TheKaeptain
Banned
That was one of the very easy one.jett said:
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Castlevania: Lords of Shadow |OT| The MercurySteam has Vanquished the Horrible Night
- Thread starter brandonh83
- Start date
Erdrick
Member
boutrosinit said:
No problem at all man. I just noticed what you said, since I've been going over the game over the afternoon today and have been exploring areas looking for item upgrades and stuff. Pretty much what you said was not in the game, in the post I quoted before.
It's certainly not as free-roaming as the more recent CV games, but I expected it to be more focused when I read they were going more towards the old style of play. I think that's an issue a lot of people have with this game. Castlevania is not the same thing to everyone. For me, I just expect a guy with a whip to go and kill monsters and vampires. Give me some solid music and great areas to do it in and platform in, and I'm set. That's pretty much all I really want from a CV game. To others though, they expect a huge place to explore and gain experience in ala most CV games since 1997, so of course this game is not exactly that.
luka said:
For now, yes. The story isn't compelling me enough, keep falling and repeating the same boring platforming, and holding R2 every 5 seconds. Not fun at all. Rest of the gameplay was pretty good though.
Edit: Eh, I'll try later. I just seem to be tired.
boutrosinit said:
If that is so, then they have come a long way since Jericho.
On a side note, Lens of Truth has up their comparison. The pics with the slider bar are pretty cool. At least visit to check those out.
http://www.lensoftruth.com/?p=23140
boutrosinit
Street Fighter IV World Champion
Wow.
Boss design for boss 2. You have GOT to be fucking kidding me.
I may have made a mistake starting this out on hard difficulty, but damn. Stomping the ground + giant rocks I CANNOT SEE because when there's too many your screen is cloaked in smoke, and your view is tilted upward.
I seriously want to punch the designer in the face right now. Very hard. With a rock. Seems like he had a very CINEMATIC > PRACTICAL NEEDS OF PLAYER agenda.
*controller throw*
Edit : Figured it out. Wow. Very shitty trial and error solution to get the battle 'started'. I thought I had to climb it when it leg stomps. Pretty much most of what I've had to solve is trial and error and / or luck. Damn. I hope they learn from this and 'fix' this if they are indeed doing the follow up.
Boss design for boss 2. You have GOT to be fucking kidding me.
I may have made a mistake starting this out on hard difficulty, but damn. Stomping the ground + giant rocks I CANNOT SEE because when there's too many your screen is cloaked in smoke, and your view is tilted upward.
I seriously want to punch the designer in the face right now. Very hard. With a rock. Seems like he had a very CINEMATIC > PRACTICAL NEEDS OF PLAYER agenda.
*controller throw*
Edit : Figured it out. Wow. Very shitty trial and error solution to get the battle 'started'. I thought I had to climb it when it leg stomps. Pretty much most of what I've had to solve is trial and error and / or luck. Damn. I hope they learn from this and 'fix' this if they are indeed doing the follow up.
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
Is it like impossible to get your meter up to get orbs on boss fights? It seriously seems impossible to get up there.
Chapter 3 is a huge jump from the previous two, wow.
Huh? Second Boss is easy as hell. It's so scripted and exactly the same as the first one.
Chapter 3 is a huge jump from the previous two, wow.
boutrosinit said:
Huh? Second Boss is easy as hell. It's so scripted and exactly the same as the first one.
Fimbulvetr
Member
nacire said:Block, counter and keep up attack variety. You'll fill your meter up really fast. Also, don't get hit!
Oh and turning on Light or Shadow Magic will pause your meter.
boutrosinit said:
I totally agree with you. I'll save you some time with the next part that's totally ambiguous...
after you destroy some runes a hand will knock you off. Magically you're supposed to know that for the first one you need to move down the leg a few grapple levels, and the second one up two grapple levels that aren't obvious. With each there's suddenly something you can chain to.
