Topic: Lords of Shadow Opinions (has Spoilers)

[Ahasverus]

I noticed something amusing. The famous path to Wygol village with the camera pan and snow that shows Carmilla's castle in LoS is EXTREMELY similar to the early part of level 3 in Devil May Cry 4 where Nero comes across the castle in the snow. Uncannily so.

MFG yes it is the castle is very similar too. it didn't have the same impact though.

However, we know DMC is just a big Cv rip-off so what's the problem? xD

[RichterB]

MFG yes it is the castle is very similar too. it didn't have the same impact though.

However, we know DMC is just a big Cv rip-off so what's the problem? xD

lol. Looks like DMC4 had the Assassin's Creed designs with its Order before AC, too.

You know, I've taken a break from LoS at the "meh" volcano cemetery area to really play God of War in earnest (as opposed to a level or two) for the first time, as well as DMC4. I think that LoS' combat is more responsive and balanced, but the lighting/archetectrue usage in DMC4 seems superior and GoW seems to have better level design with better/more natural platforming elements than LoS. Just some notes.

In all honesty (and twelve years ago I would not have said this) I think that the best 3D CV formula is only found in CV64/LoD. If we were to receive a new CV game done in that style rather then what we've been getting, then I think it would be much better received and be an overall success.

Same conclusion I've been thinking (though, again, I'm stuck in the fire cemetary area). I think it's a matter of bucking trends, however, and Konami thinks fitting in with current trends is the best idea for success. Too bad the current "modern action game" genre suffers from a number of issues like combo-obsession beatdowns and mediocre platforming.

[Ahasverus]

Devil May cry develpoers and Sony Santa Moniaca are studios belonging to powerfoul companies with a solid gameplay base to work on and years of developing experience.
MercurySteam are none of the above so it's pretty amazing they did something that didn't suck in first place, let alone making a great game as LoS

[Valtiel]

That's something to consider too.

DMC and GoW are multimillion sellers with incredible budgets and some of the best talent on the market at the helm.

LoS was almost certainly gonna be a trainwreck by the look of things. Small budget, unexperienced studio... we should at the very least be glad we got something of this technical quality.

[RichterB]

LoS was almost certainly gonna be a trainwreck by the look of things. Small budget, unexperienced studio... we should at the very least be glad we got something of this technical quality.

True. So I went back to LoS, and I had no idea I was SO CLOSE to the END! It just sneaks up on you (rather anti-climatically IMO); the chapters are suddenly micro-sized in length. Necromancer's Void place was a lot like the second to the last level in Rygar (PS2/Wii). Too many spoilers are around this forum, so I kinda knew what was going to happen with Zobek and stuff, but it was pretty freaky and also seemed to move into areas that were way beyond Castlevania (not sure if I like this). I still have the last boss, but I'm saving that fight for another day. The Dracolich fight was actually the easiest titan fight once I realized it was linear. More later once I see the ending that's been semi-spoiled for me, and that seems even weirder.

[Zobias]

Well considering the fact that Castlevania is not a recognized name brand like God of War, Final Fantasy, or Metal Gear I would say that Mercury Steam did a great job
with rebooting the series as the only people that had to be impressed were "The Core" fans and people who would be interested in the title because of the company's association with KP Productions. I would love to see what the studio can be capable of if they had a bigger staff and more money.

[Ahasverus]

Generic soundtrack? My balls
http://www.soundtrack.net/albums/database/?id=6300

[Joachim]

You must have pretty generic, forgettable balls, then. 

[Nagumo]

manfredo~ 

[Jorge D. Fuentes]

manfredo~ 

[RichterB]

BEAT IT! Some 28 hours later and +/- 74% on Knight Mode. I have to say, I liked how the battle with Pan played meaningfully into the final battle. Story-wise, I think this has gone too heavily into biblical territory even for Castlevania, though. By the end, this game had established itself as basically a new franchise. But then...the post-credits ENDING.

It was random, forced, and yet undeniably cool. On the one hand, I see a future spin-off for Castlevania that would be very interesting. Basically, you add a hipster-looking whip-wielder ala Nathan Graves with a modern touch to his garb (think CV64's Reinhardt or DMC's Nero), and you have something like a traditional Castlevania yet in a doomsday world of old and new ala Aria of Sorrow (or Vampire Hunter D/Darksiders/DMC). I'm NOT saying make it like those other franchises, I'm just trying to describe the general direction through something that's familiar. It could be a very fresh take on Castlevania for a one-shot, anyway. Now, the other direction of a sequel based on the ending would be "you play as Dracula!" That, I'm far less fond of. Ideally, I'm still looking for something more in the old-school range of CV64/LoD, but I can see how a future-based Castlevania with more Belmont-ness and style than AoS/DoS might be appealing for a one-off, and might help CV's sales with newcomers, as well. All and all, I'm not sure what the surprise ending was trying to establish. It certainly didn't make Dracula out to be evil or an enemy, that's for sure. He seems more like Soma actually, battling himself.

...LoS itself was a great-looking game with some memorable moments and it covered a lot of ground. It did seem a little all over the place and featured some padding elements, though. Not sure what to make of the whole experience.

[Ahasverus]

You must have pretty generic, forgettable balls, then. 

No, you just don't have musical taste that's all. That website is one of the most important worldwide regarding soundtracks, they review only one in a million game soundtracks ad they are very harsh witht them, that rating was, impressive to say the least.

[thernz]

opinion fight: but this opinion has more value than yours!

[Joachim]

No, you just don't have musical taste that's all.

I do like a total of three songs from the OST, and i may like more in the future; I have it downloaded and on rare occasion I'll listen to it. The issue I have is that the soundtrack seems perfectly content being a repetitious wall of orchestral noise; it tries to define itself by it's sound, but it's sound is uninteresting when left on its own. There are very few moments with any real defined melody (one of which occurs at 0:54 in the song Besieged village, but is only played until just after the first minute, after which point the melody is not revisited).

The comparisons to it being like a film soundtrack are apt, but that isn't necessarily a good thing; film soundtracks are designed a specific way to represent their medium, and simply transplanting that format into another medium is not a very effective way to go about things: particularly one as different as video games, which is based around the concept of interaction. These are songs composed for a movie: they have the sudden shifts in tonality and form that are often justified by the context of the events surrounding them, but in this game that context is variable; I have seen the soundtrack burst into "epic" unfitting pieces of orchestral flair while doing nothing more than running around or rappeling up a cliff. It doesn't work in this context.

Also, the choir. I can't stand it; they have it nearly every song and it is the most obnoxious thing.

That website is one of the most important worldwide regarding soundtracks, they review only one in a million game soundtracks ad they are very harsh witht them, that rating was, impressive to say the least.

Why should this matter to me?

[Ahasverus]

Why should this matter to me?

Not you, but all the haters. They are better qualified that those yamane purists out there, they actually know what music is about, and I'm not talking about catchy tunes.