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

[Gecko]

Just finished the game in

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HARDCORE Mode (It's unlockable, so I guess that's a spoiler)

. It's my second time through the game, though I did a New Game+, so I started with 100%.

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Both Dracula battles were really cool. I liked Dracula's controlling Simon to mess with Alucard. That was a cool touch. Then Trevor's battle with him felt like a real final Dracula fight. Gameplay wise I'm very content with this game.

The story seems like it needs to explain a lot more though. Then again, I think some characters, like the Toymaker, will be far more important in LoS 2. If not, I will be severely disappointed, since he was really important in MoF, but we got no real closure with him other than seeing him smile menacingly at Trevor before the end of the game.

The Archdemon "battle" with Trevor was severely disappointing though. I wanted a difficult battle to really make me want the Archdemon dead, but instead it was just a big QTE segment. What a letdown. Alucard's encounters with him were really neat though. You're actually supposed to lose the first time, then you develop your skills and kill him (for good?) later. Kind of like in Megaman X, when X goes up against Vile.

[Zetheraxza]

MoF did have good soundtracks. But so did LoS. You know what the problem was, though? It was not a level based soundtrack unlike the older games, it was more scene/event based such as whether you were by yourself or in combat. In LoS, if you took your time and explore the game slowly, you would listen to some nice ambient strings and choir throughout the game, but if you were all about speed running and beating the game, then you came to the combat phase more frequently and hear loud brass and trumpet bombardment and its soundtracks like those which people may find it generic because music like that has been played in fantasy movies and games a lot of times. But in MoF, there weren't a lot of enemy spawns and therefore the game played more environmental music which a lot if VGM producers DO TRY to make it pleasant to listen to. It's unfortunate that most the LoS's soundtrack was unreleased and the ones they did put on the disks were boss battles and combat music. Most probably didn't even search for the rips on YouTube where there were lots of unreleased pleasent soundtrack. Which is why, I defend Oscar Aroujo's soundtrack, because I listened to most of them thoroughly. He is a great composer. And as for Classic soundtracks, I didn't here anybody complain about that in AoS, DoS, OoE (Adding NES disks doesn't count) and especially CoD which literally had none. Most of us don't want classic soundtrack. Face it, you just want good music because if there wasn't this whole reboot hype, IGA would still have been making the games and there wouldn't be a lot of complaining about the music.

As for the games and its future I have to say, what's wrong with Castlevania taking the next step, this is not me trying to defend Mercurysteam. But Castlevania after SotN has been experimental the whole time, being a hit or miss. Please, do realize that there's not a lot you can do with Vampires. Try a new direction and you will end up making twilight. Which was a new take on Vampires but it failed horribly. Vampires always have the same theme. Blood, Midnight, immortality, bats, etc. and there isn't much that can be done with them. Which is why LoS was at least trying to expand their territories in Castlevania's theme at least. Castlevania deserves much more than this. The ideas are great but it has had poor executions in some games. As a fan, I want Castlevania to be an epic series but honestly and realistically speaking though, some things do need to be changed in order for it to do so.

[Akuma]

I just love the puzzle music in this game.  It has that calming effect like you are actually thinking about something.

[MKKhanzo]

SOTN should be considered a spin-off, and certainly not a flag ship of the series.

Wow.

This is becoming again IGA vs Cox. I hate this, and I remembered when it was FF VII vs the classics (II-III usa).

But it was mostly due to new users that got later into the games. Same happenned with Street Fighter, purists critic IV but love II saga.

 All games are good IMO, but IMO AGAN LoS is a big "no personality" game (GoW, LotR, etc) and MoF aims "to be" something classic that it quite cannot "reach".

If Cox said that MoFwas going to be based/inspired by CVIII/IV, IMO they didnt delivered.

Floaty controls, random generic music, 1000 hit enemies, "arena like" encounters, no REAL exploration, etc.

But again, to each its own. Its a reboot.

[Heuss]

I'm impressed with the battle against Dracula

[whitedragon_nall]

About halfway into Act II, I started getting a little bored with it. I like the game at first, but now it's just feeling a bit redundant. I'm on Trevor's act now and will probably beat it some time today, hopefully. Overall, I'm disappointed in this.

Also, something I noticed. Is that Alucard in the LoS2 trailer? I thought it was, but he casts a reflection. Alucard in MoF does not.

[Dremn]

I keep checking youtube frequently for any ripped tracks but no one has even attempted to get the music yet. Shame.

[Shiroi Koumori]

I keep checking youtube frequently for any ripped tracks but no one has even attempted to get the music yet. Shame.

Must have been the haters.

[Belmontoya]

MKKKHanzo- I never said I didn't like some of IGA's games, and I also never said that I thought Mirror of Fate was a perfect game.

What I was saying is that the IGA fans are not the old Castlevania fans. The old Castlevania fans are the guys like me that have been playing it since the late 80's. I've always seen the IGA fans as the newcomers who try to pose as the hardcore fans. It bothers me when these fans try to criticize new developers who have their own idea of how the series can evolve. IGA had one vision, and it was basically Metriod.

