Topic: why there's still hope

[crisis]

I will say this:
The first 4 chapters suck and don't feel like a CV game at all.
The castle areas feel very much like a CV game (for example, as Gabriel scales the side roof of the castle, moonlight shines above & bats fly overhead, VERY awesome)
However the end chapters also don't feel very CV-like *coughnecromancersabysscough*, you can tell the designers started to get lazy with the level design & "feel"
add to that shameless name-drops & lack of "Castlevanian charm"


So pretty much only the middle of the game is very CV-like, at least to me
and the epilogue

[Ahasverus]

I'm playing through Lords of Shadow right now and it's certainly more entertaining and engulfing than a lot of IGA's CV productions. Not understanding the hate.

Because it's more engulfing and entertaining than a lot of IGA's CV productions.

Post of the year

[Abnormal Freak]

I will say this:
The first 4 chapters suck and don't feel like a CV game at all.

Disagree with this. I've only played the first chapter so far, but it evoked the sense of adventure and mystique that I've always gotten from the old games. It's odd that the castle would be mentioned as the most CV-like, which makes me wonder if that sense of feeling is more related to locale--which would be a commentary on the way Igarashi stripped away much of the series' magic and sense of adventure by restricting the locale to the castle--and OOE doesn't count because even its exteriors feel like the same confined boredom as the castles.

LOS is pretty damn exciting so far and is a breath of fresh air. IGA wasn't cutting it, so it's nice to see a new direction--and one that I feel captures the old glory better than a lot of IGA's stuff.

[crisis]

The extremely bright sun-lit areas that are completely devoid of any music at times (seriously wtf? only part that should be dead silent in a CV game is the pause menu) and over reliance on shimmying & planking are what the first 4 chapters sum up to (especially Agartha). Those parts made me question if I was playing a true CV at all. But once you get to the castle, you'll realize how much better it is than the previous chapters.

[Neobelmont]

It's a toss up between either "GodofWarvania" or "Modernvania."

Perferably I suggest "Modernvania" since it's shorter and it's easier to say than "GodofWarvania". Plus a Modernvania could consist's of Modern or mainstream game design.

When I write an essay some tutors say I must have clarity and brevity in my writing to keep it simple to get my point across so why not be simple and call it 3Dvania? It's right down to the point 3d and castlevania no god of war stuff or need to call it modern no bullspit just 3d and cv together.

[Nagumo]

...

Abnormal Freak-sama

...

 

[Abnormal Freak]

It could just be an early, reactionary response to how I really didn't wanna play this game and it's turning out much better than I expected, but ReBirth aside, I haven't had this much fun with a new Castlevania in forever. :p We'll see if there'll be skeleton dudes and mermen and other creatures I expect of a CV game, but I like the enemies so far.

As for daylit spots with no music, no complaints here. I'm a big fan of the N64 games and their ambience, and LOS has touches of Ico which is a game where I can just sit and stare at the scenery for a long time.

[Flame]

Castlevania is no stranger to daytime areas.

Need I remind you all specifically of Simon's Quest? the whole game is based around a day and night system.

In SC4, wasnt the Waterfall area like sunset or something? Also, Bloodlines' Atlantis Shrine was Sunset.


It's not like LoS starts you off in a sunny area. Hell no, it starts you off in a pretty cliche besieged village, dark, rainy, and with  Wargs everywhere.

It's afterwards that it gets sunny, but since CV is no stranger to sunny environments and old ruins, it never bothered me.

And It's no stranger to areas like the Necromancers abyss either. It reminded me particularly of The Abyss in Dawn of Sorrow.

Also, people complain about the name drops and continuity nods, but if they werent there, people would have bitched even more, instead about how they werent there. About how it's not castlevania because everything is completely original, including characters and backstory.

Instead what they did was adapt certain parts of the old mythos and incorporate it. Bernhards creating a demon castle, Cronqvists being Gabriel's true origins, Rinaldo creating the Combat Cross...

[Sumac]

Flame, it's official - you are awesome.

Rate my trolling, please. 10/10 or 10/10? 

0/10
For the lack of any originality.

[TheouAegis]

Daylight was in Castlevania III also. Stage 1 has daylight, albeit it was more like early evening, around 6 or 7pm. Then I think the Aqueduct stage was in the daytime too. And one of the castle levels (the one with all the vines growing all over the place) is set during sunset.

