Castlevania Dungeon Forums
The Castlevania Dungeon Forums => General Castlevania Discussion => Topic started by: beingthehero on June 03, 2011, 09:44:46 PM
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I decided to replay that game, since it had been months since I last played any Castlevania. I still wholly dig the arranged version. There's a ton of details they packed into each of the levels, especially the cemetery and the chapel. I also loved how they reworked Rondo's pretty bland clock tower stage into something much more impressive.
On the other hand, I had forgotten how corny the dialog was. Richter is mostly competent and the voice actor who is playing Shaft is obviously relishing the cheese, but everyone else made me cringe. Looking back, I was in love with the music, but now I definitely prefer the Rondo originals. Bloody Tears and Divine Bloodlines both stand out in how bland their new versions are.
Even though the emulation was pitiful, I still dig having the original Rondo. When I'm on the bus or taking the train, it's still a joy to have a portable Rondo.
It's a shame it didn't sell as well as it deserved. I pity the fools who found Rondo too hard and only wanted SotN, but I think they had a point that having SotN so proudly advertised on the back and not having it available from the start was a little strange. I figured they would have included an options menu a la Castlevania Chronicles, where you could adjust as to how easy (or hard) you wanted the game.
And as painfully average as it was, I think DXX should have been the other unlockable for the more hardcore types. I was actually hoping it would be on there.
So what do you all think?
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I liked it, as well as some of the other awesome 2.5D games on the PSP, but I really would have preferred it on the PS2. I was kind of mad that they didn't port it when they ported the very sub par Silent Hill Origins; it's really something I'd enjoy much more on a TV. (That annoying ass TV cable for the PSP doesn't count.)
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Oh man, I was like 90% certain it would be brought over to the PS2 because of SH origins. I'd love to play the game on a TV.
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I was actually just playing this game a few hours ago (I've been on a bit of a CV kick recently). To be honest, I rather like the game. I still remember my face when I realized Dracula had a 3rd form (I loved that fight a lot to be honest) because honestly, I thought the fight was going to be played straight.
I also loved all the other little things they packed into the title, like bosses making snide/taunting/creepy remarks if you got a game over during the boss fight, and speaking of those, I love that they added that you have to fight Annette if you don't save her, just like in DXX...even if she did look more like a succubus than a vampire) and I have a good time playing the game in general. I missed the cut scene where Dracula spoke to Annette though. Dunno why, but I wish it would have been there, more so since they added the small cut scene showing Shaft kidnap her in the first place. I liked that Dracula was taking a 'it's personal' approach when it came to her and just seemingly messing with Richter so it would have been nice to see.
The VA's didn't really bother me, though some of them were pretty cringe worthy, lol. As for the music, I rather like the soundtrack with Vampire Killer, Slash, and Daybreak being my favorites. Some of the songs are lacking however and I outright hate the first rendition of Cemetery and I'm not too fond of Opus 13 either (which sucks because that's my favorite tune from the game).
I've always liked Rondo and SOTN so having them was a perk but I can agree: I wasn't exactly sure why they needed to be unlockable. I just assumed it was a 'way' to make sure you played the remix version of the game. It didn't bother me though: it just gave me something else to shoot for while playing the remake other than saving the girls. As for DXX, I wish it had been included as well. Yes, it does pale in comparison in most people's eyes to the original Rondo..and dagnab, was it hard. But it's still part of the collect (or at least, I think) and it would have been nice to have.
This game honestly is one of the few reasons I even still even own a PSP and was the reason I went and about the component cables just so I could play it on my t.v. I was honestly hoping that this will be one of the titles that gets ported to the PS3 in HD...though I doubt it entirely. Still, it would be nice if it was ported to a home console so more people could experience it.
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I just could not play it WITH. A. PSP.
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DXC was probably my favorite entry in the series. I'm not saying its because of SotN on the go (though that's a contributing factor), it's because the holy grail of the Castlevania series finally came to America, in a full remake no less! THAT is what gave me hope in Iga. That he could possibly remake more games like this and he said if DXC is successful enough, he will make more games in its style.
Honestly though, I liked the remake. However, they should have improved the fluidity of the controls, you know? The gameplay worked great in Rondo and the other 2D games, but it just feels primitive with 3D character models. They should have given Richter and Maria the ability to fully control their jumps. Midair, they could have had a downward-forward attack. Richter could have had the ability to run.
I also would have liked alternate costumes. Like Rick getting his original RoB and SotN outfits as unlockables and Maria getting her original RoB (<----though it would not have worked) and an adaption of her SotN outfit for the kid version of her.
Overall, though, I loved the game as a whole, and the voice acting in it is boss. And I will agree, some tracks on the OST were bland compared to the original, but some were amazing (Vampire Killer, Cemetery, Ghost Ship Painting, Cross Fear, Slash), and the slew of new tracks was cool (MoonFight, Red Dawn, Tues Deus meus).
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I still haven't played it, but from what I saw, it's not close to being as good as the original. Even the OST is lacking, or it doesn't sound as good as the original. I have played Rob twice, and it's prolly my favorite CV after SOTN.
It's still a nice addition to the series. They should make more games in 2.5D. I don't mind if it's a remake, but I really wanna see an entirely new CV game done using that technique .Maybe they can make the Alucardvania game in 2.5D? I would love to see that happen.
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I still haven't played it, but from what I saw, it's not close to being as good as the original. Even the OST is lacking, or it doesn't sound as good as the original. I have played Rob twice, and it's prolly my favorite CV after SOTN.