Yeah, but seriously the "help" from that girl wasn't very good. Didn't she say "don't get close to the titan" or something initially? But that's exactly what you need to do?
TheKaeptain
Banned
Zaraki_Kenpachi said:
Counter. Does no one read the descriptions of the moves and powers...
She tells you to stay back. Throw the rock. Then to go to the titan when it is down.
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
CaptYamato said:
No, I mean besides countering. With normal enemies you can max out by just hitting successfully without getting hit but with bosses no matter how much you hit it seems like it gets stuck on the next to last symbol. I'm just wondering if it's possible without blocking or it really stops before that to force you to block. Thanks for being condescending over a simple question though.
Edit: And having to do with the girl, it is confusing. I kept staying back but you have to get somewhat close to trigger the whole thing to have him throw the rock. I was running around for the longest time trying to figure out what to do. If I would have moved a little closer like I thought initially I would have been fine, the girl "helping" you just makes it more confusing.
Dr. Zoidberg
Member
teh_pwn said:
I felt this way about Shadow of the Colossus. Except in that game it felt like the whole game was constructed out of that kind of tedious boss battle.
At least in Castlevania there is a lot of variety so I'm enjoying it much more.
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
teh_pwn said:
If you're good
the hand won't knock you off. You should know after the first one that after you destroy the rune on it that you need to move somewhere so that the titan won't swat you off. That's why it was easy, it was exactly the same as the first one.
This game is basically a pastiche of various Japanese action game conventions: Lots of DMC, some Bayonetta, some Colossus, etc. That brings some positives, but also a lot of negatives: Crappy fixed camera, wonky platforming, uneven difficulty, trial-and-error gameplay.Dr. Zoidberg said:
The game's saving grace is that it mixes things up so frequently, that the individual elements rarely get a chance to get too tedious.
MadOdorMachine
No additional functions
That was one of the worst boss fights in the game for me. Worse than the one in Chapter 3 which some say is the hardest in the game. The trial and error on the level 2 boss took me damn near an hour to complete. Once you figure out how to get thru each section it's a lot easier, but getting there is a pain.boutrosinit said:
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
teh_pwn said:
I'd have to replay the fight but I definitely did it without ever falling down so it's definitely possible
MadOdorMachine said:
What was bad about Chapter 3?
iconoclast
Member
Zaraki_Kenpachi said:
You can get your focus meter up very quickly if you hit someone with jump X/Square(hold). If you hit the attack on the way down along with the followup, it will fill most of your meter up. So yeah it's not impossible to fill it without countering.
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
iconoclast said:
:| I always get hit when I jump. It seems like I always get punished for jumping so I guess I'm stuck blocking.
Edit: Ugh, already found a glitch that kills you in Chapter 4. Son of a Bitch. :/
Segata Sanshiro
Member
This game is death by a thousand paper cuts. I really wanted to see it through, and I still might, but my resolve is wavering fast. There are so many little problems that on their own wouldn't mean much, but taken together really makes a game that you desperately want to like but fights you every step of the way.
I'm not sure how I feel about Lords of Shadow and Mercurysteam at this point. Like, they're all little problems, so I kind of want to see the game succeed so they have a chance to fix all that stuff and really give us the AAA game they are probably capable of. On the other hand, some of the problems permeate the game so fully that I'm not sure Mercurysteam feels they're problems at all, which doesn't give me hope they'll get fixed.
The only thing I can say for sure at this point is that I sure hope the existence of this series doesn't prevent 2D Vanias of any sort from coming out. It's not good enough to replace either Actionvania or IGAvania.
I'm not sure how I feel about Lords of Shadow and Mercurysteam at this point. Like, they're all little problems, so I kind of want to see the game succeed so they have a chance to fix all that stuff and really give us the AAA game they are probably capable of. On the other hand, some of the problems permeate the game so fully that I'm not sure Mercurysteam feels they're problems at all, which doesn't give me hope they'll get fixed.
