^Why's that?
16 Reppukens.
Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles
-
^Why's that?
16 Reppukens. -
I liked it but…
- SUPER SHORT!
- Really easy.
- Completing the game with 100% is pretty freaking easy. (If not the first run, then the second run with all returned items).
- Fewer amount of monsters than usual.
- Some annoying gimicks.
I personally liked the story though. I've been playing it, and I've won already. It's so easy, I'm considering to do a 'LVL 1' run, and I never do that sort of stuff.
-
Greg hates all games that didn't exactly meet his expectations.
I didn't like the linearity, I didn't like how short it was, and especially how it was short because it was so linear. However, I loved the basic gameplay elements. Playing around with rune combinations alternating with two attack buttons, it was pretty damn fun while it lasted.
Really, if they had given us a game with fewer, less linear stages but longer playtime, with about twice as many glyph combinations, it might have been my favorite in the series. So you heard me, IGA, make a sequel to this game, similar mechanics, more glyphs, twice the size, for the PSWii60.
-
I very much agree with Lazzie. I love the DS, but we need a good 2D Castlevania for the X/W/P.
They should either make a sequal of this one and make it a million times better, or make a 'remake' game for the Trevor, Sypha, Alucard, and Grant story, where all four are playable. That would be epic!
-
Well this game fucking sucked.
Bullshit it did.
As for anyone saying it's short, I have to wonder if you unlocked Castlevania itself. Or Albus mode.
-
Bullshit it did.
As for anyone saying it's short, I have to wonder if you unlocked Castlevania itself. Or Albus mode.
I did. I have 100% on all maps, and I beat Albus mode. Try playing Symphony of the Night and then tell me it isn't short.
-
I for one don't care if it's short.
-
i'll still give it a try if being short is it's only downfall.
-
Greg hates all games that didn't exactly meet his expectations.
Is that strange? To not like something you paid money for which failed to deliver?
The game wasn't short.
Not by a long shot. The problem with the game is they removed, or made terribly inaccessible many of the gimmicks that made the games so much fun.
I see exactly what they were trying to do. And from a creation perspective it's terribly ambitious, but they failed miserably. I will enlighten you.
They wanted to make a 'difficult' Castlevania game going back to the series' roots while retaining the exploration qualities that have made recent titles successful.
I felt this perhaps best executed in the earlier boss battles which were unique and required thinking and geographic strategy as opposed to simply leveling up and spamming the boss.
The crab was the most impressive and at that point I was in LOVE with the game. It's been a long time since I died repeatedly against a peon boss in one of these and I had no option of leveling up, it was all in how I handled the boss by jumping, moving etc. and it just KEPT GOING all with a fantastic finale.
That was amazing.
But as I progressed there were fewer of these events and the game went back to being a simple Metrevania (WHICH I LOVE MIND YOU) but doesn't work with this type of system.
What type of system?
The leveling is fucked. If you're going to make a balls to the wall action game, fine, but if you're doing a Metrevania then for fuck's sake, let me level up. Now, normally this isn't a problem because enemies traditionally aren't too difficult to take down and those that are a little bit tricky just require you to use your head or get creative in order to figure out how to effectively gain levels. Here there was no enemy in any location that really stood out as a particularly effective leveling seed. Furthermore, when there were, the Heart system WHICH I'VE GROWN TO DESPISE does not allow for aforementioned 'effective' methods of dealing with foes. I will elaborate:
1. The geographic layout of the game was constructed by someone with Down's Syndrome. Who the FUCK thought it would be a good idea to place save points and warp points even slightly far apart. The one that comes to mind fastest (because it's most recently in my memory) is right before Death. There's a save room and a warp room SEPARATED BY SPIKES YOU HAVE TO MAGNES YOUR WAY THROUGH.
WHAT THE FUCK!!!????
What jackass actually sat at his desk and thought that would be a 'good' idea???
"Oh let's see, people need to get from point A to point B quickly so LET'S PUT A POINTLESS EASY TRAP BETWEEN THEM.
Then there's in the labyrinth where the warp room and save room are separated by TWO HALLWAYS OF GIGANTIC ENEMIES.
Honestly. That doesn't make the game harder, it makes it stupider.
2. I want to murder the bastard that didn't think it would be a good idea to refill hearts at save stations. I mean seriously WTF!? Do you know how many times I had to go back to that God-forsaken village just to refill hearts!? OH and while we're down that road, why in the SHIT did they make it so you have to continually hold the Down button to recharge hearts and WAIT for them to fill up instead of just hitting down and getting them charged?
Yes, it's easy to grind in the game, if you waste hours travelling back and forth between a location and the village, killing two Great Knights using hearts, then refilling, then coming back and killing two more, then coming back, then killing two more, etc. NOW of course you can kill Great Knights WITHOUT using hearts, but as you know, it takes TIME. And that would be JUST FINE IF they actually rewarded you with an amount of EXP that was proportional to the time you spent on it. Even if you equip the ring that gives extra EXP it's a complete waste.
