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#241 Espilan

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Posted 06 July 2018 - 11:55 AM

Well hey, that makes it just in time for Halloween! Seems a bit more appropriate than the middle of Summer, don't you think?

And there's also the fact that a third season is already confirmed (via Trevor's VA) to be in the works.

#242 The Satellite

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Posted 06 July 2018 - 12:35 PM

A third season? Wonder what it could possibly be about, because I don't see how eight episodes isn't enough to conclude the current plot arc... unless it's an adaptation of Curse of Darkness, which I believe was a sequel to Castlevania 3.

 

That, or they're moving on to another Belmont. I'd love that, but it wasn't my immediate thought if only because you said it was Trevor's VA who confirmed that.

 

Either way, I won't complain about more of this show.



#243 Espilan

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Posted 07 July 2018 - 01:04 PM

Been seeing quite a bit of stuff on Twitter about it, some of which is more proof that the guys doing this series are actually familiar with the games.
You know, in case Trevor's meeting Sypha and Alucard accurately mirroring the way they're met in Castlevania III wasn't enough.

https://pbs.twimg.co...RNnU8AAuXEc.jpg
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#244 The Satellite

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Posted 08 July 2018 - 12:15 AM

Oh yeah, that was incredibly clear they knew their stuff, which is why I'm glad the series is in their hands. ... Symphony of the Night adaptation when? >.> <.<



#245 Koh

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Posted 08 July 2018 - 07:48 AM

Surprised no one mentioned this.

 

 

...I mean it is one of those generic mobile games, but it does seem to follow the original canon...



#246 The Satellite

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Posted 08 July 2018 - 01:06 PM

Surprised no one mentioned this.

Hi again.
 
https://www.eurogame...astlevania-game
 
This was announced in April and yet I didn't hear about it until last night. I was trying to figure out why not until I read it was a mobile game. Based on a cooperative idea. With microtransactions. Also I can't help but think the plot sounds really stupid. It features the "Grimoire" which was apparently in Harmony of Despair, has characters from past Castlevania games, and apparently takes place after the Sorrow series, as "Genya Arikado" is the main character. But the plot involves the potential resurrection of Dracula? Even though Soma was Dracula's reincarnation and this is thus impossible?!
 
Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon is the only new Castlevania game.


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#247 The Satellite

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Posted 10 July 2018 - 11:49 PM

Man, now that I take the time to actually sit down and watch the Grimoire of Souls gameplay... it's... even worse than I expected. There is no substance here. It doesn't resemble Castlevania gameplay in the slightest. I actually like the art assets (though why the hell did they up the fanservice levels on Shanoa), but this is easily the worst thing the franchise has produced. Pachinko aside.

 

I've often reflected on the idea that, had we gotten the "Battle of 1999" game, the series being dormant wouldn't be the worst thing ever as it would have all been nicely tied up. I sometimes hear the notion that such a game would have never lived up to our expectations, but I still would've loved a game where you play as Julius Belmont, who's easily my favorite Belmont. Even if we already had "sequels" to this event in Aria/Dawn of Sorrow, we still would've seen firsthand how that climactic total defeat of Dracula went down, the Sorrow games are essentially tying up loose ends and being our "happily ever after," and the core Castlevania series would have been able to rest in peace even with Konami's downward spiral and Igarashi's subsequent departure.

 

In a sense, it still is. It's pretty clear Grimoire of Souls is a spinoff, and the pachinko shit... eyeroll-inducing, but whatever. I'm just bitter about the way Konami's handled literally everything over the last several years, and that we didn't get a chance to have a game starring Julius Belmont. There's the extra modes in the Sorrow games, and those are fun in their own right, but they're not the same. Those games were designed for Soma, and the Julius mode is just a fun addition and little else.

 

Besides, the Castlevania timeline is pretty packed. At this point, adding anymore Dracula-destroying adventures would feel forced (and a handful are forced enough already), and I dunno where you go from here after the Sorrow games. However, I wouldn't mind the idea of a reimagining of the original Castlevania as a SotN-style Metroidvania... the entire game takes place inside the castle, after all.

 

"Vampire Killer on MSX"

 

I said SotN-style.



#248 Koh

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Posted 11 July 2018 - 04:43 AM

The first game takes place in the castle?  I thought he ended up traveling to the castle through the stages, eventually getting there by the last leg of it.  Like the forest and graveyard and such.   Or maybe all that was still within the Castle?

Well, on one hand, I'm not terribly surprised by GRimoire's gameplay.  It is a mobile game after all, so naturally they're going to cater to the gameplay styles that are most common within that market.  To me, it sorta feels like a super watered down, mobile edition of Harmony of Despair.  The motions are there, but the level of depth isn't.


Edited by Koh, 11 July 2018 - 04:48 AM.