The only thing I can say for sure at this point is that I sure hope the existence of this series doesn't prevent 2D Vanias of any sort from coming out. It's not good enough to replace either Actionvania or IGAvania.
â Narayan
Member
This is somewhat unrelated, but do Lament of Innocence and Curse of Darkness hold up today? I never gave them a shot.
Segata Sanshiro
Member
No. They barely held up when they came out, and even then only if you were a very generous soul. Just listen to the soundtracks while you play a better game, you'll have a better experience.
Goodness, people! I bought this game in part due to all the gushing in this thread, and now I come back to find people trashing it right and left. :lol
It's still on its way to me--damn TRU and their slow shipping--but I hope I like it. Gonna definitely put it on Easy for my first play. I'm just looking for an atmospheric romp with werewolves and vampires, and I'm no Ninja Gaiden master. It sounds like the game is aggravating enough as it is.
It's still on its way to me--damn TRU and their slow shipping--but I hope I like it. Gonna definitely put it on Easy for my first play. I'm just looking for an atmospheric romp with werewolves and vampires, and I'm no Ninja Gaiden master. It sounds like the game is aggravating enough as it is.
â Narayan
Member
Okay, I'll do that. Some of the LoI tracks that some folks have posted are really good. I wish this game had a built in feature where you could select whatever track for a level. Hopefully Mercurysteam implements something like that in the next game, but - most importantly, I hope the soundtrack isn't so passive in the next game.Segata Sanshiro said:
The only game I've played that implemented custom soundtracks well was Phantom Dust.
Segata Sanshiro
Member
You might like it. You might even love it. Quite a few people in here certainly did.Kolgar said:
TheKaeptain
Banned
Wish I could get the soundtracks for LOI and COD
brandonh83
Banned
Kolgar said:
Well as with anything, some like it, some don't.
Blocking is overrated, especially with unblockables that can be hard to read/anticipate. If you're like me and pretty bad at timed counters, just hit the boss a few times, roll, repeat. That builds up meter slowly, but I found it more reliable. Jumping would be more useful in this game if there was a quick sideways air evade.Zaraki_Kenpachi said:
Alright, the slider was pretty cool, but it's a bit useless on those tiny pictures.nacire said:
MadOdorMachine
No additional functions
I guess I got thrown off by the whole "end of days" thing in the previews. I thought this was set in a post apocalyptic future.Frillen said:
Isn't that where you foughtZaraki_Kenpachi said:
Cornell?
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
MadOdorMachine said:
It is, but that boss was the easiest so far for me... I think the one I hit in Ch.4 is already harder than that one.
dwebo said:
Unblockable are easy, they are done when you hit them while they are blocking and sparkle before they attack.
Just beat the game and the game just died for me. Totally loved it up until the ending (my opinion is in the spoiler thread).
Gameplay wise, I loved the game. It could use some polish, but overall I enjoyed it.
The best part of the game was the castle, hands down. One of, if not, the most georgous looking areas I've ever seen in a game.
Everything just felt right when I was in the castle. Seems like they used it way to soon.
The big thing I loved about this game was the attention to detail. The small things, like how Gabriel would bless each of the dead soldiers he would find.
Gameplay wise, I loved the game. It could use some polish, but overall I enjoyed it.
The best part of the game was the castle, hands down. One of, if not, the most georgous looking areas I've ever seen in a game.
Everything just felt right when I was in the castle. Seems like they used it way to soon.
The big thing I loved about this game was the attention to detail. The small things, like how Gabriel would bless each of the dead soldiers he would find.
Or how Baba Yaga was the witch that entraped the prince that Malphas loved, indirecting turning her into the crow witch.
