Topic: The Dungeon Reviews Special: Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2

[Nagumo]

I thought it would be interesting to have a topic like this. Perhaps we can make threads for each new game that comes out, perhaps also for the ones that have already come out.

Rules: rate LoS2 on a scale of 1 to 10, supplementing your rating with a review, if you want to (It's not necessary but is highly encouraged). However, please do not rate or review the game after you've played through the entire game.

I'll be keeping track of the average score.     

[Mike Belmont]

Nice thread . I will try to make a review.

The ambience is more "dark" in its environments than the first game, and the graphics continue to be its major point. The boss fights were good, but is missing classic horror and mytological enemies like Minotaurus, Mummies, Dragons, among others. Some enemies and bosses seems like those in Darksiders. Is warmly appreciated the help in navigation, specifically in the climb sections. The first game give a little help here. The rat trasformation and the power to prossess, eh I mean possess its innovative and a nice addition to the Dracula´s lore. The music is good, but feels very environmental. The combat gameplay is solid, and is in line with the first game. The camera is a downgrade, because in times is in an undesirable place, when you need it.

Overall, it feels like a improvement over the first LoS. Many things to polish, but still fun to play. I give to it a 8.

PD I make the review based in the full walkthrough that I see in Youtube. That counts?

[KaZudra]

I just beat it fresh, I'm gonna take a few days to reflect on it and review it myself...
So far, Good, not perfect, but definitely good.

[Viskod]

The camera is a downgrade, because in times is in an undesirable place, when you need it.

You can turn off "Combat Assisted Camera" in the options and have full control of whatever you want it to do in combat with the Right Analog. I found this was a mixed blessing. On random fights in various places its really nice to put the camera where you want it, but when you're fighting just one thing, like a boss, the assisted camera is really helpful at staying behind you so you don't have to worry about handling it.

[e105beta]

Mechanically, I find it superior to LoS. The combat is superb, and you feel very powerful as Dracula. It's fast, exciting, and gives a lot of control. The platforming has also been extremely sped up, though it sacrifices the whip platforming to do so.

The boss battles are also magnificent, and trump anything in the previous two games, save for maybe the Abbadon fight. The Castlevania segments could be considered better than their LoS1 equivalents, but by and large, while the city has a couple scenic locales, it generally drags down the artistry of the game, littering the world with samey plazas, science buildings, and ruins.

However, as a player that was emotionally invested in the characters and their stories, LoS2 is disappointing. The game provides no sense of closure, and throws in a bunch of uninteresting villains at the expense of the characters people already care about. It also killed Victor in the most spectacularly stupid way possible after giving him almost no screen time.

Overall, I give the game a 7.5. It was a great ride, but ultimately left me feeling unsatisfied.

[Viskod]

I would probably give it an 8.

If compared to Lords of Shadow 1, I would say that Lords of Shadow 1 is more fun to experience, but Lords of Shadow 2 is more fun to play.

[GigaDan]

Though the combat and controls were more solid than Lords of Shadow 1, and the general gameplay was better than Mirror of Fate, the awful story, lackluster environments, and lack of a sense of progression made this 15 hour long game feel much longer. None of the story elements were properly delivered on and the grand sum total of the plot is not only flimsy (the often mentioned Zobek/Satan gambit) but ridiculous because there's nothing different about how they were executed to make it anymore meaningful than last time. The script could've been for a 4 hour long game and maybe fit but it's distended here.

The plot device that is the satanic army conversion chemical is convenient so that way Mercury Steam wouldn't have to make an open city but even still the game utterly fails to deliver on the potential of the setting. The fact it restricts it even further to small hallways and rooms that look largely the same with very obvious loading rooms in-between is an even larger embarrassment. The graphical quality of the city environments looks almost PS2-like and would've been a low ringer early this gen.

I'd go on but I could do this forever.

2.1 - .1 lower than I gave Mirror of Fate, which was only better because it was shorter. To be clear, I'd put SotN at high 8's low 9's and Lament of Innocence somewhere around a 4 or 5.

[Nagumo]

Average score: 6.4

[Intersection]

I have my own thread for posting these kinds of reviews. I haven't added to it for months now, but I'm sure you'll forgive me the 'necromancy'.

For the moment, though, I'll draw out the suspense, and say:
"Review forthcoming."