Now again, the above mentioned issues wouldn't be an issue if the game was pure action, but after the first few levels, it obviously isn't. The inablity to EFFECTIVELY make your character grow results in nothing but my wasted time. Which brings me to my next point.
Their way of dealing with the Luck attribute in this game is FUCKING INSIPID!!!!!! First they have a terribly obscure-as-fuck way of obtaining the ONLY DECENT LUCK-RELATED ITEM IN THE GAME that you can only get when you're practically done.
Luck is the single most important attribute in the Metrevania series and they chose to be fucking coy with it in this game. I spent a good goddamn 15 minutes killing White Fomors, two at a time, in order to get ONE Cashmere and the sidequest asked for 5!? FIVE!???? That's fucking insane.
Now maybe the luck issue wouldn't have been as bad if you could effectively level but OOPS! CAN'T DO THAT CAN YOU!?
Regarding the glyph system. I like it. I really do. But there are some serious issues with it.
1. FOR FUCKS SAKE NAME THEM SOMETHING REOGNIZABLE!!!!!!!!
Jesus-tap-dancing-Christ! It's like they took BLEACH characters and put them into a game as items!!!!!!!!
Instead of: PIPITYPOPURS GLAGDINGDONG call it at: BALL-BUSTING AXE
I wasted a fuckload of time looking for glyphs in the menu and eventually gave up on the names entirely and memorized the images.
2. The quick-change function for equipping different sets is far too awkward to switch between. I couldn't effectively do it for the entire duration of the game. I admit this may be a personal issue. Much in the way I dislike HALO because I can't handle an XBox controller. That's MY issue and I recognize that, but it's still something that detracted from the enjoyment of the game.
3. Going back to the action VS Metrevania aspect of the game, the glyphs sucked as a fault of their lack of number. Metrevania is KNOWN for its incredibly huge arsenal of weapons, some taking hours to get, but are always rewarding. Why? Because they're effective as fuck against almost anything depending on how effectively you utilize them. But here's the problem, they thought TOO MUCH about making the game 'hard' and yet again, instead of making it 'hard' they made it stupid.
Here's me:
"I have a hallway of monsters. Monster A is weak against swords. Oh okay, I'll use the swords I always have equipped. Monster B is weak against hammers. Uh, okay, just gimme a sec, okay, I switched to glyph set C where I just happened to have hammers equipped. Monster C is weak to only electricity. Ah fuck, I don't have any electricity-based glyphs, equipped. Okay, let me take my hammers off and put on some electric shit. Hmmmm….what was it called again......scrolls......clock ticking.........scrolls.........oh there it is. Okay! Eat Electric death! takes off 6 HP WTF? It's doing more damage but it's still weak as fuck. Okay let me see what else it was weak against. opens Enemy Guide scrolls........clock ticking.......scrolls. Oh! Here it is, says it's also weak against Light. Okay, let's change to Light magic. scrolls.....what the fuck was Light magic again....scrolls....oh there it is. Die monster! Hahaha! I showed him. Monster D is weak to hammers.....FUCK changes back to hammers It's like this practically every goddamn room. NOW it WOULD have been better if the giant attacks you used could effectively be recharged, but that certainly isn't the issue.
In short, the game ceases being fun and turns into a chore of going through the same menus again and again, severely taking away parts of the actual, well, GAME.
And regarding the 'twist' of Dracula's castle. I was EXTREMELY happy when I first entered. It looked awesome!!!!!! Some of the best graphics I've seen on DS! But then I realized....more than ever before, despite being constructed of a large number of rooms, those rooms are largely the SAME THING OVER AND OVER! Dracula's castle has NEVER been so goddamn BORING.
"Ooooh another vertical room in the Labyrinth with squid-things."
"Ooooh, another large Library room with platforms identical to the one I was in moments ago."
The Tymeo mountains are especially guilty of this sin. So is Tristis pass. Those areas with trees and the underground pathes are pratically just palette-swaps.
What a terrible, terrible game.
-
Now that I think about it, I agree.
They did a very lazy job. A lot of the stages looked like each other. Not to mention, there were two stages that were straight lines….yes... Like one long hallway, the neither one had a boss battle.
The luck thing isn't so bad once you find the Fortune Ring (a ring which increases your luck depending on play time).
I LIKED the game, but I too expected more. When previews and trailers came out for the game, it looked like this was going to put DoS and PoR to shame. I thought this was going to be THE Castlevania for the DS to remember. Instead, it felt like an easier version of DoS.
Oh well. I'm playing my second run.
-
Good GOD, Greg, you are both inhumanly picky AND inhumanly ranty! Is this how you avoid arguments?! You smother people with massive walls of text so no one with a life can refute you?! Because that's the problem I have, here…
I will say this, though; you're complaining about glyph names?! Forgoing the fact that the three-stage glyphs had the same name themes (_____, Vol _______, then Melio ______), each one had an individual symbol and description of the attack. If you had ANY problems with managing glyphs because of their names, my heart goes out to you.
As for your "here's me" thing, if you're having problems like that, you're quite terrible at managing glyphs, because I didn't have any problems with typing and weaknesses throughout the entire game. Now either I am a warlock, or you whine too much.
