Topic: Critic's Corner -Mr Cox(or team) please read for honest fan feedback.

[e105beta]

Whoops, quoted instead of modified.

[cecil-kain]

Maybe it's just because I'm playing at knight, but while I see a use for every single combo, I can't get some of them out (heavy combo 9x, I'm looking at you) because I need to dodge. I don't mind it, as it keeps the fights feeling fast-paced and makes me feel awesome when I pull off a long combo, it just makes me wonder if it could have been done a different way.

AH!  That reminds me!  I started my game on warrior mode *default* --and let me just say...  Respawning with half of that tiny life bar was a surprise rivaling the cheapest moments in Castlevania history.  If you're on a mission to sell a game to mainstream gamers, something like that could break the deal.  Save that nonsense for the replay --not a default setting...  I shudder to think --what surprises are hiding in Palladin mode?

[jediblaster]

Maps?  Nah, unless your fetish is SOTN style games only, then I can see where a map would tickle your toes.  However, the World map and Chapter maps we get are cool.  What would be nice is a progression chart ala CV1-IV though.  Probably IV as that is the best of them IMHO.

[Sir Hanksta]

Great game. The first five chapters were kinda different, not bad to me, just not what you would expect from a CastleVania game, but after that its all I thought it would be. Sure they could improve on some things, but you could say that about most games. frame rates, fixed camera, yada, yada, yada, I could care less about all that BS as long as its a enjoyable experience. I think its fantastic. The biggest gripe I have is I wish they could have had somehow made the sound track more like an original CV soundtrack. Somehow mix in those old CV tunes a little more.  I give it a 9/10.

[X]

I don't really need to add anything of gripe-value here since it was all covered by everyone else.  I'm only at the second chapter and it doesn't feel like any CV game I've ever played. It's got more of a Celtic feel to it and why does Gabriel have an Irish accent when he's Romanian?? And as for that stupid Troll fight...ugggggh!!! How many times did I die just trying to figure out that stupid QTE!?! And they didn't even have the nerve to tell me which button to press after I've latched onto that thing! I'll just have to keep hacking at the game till I come to the later chapters and see if this title is really worth the price I paid. But yeah... That frozen lake battle was way too SotC. But at least ir wasn't as difficult as the troll boss.

-X

[Kingshango]

Im at chapter 8, near Carmilla and im loving the game, but I do have some complaints:

Please for the love of all things good and holy release a patch for the option of a moveable camera. The fixed camera angle is ok but when your in combat and you can't see who's hitting you from offscreen is a pet peeve of mine. And the camera has killed me many times during platforming segemnts.

Im not totally against QTE's but they should have been optional against bosses, I know you wann keep up with the competition but the best way to do that is to do the opposite of what the competition does. (and by competition I mean GOW, DI, Bayo etc)

The music needed to be varied. I heard the same themes over and over again and while they're good and do set the mood of the game I just wish the score was more hummable and memorable like Castlevania music usually is.(Now im not saying put in Bloody Tears for the millionth time, just saying the soundtrack should be up to par with other Castlevania's) Either get Oscar to make more memorable soundtracks or get someone else like Jasper Kyd to do the music for the sequel. (I know I can't believe im complaining about the music in a Castlevania game. )

Other than that Im enjoying the game and give my congrat's to MercurySteam.

[corneliab]

I hate hate hate hate hate that I can't target floor switches with my abilities.  Supposedly you can FALCON PAWNCH the floor switches, but the ability has to land right on the stupid spot and 9 times out of 10, it doesn't.

Eh? I could swear I noticed a slight homing effect when hitting floor switches. Never had a problem with that at all.

[e105beta]

Camera complaints

I don't entirely get the avid intensity for this one. I've really had very little problems/gripes with the camera. If anything, I've been praising it on how excellent it's been making the battles and platforming look.

To each his own I guess.

[Kale]

I'm big on controlling your camera, hence is one reason I like Ninja Gaiden more than Devil May Cry and Bayonetta.