[Archangel]

Abnormal Freak.... I´m glad you´re enjoying LoS thus far

Lords of Shadow is a great game and I love every second of it. And it´s good to see that I´m not the only one who´s reminded of the older CVs when playing it. But on the other side, I can really understand those who are disappointed LoS.

Also, people complain about the name drops and continuity nods, but if they werent there, people would have bitched even more, instead about how they werent there. About how it's not castlevania because everything is completely original, including characters and backstory.

Instead what they did was adapt certain parts of the old mythos and incorporate it. Bernhards creating a demon castle, Cronqvists being Gabriel's true origins, Rinaldo creating the Combat Cross...

That´s one of the things I like about this game... it was a nice throwback to the older games....
Besides, it would´ve been really boring to have all the same characters back we already know. It´s a reinvention, after all.

[Jorge D. Fuentes]

Daylight is present in a number of games:

It's a mechanic in Simon's Quest.
It's sunset in the Castle Courtyard (Block 7-0A) in Dracula's Curse.
It's sunset in the Sumberged City (Block 3-03) in Super Castlevania IV.
It's broad daylight in the Aqueduct (Stage 2') in Rondo of Blood (it becomes afternoon and night-time toward the end of the stage).
It seems to be a cloudy afternoon in the entrance stage of Symphony of the Night (though in that game, the time of day, the type of moon, and other aspects freak out on a stage-by-stage basis in the castle).
Seems to be early morning (or late afternoon) in DraculaXX's Stage 2 (the bridge to the castle entrance).
It can be argued that some of the stages in the Gameboy games are set in daylight, though there's really no way to be certain.
Harmony of Dissonance's "Corridor of Air (errr... "Sky Walkway") and Chapel of Dissonance are set on a bright afternoon blue sky (green in the deformed castle).
I cannot tell what time of the day it is in Dawn of Sorrow's Village stage, but that's 'cuz it's cloudy and snowy... but it doesn't look like night-time.
Order of Ecclesia has a number of areas that are set in the morning.
The paintings in Portrait of Ruin fit into this, but technically they're fantastic landscapes and not actual locations in the world.
And then there's Lords of Shadow.

[Nagumo]

I don't think Super Castlevania III and IV had any daytime stages. The stages people are refering just had odd color backgrounds.

For example, the courtyard uses both purple and blue as its background. The blue that is being used is the same blue that is supposed to indicate nightime in other stages, so the stage is definitely set during that time. I assume people think it's daytime because of the purple? The combination of blue and purple actually gives me the impression that it's set in the dead of night.

The Sumberged City has one segment with a red background that may have some believe it's during sunrise. However, afterwards the background becomes purple, indicating night, so I think the red was just used to give the area a scary and surreal atmosphere.       

[Dominus Agony]

I can't help but wonder how more awesome all those daylight stages would've been without familiar music/enemies accompanying them.

[Neobelmont]

Daylight is present in a number of games:

It's a mechanic in Simon's Quest.
It's sunset in the Castle Courtyard (Block 7-0A) in Dracula's Curse.
It's sunset in the Sumberged City (Block 3-03) in Super Castlevania IV.
It's broad daylight in the Aqueduct (Stage 2') in Rondo of Blood (it becomes afternoon and night-time toward the end of the stage).
It seems to be a cloudy afternoon in the entrance stage of Symphony of the Night (though in that game, the time of day, the type of moon, and other aspects freak out on a stage-by-stage basis in the castle).
Seems to be early morning (or late afternoon) in DraculaXX's Stage 2 (the bridge to the castle entrance).
It can be argued that some of the stages in the Gameboy games are set in daylight, though there's really no way to be certain.
Harmony of Dissonance's "Corridor of Air (errr... "Sky Walkway") and Chapel of Dissonance are set on a bright afternoon blue sky (green in the deformed castle).
I cannot tell what time of the day it is in Dawn of Sorrow's Village stage, but that's 'cuz it's cloudy and snowy... but it doesn't look like night-time.
Order of Ecclesia has a number of areas that are set in the morning.
The paintings in Portrait of Ruin fit into this, but technically they're fantastic landscapes and not actual locations in the world.
And then there's Lords of Shadow.

And then there is castlevania 64/legacy of darkness  yeah day time in CV is no problem at least to me. Might play los again,but till then I am to busy playing dragon quest 9 and xenoblade.