It's still a nice addition to the series. They should make more games in 2.5D. I don't mind if it's a remake, but I really wanna see an entirely new CV game done using that technique .Maybe they can make the Alucardvania game in 2.5D? I would love to see that happen.
Well, since I played DXC first, I'm admitting that I like it better than RoB.
Are you talking about the Alucard game that was cancelled in favor of LoS? Cuz I'd really love to see a 3D adaption of Al with his cape and everything. :D
Anyone else which the SNES game Dracula X was included in DXC? I felt it was complete because it was missing that game.
By the way, Odile, I love your sig.
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I TOTALLY wanted the SNES' Dracula XX. I mean, this is "Chronicles," so it's incomplete without it. (I am of the minority who like it better than Rondo, ironically, and consider it very much a part of Dracula X lore). While I'd played through SotN, DXC was my first time playing Rondo in any form. I played through both Arranged and Original modes. It's a solid game, and I love it's variety and scope. However, for someone playing Rondo for the first time, some of the level design seemed a bit trite and stunted, IMO. The map system, which allows you to backtrack and switch at any time, felt almost a little too friendly and forgiving--made the game design feel a little loose compared to the consequences of Dracula's Curse or Dracula XX (I love the Arranged map's look, though). I feel that the PSP-style of 2.5-D Castlevania could really be expanded upon and improved with an original Castlevania game, but found DXC to be fun and serviceable. That's all for now.
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Yeah I'm talking about that game who got cancelled. I guess 3D could work too, but since I'm not sure if the IGA team can pull it off nicely,I think I'll stick with 2.5D.
Lol this is the second time someone makes a compliment about my sig, and in the same day. I guess it's a pretty nice sig I got there :D.
I just love the face that Dracula makes when he gets kicked in the balls XD
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Yeah I'm talking about that game who got cancelled. I guess 3D could work too, but since I'm not sure if the IGA team can pull it off nicely,I think I'll stick with 2.5D.
Well, I meant the character model. 2.5D games are 3D characters on 2D backgrounds, with a few 3D pieces here and there.
I TOTALLY wanted the SNES' Dracula XX. I mean, this is "Chronicles," so it's incomplete without it. (I am of the minority who like it better than Rondo, ironically, and consider it very much a part of Dracula X lore). While I'd played through SotN, DXC was my first time playing Rondo in any form. I played through both Arranged and Original modes. It's a solid game, and I love it's variety and scope. However, for someone playing Rondo for the first time, some of the level design seemed a bit trite and stunted, IMO. The map system, which allows you to backtrack and switch at any time, felt almost a little too friendly and forgiving--made the game design feel a little loose compared to the consequences of Dracula's Curse or Dracula XX (I love the Arranged map's look, though). I feel that the PSP-style of 2.5-D Castlevania could really be expanded upon and improved with an original Castlevania game, but found DXC to be fun and serviceable. That's all for now.
I agree with this. SotN was really easy cuz a lot of the stuff it had (Go Esco!), and the UMD set could've used Dracula X on it. It would've made it complete.
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Peke is better than Dracula X. Hoo!
DXC is good. The ports within are sub-par, but the remake itself is mostly quality. It doesn't match up to Rondo or anything, but it's a cool alternate version for when you feel like it. There are a few definite improvements, like the third phase of the Dracula battle, which is nice to see in a reworking like this. Sometimes it misses the point egregiously though, like not playing Poison Mind during the CV1 boss rush, and I just don't get it. Rondo is practically perfect in every area of its design, so naturally it comes out on top, even aside from me preferring its aesthetics on a fundamental level. You just can't improve on genius no matter how you dress it up.
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Peke is better than Dracula X. Hoo!
DXC is good. The ports within are sub-par, but the remake itself is mostly quality. It doesn't match up to Rondo or anything, but it's a cool alternate version for when you feel like it. There are a few definite improvements, like the third phase of the Dracula battle, which is nice to see in a reworking like this. Sometimes it misses the point egregiously though, like not playing Poison Mind during the CV1 boss rush, and I just don't get it. Rondo is practically perfect in every area of its design, so naturally it comes out on top, even aside from me preferring its aesthetics on a fundamental level. You just can't improve on genius no matter how you dress it up.
Original RoB alternate stage 5. Compare it to DXC's alternate stage 5. You'll see how terrible RoB looks in comparison when it comes to level design. DXC also added the Hydra and Annette boss battles, which was awesome.
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Stage 5' is a bored developer's joke to begin with. It's intentionally made as ridiculously tough as possible, hastily assembled from existing assets. I can't but love it for that. Trying to make it a "legitimate" stage is kind of... point-missing, which I mentioned. Op. 13 is preferable to Red Dawn any day of the week, too.
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I think that DXC is the second best game remake of all time, only bested by REmake.
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I think that DXC is the second best game remake of all time, only bested by REmake.
I approve this message.
But yeah, most people find it "Ech." Don't throw your inside jokes out on the general public. Besides, stage 5' in DXC was just as hard, it just looked nicer. And Red Dawn is waaaaaaay better than Opus 13. But Opus 13's rearrange... Like, HOLY CRAP it's amazing.
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It's hilarious to behold and makes evident that people developing the game had a good sense of humour. It fits very well with Rondo's cheeky lightheartedness, so to me it's just all the better. The DXC version doesn't offer much in comparison. It's just another fancy stage with fancy music.
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It wasn't much of a sense of humor. I liked that it was ridiculously hard. But the inconsistency in the level design was really bad.