#249 The Satellite

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Posted 11 July 2018 - 11:44 AM

The first game takes place in the castle?  I thought he ended up traveling to the castle through the stages, eventually getting there by the last leg of it.  Like the forest and graveyard and such.   Or maybe all that was still within the Castle?


Nope. The intro has Simon walk up to the gate, and then you control him walking into the front door. What you described sounds like Castlevania 3 or Super Castlevania IV.


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#250 The Satellite

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Posted 22 November 2018 - 11:57 PM

I'm reviving this thread like it's Dracula. Want to pour out some of the experiences I've had with the series last month courtesy of Castlemania.

 

Castlevania 2 - Finally played this game in its original form, not that the Re-translation + Map hack I used really changed much other than a few conveniences. I think the overworld gameplay is actually the best part of the game. There's the cryptic elements, such as kneeling with crystals and the ferryman taking you to a new location while holding Dracula's heart, but other than that, it's really not that bad to navigate. It's just the incomplete feeling the game has on the whole, especially in the mansions. This game could have been so much more had it been able to live up to its potential.

 

Castlevania 3 - Got around to trying the NES version, and I definitely struggled more than I did on the Famicom version. Far as I can tell, it's mainly due to the increased damage later in the game for every enemy, as well as the fact that I'm almost certain it made Sypha's electricity spell show up far less often. I'm gonna have to replay the Famicom version to see if it's more enjoyable on that version, because the NES version gave me some doubts about how much I actually love this game (though I still overall enjoyed it).

 

Bloodlines - Finally beat this one the legit way, using passwords when I game over instead of reloading a save state at the beginning of the level. Funnily enough, with how easy passwords were to enter as well as how forgiving continues were, I feel like the game was actually balanced around this feature. Certainly one of the easier games in the series, but it's still one of my favorites. Incredible soundtrack, great graphics, gameplay is fun, ceiling-swinging is great even if situational, and unique in its method of being a cross-continent adventure. Damn shame it's never been released again outside of its physical release on the Genesis/Mega Drive.

 

The Adventure - Bad game, see here.

 

The Adventure ReBirth - Wow, this game is a gem and I'm glad I nabbed it before the Wii Shop permanently shut down. It was nice to have a "new" Classicvania to play through, especially one this fun. I found it incredibly amusing that you had free jump control but you unlock classic jumping control after beating it once, when it feels like it should've been the other way around. If I play this game again, I'll use the classic jumping. Only thing I wish was different was that they'd've used The Adventure's soundtrack, remixed, because that soundtrack was actually really good.

 

Belmont's Revenge - An amazing improvement. Was only spoiled by the last full stage being aggravating along with a really tough boss, whose difficulty came out of nowhere compared to the ludicrously-easy bosses from earlier. I'll have to play it again one day, with more patience and experience, to fully enjoy it.

 

Legends - Nothing special, but decent enough. Sonia's really cool, but the relationship angle with Alucard is a bit silly given the context of the later games.

 

Rondo of Blood - Still not really feeling this game. It's completely fine, and has its moments, it's just on the whole not for me.

 

And a couple of thoughts on the GBA Metroidvanias now that I've played them a second time:

 

Circle of the Moon - I like this less the second time. Before, I thought it was "fine," but I'm not sure why. The castle's design, with its constant long passageways mixed with up-and-down platforming rooms, screams padding. The card system is fun but should've been made easier to collect cards without grinding, perhaps as exploration rewards. Dracula's skyrocketed difficulty was something I disliked back then and still do now. This game... is not very good.

 

Harmony of Dissonance - I used to like Circle more than this. Again, I'm not sure why. It's still a bit of a slog, and the soundtrack isn't very good, but the gameplay is alright for the most part. Still has similar castle design problems as Circle when it comes to padding, and neither castle flows that well, but this game's castle is a bit better. Still not a big fan of the game, but it's a step up from Circle.

 

Aria of Sorrow - Still as good as I remember. Much better castle flow, the soul system is unique and great to play with, soundtrack is pretty good, exploration is rewarding as hell, it's one of the best Metroidvanias in existence. I still prefer Symphony of the Night, but Aria of Sorrow is a solid second and I completely get why anyone would call this their favorite in the series.

 

Oh yeah, and season two of Netflixvania was awesome.


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#251 Old-Skool

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Posted 10 December 2018 - 09:14 PM

I feel this is relevant: I've begun working on a new cosplay: 

Simon Belmont. 

Specifically this is based primarily on the figurine by NECA moreso than his appearance in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. However, it is unmistakable enough and should be finished in time for him to remain a popular character in the fandom. Mostly though: It was just something I pondered every halloween. Well, now the ball is rolling. here we go



#252 Nathaniel

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Posted 11 December 2018 - 10:02 PM

You mean the whip is cracking.  Am I right?