Although being a warlock WOULD be pretty cool…
Oh, and regarding an earlier comment: I HAVE played SotN. I've played EVERY metroid-style Castlevania. In fact, I OWN every Metroid-style Castlevania. SotN was pretty short, mostly because it was inhumanly easy. By the time you're in the inverted castle, you can blow through everything in a matter of minutes.
-
Good GOD, Greg, you are both inhumanly picky AND inhumanly ranty!
I know! It's a good thing this isn't a place for posting opinions or else I'd REALLY be fucked!
Is this how you avoid arguments?! You smother people with massive walls of text so no one with a life can refute you?!
Ah, so it has come to that. I was wondering when it would hit. I saw a few hints of it in the 9th Circle of Hell (known otherwise as the Anime Board) when someone mentioned the hip new catch phrases: 'wall of text' & 'TLDR'
So people really are getting fucking lazier.
I don't avoid discussions, people avoid discussing (and I don't mean with me) because they're too lazy.
I will say this, though; you're complaining about glyph names?!
Should I love them simply because they're in the game?
Forgoing the fact that the three-stage glyphs had the same name themes (_____, Vol _______, then Melio ______), each one had an individual symbol and description of the attack.
Right, which I mentioned in my post was what I resorted to identifying them by. This was of course easy for things like, well, swords or axes or hammer and sickles. But not for amorphous balls of light and especially not the R-Button linked glyphs.
Are you suggesting it wouldn't be faster to have them write, 'axe' or 'sword' or 'lightning'?
The less time I spend in menus micromanaging equipment and the more time I spend in the field actually fighting awesome shit, the happier I am.
As for your "here's me" thing, if you're having problems like that, you're quite terrible at managing glyphs, because I didn't have any problems with typing and weaknesses throughout the entire game. Now either I am a warlock, or you whine too much.
Anyone that disagrees with you whines. Hmm.
Yes, I am terrible at managing glyphs. They're a bitch to keep organized, they require constant switch and manipulating. If you want to fight with a certain weapon it's a chore to switch it out to other options and even sub-weapons or abilities formerly controlled by hearts OR magic were the superb balance to whatever weapon you might have been using. Which brings to mind another point, why in the shit was attacking regulated to magic? That has to be the most idiotic choice in gaming last year. Not once did I find myself running out of the ability to attack. It didn't limit me or handicap me, all it did was give the developers an excuse to give the fusion abilities to something else, hearts, which was a terrible move.
Christ, from that reaction you'd think my attack on the game was like me raping your soul. Take a step back and put your head in a bucket of ice. I'm attacking a game, not your man or womanhood.
I LIKED the game, but I too expected more. When previews and trailers came out for the game, it looked like this was going to put DoS and PoR to shame.
I liked the outside the castle approach because come on, it doesn't matter if you're IN the castle or not, the stages are still linked, they could call 'em whatever they want. So I instantly loved the concept because I thought they could get really creative with level design, which they did. But the further I got into the game, the more it stopped being awesome and unique and ended up being repeated structures or rooms, one after the other.
Then when I played the first stage I was BLOOOOOWN the fuck away. I contiued to be BLOOOOWN the fuck away through the crab battle. And after that it settled into a comfortable ho-hum sort of progression. Then when Dracula's castle came I was BLOOOOOWN away, until I saw that it was just a few areas covering a LOT of very similar rooms.
I expected much, I got much less. I've never played a Metrevania JUST to get it over with.
I mean, they managed to make item collection annoying. How do you do that?
-
Jesus fuckpants, Greg, you need to chill out. Look at my post. Look at yours. It's a god damn video game. How long did it take you to type these two walls of text, Greg? About a video game? To (a) stranger(s) on the internet?
I mean, damn, I can understand, like, some what-if bullshit debate for jollies or something meriting a huge post filled with points and shit, but that's pure net-ranting.
Yes, you can post your opinions, but y'know the fun part? So can I! Like my opinion that you care way too god damn much about silly little things, and post walls of text where you nitpick things so minor and treat them like major gamebreaking flaws. For instance, I cannot even muster the wherewithall to even attempt to have an opinion over glyph names. It's something so inconsequential and small that to muster up the ability to form an opinion of something so small, I would need to get severely drunk, then, while heavily inebriated and lacking any shame around my peers I would have to imitate someone I think would care about it.
And really, how hard is it to set three sets of weapon glyphs to different types of weapons, and set those three sets with three commonly effective magic attacks? Obviously it ain't hard, 'cause I'm no genius. I mean, damn, Albus' glyph attack tears through most enemies in the game lickety split.
-
How long did it take you to type these two walls of text, Greg? About a video game? To (a) stranger(s) on the internet?
Seems I was right.
And over your head it seems. As if I sat here typing that with my face set in stone believing each letter of text I type is pure gold Toriyama semen and wasn't meant for the entertainment of readers as an amusing and different take on something that, apparently, has fiercely devoted fans, the same types of fans the very same text might have been written with the very intent of spurring into a fury.