[Maedhros]

Bullshit. I'm not really playing since 80's, but from 90's, since the original games. And I have different oppinions from you, as I love Metroidvania games.

Also, just because you started earlier doesn't make your oppinion more valid than any other.

[Lelygax]

Hey Montoya, good too see you again, do you are still making Rise of Nosferatu? I liked the fact that you are creating all graphics from scratch

[crisis]

What I was saying is that the IGA fans are not the old Castlevania fans. The old Castlevania fans are the guys like me that have been playing it since the late 80's. I've always seen the IGA fans as the newcomers who try to pose as the hardcore fans. It bothers me when these fans try to criticize new developers who have their own idea of how the series can evolve. IGA had one vision, and it was basically Metriod.

I was born in 1985. Been playing Castlevania since Castlevania started. I'm an IGA fan, and I love what he brought to the series. I also like LoS, but not as much as the past games, both classic & "igavania" alike. I also wouldn't mind to see him return to the series in some form, be it advisor or producer.

The "metroidvania" style doesn't even belong to the Metroid series anymore. When was the last time Nintendo released a proper 2D side-scrolling Metroid? The "style" now belongs to Castlevania, not Metroid.

Should we call every top-down adventure game that bares resemblance to the original Zelda "Zelda-clones?"

[DragonSlayr81]

MoF did have good soundtracks. But so did LoS. You know what the problem was, though? It was not a level based soundtrack unlike the older games, it was more scene/event based such as whether you were by yourself or in combat. In LoS, if you took your time and explore the game slowly, you would listen to some nice ambient strings and choir throughout the game, but if you were all about speed running and beating the game, then you came to the combat phase more frequently and hear loud brass and trumpet bombardment and its soundtracks like those which people may find it generic because music like that has been played in fantasy movies and games a lot of times. But in MoF, there weren't a lot of enemy spawns and therefore the game played more environmental music which a lot if VGM producers DO TRY to make it pleasant to listen to. It's unfortunate that most the LoS's soundtrack was unreleased and the ones they did put on the disks were boss battles and combat music. Most probably didn't even search for the rips on YouTube where there were lots of unreleased pleasent soundtrack. Which is why, I defend Oscar Aroujo's soundtrack, because I listened to most of them thoroughly. He is a great composer. And as for Classic soundtracks, I didn't here anybody complain about that in AoS, DoS, OoE (Adding NES disks doesn't count) and especially CoD which literally had none. Most of us don't want classic soundtrack. Face it, you just want good music because if there wasn't this whole reboot hype, IGA would still have been making the games and there wouldn't be a lot of complaining about the music.

As for the games and its future I have to say, what's wrong with Castlevania taking the next step, this is not me trying to defend Mercurysteam. But Castlevania after SotN has been experimental the whole time, being a hit or miss. Please, do realize that there's not a lot you can do with Vampires. Try a new direction and you will end up making twilight. Which was a new take on Vampires but it failed horribly. Vampires always have the same theme. Blood, Midnight, immortality, bats, etc. and there isn't much that can be done with them. Which is why LoS was at least trying to expand their territories in Castlevania's theme at least. Castlevania deserves much more than this. The ideas are great but it has had poor executions in some games. As a fan, I want Castlevania to be an epic series but honestly and realistically speaking though, some things do need to be changed in order for it to do so.

What are you exactly trying to say? Your first paragraph(or wall of text), you defend Aroujo's LoS/MoF songs, jab at how you believe the reason people find his music boring is because they only hear the battle music and don't take their time to bask in the ambience(though, personal taste and opinion, his ambience isn't doing it for me either), then jab at the IGA/Classic CV music.

Second paragraph, you make the point that CV needs to change, then you say it can only change SO MUCH because you are limited with what you can do with vampires(and give the example that a Twiligh-vania could be a possible avenue), THEN you say LoS, at the least, expanded the territories. It's like you're bouncing around with examples, I just don't know what you're trying to get across.

[Neobelmont]

okay so what happened I have be doing statistics math work all day and now I need to study for political science so, lay it on me.

[DragonSlayr81]

Every time someone making a reboot of a franchise mentions Christopher Nolan, take a shot.

This is my drinking game.

I'd rather have it where, every director and producer that mentions how their "reboot" will take cues from Nolan's Batman, or be a more "grounded", "gritty" or "realistic" version than the original, howabout we take a shot.... AT THEM. Seriously, I'm getting sick and tired of these asshats and their hardons for this trend. I was at Bloody Disgusting, clicked on the article for the new Godzilla reboot, and what did the director and producers say about it, top of the article? "We are going for a more grounded and realistic take....".... on a giant radioactive dinosaur that shoots radioactive rays from it's mouth.... and fights giant mutants and aliens from space....

Seriously, I think modern society's gotta get that stick out of their ass. Just reach in there and pull it out, that "Everything has to be dark, gritty and grounded" stick. You'll have SOOOOO much more fun without that limitation. SOOOOOO much more fun!