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#253 Old-Skool

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Posted 16 December 2018 - 12:00 PM

y-yeah that. 

20181211_202746.jpg?width=273&height=365


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#254 ShadowTiger

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Posted 19 December 2018 - 03:54 PM

I am so very happy that you're wearing underwear under that.  :P

 

Looking great, O.S.!



#255 The Satellite

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Posted 31 October 2019 - 01:44 AM

I've replayed through all the GBA and DS games this past month. Third time for the GBA games, second for the DS. And I have thoughts.

 

Circle of the Moon - Still bloody awful. How I ever used to like this game is beyond me, but that was probably because it was the second Metroidvania in the series I'd played after SotN and wasn't yet made aware of how much better the series could be. Seriously, difficult for the wrong reasons, incredibly repetitive and bland level design, outright unlikable characters... I'd say this game would be better off forgotten were it not for the fantastic main theme

 

Harmony of Dissonance - Grew to like it a little more this time around. Isn't exactly inspired and is still kind of like a "Diet Symphony," but there aren't any glaring problems with it, and it was a comfortable ride the whole way, never once having to grind. Could be better, could be a hell of a lot worse. Only real detriment is that its soundtrack is not the greatest. It's okay, but forgettable. But the shop theme is the biggest crime against humanity.

 

Aria of Sorrow - Still perfection. Story's goofy as hell, but the gameplay and the soul system are incredible. Coming fresh off the previous two games, it was also noteworthy just how well the castle design flowed. Tons of exploration, secrets, great soundtrack, yet again a comfortable ride from start to finish, and possibly the most awesome moment in the series: Squaring off against a Belmont. In his right mind. Accompanied by this energetic remix. I don't know why I'm appreciating it most the third time around, but it's that awesome.

 

Dawn of Sorrow - For the most part, the sequel to Aria is a solid game. It looks nice, sounds nice, brings the soul system back... but admittedly there aren't as many interesting souls as the previous game. It's also about twice as long, not necessarily a bad thing, but it lacks the perfect flow Aria had. The weapon crafting system is alright, but it sucks you have to sacrifice some boss souls to get the best weapons. Also, the endgame suddenly takes several steps in difficulty, and save points are scarce. The final boss itself is garbage as well. Still good overall game, but some missteps were had. I'm not a fan of the shift to a generic anime art style either, especially not as a direct sequel to a game featuring Ayami Kojima's distinctive style. At least it has this headbangin' boss track.

 

Portrait of Ruin - According to my post from 2015, I found this game pretty good at first. After a while, it sort of faded from my mind and I began believing I found it just okay. After replaying it, I'm much more fond of it. The soundtrack is a bit weaker, but it's neat that the game tries something new with the partner system as well as the portrait levels. For the most part I managed to make it through the game comfortably, but I was apparently underleveled for the final boss, which took... a while to beat as a result, but I chose not to grind. Was actually pretty satisfying when I finished. I think I would actually be willing to call it better than Dawn of Sorrow now. And since I have no standout tracks for this game, have a remix of Bloodlines' best track.

 

Order of Ecclesia - I no longer like this game that much. I called it "pretty damn good" before. Upon reflection between then and now, I'd decided it was actually kind of awkward in how it attempted to be a linear stage-based game mixed with a Metroidvania. My most-recent playthrough reinforced that belief and then some. A lot of it was that the level design was repetitive not only within itself, but in the fact that later stages would just reuse setpieces but with a slightly different arrangement and palette. The actual best part of the game was when you got to Dracula's castle, where it played out like a traditional Metroidvania and was a much better experience. I almost wish it was two games: A Classicvania for the first half, then a full Metroidvania for the second. Also, the game remains one of the most difficult, almost obscenely so at certain points. There was a lot of grinding to be done for me to feel comfortable. But... that Dracula fight is incredible. Honestly, it's my favorite final boss in the series. Tough in all the right ways. It's a mixed bag, a lot of good, a lot of not-so-good, but personally it's my least-favorite DS Castlevania. But at least Shanoa's theme is absolutely fantastic

 

Oh, and on a whim, I played through the Saturn version of Symphony of the Night. There's some neat new things... such as the bat's "wing smash" charge lasting forever until you hit a wall instead of having to chain it, and a new "rainbow cloak" that changes colors as you walk and is visually appealing. But it's offset by so many other problems. No transparency at all, resorting to dithering or opaqueness. Longer loading times. More loading zones where there weren't any before (and these don't have loading hallways, it's just a jarring transition). Two new areas that add nothing and are incredibly pointless. A fucking random dash power-up they put at the top of the castle after the Richter fight; Alucard literally just walks into it during his cutscene. There's also a loss of animations, particularly in enemy deaths or when transforming. I'd say it would be acceptable if it were the only version of the game to ever exist... but the PS1 version is so much smoother that it's not worth your time beyond curiosity.


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