help you gain some points.
  I'd have liked them to be more meaningful
  Spoiler

  like the Kleidos parts for example
  .
  
  Another major gameplay element are the puzzles and these include the stealth sections imo as i am in agreement with what other forum members seem to think of those. In my mind the stealth sections are basically puzzles with 2 variables (you and the enemy/ies) whereas textbook puzzles can be considered as a 1 variable "riddle". The stealth sections consist of a room where you either have to find a sequence in which you have to charm the guards to get past them, annoy them to mess their patrol routes, move from a certain point of interest to the other
  Spoiler

  (from one shapeshift spot to another)
  or use your powers to try and disorient your pursuer
  Spoiler

  (the infamous Agreus part)
  .
  
  While these parts are certainly ambiguous i had no trouble passing each one of them in 5' or less with no outside help as most of the set-ups made sense to me. Personally i would've enjoyed bigger fights with more interesting enemy set-ups, since i enjoyed the combat system so much, instead of pace-changers that i found inoffensive but mostly indifferent in terms of gameplay. What i did mind though was how much i found these segments to be in contrast to the progression of the storyline at times as i explained above.
  
  Another thing i'd like to point out is the type of exploration in the game or the metroidvania aspect. It's more akin to the Batman Arkham titles without all the side objectives, the 1st Darksiders, Tomb Raider, etc. It's not similar to Dark Souls where you can seemingly go wherever you want and the only thing that's stopping you from doing so is you being ill equipped. LoS 2 gives you a pretty set path which you'll have to tread, yet in that path there are some sidetracks that you can discover by either simply being observant or being observant and having a certain ability that lets you get to that spot. Progressing through the story line will give you the ability to either open or reach shortcuts that lead from one part of the map to the other so by the time you've finished the game you can see how the areas connect with each other. There are also some travel rooms lying around that will let you warp in between them
  Spoiler

  and there are also some wolf summon spots throughout the world that will let you travel from and to Dracula's Castle
  .
  
  The open setting didn't impress me, "aha" moments of discovering shortcuts with new-found abilities aside, neither did it sour me while playing through the story as the action developed in a linear fashion. When i did finish the game however, i found traversing from one area to the other all the while fighting groups of enemies that respawned, really interesting. It truly gave me that classic open-vania feel.
  
  As far as difficulty is concerned i found the LoS setting to be well balanced but easy. Had someone handed me the controller without me knowing which difficulty setting i was in i would've assumed that i was playing on normal. I would have really liked the LoS difficulty balance to have been the normal setting as i believe that the balancing is perfect for players that want a mild challenge. I hope that the PoD setting will be creative with its difficulty in terms of enemy waves and a little bit more aggressive with its balancing.

To recap:

Pros:

• Visuals: Artstyle, Fidelity. Visual Effects. Attention to detail.
• Audio: Soundtrack. Actor Performances. Audio Clarity. Audio FX
• Combat system: Mechanics, Feel, Rewards experimentation and variety
• Parts of the story: Surprising and smart plot twists. Lore fleshes out the environment.
• Boss fights get progressively more intense with the final two of them being both awe inspiring in terms of setting and immensely enjoyable in terms of gameplay design.
  
  System/User specific
  
• Non-existent to minimal load times.
• Excellent optimization.
• Stable/ only 1 minor bug encountered.

Cons

• Certain story parts, characters and motives are not explained well if at all.
• Story contrasts with gameplay. At certain times you are asked to sneak past opponents yet there is little to no explanation as to why you have to do it since you either fight those same opponents immediately afterwards or you have faced adversaries that are of greater significance and threat.
• Certain stealth/puzzle segments feel as too much of padding at times. While puzzles are a welcome change of pace occasionally, they do sometimes overstay their welcome and could've easily been replaced by combat sequences.
• Hard setting leans towards normal difficulty.

Proof of me playing the game.

Thanks for reading !

Great! I think I'll just trust GAFs word and get this game.