I didn't exactly mean that people can't toss in some kinda joke. What I said earlier came out wrong, my bad.
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I like it, it was a very interesting idea of 2.5D. I wish that it would get a release for the PS3, but that's not going to happen.....anyway, i would like to see a new Castlevania game, using that formula, not a remake!!! :)
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I dig the additional boss fights and Dracula's third form.
The remake is also great, but I prefer the visual style, music, and overall feeling of the original Rondo of Blood.
The lack of DXX is a bit upsetting to me, but nothing I can't deal with.
The Symphony of the Night voice overs are very disappointing, and I'll turn to the Playstation version every time over what is presented in DXC.
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As a big fan of the new voices, I have to say:
You gotta admit Richter's voice is way better than the original.
With Alucard, there are some incidents where I just prefer the original voice. "Answer me! Why is a Belmont planning to resurrect Dracula?" That line in the new version was delivered terribly, whereas the original "Answer me! Why is a Belmont planning the resurrect Count Dracula?!" sounded like he was really demanding an answer.
As cool as Dracula's original voice was, I still like the new one better. It's much easier to take it more seriously with the new voice. But I hate the removal of the Matthew 16:26 reference. :\ But in the original game Dracula by far had the best voice acting.
Maria sounds more her age. Maybe if she were in her twenties or so the original voice would match more. I just wish they made her sound a little older. But then, it's also better than her Judgment/HD voice.
Shaft sounds awesome in the new one. He sounds eviler in the original, though. I don't know which is better.
We all prefer the original Master Librarian with his "Young Master, I could never assist one who opposes the master!" talk. ;D
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The new voice acting is wooden, charmless, and entirely forgettable. What's more irksome is the new, overly literal script that doesn't hold a candle to Blaustein's original translation in any way. The Internet has collectively decided to chortle at mere mentions of Symphony of the Night's dialogue, to an endless degree, but I always found it theatrically overblown in a pleasant manner, and a very able work altogether. Even the voices are iconic no matter how you actually think of the acting therein; at this point hearing anyone but Belgrade as Alucard feels wrong to my ears.
So yes, I would contend that I enjoy Symphony's story scenes unironically, and the attempt to improve on the original in DXC fell short in all the ways that mattered.
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Stage 5' is a bored developer's joke to begin with. It's intentionally made as ridiculously tough as possible, hastily assembled from existing assets.
While I can see that, you don't know that with absolute certainty. I would peg it as more 'we ran out of time, throw the hardest things we can into a hidden stage' rather than 'the fans will appreciate this Frankenstein'd stage, and will laugh at it'.
If someone did the same thing with a new game these days (**cough**PoR**cough**), they get lynchmobbed in this forum. So why is it excusable with Rondo? Because it's cool? I don't see it.
And DraculaXX's Stage 5' is like Rondo's "area after the Clock Tower" stage, but better-looking (still has spearknights and sword lords, too).
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While I can see that, you don't know that with absolute certainty.
http://www.gamesradar.com/psp/f/castlevania-the-mega-interview/a-20070312121437520086/g-2007020210261331098/p-2 (http://www.gamesradar.com/psp/f/castlevania-the-mega-interview/a-20070312121437520086/g-2007020210261331098/p-2)
KI: There was one level - so-called the Seabass Takatsuka level. The current Winning Eleven producer Seabass had been working on the [original] PC Engine version. Almost every element from the stages was combined in one specific level. We... didn't like it.
GR: This was in the original version?
KI: The original version. Takatsuka was working on one certain stage. But what he did was pull out every element from the other stages, which I didn't like. I actually created one stage from scratch.
GR: So one stage is new, to replace that level?
KI: Yes. But the spirit of Takatsuka remains over that stage.
It's not in the interview I linked, but I recall it being said around the same time in another interview with Igarashi or Ogasawara or whoever that the motivation for the creation of that stage was one developer's (Takatsuka's, evidently) dissatisfaction with the low level of difficulty in the game, to which he reportedly exclaimed "I'll show you real Castlevania!" and thus, stage 5'.
It's just interesting and funny to me. I don't know what Portrait has to do with this when that game is rubbish to the core. Rondo is brilliant, and one alternate stage isn't going to tarnish the whole even if you don't "get" or like it.
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I honestly liked PoR more than Rondo, to be honest. Rondo these days is overly-hyped. When there are lots of bad things about the game.
-Stage 5'
-Badly animated cutscenes, but that's more of the system's problem
-Ugly backgrounds. Like, really ugly in a lot of cases.
-Backflip. Not the move itself, the way to perform it. There were plenty of other ways it could have been implemented, especially in the DXX version.
That's only some of the many things. Whereas PoR is bashed constantly, but there's a lot of cool things in the game.
And if you ask me, DXC fixed a lot of the problems with RoB. Stage 5' was completely redone. The animated cutscenes were replaced with dialog scenes in the style of Symphony (except they looked cooler in this game). The backgrounds looked much nicer, but it's a little unfair to compare a PSP in 2007 to the PC-Engine in 1992.
Oh, and the voice acting was much better. If by wooden, you mean no real emotion and practically monotone, you are completely wrong. Not charming, you are wrong. Forgettable, wrong. Well, in any case, it's the complete opposite to me.
NOT WOODEN: See the Annette battle as Richter. He realizes he has to kill her. He feels sad, and you can tell. He knows what he has to do, and then kills her. What makes it sadder? Annette screams out Richter's name upon death.