I mean, damn, I can understand, like, some what-if bullshit debate for jollies or something meriting a huge post filled with points and shit, but that's pure net-ranting.
And I'm sure if you didn't take my post as an attack on your sense of being, you might have gotten a chuckle from it or considered something about it you hadn't.
Yes, you can post your opinions, but y'know the fun part? So can I!
Did I suggest anywhere you can't? Would you please point that particular text out?
Like my opinion that you care way too god damn much about silly little things, and post walls of text where you nitpick things so minor and treat them like major gamebreaking flaws.
Are we talking about a video game or me? Because you haven't given your opinion on a game, or even defended an opinion of your's with this. All you've done is trash-talk a human because their view differs from your own. In your own words:
Jesus fuckpants, Greg, you need to chill out. Look at my post. Look at yours. It's a god damn video game.
Hmm.
For instance, I cannot even muster the wherewithall to even attempt to have an opinion over glyph names.
Therefore I mustn't? I should enjoy plowing through menus searching for things. Okay then.
It's something so inconsequential and small that to muster up the ability to form an opinion of something so small, I would need to get severely drunk, then, while heavily inebriated and lacking any shame around my peers I would have to imitate someone I think would care about it.
Now see, this would be hilarious. If I didn't think you honestly believed this.
And really, how hard is it to set three sets of weapon glyphs to different types of weapons, and set those three sets with three commonly effective magic attacks? Obviously it ain't hard, 'cause I'm no genius. I mean, damn, Albus' glyph attack tears through most enemies in the game lickety split.
Again, you had absolutely no trouble with it so anyone who does is REALLY inferior or should like it anyway. Interesting.
I wrote my rant as a way of making like-minded individuals have a laugh and to get fanboys all shook up. I wrote my post to get attention. It wasn't news. It wasn't thought-provoking. It was created, for better or for worse, to get people talking. Guess it worked. Imagine that, on a message board.
-
Uh, Schmeckie…when you said that "YOU ARE BOTH PICKY", did you include me in that statement? What the fuck? I'm fine being called picky, but I wasn't picky with the game. I said I liked it.
Also, you need to chill. You're the one starting your with over-the-top statements. "GOOD GOD!" "JESUS FUCKPANTS!" You're complaining that Greg is making a statement over a video game, yet you're replying to him in a worse fasion.
If he didn't like the game, he didn't like the game. If he wants to write a wall of text, let him write it (which, wall of text means that he wrote tons of text without hitting enter. He spaced.)
And as Greg said, you seem to be making this more about him than about the game. :wassat:
-
Greg hates all games that didn't exactly meet his expectations.
you heard me, IGA, make a sequel to this game, similar mechanics, more glyphs, twice the size, for the PSWii60.
Yeah they should implement this for the next game.
Is that strange? To not like something you paid money for which failed to deliver?
To not like something is one thing, to say a game is bad for not giving one person what they expected is another.
The leveling is fucked. If you're going to make a balls to the wall action game, fine, but if you're doing a Metrevania then for fuck's sake, let me level up.
Portrait of Ruin includes a hard mode where you play the game without gaining levels (you are only at Lvl. 1), but you can find life power-ups and such, and that mode is beatable. Furthermore the game should be designed to be able to beat areas and bosses even with low stats, you just have to know what you're doing, so…
Now, normally this isn't a problem because enemies traditionally aren't too difficult to take down and those that are a little bit tricky just require you to use your head or get creative in order to figure out how to effectively gain levels. Here there was no enemy in any location that really stood out as a particularly effective leveling seed. Furthermore, when there were, the Heart system WHICH I'VE GROWN TO DESPISE does not allow for aforementioned 'effective' methods of dealing with foes. I will elaborate:
1. The geographic layout of the game was constructed by someone with Down's Syndrome. Who the FUCK thought it would be a good idea to place save points and warp points even slightly far apart. The one that comes to mind fastest (because it's most recently in my memory) is right before Death. There's a save room and a warp room SEPARATED BY SPIKES YOU HAVE TO MAGNES YOUR WAY THROUGH.
Umm don't see what the big deal with this is, previous Castlevanias also had warp rooms and Save rooms that were separated by distance or a horde of annoying enemies, the spikes don't seem that troublesome.
2. I want to murder the bastard that didn't think it would be a good idea to refill hearts at save stations. I mean seriously WTF!? Do you know how many times I had to go back to that God-forsaken village just to refill hearts!? OH and while we're down that road, why in the SHIT did they make it so you have to continually hold the Down button to recharge hearts and WAIT for them to fill up instead of just hitting down and getting them charged?
If you mean holding down at the heart refill location instead of just pressing down, then…what's the problem with that? Don't see what the big deal is.
Now again, the above mentioned issues wouldn't be an issue if the game was pure action, but after the first few levels, it obviously isn't. The inablity to EFFECTIVELY make your character grow results in nothing but my wasted time. Which brings me to my next point.
Their way of dealing with the Luck attribute in this game is FUCKING INSIPID!!!!!! First they have a terribly obscure-as-fuck way of obtaining the ONLY DECENT LUCK-RELATED ITEM IN THE GAME that you can only get when you're practically done.