MadOdorMachine
No additional functions
The Iga games have been underwhelming to me for quite awhile now. I didn't even finish PoR or OoE. I'm ready for a new on now, but he seems to have kind of strayed from the story he was building up and left a lot of people out in the cold. Castlevania: Judgement is pretty unforgivable too imo. I don't know wtf he was thinking with that abysmal turd of a game. Why not just make a real game instead and why put Dracula X Chronicles on PSP? I think he just made too many bad decisions for him to be trusted by Konami brass with another console title. I think the odds are in favor of him continuing handheld ones though.Segata Sanshiro said:
As far as LoS goes, I don't want to give too much away, but this is a reboot. Forget everything you know about the series and just go with it. I think it's worth it to play until the end to wrap up the story. After completing the game I want to play another one by MS. It's a different take on the series, but I like what they started. It's more adventure oriented and oddly enough, resembles the N64 games closest imo. In a lot of ways, it's what the N64 games should have been as far as gameplay is concerned. Character design and environments are another story, but I did like some of what MS redesigned.
BattleMonkey
Member
POR was underwhelming and just felt like a large regurgitation, but OoE was excellent and really made quite a few interesting gameplay changes, it felt like we were finally going somewhere new with castlevania 2D
And this was bad why now? And I doubt it was his decision alone.
MadOdorMachine said:
And this was bad why now? And I doubt it was his decision alone.
MadOdorMachine
No additional functions
It was a poor choice to put it on that system imo. It was pretty much doomed from the get go because PSP was already doing bad at that point. I think the game would have performed better as a Wii title or digital download for 360/PS3. It made no sense to spend the money on putting something like Castlevania Judgement on the Wii when they could have put Dracula X Chronicles on there and then followed up with a real title. When you consider they put Dracula X on VC and Adventure Rebirth on WiiWare, it just adds more fuel to the fire. I don't know, I just see those two decisions alone as a major reason for why he might have been replaced on making console games.BattleMonkey said:
BattleMonkey
Member
MadOdorMachine said:
This is making lots of assumptions that Rebirth and such would have or did better on Wii, or that PSP Dracula X was even much of a loss if at all. After DoS we really don't even know how well POR or OoE have done, the series for the most part has never been a huge money maker and really portable games are much safer investments for Konami than this Console version this thread is about. If this Castlevania doesn't do good it probably could be one of the biggest losses money wise for the franchise, while I doubt Iga's Vania's have put much of a dent in Konami's pocket.
Judgment is just all around bad, though again I doubt they put much effort/money into that pos
boutrosinit
Street Fighter IV World Champion
Avoid the trials for a while. Some are so poorly designed that you'll need to come back when you have more energy to weather the cheese.
And don't play it on hard unless you've been through it already. Too frustrating to start while you're learning how to fight with the game's flaws, rather than in spite of them.
RE: LOi and the CoD, I played through both and enjoyed them, but yes, they were VERY ropey. Not even close to the 2D games in quality. More like competent low budget games.
Personally, I consider DMC 1 closer to the Castlevania 'spirit' than those two games. But I still got a kick out of them. Some of the super hard to find areas (super hard challenge tower) were a lot of fun to discover. A shame that level of effort wasn't present throughout the entire game's production.
And don't play it on hard unless you've been through it already. Too frustrating to start while you're learning how to fight with the game's flaws, rather than in spite of them.
RE: LOi and the CoD, I played through both and enjoyed them, but yes, they were VERY ropey. Not even close to the 2D games in quality. More like competent low budget games.
Personally, I consider DMC 1 closer to the Castlevania 'spirit' than those two games. But I still got a kick out of them. Some of the super hard to find areas (super hard challenge tower) were a lot of fun to discover. A shame that level of effort wasn't present throughout the entire game's production.
MadOdorMachine
No additional functions
I'm saying they could have spent the money they used on Judgement on a real CV game instead. Dracula X on PSP probably would have performed better had it been on another system. At the time, Wii was all the rage and I know some fans were disappointed about it being on PSP since not as many people owned one rather than a Wii. In that regard, I'm saying I think the game would have been performed better on Wii. Considering the audience and the fact that they released Rondo of Blood and Adventure Rebirth on it only makes it worse. I think these decisions were part of the reason we're not seeing any Iga console games, at least outside of digital downloads.BattleMonkey said:
Damn, just got to the last fight and hit that error (on PS3).