CHARMING: Alucard and Dracula don't sound like gruff beast and typical villain respectively. While Dracula may sound it in some ways, let's face it. This voice matches the regal villain of this series way more than his original voice. Richter sounds really awesome, and not like your typical PSX[ hero (serious, that guy's voice was in like EVERY PSX game).
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@Puwexil:
I just read that interview, and I don't I'm understanding it the way you did (though you just said 'it's not in the interview I linked' sooooooo okay? but wait, you just quoted from within that interview... so is there another interview that expands upon this further?)...
You don't get that if you take pieces from other stages and put them in one stage, in today's time, it would be akin to what Portrait did with its 'extra stages' which were essentially just slightly altered versions of previous stages? Regardless of what your opinion of PoR or Rondo is, it would be a very similar move. My question is, why does Rondo get a pass for this?
That interview is talking about how IGA's rendition (on the PSP DXC))of the Takatsuka stage does not do that (the one with Red Dawn playing in the background music), but it retains the 'spirit of difficulty' that Takatsuka was trying to accomplish. I think it's very cool that IGA's 2.5D DXC rendition cleans up that stage so it's not a hodgepodge stage. That's quite commendable.
But we were talking about Rondo, here, and how one of the posters said that Rondo's Stage 5' isn't as well-resented as DraculaXX's Stage 5', which I agree with.
So my point was specifically with regards to that conversation. Why do you handwave that level away in the conversation, when it's obvious that what is doing is what we have come to dislike Konami doing with the later titles?
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Well, Rondo's stage 5 was a unlockable level. It was just a fun extra and an afterthought. PoR's dark portraits, on the other hand, make up the entire latter portion of the game. They're there to help extend the game, much like the inverted castle in SotN.
I loved DXC's stage 5, though, especially the hydra boss. It kind of a reminded me of a 2.5D God of War stage. D:
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Claimh Solais, I was only addressing and comparing the voice acting and dialogue in Symphony and its redone version in DXC, not DXC itself, so you didn't really need to argue for that. I don't really have a strong opinion on it, but as it does share the same cast as the new Symphony, it's safe to say it's just as boring and droning.
Also Jorge, I linked that interview to provide context to what I already know, which I related just now. It was the best I could find, at the moment, of the subject at hand, but if you can't take me by my word then go right ahead. I thought it was a pretty clear explanation.
I don't have anything against the redone stage 5', on its own. It's a level in a Castlevania game, and it fits DXC's aesthetic. I just think it's not as memorable, for better or for worse, as the original hodgepodge. I think it adds more than it detracts.
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Claimh Solais, I was only addressing and comparing the voice acting and dialogue in Symphony and its redone version in DXC, not DXC itself, so you didn't really need to argue for that. I don't really have a strong opinion on it, but as it does share the same cast as the new Symphony, it's safe to say it's just as boring and droning.
Oh. >.>
Well, then concerning SotN's voice acting, I'll admit some of it was delivered badly. But then, it was that way in the original game also. Save for a few lines, Alucard was not fun to listen to. He was pretty darn boring.
(BTW, to save time for typing, calling me Claimh is a shorter way to address me.) (:
I don't have anything against the redone stage 5', on its own. It's a level in a Castlevania game, and it fits DXC's aesthetic. I just think it's not as memorable, for better or for worse, as the original hodgepodge. I think it adds more than it detracts.
To be honest, I liked the original game's stage 5' also. But the biggest problem with it is that it just pulled backgrounds and tiles from elsewhere in the game and the entire stage was so inconsistent. It would've been cool if they decided to make a new tileset for it.
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What I love about Robert Belgrade's Alucard is how intensely deep his voice is. I mean, yada yada, badass with a deep voice etc., but it works here because of the contrast with his fair appearance. Ryōtarō Okiayu's original Alucard has a deep voice too, but it's more like a standard baritone bishounen sound. Belgrade sounds more obviously masculine, and thus amplifies the contrast I find fitting, especially in the case of a supernatural being like Alucard.
The above probably makes it obvious why I didn't particularly care for Yuri Lowenthal's casting as Alucard in the new version.
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Also Jorge, I linked that interview to provide context to what I already know, which I related just now. It was the best I could find, at the moment, of the subject at hand, but if you can't take me by my word then go right ahead. I thought it was a pretty clear explanation.
I don't have anything against the redone stage 5', on its own. It's a level in a Castlevania game, and it fits DXC's aesthetic. I just think it's not as memorable, for better or for worse, as the original hodgepodge. I think it adds more than it detracts.
The quote from the interview still doesn't say it was some kind of programmer joke or something. It was something I did not know and, although the interview clears up a few things, it's still a fact that the stage is taking aspects from other stages and piecing them together. Hey, I like the stage too, in both the original mode (that made no sense) and the DXC mode (which makes more sense). My only qualm with what was said was with regards to the SNES version's little conversation prior, to which the only aspect that was mentioned was the aesthetics.
You know, this (by Claimh Solais):
Original RoB alternate stage 5. Compare it to DXC's alternate stage 5. You'll see how terrible RoB looks in comparison when it comes to level design. DXC also added the Hydra and Annette boss battles, which was awesome.
To which you replied with:
Stage 5' is a bored developer's joke to begin with. It's intentionally made as ridiculously tough as possible, hastily assembled from existing assets. I can't but love it for that. Trying to make it a "legitimate" stage is kind of... point-missing, which I mentioned. Op. 13 is preferable to Red Dawn any day of the week, too.