Luck is the single most important attribute in the Metrevania series and they chose to be fucking coy with it in this game. I spent a good goddamn 15 minutes killing White Fomors, two at a time, in order to get ONE Cashmere and the sidequest asked for 5!? FIVE!???? That's fucking insane.
Don't remember that sidequest, what do you get out of it?
I never bothered with luck in the Castlevania games, I mainly focused on stats, so drops from enemies didn't matter much. IIRC there was an item you needed that is dropped by an enemy in PoR to complete a sidequest wasn't there? I do recall beating it while level grinding one time, but for the most part I skipped any sidequest that I was unable to perform.Regarding the glyph system. I like it. I really do. But there are some serious issues with it.
1. FOR FUCKS SAKE NAME THEM SOMETHING REOGNIZABLE!!!!!!!!
Jesus-tap-dancing-Christ! It's like they took BLEACH characters and put them into a game as items!!!!!!!!
Instead of: PIPITYPOPURS GLAGDINGDONG call it at: BALL-BUSTING AXE
I wasted a fuckload of time looking for glyphs in the menu and eventually gave up on the names entirely and memorized the images.
What's wrong in having some novelty in the game? There's a mystic-vibe they attempted with this game, and using latin and/or european dialog is a nice twist instead of naming it something basic.
I mean heck granted I might've forgotten what the gylphs' names were for being able to perform the Reppuken and Raging Storm in this game, but its all a matter of just looking them up in GameFAQs.com and problem solved.In short, the game ceases being fun and turns into a chore of going through the same menus again and again, severely taking away parts of the actual, well, GAME.
…and yet many managed to enjoy this game
And regarding the 'twist' of Dracula's castle. I was EXTREMELY happy when I first entered. It looked awesome!!!!!! Some of the best graphics I've seen on DS! But then I realized….more than ever before, despite being constructed of a large number of rooms, those rooms are largely the SAME THING OVER AND OVER! Dracula's castle has NEVER been so goddamn BORING.
"Ooooh another vertical room in the Labyrinth with squid-things."
"Ooooh, another large Library room with platforms identical to the one I was in moments ago."
The Tymeo mountains are especially guilty of this sin. So is Tristis pass. Those areas with trees and the underground pathes are pratically just palette-swaps.
Didn't previous 2D Castlevanias also use pallete swaps and similar rooms/decoration?
What a terrible, terrible game.
Not really, you just don't like it.
-
Uh, Schmeckie…when you said that "YOU ARE BOTH PICKY", did you include me in that statement? What the fuck? I'm fine being called picky, but I wasn't picky with the game. I said I liked it.
No, I didn't involve you at all. You're being both silly, and wrong. ;)
Also, you need to chill. You're the one starting your with over-the-top statements. "GOOD GOD!" "JESUS FUCKPANTS!" You're complaining that Greg is making a statement over a video game, yet you're replying to him in a worse fasion.
Wh-ch–... W--... Are you aware of people using profanity and exclimations in casual fashion, god dammit? Because I am a foul-mouthed motherfucker, fuckdammit! Cuntshits!
If he didn't like the game, he didn't like the game. If he wants to write a wall of text, let him write it (which, wall of text means that he wrote tons of text without hitting enter. He spaced.)
And as Greg said, you seem to be making this more about him than about the game. :wassat:
And while he has the right to his opinion that "this game has problems," I have the right to be stunned by his oddly large wall of rant-text, and say "this dude has problems."
-
To not like something is one thing, to say a game is bad for not giving one person what they expected is another.
From my perspective, it is a fault. Certainly you wouldn't agree that a terrible game is 'good' for offering one person something they want. As a consumer when I spend money on a game, I expect something. I (consumer Greg) don't always get what I want, but when I spend money on a franchise title and it doesn't deliver that's painful.
Portrait of Ruin includes a hard mode where you play the game without gaining levels (you are only at Lvl. 1), but you can find life power-ups and such, and that mode is beatable. Furthermore the game should be designed to be able to beat areas and bosses even with low stats, you just have to know what you're doing, so…
I totally understand, but that mode is for people that really REEEEEEEALLY suck the life out of the cartridge. Would you agree that the mode you brought up is something that most fans don't spend time accomplishing? I don't like the titles enough to go through that kind of self-flaggelation. I enjoy going through them and getting 100% on as much as I can in the normal mode. It's like some gothic form of Pokemon for me to collect all the drops. But once I accomplish that, I'm done and move on. This game lends itself to being in some kind of limbo between being a level grinder AND pure action title. The problem is, it never firmly establishes either very well for the majority of the game despite a few bosses and areas being done quite well.
Umm don't see what the big deal with this is, previous Castlevanias also had warp rooms and Save rooms that were separated by distance or a horde of annoying enemies, the spikes don't seem that troublesome.
And it was never an issue in a previous game since the save rooms revived your health and magic which was, in previous titles, used for your larger, more damaging attacks that aid in Drop searches. But in this title where I found myself constantly trekking back and forth between the village and location X, it was a terrible hassle.
