Topic: Your opinions here. Lords of Shadow Poll

[cecil-kain]

In Reply To #16

It was somewhat interesting to see the mansions come back in OoE, but we'd best not set the bar too low.  The trailer has a nice looking Castle in the background, so that's certainly a good sign.

[CastleDan]

In Reply To #17

There will obviously be a castle. They did show one in the trailer, just because they don't show you in it IN THE FIRST TRAILER, doesn't mean you wont go in one.

[Mikepjr]

I think he will do well with this game.. Iga is great but its time for something different.. i was a bit dissapointed with the Wii castlevania so im sure what ever Kojima has up his sleev will be great.. its looking great so far.

Maybe Iga can make a Wiiware CV game later on.. something..

[A n t r a x x]

I'm more a fan of the classic days of CV than IGA's, but that said SotN is my favorite of them all, so I try to keep an open mind about this stuff.

I love the basis of the characters, setting, the eternal fight and the unique weapons and gameplay, but I'm not so hardcore a fan that I couldn't enjoy a CV without some of them. And it sounds like Kojima and MS aim to change things.

Castlevania has changed it's identity over the years so many times that it's hard to classify just why we like it so much and what makes a Castlevania game just that. Cuz there are times you're scratching your head realizing that this era of CV plays so different from this other one yet you still like it and it still feels Castlevania-ish enough... But why?

I don't think it's the Belmonts, because there's several IGA CVs that don't even star them. In several instances Dracula, too, has felt like a secondary presence. It's not the VK because several protagonists can't even use a whip. It's no longer the 100-years resurrection thing either, because the current timeline has shot that to hell... and it probably should be.

What exactly does Castlevania stand for? Is it just the good platforming style action based in a vampiric/horror mythos that earns our attention on a consistent basis? Is it the promise of great graphics, music and presentation? Perhaps the presence of a pretentiously stylistic castle? Is it Konami itself? 

Is it all of the above?

Maybe CV's very identity is that it doesn't really scream one (although certainly maintained its own image through Ayami's and Yamane's work). Maybe it's that it incorporates so many cool ideas into one experience that it's just hard to not like.

If it's all of the above, then why can I get so excited from a 3 minute trailer that claims to rewrite what we know about the series itself, or at least how it is on the 3D side of gaming. It was enough for me to see a whip-wielding badass in a medieval world and a game engine built around pummeling ugly creatures with a dark story to drive it.

There's no sub-weapons or even candles to be seen anywhere in the video, and only half of the enemies look like they'd fit in with previous outings.

Lords of Shadow will either be a true test of how well Castelvania's identity is defined, or else yet another confusing question as to why it isn't. Will we accept it as part of our beloved series even if it turns out Dracula and the Belmonts weren't invited or that Gabriel has to get all of his hearts and moneybags off of dead enemies? Will there even be hearts? (CV64s didn't need them)

Only time will tell and only Kojima and Mercurysteam really know what direction they're taking things. I have no choice but to trust them for the time being.

(I chose the "surprised" option, as I am still a little uncomfortable with this notion of change, as change usually brings)

[Gunlord]

In Reply To #1

 

for me.

I dunno where he'll take the series, but I can only hope it'll be towards a good place, unyuu!

Also, first vote, I think!