Rules: rate LoS2 on a scale of 1 to 10, supplementing your rating with a review, if you want to (It's not necessary but is highly encouraged). However, please do not rate or review the game after you've played through the entire game.

Did you mean before?

[derision]

I wasn't going to post since the lack of replies has proven this thread to be pretty pointless, but that ridiculous 2-range (with decimals!) review could use some counteracting.

Fun action game. It's an improvement over the original in combat and console performance. A much darker and generally more gothic game than LoS1 in terms of aesthetics and music. Cutscenes look nice and the voice performances are pretty great. The connected environment is pretty neat and the game constantly teases you with out-of-reach upgrades, which is something I enjoyed. Excellent boss fights overall, especially on your second time through when you're more comfortable with their patterns and your repertoire.

The story falls largely flat barring a few specific instances. Many of the characters in this game are one-offs that don't really connect to a larger narrative aside from maybe helping to characterize Dracula. The ending is lame and does not leave a good last impression for those who aren't interested in playing beyond that. I've also encountered several bugs and a handful of crashes to the point where I hope a stability patch is issued. The lack of a means to easily refight bosses and revisit specific scenarios is also pretty baffling in light of Lords of Shadow 1.

I could say some more, but why even bother for something like this. 8/10

[Chernabogue]

My note would be 8/10. What I disliked is the plot, the random usage of music (but the soundtrack is cool IMO), and the repetitiveness of some parts. But the game is tons of fun to play, gorgeous, and very cool.

[GigaDan]

but that ridiculous 2-range (with decimals!) review could use some counteracting.

How ridiculous that I thought lowly of the game! I need decimals to help me wade through the morass that is how much I dislike each game in the LoS series. It's going to end up being a decimal when Nagumo divides it out anyway SO WHY NOT!

[derision]

How ridiculous that I thought lowly of the game! I need decimals to help me wade through the morass that is how much I dislike each game in the LoS series. It's going to end up being a decimal when Nagumo divides it out anyway SO WHY NOT!

Your views do seem ridiculous to me, which is what encouraged me to post my review and score. Put a lid on it.

Also, I've always thought that a 100 point scale is overkill. Using .5 increments is one thing, but tenths? That's just silly and arbitrary. 5 star system is the best.

[Lumi Kløvstad]

Bearing in mind I just beat Raisa (so this is an incomplete review), my current impressions are that in combat, Dracula feels appropriately vampiric, which is kind of a first. He doesn't hide behind magic spells and transformations, but gets close up and visceral with his combat, using a LOT of blood and bites.

However, two niggling points I dislike: Dracula is rubbish at sneaking, and you'd think the Dark Lord, Prince of Darkness and King of Night Who is Called The Dragon would have a few more sneaking tricks besides mist and turning into rats. Agreus' maze has driven my mind to the fine-tuned hell of psychosis and back, and I generally do not appreciate sneaking when I bought the game to be an all powerful vampire lord up against the personification of Sin Itself, especially when it feels this blocky. If I wanted to sneak, my Metal Gear Solid games are three feet away.

Second, while the boss battles are good, I wish there was more hit-stun associated with your attacks. Too often, I am setting up a combo, only for the guy I'm wailing on to spit in my face and retaliate as if I'd struck him with a piece of tissue paper instead of an UNGODLY WHIP MADE OF THE BLOOD OF THE DARK PRINCE /boomingvoice

One of the things I liked so much in Lords of Shadow 1 was that for the first time in recent memory, the whip felt like an actual weapon, delivering hits that felt solid and delivered appropriate amounts of stun considering the enemy was being brained with a 20 foot spiked steel chain. Here... the whip feels daintier than Simon Belmont's jumps in Mirror of Fate. And the Void Sword and Chaos Claws are not much of an improvement over the whip in this one.

So that's the stuff I don't like.

Pretty much everything else is either something I approve of, or represents a significant step in the right direction.

More comments on the story once I beat it.

Though wandering through the open city, I almost screamed "IT'S LIKE CASTLEVANIA HAD SEX WITH UNDERWORLD AND IT WAS ADOPTED BY DEVIL MAY CRY!"

I consider that a term of endearment. Why is there no Kate Beckinsale in this? :|

[Ahasverus]

I have a huge HUGE review coming down the line, but for now, yeah, I was not amused. Excellent high points, I mean, crazy highs with incredible stupid design choices. The news about development problems soured me a lot too. 7/10. (LoS1: 8.5/10).