 

[brandonh83]

969, that is an amazing review.

 

[AmethystEnd]

<SNIP>
Thanks for reading !

And thank you for that fantastic write-up, though I'm still early in the game so I skipped all the spoilers.

I definitely agree with you that Lord of Shadow difficulty isn't "hard" like it should be, though.

 

[969]

969, that is an amazing review.

Thank you very much. I had such a good time playing the game that i finished it in 2 sittings having slept a few hrs in between sessions.

I hope that this will help people that are wondering whether they should pull the trigger to make a decision as well as instigate further discussion on the game.

And thank you for that fantastic write-up, though I'm still early in the game so I skipped all the spoilers.

I definitely agree with you that Lord of Shadow difficulty isn't "hard" like it should be, though.

Thank you !

 

[ZeroX03]

I definitely agree with you that Lord of Shadow difficulty isn't "hard" like it should be, though.

Say that after some of the late/post-game mobs and challenges.

 

[AmethystEnd]

Say that after some of the late/post-game mobs and challenges.

Will do. Bookmarking.

 

[hengyu]

To recap:

Pros:

• Visuals: Artstyle, Fidelity. Visual Effects. Attention to detail.
• Audio: Soundtrack. Actor Performances. Audio Clarity. Audio FX
• Combat system: Mechanics, Feel, Rewards experimentation and variety
• Parts of the story: Surprising and smart plot twists. Lore fleshes out the environment.
• Boss fights get progressively more intense with the final two of them being both awe inspiring in terms of setting and immensely enjoyable in terms of gameplay design.
  
  System/User specific
  
• Non-existent to minimal load times.
• Excellent optimization.
• Stable/ only 1 minor bug encountered.

Agree for the most part, but there are actually quite a substantial number of hidden loading screens during elevator (ugh) sequences, lengthy feed-the-door-sum-blood animations, slow-mo walking with the wolf sequences, etc.

And I don't think the visual pros you listed are very applicable to the modern sequences, which I really feel if removed would make the game jump en entire tier.

 

[brandonh83]

Alright, I have some tips I wanted to share with the

Spoiler

Agreus stealth

section.

Spoiler

At the beginning, leap over the leaves (you can do this) on the right side of the block that you start out behind. Agreus is on his way over, so at that point you'll want to switch to your throwing daggers as there are two bells you can ring to draw his attention to. One of them is very close to you, and the other one is to the left of the beginning point further away. After you've crossed the leaves to the right, throw a dagger at the one further away, and then immediately start moving toward your goal.

At this point you can get a little further in, but STOP as soon as Agreus reaches the bell you shot, and throw another dagger at the bell near the point where you began. This will distract him yet again, and you can start moving again. The idea is to use your MIST FORM to move over large stretches of leaves, and ALSO to disappear before Agreus sees you. He is pretty tough to avoid, so just use the environment and your mist form to plan ahead.

If you manage to make it to the button that opens the gate, good news-- as long as you activate it, even if you fail, the gate will be forever open, so even if you're caught before you can get to the gate, your next run is simply getting to the gate. Once you're through, it's over. Finally, if you get close enough to the gate button, well in my case I simply made a mad dash for the button and hit it as Agreus was coming for me.

It's honestly not that hard, especially if you make use of those bells at the beginning.

To summarize:
-move over the leaves to the right, throw dagger at bell furthest away
-make some progress as Agreus investigates
-stop whenever you're about to lose sight of the bell closest to the starting point
-fire another dagger at that bell
-keep moving forward
-use mist form to glide over leaves undetected
-use mist form to disappear before Agreus sees you
-keep in mind that your mist form is very temporary so use it tactfully
-when you get close to the button that opens the gate, just make a mad dash for it if possible
-once you get the gate open, it's open for good even if you fail

 

[Camp Lo]

Is the handholding as terrible in the full game, as it was in the demo?

I turned that off, if left on, it's very annoying.