The interview you quoted afterwards does not really say it's a 'bored developer's joke', which was what I called to question in my response, and it also does not excuse the hodgepodge graphics that you seem to love so much, to which I ask again... why is it OK for Rondo to do it and not for other games to do?
Meanwhile, people discard DraculaXX's stages, which were (aside from a background in the final stage) pretty alright.
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You're pretty caught up on exact wording there. If it helps, the developer was bored by the ease of the rest of Rondo, thus he made a quick, ruthless stage without even pretending to unify or justify it visually. The joke is that the stage made it into the game. I don't know why that isn't hilarious.
Also come on, I already explained my stance. I find the stage fascinating by the mere fact that it exists, the story surrounding its creation, and how it's pretty balls-hard to play through (this is not a cry for Rondo to be more difficult in general). And yes, it being an alternate choice to the "proper" stage is crucial, as well. It's awful on paper, but I like it in context, as an aside and a bit of history.
I dunno if that's addressed to me, but what's this about Dracula X? I only joked how I like Peke more than it (which is true).
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I heard about that story too. iirc it was very late toward development, as if the game itself was basically complete excluding Stage 5'. They pretty much just slammed in a challenge stage. It doesn't particularly justify reused assets, though I doubt they wanted to hassle the graphic designers for some unplanned stage that popped up, but I thought the layout and challenges were enough to offset that. Not exactly a "cohesive" stage, but it's obviously meant as a bonus challenge level.
It doesn't reuse layouts like PoR does when it reuses backgrounds, and it's really the layout and level design reuse that bothers me than the actual reuse of backgrounds for those instances anyway.
I think I prefer DXC's though. I think it has a more focused overall structure and hey, has an extra boss. Though aesthetically, I find it pretty boring. Not sure if I prefer new and boring or curious hodgepodge lol.
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why is it OK for Rondo to do it and not for other games to do?
While he's not, Peklo, Beingthehero already explained a crucial difference between Portrait of Ruin and Rondo of Blood. There is a big difference between a single unlockable extra stage (note: extra, meaning it's not needed to complete the game), and Portrait of Ruin's mandatory large areas that comprise a hefty percentage of the game.
And actually, I think Rondo's extra stage is intriguing because it creates stage areas out of settings that often weren't explored or used much, like the room right before the Shaft battle, the room before the Minotaur fight, the sunset portion of the lake bridge, and the Shaft battle room. It's reusing backgrounds, but it's mainly reusing ones that were hardly used.
To tell you the truth, I also find Rondo's stage more visually pleasing and interesting than DXC's....... cave : /
Then again, I'm a sucker for bright, colorful stuff, so... (you should see my shoe collection)
Castlevania: Rondo of Blood - Stage 5' (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ry2xw_q2yiQ#ws)
Castlevania Dracula X Chronicles Stage 5' (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey84svvU6_0#ws)
Fun fact, this video ^ belongs to Kupo : )
My goodness, the music in Rondo of Blood is much more interesting.
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I thought it was great. One of the best games on the PSP.
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The above probably makes it obvious why I didn't particularly care for Yuri Lowenthal's casting as Alucard in the new version.
If we stuck Robert Belgrade in Judgment and HD over Yuri, then, well... it would've been terrible. And I think we can all agree that Yuri Lowenthal matches Alucard more anyway. He should have a younger type of voice, considering his look. Sticking Belgrade's voice over Alucard's portrait and then animating the mouth, it seems unnatural.
And please don't bring the Japanese voices into this, considering that 95% of them are terrible. Play LoI and CoD in Japanese and you'll see what I mean. The Dracula X series is the only time they were ever done right. :\ And Soma.
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But Alucard is unnatural.
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"We can all agree"? I just didn't! What a weird thing to say.
Likewise, why shouldn't we discuss the Japanese voices if it's relevant? No one was even talking about Lament and Curse, which do have pretty substandard performances across the board, in comparison with the English counterparts. Okiayu should be considered though for his role, which isn't bad at all. He's good at playing detached stoics, whereas Lowenthal comes across as whiny. It's just not good casting.
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The "we can all agree" thing is something I say a lot. I'm not actually implying that we all actually do agree. My mistake.
Lowenthal as Alucard doesn't sound whiny. While he may in tons of his other roles, I think this is the role that was hit spot-on. Don't get me wrong though, I do like the original voices, just not as much as the new ones. The original voices are what drew me back into the series anyway. (as in I liked it a little, lost interest, played SotN again and I was back into it, a lot, mainly cuz of the voice acting).
LoI and CoD were used by me as references that the Japanese voices are terrible. :\
And I said the Dracula X series was the only time they ever got it right (as in RoB, SotN and DXC). That includes Okiayu and Al's other Japanese voice, Mamoru Miyano. And Soma was done right also.
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I thought it was a great game! im a hardcore fan of the 2D versions, but if others are done like this in 3D (PLEASE MAKE CV4 3D!!!) then i'll welcome it with some open arms!
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In many ways DXC was a gift to the fans, what's not to like about it? Usually I prefer 2D than 2.5D, but the game was and still is great.
As for the ports of the classic games... I didn't like the new voices of SOTN at all. Nothing wrong with them, but not very good either, I just didn't see the point in changing them. I'd like it more if they kept the originals, just because it would be the authentic version of SOTN.