What's wrong in having some novelty in the game? There's a mystic-vibe they attempted with this game, and using latin and/or european dialog is a nice twist instead of naming it something basic.
It wouldn't be annoying if I didn't find myself in the menus 30% of the time trying to make different combinations to deal with what the game was throwing at me. I'm constantly having to scroll through the list to find stuff. Is it easier to find Vol Ascia or Axe? Which brings up another point, adding Vol or Melsomethingorother to the FRONT of the name makes it even more time consuming. If they all started Ascia, you just look for 'A' as the first letter but when you search you have to read three letters to get to the name.
"OH MY GOD GREG THREE LETTERS!"
We're talking a matter of moments. Moments don't bother me. They do when they compacted time and again and again and again. I found myself cursing the menus by the end of the thing. Usually they've been expertly fine-tuned but they just felt like a jumbled mess in this title.
…and yet many managed to enjoy this game
Nay. I enjoyed parts of it. I loved the intro. The feel of it was awesome. The artwork was wicked. The enemy animation was BEAUTIFUL. The first level was awesome, the first boss was wicked for a first boss and that was only surpassed by the crab boss which was AMAZING. Then it got even better when I saw how the lighthouse led into the underwater level and suddenly I had this image in my head of how every level would eventually flow together. From that point it failed to keep up with that amazing start.
I beat the game without 100% and returned it to its case. I felt I had to complete it to get it done with, not because I enjoyed it.
Don't remember that sidequest, what do you get out of it?
I never bothered with luck in the Castlevania games, I mainly focused on stats, so drops from enemies didn't matter much. IIRC there was an item you needed that is dropped by an enemy in PoR to complete a sidequest wasn't there? I do recall beating it while level grinding one time, but for the most part I skipped any sidequest that I was unable to perform.I'm not sure because I never completed it ^o^ But it was the sewing lady that cuts herself at night.
Luck is the stat of choice for my in Metrevania games. It's something I never really cared about or bothered with but when they gave me a Item menu and added a collection percentage to it, well, that was it for me. The (main) game can easily be most completely conquered if you focus on the Luck stat and in this title they purposely impair that stat which just left a sour taste in my mouth the moment I realized I was over halfway through the game and my Luck was still pitiful.
Didn't previous 2D Castlevanias also use pallete swaps and similar rooms/decoration?
Indeed! Hell, all of them are pallete swaps, but wha I'm talking about is mirrors and palette swaps in the same level. Take Tymeo Mountains. Those scenes with the big trees are all the same. Not to mention Tristis Pass (or whatever it might have been). Just do me a favor and take a run through the level if you don't know what I mean. Also rooms from the Library, Giant's Dwelling, Mystery Manner are exactly the same layout with plenty of copied vertical passages as well. Same in the underwater levels too.
It's one thing to have reused maps or sprites, after all, they're doing it to give us MORE game. Which is a good thing. But only when used appropriately. How did previous games deal with this? Well SotN famously had the game upside down with a new face. One of the GBA titles had the game in different dimensions as I recall. Portrait of Ruin had the great idea of actually REARRANGING the levels so you ran through them in a different and mostly unrecognizable pattern. But here they blatantly give you rooms that are blatantly the same down to platform placement. In fact, I just went back and read the IGN review and even that reviewer mentioned it.
What can I say? They did it in an attempt to make the game seem longer than previous titles for not 'repeating' when it just repeated itself in a different way that, to me, felt cheap.
Not really, you just don't like it.
As someone who spent money on it and played it, I can say that to me, it's a terrible, terrible game. I enjoy your points Tizoc!
I have the right to be stunned by his oddly large wall of rant-text, and say "this dude has problems."
No, that attitude just gets you on my infamous shit-list. Welcome. I'll read your posts from now on but this is the last reply you'll get from me.
-
Aaaagh, noooesss!!!
Greg's mighty walls of text is melting my innocence away!!!
Why Greg? Why must you constantly construct posts that identifies all the points you have problems with, while providing ample reasons for each?
-
No, that attitude just gets you on my infamous shit-list. Welcome. I'll read your posts from now on but this is the last reply you'll get from me.
Oh god no. Please. For the love of God, and all that is holy, please don't. Let's be reasonable. Nooooooooooo.
-
…so, uh, would the game be worth of buying?
I haven't bought PoR yet either. So If I felt like playing some Castlevania which one is the way to go? Although I still haven't even beaten SotN. I kinda got little lost in it and now I don't remember anymore what I was even supposed to do to begin with.
-
I haven't bought PoR yet either. So If I felt like playing some Castlevania which one is the way to go?
Did you enjoy Dawn of Sorrow? If so then go with PoR next. It's very close to the style of DoS. There's a two-character scheme involved which never really fans out to anything that useful but at least it's there. Other than that it's cookie-cutter Metrevania.
If SotN or DoS didn't do it for you though and you really didn't enjoy the experience enough to keep up with it, then maybe OoE is what you're looking for. As a HUGE fan of the series I went into it with wide-eyed excitement and came out a dead man inside, but that's because I was expecting more of what I've been playing for a decade. OoE might be something just different enough to catch your interest.