I was able to boot my game back up and it seems to allow me to continue off... if I get to the intro to the stage (the usual Stewart monologue) that means my data still good right?
I've got a backup in the middle of chapter 10 and if I can back this one up to another mem stick that would be cool, but I'd like to know if the latter is safe at this point or if the error comes back later.
I was able to boot my game back up and it seems to allow me to continue off... if I get to the intro to the stage (the usual Stewart monologue) that means my data still good right?
I've got a backup in the middle of chapter 10 and if I can back this one up to another mem stick that would be cool, but I'd like to know if the latter is safe at this point or if the error comes back later.
MadOdorMachine
No additional functions
The Tower of Evermore IIRC. I like CoD. I thought the combat was good and I like stealing itmes/leveling up. I also liked the teleports they put in the game. They improved on LoI a lot, but the level design while better still wasn't as good as it could have been and the story was pretty bad. The only thing it had to offer was the time travel sub-plot.boutrosinit said:
Combichristoffersen
Combovers don't work when there is no hair
Kolgar said:
Both sides have fair points. It's not the second coming of Christ like some make it out to be, but it's not like this game is worse than the Holocaust either. It's a good game, with some noticeable flaws.
Ok, beat the fucking 3rd giant boss of grappling. Needed a cup of coffee and patience.
Beat the game too. Ending was actually pretty good.
I'll get the sequel if they create more breakpoints with giant boss mistakes or get rid of them entirely. Other than those types of bosses I enjoyed the game.
Music was good, even though it seemed the composer just listened and borrowed parts of LOTR and Harry Gregson-Williams/LionWitchWardobe. Fitting for the art.
One of the annoying implicit rules with this one only discovered by a couple of trial and errors is that you cannot jump from the ledge of the spine to the next when they are near the maximum possible distance.
Beat the game too. Ending was actually pretty good.
I'll get the sequel if they create more breakpoints with giant boss mistakes or get rid of them entirely. Other than those types of bosses I enjoyed the game.
Music was good, even though it seemed the composer just listened and borrowed parts of LOTR and Harry Gregson-Williams/LionWitchWardobe. Fitting for the art.
TheKaeptain
Banned
Very much disagree. Starting on hard forces you to learn how to play the combat system.boutrosinit said:
Just completed the game
.
Overall this is not Castlevania. Is is Genericfantasy of War
Gameplaywise it is (almost identically) God of War in Sub 30 fps. Actually it is a pretty good clone since the gameplay is mostly intact (including the bad parts - QTE). Mix in some standard fantasy stuff and Hollywood standard blockbuster soundtrack and we get this game.
The story was well acted... but also not that involving and again, definately not Castlevania. The only part I liked settingwise in the game was the middle, which incidently was kind of more classic Castlevania settings.
It is an ok GoW-clone but it is not a Castlevania except by name.. oh and the ending cutscenes were really cool and probably more or less the only thing done by Kojima, right?
6/10 seems about fair imo
.
Overall this is not Castlevania. Is is Genericfantasy of War
Gameplaywise it is (almost identically) God of War in Sub 30 fps. Actually it is a pretty good clone since the gameplay is mostly intact (including the bad parts - QTE). Mix in some standard fantasy stuff and Hollywood standard blockbuster soundtrack and we get this game.
The story was well acted... but also not that involving and again, definately not Castlevania. The only part I liked settingwise in the game was the middle, which incidently was kind of more classic Castlevania settings.
It is an ok GoW-clone but it is not a Castlevania except by name.. oh and the ending cutscenes were really cool and probably more or less the only thing done by Kojima, right?
6/10 seems about fair imo
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