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^^ I my opinion DXC was the game to conmemorate the 20 anniversary of the franchise, even if it came later, there is just no way that PoR was suposed to fill that role
Regarding to the voices, I have quite a distaste for the original ones, I think they suck (except for the succubus that its so bad that its good). Maria specially gives feels to me like when you scratch a chalkboard with your nails
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I like Dracula X chronicles, since it was fun and it had 2 other games that i really wanted to play ( sotn) and it had a language setting, which made stuff more interesting. The only thing i didn'tlike about it was that ITS TOOO HARD. sorry, ima newcomer, but its kinda too hard. Dracula took me 3 days to beat, and death was just..cheap. he was worse in the original rondo. And i thought dracula only had 2 forms -.- they took out WHAT IS A MAN on thesotn part. damn i always wanted to hear that line.
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sorry for double post, but i forgot something to add on. The extra stage 5 stage was complete bull%$^$ The bottom path is impossible for the first part cuz u cant jump over the water so u DIE, and the second part with the two golden swordsman is impossible too. i just rly hated that stage. Also backflip is just stupid, why can't he double jump? backflip is so pointless. And why does richard die when he falls into water? He's the legendary belmont why can't he swim? he can survive being impaled, clamed, tackled, and getting hit by draculas flaming balls(lol) but he cant survie water? wth?
and why is maria stronger than richard?
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@kompwars
1) The bottom path isn't impossible. There's some things that you have to pay attention to.
2) The golden swordsmen aren't impossible, just ridiculously hard. Once you learn their moves, they'll be a little easier to dodge, since they're still annoying (expletive)s.
3) Richter (not Richard) has backflip cuz Maria has double jump. Backflip isn't pointless, as its a very good evasive move. Learn to use it and the stages are less impossible.
4) He can't swim cuz Trevor teamed up with Alucard in 1476. He never learned to swim and thus couldn't pass his abilities on to the next generations.
5) Maria is called the "easy mode" of the game for a reason. She's there for the beginners who can't handle Richter mode.
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well i guess the bottom path isn't impossible but it is rly hard -_-
also, is swimming that hard to do? :/ i mean my dad cant swim but i can
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I think DXC is one of my favorite CV games and the main reason I got a PSP. It's got all the stuff I could ask from a remake. I just wish my PSP didn't crap out on me or I'd play it more
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well i guess the bottom path isn't impossible but it is rly hard -_-
also, is swimming that hard to do? :/ i mean my dad cant swim but i can
Bottom path is really hard. That's the reason it's so hidden.
And if you think stage 5' is hard, wait till you fight the Hydra at the end of it.
I think DXC is one of my favorite CV games and the main reason I got a PSP. It's got all the stuff I could ask from a remake. I just wish my PSP didn't crap out on me or I'd play it more
I approve of this.
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DXC is one of the best CV out there. IMO I thought the remake of RoB was better than the original and I liked the PSP version of SotN more than the PS version.
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DXC is one of the best CV out there. IMO I thought the remake of RoB was better than the original and I liked the PSP version of SotN more than the PS version.
I approve this, too.
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Sony really should remaster this for PS3. I still prefer original Rondo of Blood art, character designs, atmosphere, etc. over the remake, but the remake does deserve points for deepening the story, adding some things here and there, and has a great original boss theme.
On its own, it's good, but with the original and the improved SOTN included, it's a complete masterpiece as a whole! ;D
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DXC was pretty much the grand culmination of all things the fans had been clamoring for.
"We want Rondo!"
"We want a classic game again!"
"We want to see a 2.5D game!"
"More Ayami!"
The only thing we really did not get here was Yamane.
DXC pretty much improved on Rondo in every way. Smoother gameplay, reworked graphics, Ayami designs (Maria haters be damned), relatively good voice overs, new bosses, boss rush, and making some sense of the slapped in crappy Level 5'.
Not to mention it put in an upgraded version of SotN, adding back in all those little fun trinkets that were removed from the USA release. Sure it didn't have the added areas that the Saturn version had, but anyone who has played it can tell you that those added areas are made of ugly recycled mix and match graphics from other areas, with boring and unoriginal layouts, and overall just pointless.
DXC was awesome at release, and still is an outstanding title at the top of the franchise.
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The only thing we really did not get here was Yamane.
Yamane did the track Serenade of Sympathy for the credits of SotN in DXC.
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I am well aware of that, but it was a preexisting track created for the XBOX360 port, not specifically for DXC. And that's one song out of a couple of dozen, not counting tracks brought over from the original titles.
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Didn't the XBLA port of Symphony use Admiration Towards the Clan from Lament for the credits, for some reason (licensing issues, maybe)? That's what I heard at the time, at least; I didn't play it.
If Serenade of Sympathy is any indication, it's probably for the best she sat out DXC and let other people handle it.
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I am well aware of that, but it was a preexisting track created for the XBOX360 port, not specifically for DXC. And that's one song out of a couple of dozen, not counting tracks brought over from the original titles.
Didn't they use Admiration Towards the Clan?
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I actually liked Serenade of Symphony itself, but the instrumentation kind of reminded me of the weak Portrait "Arranged" tracks. : /
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Ayami designs (Maria haters be damned),
If DXC Richter and DXC Maria had the designs that Ayami Kojima created for Harmony of Despair, and stayed true to Iris and Tera's original designs, DXC could have been perfect character design-wise.
original Iris and Tera looked far better than their DXC versions (their DXC makeovers were like, wtf was Ayami thinking?) But I admit while Rondo Annette looked great, her blonde remake version does fit her relation with Maria better to help them look more like sisters, so Annette is one thing Ayami did right for a DXC character makeover, though she should have kept her original hairstyle.
