Topic: Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia *** NO SPOILERS

[Gimph]

In Reply To #1259

Whoa! CotM was the first GBA title? Why is it that Harmony of Dissonance was so terrible in comparison? Shouldn't graphics and music IMPROVE as the franchise progresses?

[ChibiMaddiChan]

In Reply To #1261
From what I understand with most people, it was incredibly too easy (even compared to all the other 'SOTN clones'), it was a little 'too' much like SOTN, and for some people, the music was horrible. (Sound wise.)

I just like to think of HoD as a fun game to breeze through when I'm bored. XD

[Gimph]

In Reply To #1261

I just like to think of HoD as a fun game to breeze through when I'm bored. XD

Same here. Circle of the Moon is by far the best GBA title though.

[Kale]

Shanoa seems over powered with her spells. The video makes her seem fun to play ... pity its a ds game, I don't have one.

[Alexc2808]

Circle of the Moon is by far the best GBA title though.

You sir, speak the truth.

[A n t r a x x]

In Reply To #1259

Thernz, I LOVE the sig

[Azmodan]

Same here. Circle of the Moon is by far the best GBA title though.

XD

Again, no, just no. It's one of the weakest and most overrated titles of the series. AoS and even Belmont's Revenge outclass it in every way, and even HoD was superior to it sans how easy it was.

In Reply To #1259

Whoa! CotM was the first GBA title? Why is it that Harmony of Dissonance was so terrible in comparison? Shouldn't graphics and music IMPROVE as the franchise progresses?

Uh...HoD has superior graphics. CotM had bland, green, static backgrounds that did little other than serve as "filler." HoD had a range of highly-detailed backgrounds that sported enhanced graphical effects (like the lightning outside the entrance hall and the heat waves in the Treasury B.) Compared to...well, is there anything to compare to it in CotM? The green bricks in the Audience Room, or the green bricks in the Observation Tower?

Also, Soshiro Hokkai mentioned in the soundtrack notes they sacrificed the sound in order to get those graphics. And I'd rather have low-quality, original compositions compared to bloopy remixes. And you're forgetting that the intro and credits music were fully orchestrated.

[A n t r a x x]

You sir, speak the truth.

Well, lookee here! We AGREE on something

[Azmodan]

and the soundtrack used the best quality audio of the bunch (HOD and AOS would feature more fuzz in their music output).

Normally I'd just angrily shake my fist at your posts like I always do, but this just isn't accurate.

http://www.vgmuseum.com/mrp/cv-cotm/music/10-FATETODESPAIR.mp3

http://www.vgmuseum.com/mrp/cv-hod/music/08-AQUEDUCTOFDRAGONS.mp3

http://www.vgmuseum.com/mrp/cv-aos/music/06Chapel.mp3

CotM has a very distict "hiss" to its music. AoS has very little of it, and the PCM channels are as crisp as a chip. D:

But yeah, I'm not going to squabble about personal preferences when it comes to aesthetics.

*angrily shakes fist*

[thernz]

I would say HoD had technically superior graphics with its rotating effects, transparent effects with some lights, more animation despite their eekness and all.
Though imo, HoD's backgrounds are vastly superior to CoTM's.

[A n t r a x x]

In Reply To #1269

CotM's also the only one that had decent-sounding bass

I'm not saying CotM doesn't have fuzz too, but HoD had way more, and AoS only did a little better.

CotM's tracks were full of strong bass, separation and clarity. And yeah it might have had its finger a little too much on the slap bass, but it had a nice crisp sound as a result.

[jimmay17]

I'm gonna back up Azmodon here. When CoTM was fist released, it was well praised by both fans and game critics alike for its music, but, as admitted by the developers at the time, in order to free up space for the tunes, they had to sacrifice visuals. Circle, and this is my subjective opinion here, has the worst visual presentation in the franchise outside the Gameboy games. It looks like a first generation Sega Genesis game: dull, murky, and wooden.


When it came to Harmony, then, the developers took the criticism of the visuals to heart (remember this was when the Game Boy Advance lacked a backlit screen, making a dark, uncolorful game extremely difficult to see unless you happen to be in the perfect light) and flipped the aesthetic, sacrificing the music for better, more fluid and easier to see visuals.


Arguably, Aria of Sorrow is where they finally found a comfortable balance between the two, featuring both detailed, colorful visuals and a respectable score. I had hoped that Order of Ecclesia would follow a similar trajectory, and be the most refined entry on the DS as AoS was on the GBA, but thusfar, I'm unimpressed.

[A n t r a x x]

In Reply To #1272

I dunno. I definitnely think OoE is the best looking and sounding of the 3 DS titles so far; of what I've seen/heard of it.

Well... it's music isn't as strong as say DoS' but it's quality is better.

[jimmay17]

In Reply To #1273

Yeah, I don't know. Some of it looks really good, other parts, on the other hand, like the purple brick background where Shanoa slides under the dropping blade, reminds me way too much of the GBA days:
http://ds.ign.com/dor/objects/958543/castlevania-ds/images/castlevania-order-of-ecclesia-20080711055603595.html

As for the music, it hasn't hit me yet, but I'm like that with music; I need to hear about four or five times before I start to appreciate the nuances.

With that, I'd just like to point out that I've brought this thread back on topic. You can all thank me later.

[A n t r a x x]

In Reply To #1274

Yeah the clocktower doesn't look good in OoE