Why Greg? Why must you constantly construct posts that identifies all the points you have problems with, while providing ample reasons for each?
I suck at life so bad…so bad.....
-
Ah well, I don't think our difference in opinion is that great, Greg, except your expectations are more specific than mine and more willing to voice your opinions on the internet ad hominem than I am (re: you're pickier and whinier).
Think of it this way: at least we aren't Sonic fans. If I ever was, I probably would've committed suicide by now. They've done nothing but piss on the corpse of that franchise the past eight or nine years.
-
Ah well, I don't think our difference in opinion is that great, Greg, except your expectations are more specific than mine and more willing to voice your opinions on the internet ad hominem than I am (re: you're pickier and whinier).
Ouch! My pride. Sorry, I'll have to watch that voicing my opinion in an exaggerated manner on purpose thing. Wouldn't want to spill any whine on the horse you ride ;)
Think of it this way: at least we aren't Sonic fans. If I ever was, I probably would've committed suicide by now. They've done nothing but piss on the corpse of that franchise the past eight or nine years.
I'm really not upset about the franchise overall. I don't even care if they continue to go in this direction, video games as of late have been all about, "OK! How can we take this perfectly good formula and fuck it up?", so I'm used to it. Seriously though, it's not like every game in the series has been golden since SotN, even the Metrevania ones. It means at least another year and a half until a Metrevania style sequel and we'll see what they can do.
This one? Nah. Definitely didn't do it for me.
-
ok, for those of you new here, greg likes to write. At least his walls of text are entertaining, and make sense, compared to some 12 year olds dribble post/spam. If you don't like reading walls of text, don't read them. I usually skip them myself, but I read gregs, cause I like them.
and ya, he is allowed to say the game sucks balls if he wants. You can kindly ask, "gee greg, I loved the game, I don't understand why you dislike it so much" there's no need to wail on someone for their opinion though.
And all your swearing reminds me of Dracula…..Dracula's funny though.
Vrze-nKw9zQas for my opinion. Guh, I HATE micromanaging. It's what totally turns me off from modern RPGs. Just let me play the game and whack stuff.
-
"Already ??"
-
"Fucking useless-ass werewolf!"
And chill people. If you don't like Greg stating his opinion of a game he didn't like, or the sheer length of some of his posts, then don't read what he writes.
To get offended cause someone called a video game crummy, sheesh.
Hell he even said why he didn't care for it (in a very detailed essay even).
I remember the epic posts we had after Metal Gear 4 was released. I liked the game, he didn't. We discussed it… in GREAT detail.
Isn't that what these threads are for?
-
Yeah, I'm really pissed off that Greg dared to have an opinion. Being the evil bastard I am, I simply cannot stand when others think. Why, you guys better hurry and say something before I get out of control! It's certainly not the case that I felt he was grossly overreacting. No, it's because he dared to have an opinion at all. That's totally it. Now, you'd better hurry and defend Greg from the mean-old internet meanie-face.
Man, I miss the days when people would read… Though I'll gladly be compared to Dracula, considering I kick ass with the guy in Judgment. :)
-
never said you were the proverbial "bad guy" here Shmeckie. Or are you just jealous cause no one is defending you?
Greg flips out about stuff.. especially games he doesn't like (you think this text was a wall? try reading his first opinion on MGS4…. that's a fucking building of text!).
It's fine to call him picky... but be ready for a huge written opinion to follow.
Welcome to a forum
-
I thought Greg forgived MGS4 after seeing the Beauties dancing.
-
oh that's right. But that's a story for another day…
-
never said you were the proverbial "bad guy" here Shmeckie. Or are you just jealous cause no one is defending you?
Yes. I really need defending against text by people I've never met.
Greg flips out about stuff.. especially games he doesn't like (you think this text was a wall? try reading his first opinion on MGS4…. that's a fucking building of text!).
It's fine to call him picky... but be ready for a huge written opinion to follow.
Welcome to a forum
So if it's fine to call him picky, why did my comments merrit a bunch of whoevers running to his aid like Greg is a sensitive glass flower? Believe it or not, if you flip out over something stupid and irrelevant, there are people who are going to say "hey, why are you flipping out over something stupid and irrelevant?!"
Welcome to a forum.
-
Did you enjoy Dawn of Sorrow?
I liked it. I liked it. Or at least I beat it. I think both - more of the same and something little different - would be fine with me. As long as the game itself is well crafted. But I have to say I'm little more interested in this one. For no particular reason. Although you did manage to make me a doubter.
By the way, isn't the thread title misspelled?
-
greg doesn't need defending. I just happen to like him on this board. I also thought you were being a "big meanie" imo, and felt like adding my 2 cents.
"succubus, god damn it"
-
Believe it or not, if you flip out over something stupid and irrelevant, there are people who are going to say "hey, why are you flipping out over something stupid and irrelevant?!"