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Oh, man, I already forgot she did renditions of the original Rondo designs for Harmony of Despair. That was really cool. I'm fine with all three designs Richter's seen, but Rondo's is the only one I love.
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If DXC Richter and DXC Maria had the designs that Ayami Kojima created for Harmony of Despair, and stayed true to Iris and Tera's original designs, DXC could have been perfect character design-wise.
original Iris and Tera looked far better than their DXC versions (their DXC makeovers were like, wtf was Ayami thinking?) But I admit while Rondo Annette looked great, her blonde remake version does fit her relation with Maria better to help them look more like sisters, so Annette is one thing Ayami did right for a DXC character makeover, though she should have kept her original hairstyle.
Disagree completly, the only reason of why she only did versions in her style of the originals in HoD was because everything in that shit of game is recycled(not they dont look good). The Redesigns are superior to the original designs imo (even though they fit the gama atmosphere, i even prefer PoR designs) also they are more fitting to the new atmosphere (more serious and less Pokemon-ish). Besides those are the most accurate designs of Kojima regarding to their time period (granted Maria and Iris clothes are for boys I think, but close enough and we know why they didnt go with dresses with her).
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everything in that shit of game is recycled
1) Don't say HD was shit. I play the hell outta that game. I have over, like, 200 hours on my Alucard alone.
2) Not everything. They did go out of their way to make some stuff, though a lot of it feels severely half-assed. All the dual-crush poses were new, Julius's running animation, his eight directional whipping animations on the ground and in the air, Richter's straight-downward jumpkick, Simon's backdash, jump kicks and slide, as well as a new hit frame, etc. etc. Please note I said a lot of it feels half-assed, which it was for the most part.
- Julius's new sprites were terribly shaded.
- The dual crush poses were like, two frames, some were just sprite-overs.
- Richter's jump kick was just splicing and slight editing of other frames.
- Everything but the slide and jump kicks of Simon's new frames were spliced. So that's like, two frames. :P
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HD was shit.
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HD was Shit, Scheit, Scheiße, Merde, Mierda, Merda, Drit, خرا, etc.....
And you didnt even respond about DXC What the heck?
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HD was Shit, Scheit, Scheiße, Merde, Mierda, Merda ,Drit, خرا
And you didnt even respond about DXC What the heck?
Cuz I pretty much said everything I had to say about DXC on the few other pages, and I was responding to your post. :\
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Cuz I pretty much said everything I had to say about DXC on the few other pages, and I was responding to your post. :\
Oh sorry I thought you were affinity, but HD is still Shit, Scheit, Scheiße, Merde, Mierda, Merda, Drit, خرا, etc...
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While I do think the fact that they didn't even change the layout of the rooms was bull-turd, and just pulled stuff from other games completely, I thought the game played well, and was pretty fun multiplayer.
But in order to stay ontopic, I'll have to say the DXC redesigns are far better than the originals. The originals looked generic and terribly anime-like (why does everyone say animu, by the way?). The new ones fit perfectly into the timeline. Maria, though, was originally gonna have a dress, but the rag-doll physics on the cloth would make it hard to put in. <----That was being lazy, but I can't complain seeing as DXC is my favorite CV.
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I agree, it's a good game that got bad sellings just because the Cvgeeks didn't approved it.
- I did like the bonuses.
- I did like RoB's music better at some points but the new soundtrack is very good too.
- I didn't like that they replaced the intro of Richter.
- I didn't like Maria.
- I wish Richter had more powers, I was actually expecting they improve that too. Like, for example, the ones he has on SoTN, or some new abilities wouldn't hurt.
- I wish RoB's emulation would have been better and with the original intro in german.
- I wish people stop being such douchebags to the point of buying the game just to get the SoTN.
Above all DXC is a good game and I had fun playing it, but in the end it didn't completely filled my expectations. What I mean to say is that DXC is not the ultimate remake of RoB, the original hasn't been surpassed yet.
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^ I think the problem is reversed. CVgeeks approved it, but no one else really cared.
Also, I think Richter's powers are fine. If they gave him the powers he has in Symphony of the Night, they'd have to change the entire game or the game really wouldn't be worth playing. Powers, in and of themselves, are not that important. It's how those powers interact with things around them that matters, and Symphony of the Night Richter's powers would basically destroy the entire game.
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Yeah, I don't remember anyone in here giving the game any particular bombing judgments, and we pretty much care for the title.
Hell, some of us **raises hand** got a PSP-Slim just for that title. I think that's the one thing I hate the most about it (and it has nothing to do with the game; the game is goodstuff.... just wish it came out on PS2 or PS3).
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It'd be funny (and in all honesty, I wouldn't mind) if the new CV with the portraits and everything was an HD remake of DXC with a revamped menu. ^.^
But everyone knows that if you own a PS3, you don't need to get a PSP. You can download and play (almost) any PSP game on your PS3. DXC being one of them (that's how I played it the first time ever).
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This wasn't true when it came out.
Also, I didn't have a PS3 when it came out. It was still ridiculously expensive to me.
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I'm pretty sure the common (but not universal) press mentality at the time of release was "get it for Symphony!", which was counterproductive and point-missing to say the least, especially how Symphony is arbitrarily locked in the depths of the remake proper to begin with. Sometimes it just seemed people didn't know what they were getting into with the game when Symphony was paraded as the main event, so there was a lot of "no this is too difficult and archaic" misgivings, when Rondo is anything but. It was weird to see.