[cecil-kain]

I don't entirely get the avid intensity for this one. I've really had very little problems/gripes with the camera. If anything, I've been praising it on how excellent it's been making the battles and platforming look.

To each his own I guess.

I think most of the camera complaints are boss related, actually.  The camera always seems to be well-place for the major platforming and wall crawling moments...  Always lovin that Grant Danasty feeling.  :-)

[Zobias]

I think my only grip with LOS is the fixed Camera System you look left while you get hit from the right...

[MarquisX]

The only complaint is maybe the soundtrack could be a little more varied. But it's such a small gripe since everything in this game is so much fun. The Castlevania feel REALLY hits when you reach Wygol Village. Damn- anyone who says this doesn't feel like Castlevania needs to keep playing before they put there foot in their mouth- staking vampires with Patrick Stewart is cooler than most Castlevania experiences I had! As for the camera angle- I don't see the gripe- only a few times I wished I could control it, otherwise it's fine. I'm kinda glad it doesn't thinking back to CoD which I didn't like. I think it's best to save all complaints until the game is completed. I see people rating the game after 1 or 2 chapters which really doesn't give the game justice- that was just a warm up to the gothic horror that is coming up.

[Tobias]

The only complaint is maybe the soundtrack could be a little more varied. But it's such a small gripe since everything in this game is so much fun. The Castlevania feel REALLY hits when you reach Wygol Village. Damn- anyone who says this doesn't feel like Castlevania needs to keep playing before they put there foot in their mouth- staking vampires with Patrick Stewart is cooler than most Castlevania experiences I had! As for the camera angle- I don't see the gripe- only a few times I wished I could control it, otherwise it's fine. I'm kinda glad it doesn't thinking back to CoD which I didn't like. I think it's best to save all complaints until the game is completed. I see people rating the game after 1 or 2 chapters which really doesn't give the game justice- that was just a warm up to the gothic horror that is coming up.

Completely agree.  Coming around the mountain pass and having the castle looking over the village in the distance was a breathtaking moment that seemed to encapsulate exactly what you'd expect the castle to look like from a distance.  And all the little nods, winks, and character re-inventions help keep it within the bounds we know and love.  I particularly like the explanation of vampiric "monster forms".

Along with wishing that I could move the camera, if only to enjoy the incredible scenery (though I realize that it would make platforming much, much harder), I kind of wish that Gabriel was a little more talkative.

I realize that he's grim and angry, and running on fumes, but he's also our main character.  It isn't a big complaint, since it matches basically every other character in the setting (with the exception of a very small handful), but a little more out of him would be nice, considering they got a great actor to do his voice.

Though I will admit, I do find his silence to be more about his character and state of mind, whereas I simply took it to be a concession to the technology being used for everything else.  But the pacing and story are such that his unwillingness to talk really seems more about his focus that anything else.

So I'm still on the fence as to if it's an unnatural break from the gaming environment or a good characterization.  It is growing on me though.

[MarquisX]

I just read the Jim Sterling hates LoS and compared it to Twilight. He's also pimping Enslaved (I hear he tweets to the producer of Enslaved). What a fat fuck who doesn't know shit if he thinks this is like twilight. Might as well say Ninja Gaiden is like the Karate Kid. How does this asshole have a job?

[Munchy]

I'm definitely warming up to the game the more I play it. I can't shake the feeling that it's Castlevania: The Game of the Movie, but it's not a bad game.

I mentioned my problem with the platforming before (it's way too scripted and decidedly un-Castlevania; hell, Mario Galaxy's platforming is closer to Castlevania than this). The music... Kurt mentioned this on another forum and I think he has a great point. The music sounds the goddamn same no matter where you are. It really goes a long way to giving it the feel of a licensed game, I hate to say. It merely gets the job done; they might as well have taken any given generic ass Hans Zimmer soundtrack and stuck it in here. If there's a sequel, I'd say save the money from using an orchestra and instead have the composer study some Stravinsky.

I guess the main thing that puts me off about the game is that it revels way too much in being like a movie. It should be happy to be a game.

Also, I'll be happy if I never see another goddamned shockwave attack again.