Topic: Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate 3DS (Discussion Thread)

[Mr.Bushido]

i think i'm just gonna accept Alucard =/= Trevor for now and go on being happy.  then when i play the game, and find out Alucard really IS Trevor (or an alternate universe version of him or doppelganger etc), i'll slap myself on the forhead and groan, just like i did when i found out that Gabriel really does become Dracula.

not time to tune out though.  gotta wait until the game comes out before i start ignoring stuff for fear of spoilers.

The smartest thing to do is to be ok with it IMO, this storyline is just a trilogy and will finish in the next game anyway. What matters is that we'll able to play with alucard in this game, who cares about the plot

[uzo]

Bruce Wayne and Batman exist simultaneously, each being an alter-ego of the other.

Bruce IS the Batman now, full time. How did Bruce know he wasn't going crazy when he was hearing voices 'in his head'? Because the voices called him Bruce, so he knew they weren't real.

[Neobelmont]

New interview

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 - E3 2012: Dracula Rises Interview

It's a mix I'll update both 

[Mr.Bushido]

cool interview, alvarez seems like a nice guy

[derision]

Yeah, it was great to see Alvarez talk a bit for a change. Did he do any interviews for the first game? I don't remember seeing any, though I may have missed some.

Also, I loved the bit at the end:

"You'll feel some sympathy for Dracula."

*cue Drac standing in the middle of hundreds of people he just brutally murdered*

[Dremn]

Fantastic interview. I already do feel sympathy for this new Dracula, so they've definitely succeeded in that regard.

[MKKhanzo]

You know what I don't get? If they had the surprise "modern times" ending in LoS, then why cram Trevor and Simon so close together on the timeline? They could just as easily have made Trevor the grandson of Marie's child and Simon could have been Trevor's grandchild instead too.

This have me nuts, cause the fight shown in the trailer seemed to be still in medieval times. So Gabula survives? Who will confront him in modern times then?

[CastleDan]

Nice to know for sure that the white haired guy was Alucard,..... Thing is based off of the words in this you would think Trevor does become Alucard. I think Cox is trying to lead us the wrong direction since it would ruin the game.

[derision]

This have me nuts, cause the fight shown in the trailer seemed to be still in medieval times. So Gabula survives? Who will confront him in modern times then?

I remember that when Cox was talking about LoS' epilogue, he made a remark to the extent of Dracula being resurrected multiple times before. It may have been a Twitter comment- if someone could confirm what I'm talking about that would be great.

Basically, it's possible that Dracula can be defeated/incapacitated, but not indefinitely. Hence LoS2's scenario, which refers to him trying to "break his immortal bonds" and the continued persistence of the Belmonts.

[MelancholySpork12]

So I've been holding back on commenting on Mirror of Fate until some real concrete gameplay footage shows up, and now that we've seen the full demo from beginning to end, I'll chime in.

In short, I'm sold.

No, it's not exactly like the Metroidvanias that we all know and love, but bear in mind that Castlevania wasn't originally a Metroidvania at all. The series evolved with Symphony of the Night, and now it appears to be evolving again with Lords of Shadow. While I wasn't a big fan of LoS as a game, I like where they're going with it. It really does seem like the devs have taken the many criticisms of LoS into account - the game actually FEELS like Castlevania now (I cheered when Cox said 90% of the game would take place in the Castle) and 3D combat seems to flow remarkably well for a 2D platformer. The enemies are quite Castlevania-ish and the environments are just wonderful - I loved the big cathedral where Trevor picked up the boomerang. The 2.5 effect seems to work remarkably well for this game.

If the full game maintains that, that's good enough for me. I'll admit, though, a couple of things have taken a chunk out of my anticipation - I do have to admit that the lengthy combat with every goddamn enemy looks like it could get quite tedious during Metroidvania-style gameplay. It seems as though their solution to that is to just remove all of the enemy encounters whenever you're exploring, and trigger them at specific times. Okkaayy... I guess. Doesn't feel quite the same, but I can deal with it.

Something I am definitely going to miss are the RPG elements, which appear to be completely gone from this game. Unlocking combo moves is just not the same. I liked breaking apart walls and finding random slices of pumpkin pie, swords, and other doohickies. It really added some replay value, and made all of your "exploration" feel meaningful in a tangible way. Now it appears that running around the Castle is more or less a complete waste of your time. I dislike this, but not so much that I can't get used to it.

Not huge on the inclusion of light and dark magic. Feels out of place in a CV game. But again, it's not a dealbreaker, just a nitpick.

In short - if they iron out the framerate issues, continue to impress with the environments, get a better soundtrack and emphasize the Metroid-style gameplay I think this will be the best Castlevania game in a long time. Who knows? Might even rank with the DS/GBA trilogies. Time will tell. Meanwhile, I'm excited.

[MKKhanzo]

I remember that when Cox was talking about LoS' epilogue, he made a remark to the extent of Dracula being resurrected multiple times before. It may have been a Twitter comment- if someone could confirm what I'm talking about that would be great.

Basically, it's possible that Dracula can be defeated/incapacitated, but not indefinitely. Hence LoS2's scenario, which refers to him trying to "break his immortal bonds" and the continued persistence of the Belmonts.

Im hyped at the possibility of Gabe going to hell (literally) and battling and beating the crap out of Satan and then he becomes the true ruler of the underworld/hell/nasty stuff etc. Not to mention that it would be a battle of EPIC proportions like in LoS wich they did LOTS of spanish religious nods like Arcangel Gabriel battling Satan etc.

[Dremn]

No, it's not exactly like the Metroidvanias that we all know and love, but bear in mind that Castlevania wasn't originally a Metroidvania at all.

Yea, after listening to that interview and rewatching the demo footage I definitely do see what Cox was trying to say. It's not a pure Metroidvania but it definitely has those characteristics that would make you think it is one.

[RichterB]

Watching the interview. Cox and Enric are very well-spoken and likable, but I still don't know if they understand what makes Castlevania tick. When Cox says it's more like Dracula's Curse now, I think he's exaggerating. They really want to redefine this franchise on all levels into something else. The similarities to the past are more superficial. I think maybe they want to make a name for themselves and use CV as a stepping stone for their inherent talent.

And as for this "know Dracula" story...it hasn't been working for me. Mirror of Fate seems slightly more interesting in its narrative, but Gabe becoming Dracula came off as forced to me; so much happened off screen or before the game began. A lot of it felt random and removed from history, too. I thought LoI did a better job in terms of emotions, with Renaldo's tale and Leon facing the betrayal and his wife's death firsthand, and then going forth with conviction. Some people thought it was silly, but it wasn't any less credible that LoS' storyline. Even if quirky, LoI made it quite clear and very compelling why the Belmonts are out for blood. And Leon made a great first Belmont, too--you saw up close the descent from formal nobleman to desperate commoner to vengeful warrior. (I'll hunt you and the night! )

Now back to the interview...

PS: Cox, I didn't ask for a return to "Metroidvania" in any format.

[Ahasverus]

Is it just me who has the strange feeling that we're getting the whole CV series condensed into this game? That kinda worries me, but it would be awesome if they pull it off.

[shelverton.]

Is it just me who has the strange feeling that we're getting the whole CV series condensed into this game? That kinda worries me, but it would be awesome if they pull it off.

Yeah, it also makes me wonder where Castlevania will go from here. This reboot is already finished and won't be expanded upon (it seems). So what next? Are we gonna see another reboot after LoS2, made by someone else? Will IGA come back and make more games in the old timeline? Or... Are Konami putting an end to the series altogether? Is this... good-bye?