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But everyone knows that if you own a PS3, you don't need to get a PSP. You can download and play (almost) any PSP game on your PS3. DXC being one of them (that's how I played it the first time ever).
What? Since when? I recall it not playing PSP games being why I never got on in the first place at release.
Does it play full screen, unlike my PSP2000? Is there a way to verify you have the legit UMD and download the digital copy free of charge?
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Yeah, I don't remember anyone in here giving the game any particular bombing judgments, and we pretty much care for the title.
Hell, some of us **raises hand** got a PSP-Slim just for that title. I think that's the one thing I hate the most about it (and it has nothing to do with the game; the game is goodstuff.... just wish it came out on PS2 or PS3).
Yea... I didn't get a psp for it, but I bought it for my friend to play it on his psp.
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What? Since when? I recall it not playing PSP games being why I never got on in the first place at release.
Does it play full screen, unlike my PSP2000? Is there a way to verify you have the legit UMD and download the digital copy free of charge?
I downloaded it from PSN, using my PS3.
This wasn't true when it came out.
Also, I didn't have a PS3 when it came out. It was still ridiculously expensive to me.
Well yeah, it wasn't like that when it came out, but of course, I didn't get re-interested in the CV series until after Judgment came out.
That's the whole way I got the game. Of course, I bought the UMD a couple months later cuz my PS3 broke.
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That's an amazing response in that it answers neither of my questions.
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That's an amazing response in that it answers neither of my questions.
Right, sorry. What do you mean by full screen?
I'm not sure about the UMD thing, since I bought the UMD after my PS3 version purchase. There should be a way to, though.
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Using the PSP2000 and a PSP TV connector, you can use the TV as your screen. The game render does NOT fill the entire screen though. There's a big border around it, so its always smaller than your screen. Think the SNES adapter "Super Gameboy".
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Yeah Solais's definition of "Fullscreen" is inaccurate. He meant 'double-letterboxed and shrunk' which is what we LOATHE ABOUT THE PSP OUTPUT (that and the washed out colors).
And the homebrew community, as far as I know, hasn't made a custom mod that will get rid of that nonsense and will let things play fullscreen properly. I guess maybe it's a scaling issue.... :\
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Yeah Solais's definition of "Fullscreen" is inaccurate. He meant 'double-letterboxed and shrunk' which is what we LOATHE ABOUT THE PSP OUTPUT (that and the washed out colors).
I don't think I ever gave a definition of fullscreen.
Using the PSP2000 and a PSP TV connector, you can use the TV as your screen. The game render does NOT fill the entire screen though. There's a big border around it, so its always smaller than your screen. Think the SNES adapter "Super Gameboy".
Oh that. Well, there's a border around my screen. I don't think it has anything to do with me using an SD TV with an HD console, but I dunno. Most of the crap I own is rather old, so I'm not so sure how it'd look on newer stuffs.
As far as fixing borders, I only know that the PSP SotN has a patch online that turns the game fullscreen, but CWCheat and a custom firmware is required to use it. But that doesn't really apply much to this situation.
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The Dracula X Chronicles was the first and only Castlevania game I ever played, and it is still my most played game for the PSP.
I think this is a pretty awesome game, and even if I never get the chance to play another Castlevania I can do just fine with this only because it comes with both a classic game (Rondo of Blood original & remake) and a modern game (Symphony of the Night), both of which are considered the best of their individual styles.
I actually perfer the Rondo of Blood remake over the original for a bunch of different reasons. I love how Ayami Kojima uses her art style for the characters, giving them a more medieval oil painting look than that generic anime look of the original. I also perfer the remake Maria because she's treated more like a sympathetic heroine with her own background, where as in the original she seemed like a silly joke character intended for laughs.
But as far as being my first game in a series I had never played before, I love how it gives you the option to choose between a male or female character. It doesn't seem like many games these days let you do that anymore, usually there is just one playable protagonist who is one gender or the other. As for the fact that Maria is a playable female, it's kind of nice that for once the female hero is a little kid and not a sexed-up adult female. It's not that I have anything against sexy females, but having a female hero with no intentional sex appeal is an extreme rarity for video games. Plus I like how she parallels Richter by using summoned animal guardians in the place of "normal" vampire-killing weapons, and how she eats sweets to heal herself instead of meat.
As for Symphony of the Night, since this re-worked version seems to be the way the game was intended to be I'm happy I played it first. I kind of wish they changed the monster names to what they originally were in the Japanese version, some of the enemy names for the US version of the game are just silly and don't make sense. Like swapping the Devil with the Cthulu.
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The anime style used in Rondo was ok. for the time, it worked, and was still a 10000 times better than the anime styles we are getting with CV today. (its got that 90's anime feel)
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Well everybody has their own preference. Personally I didn't like the anime style in the original Rondo of Blood, but I don't think it was so much the style as it was that all the characters didn't seem to fit in the game's 1700's Europe setting. Especially Richter who looked like he came out of a Death Wish movie. In the remake all the characters, including Richter, wore clothes like you'd expect people in Europe to wear back in those days, and I just felt that it fit the game a lot better.
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only sort of.
Maria actually looked more time period correct in Rondo/HD curly blonde hair and a dress, with a headband thing.
Women did not wear pants in that time, just dresses. Even the poorest of peasant women.
TBH I really dislike her Chronicles design. probably mainly over the fact that i cant get over the idea of a Woman in that time period wearing pants.