Topic: What is the best Castlevania game for GBA?

[paletteswapmonster]

Hod's music was bad bro especially when compared to the other 2 games. That's something I couldn't forgive either, I would have gladly accepted a shorter game if space was an issue over a longer one with bad sound.

Bad quality ≠ Bad music.

HoD has some of the best composed music in the series.

CotM had pretty bad music, IMO. Most of its music was remixes[bad remixes, mind you(except for Clockwork Mansion)], and the synths were weird.

In Reply To #11

Computer technology learning time. Today's subject: Cart space does not equal RAM!

OK kids, gather around.

RAM (the random access memory) is not affiliated with the storage space of a game cart. RAM is what they ran out of with HoD (due to all the graphics data), thus having to make the samples lower quality. RAM is a good thing, because unlike Windows, when a GBA runs out of RAM, you run out of fun. It will completely crash.

In this case, they decided to do this. They made the decision to sacrifice sound RAM for graphics RAM. They had the option to fix it, or to plan the game better and balance it more.

Well excuuuuse me, princess!

[shelverton.]

HoD has some of the best composed music in the series.

You sir speak the truth.

[darkwzrd4]

AoS hands down.

[Long John Silver]

Some backgrounds are very repetitive and dull, but it was a GBA near launch title, so that is forgivable

not really. a bad designer is a bad designer no matter the hardware he designs the levels for.

i mean, if a design sucks on the paper it won't magically get better depending from a console's life. poorly designed repetitive rooms will stay that way no matter what technology you use while putting those designs from the paper into the game.

proof? cod and pork. they both had a game before it (dos was nearly a launch title, its jp numbering didn't even go beyond 100), and yet they both managed to butch the level design up even more than the previous one.

[uzo]

Background art doesn't equal level design.

[paletteswapmonster]

That doesn't mean it doesn't have bad level design.

[uzo]

I didn't comment on the level design at all. Not for any of the three titles.

[paletteswapmonster]

I know. I'm just saying...

[gravekeeper]

I think HoD is an unpolished diamond. If they were to make a remake for say.. DS, and would have more time to finish it, I'm sure they could make HoD and amazing game. Don't get me wrong, I love HoD, but I can understand how most people feel it's not entirely complete - mostly because of the sprites and the music.

[sonicabid]

In Reply To #28

Cotm is great. I played through every single different mode in that game, that's how much fun I think it is.

HoD I consider to be horrible, but some people here seem to like it, so I'll just leave it at that.

AoS is good, but I like its sequel more, even though this is a GBA discussion.

[uzo]

In Reply To #28

I agree with this entirely. Of course a ROM hack fixing the sprites would be good enough for me.

[Long John Silver]

In Reply To #20

so a bad background artist then. "launch title" is still not an excuse for drawing like shit and lack of imagination.

[sonicabid]

In Reply To #27

Those sometimes NES looking blocks are easy to overlook when you're having one of the best metroidvania experiences since SOTN. I think the Clock Tower in that game had a pretty badass background if I remember correctly, and the area where you fight nathan.

[uzo]

In Reply To #27

It is if you are inexperienced with a console. The same reason the last major titles on a console look way better than the first. The company develops better ways of storing, and drawing image data. This leads to more complex backgrounds and effects.

Similarly, when I first made the engine for my Castlevania game, you remember the drawing was slower, and we needed more layer restrictions. Now we have less. And a lot more drawing options for objects and backgrounds. The same applies to commercial games

[paletteswapmonster]

In Reply To #27

Those sometimes NES looking blocks are easy to overlook when you're having one of the best metroidvania experiences since SOTN.

No. Effing. Way.