Welcome to a forum.
sounds like greg ain't the only one "flipping out over something stupid and irrelevant" eh?
but i guess we're at a moot point now… so sorry I offered up my opinion.
oh wait! it's ok since this is a forum!
who'd a thunk it?
-
Ive played only:
Aria of Sorrow
Harmony of Dissonance
Symphony of the night
and
Castlevania 64Wonder which one of the alacards is in this game? the one I played had Juste as the main character..forgot who was sorrows main
-
Ive played only:
Aria of Sorrow
Harmony of Dissonance
Symphony of the night
and
Castlevania 64Wonder which one of the alacards is in this game? the one I played had Juste as the main character..forgot who was sorrows main
Sorrow was Soma.
-
Ouch! My pride. Sorry, I'll have to watch that voicing my opinion in an exaggerated manner on purpose thing. Wouldn't want to spill any whine on the horse you ride ;)
Guh, look. We're probably close to the same age, we are frustrated with the game's general design issues for very similar reasons, and we're both longtime fans of the Castlevania series.
So why do I think that OoE is a decent-but-disappointing game and you think it's a fucking-horrible-after-awhile game? And why do I post single explanatory paragraphs while you post point-counterpoint dissertations? Because you are A) pickier, with more specific and more easily-violated expectations; and B) much whinier and wordier.
There's nothing wrong with this, but I don't see what you're trying to argue. Our tastes and preferences are similar, so I reckon the reason for our differing reactions to this game are more for personality and expectation than for empirical reasons. I'm not insulting you, I'm just trying to determine why we're having this difference of opinion. If I were actually trying to flame you, I'd bypass this explanatory bullshit and just make personal attacks.
~Fin. Now I have to go do some schoolwork.
Kaizokufan - Alucard isn't in Order of Ecclesia. Soma Cruz is the main character of both games in the Sorrow duo. Castlevania's a good series, if you like what you've played so far, definitely check out Dawn of Sorrow, Circle of the Moon, and maybe a few older ones like Dracula's Curse or Bloodlines.
-
sounds like greg ain't the only one "flipping out over something stupid and irrelevant" eh?
but i guess we're at a moot point now… so sorry I offered up my opinion.
oh wait! it's ok since this is a forum!
who'd a thunk it?
And how, exactly, am I "flipping out"? Now, how long are you going to keep whining at me?
-
-
Lecarde could pole-vault, he was in Judgment, and had Iron Blue Intention as his theme.
Nah, totally justified.
-
There's nothing wrong with this, but I don't see what you're trying to argue.
There is no argue, only Zuul.
-
Question, is Judgement just as bad as I've heard?
-
Hell no. It's quite fun, actually.
-
Question, is Judgement just as bad as I've heard?
It's not THAT bad.
Gameplay - decent
Story - fun, but only a fanservice
Voice Acting - mostly horrendous (with the exception of Grant and a few others)
Characters - fun selection, but some look odd
Music - AWESOME!If you like the Castlevania storyline, it's like reading a decent fan fiction. Don't go into it expecting a great game. It's first a fan service, then a decent game.
@Shmeckie. If Lecarde was an adult in Judgement and not a pre-pubecent fighter, he should be nominated as the greatest character of the series. Unforunately…
At least he's in the game. Bloodline fans can be happy.
-
And how, exactly, am I "flipping out"? Now, how long are you going to keep whining at me?
lol, hey hey, all I said was to chill… hell I didn't even say it to you directly... now look where we are.
I dunno, how am I whining? Or maybe you're the one who's whining and I'm flipping out?
....
....
ah.. you know what? never mind...
Laters
(BTW i thought Order of Ecclesia was good. Just to throw it out there)
-
Sorrow was Soma.
Kaizokufan - Alucard isn't in Order of Ecclesia. Soma Cruz is the main character of both games in the Sorrow duo. Castlevania's a good series, if you like what you've played so far, definitely check out Dawn of Sorrow, Circle of the Moon, and maybe a few older ones like Dracula's Curse or Bloodlines.
TY both.
Ill have to try this game and the others.assuming they arent too bloody.(:getlost: -
-
I would hardly call Judgment's VO terrible. There were one or two bad ones, but most of them were average. They got the job done.
lol, hey hey, all I said was to chill… hell I didn't even say it to you directly... now look where we are.
I dunno, how am I whining? Or maybe you're the one who's whining and I'm flipping out?
....
....
ah.. you know what? never mind...
Laters
(BTW i thought Order of Ecclesia was good. Just to throw it out there)
Jesus Christ, drop it already. We've all moved on now. Quit whining and join the party.
-
Death sounds like a twenty year old speaking into a megaphone. (Reminds me of the $OOPAH NiN10doh parody of Tabuu.)
Eric's voice makes me want to kick things sometimes because this does not give his real character justice (I MADE A FUNNY!).
Maria is just annoying in general.
And Alucard's voice is about as interesting as a piece of toast…mmmmm
Otherwise, the voices are either:
Passable
Decent (Cornell, Shanoa, Sypha)
or Grant, who is the best voice of all. "You ain't seen one as quick as me before."