Castlevania General

Yeah, I decided to get Symphony Of The Night

Aria of Sorrow was the first one I ever played. Such good memories, especially when you visit the Underground Cemetery. First the music changes, then the music...STOPS. Then the bodies started to arise by themselves and gather at a point to form Legion, the demon made of hundreds of bodies. The background music will only return IF you defeat Legion. Ahh, so much fun and Nightmare Fuel.

Argh! Adventure Rebirth is out today, and my Wii is nowhere near its designated compatible Wifi!

I guess I'll just have to wait a week until vacation is over and I can download it normally...

I just bought it. It's an awesome game; you should definitely download it if given the chance.

edited 28th Dec '09 9:57:31 AM by itsmeyouidiot

Well, just downloaded it this afternoon. Pretty fun game if you ask me.

Well, it's not as difficult as the original Castlevania, but that's to be expected given that this game doesn't have the stiff jumping physics of the original.

I really do like the inclusion of alternate paths in this game, adds a bit of replay value if I do say.

Only made it to Level 3 at the moment, will probably go farther when I have time.

ninjaclown; Yeah, that was pretty cool. Too bad he was so easy.

Anywho, just started Symphony. There's an abundance of special effects, which is nice. The music is orchastrated, but still has it's hits and misses. The bosses and enemies are creative, but pose little to no challenge. Seriously, the only bosses that gave me any difficulty so far were the Doppleganger and Richter, and I beat them easily on the second try. Please tell me it gets better.

It doesn't get much harder, if that's what you're asking.

What else would I be asking?

Also, Aww... :(

I said, the bosses are too easy.

In fact, the final guards will pose to you far more challenge than Dracula ever will.

The game is super-awesome for its soundtrack (which could be better used at times, but the music is still awesome) and atmosphere. And lots of little details.

Also, the voice acting. YMMV, but it's become classic narm for many people, and I actually enjoyed it personally.

edited 28th Dec '09 6:59:35 PM by GlennMagusHarvey

Castlevania The Adventure ReBirth

BEST TEN BUCKS I EVER SPENT!!

edited 28th Dec '09 8:15:40 PM by Schitzo

It's that good? Elaborate.

Well, as far as i can see, it's a very well refined Classicvania. You have branching paths (from what i can see so far), and although your controls are basic, you no longer have awkward jumps (although the game gives you the unlockable option to have uncontrollable jumps).

Also, the music uses Sunset Riders/ Turtles In Time arcade synth.

edited 29th Dec '09 10:24:45 AM by Schitzo

Sooo, beat Symphony of the Night. The difficulty jumps once you enter the inverted castle, since all the enemies now do a ton of damage, and I actually died to a boss that wasn't Galamoth (Beelzebub). But my god, Dracula is incredibly cheap, it's almost impossible to dodge his attacks.

Anyway, pretty good game, though I disagree with the comment about the soundtrack being super-awesome. Sure, some of the songs are excellent, but a bunch of them are so-so.

edited 1st Jan '10 12:14:00 AM by A.Rex

Some tracks could definitely have been better used. For example, the Final Toccata should have been reserved for a stretch of area without save points or connections to other areas, so as to make the slow musical build-up more effective and useful.

Also, need more tracks in the inverted castle. And also, need strings that aren't "delayed"—listen carefully to The Tragic Prince or Wood-Carving Partita and try to pick out their rhythm and the rhythm/volume of the strings, if you don't know what I mean.

The soundtrack is highly effective in soundtrack form, though.

I am curious, which tracks did you like or dislike?

My favorite tracks are definitely The Tragic Prince (which for some odd reason is listed as "Young Nobleman Of Sadness" on my Walkman), Crystal Teardrops and Wandering Ghosts.

I hated Lost Painting. Shoot me, i dare you.

When I first heard "Finale Toccata", I thought my UMD or PSP was broken because it was so repetitive. Adding to me thinking it was broken was the same song being used in multiple areas.

Yeah... if they really really had to use one song for so many areas, they could have used one with a little more variety. X-X

NOOOO SCHITZO I SHALL CONVERT YOU USING MY OWN POWER

Well, I do like Lost Painting in the "Demented Christmas Music" sense, but not something i want to hear while slashing the daylights out of The Legions of Hell.

I like Lost Painting as a "final goodbye" song.

In fact, if I ever get my way with this gigantic four-castle 3D castletroid Castlevania game that I have in my head, it's going to appear late in the game, with melancholy lights, few enemies, and the feeling that you're close to bidding farewell to the lush and detailed atmospherics and just can't seem to say goodbye.

(Then, after that, you get the Final Toccata. In an area that almost locks you in without remorse, basically forcing you to listen to the entire track—as well as dealing with an increasing number of obstacles as the music's texture thickens.)

edited 5th Jan '10 12:48:52 PM by GlennMagusHarvey

Good news, Glenn. You won me over. Lost Painting'll play on my walkman nonstop.

Am I the only person on the planet who likes Circle of the Moon best?

Maybe, but I sure do like its music quite a lot!

I also praise its very simple but effective plots. I like simple, effective plots that give the game just enough plot structure to work around, without getting in the way of a fun game. For Castlevania games, and others that are not plot-focused.

edited 5th Jan '10 4:32:33 PM by GlennMagusHarvey

I thought Circle of the Moon had a Saturday Morning Cartoon inspired plot, but that doesn't mean it's a bad game. Of course Hugh was gonna be the "I wish i were stronger than you" rival of the game!

Is it just me, or are the RPG physics in that game kinda weird? Everything seems to work in multiples of ten. And i don't see any Elemental Rock-Paper-Scissors going on in that game (Enemies are immune to their own element, but that's it)

What is it with me not just not minding, but actually enjoying a lot of things people identify as narm?

• I very much enjoyed the opening speeches of Dracula and Richter in Symphony of the Night. I thought they fit the dramatic atmosphere very well.
• I really enjoyed the plot of Final Fantasy V. I thought that Exdeath was a very effective villain because he was quite simple—everything he did made me feel a very gratifying hatred of him, and I appreciated that. It was just heroes catching up to the power level of an overwhelming villain, and then challenging him. I enjoyed the plot tension ratcheting up in an almost completely linear fashion.
• I enjoyed the plot of Circle. I didn't find it narmful. I saw everything coming, but still enjoyed that sort of linear (or, well, with one twist that everyone saw coming) plot. I appreciated the increasing tension between Nathan and Hugh, as well as how it culminated into a difficult battle at the top of the castle.