GameSpot Reviews - Castlevania: Lords of Shadow Video Review
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- čas přidán 4. 09. 2024
- Entertaining highs and frustrating lows punctuate a Castlevania game that--in an effort to redefine the series--loses its identity.
Read Giancarlo's in-depth review at GamSpot.com:
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The thing is, people get butthurt when a series like Call of Duty does nothing to change, yet when a series like Castlevania drastically changes its focus, the same people are crying about how its lost its identity. Series' have to develop and change - apparently reviewers don't understand that.
+Steve Wright
I never understood how games like Doom and Call of Duty can never really change and still continue to make clones of themselves
@@adamgrant5874 Doom 2016 and eternal are incredible
Playing through this game and its really great. PS3 version. Visuals are still stunning in 2023.
I too completed this Game on PS3. My Favourite Game Ever!
Seriously!?! This game is simply amazing, a great example of what happens when Japanese and European developers combine their talents!
I find it funny that so many people complain about this being a God of War knockoff, but then don't think to complain when God of War (2005) used so many elements from Devil May Cry (August 2001), and both of these were just pale imitations of Onimusha (January 2001).
That's not to say that Lords of Shadow doesn't have its flaws, but it's a fairly solid game overall, and the ideas that are similar to God of War are executed a lot better here.
Or that none of the experienced experts saying "GoW" copy realise that God of war copied The Legacy of Kain series....
Vubi theman God of War completely ripped off Rygar on ps2 even more so. It's like an exact clone.
game is worth it for the visuals alone
Still nothing better... even here in 2023. What a great game!
@@JamesNGames Best Game Ever. I love it like no other game.
i can´t believe how they can give it such a low score! this game has so much awesomeness and so much variation in it - from the monsters to the landscapes to the character design in general! it may have bugs, but i think you can overlook them with all the great content. the atmosphere is breathtaking at times with so many beautiful views to behold and such a great musical score. i think this game is top notch!
I'm almost finished with the game and so far I've loved it, the scenery is beautiful and the game looks great all around. Does it feel like a true Castlevania game? Eh, not so much. Yeah, it has elements of it, but just feels more like a vampire/werewolf, fairy tale/fantasy type game. Which is still great in it's own right. But it's definitely worth playing regaurdless of what you call it. I'd highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys this genre of games.
I feel like this game should get SO much more praise.
Whatever this game is awesome. Don't go saying it's a GoW ripoff, it's a type of game that's the same TYPE as GoW. That's like saying things like MK and Tekken is bullshit because it's ripoffs from the first arcade fighter type games ever made. It took aspects from other games because about every game idea that people would like has been taken, there is about nothing left.
I doubt a game exists that hasnt borrowed elements from another game///
+virtue696
You're right
I ♡ this game, so many emotions. Its like a painting in motion.
This is the first Castlevania I have ever played & I love it so much! The gorgeous environments,beautiful visuals,terrific animations,lovely soundtracks etc.Ahhh.This game has a charming,joyful & a heavenly feeling,a feeling which is highly lacking in games these days.The only flaw is that the camera is like GOW which I dislike a lot.The camera needed full freedom.To all of you who say this game sucks,you do not know what a 'beautiful'(not awesome) game is..
It's on GWG this month. Criminally underrated game. Get it. It's faults according to this review are "tutorial messages".
Playing the game 12 years later, I have to say that this review aged like fine wine. Asides from the visuals, which are actually causing frame rate drops into the teens at some points, at no point have felt that this is a really good game.
What platform did you play on? On PC it's 99.99 percent of the time locked at 60 (cutscenes are 30) FPS! I do agree the game is all visuals and no substance
"You could finish the game only purchasing 1 or 2 combo upgrades"
Seriously, that is one of the weakest critiques you could give to a game. Anyone, who just buttonmashes through a 15 hour (!) game, using only the same combo, deserves to be slapped.
Because with that, you choose to not have as much fun as you could have and probably only care about seeing the credits. Which is pretty much the lowest a gamer could ever get.
Other than that, the review is fairly decent. The atmosphere, lore and soundtrack of this game make up for the faults in its mechanics. I had a blast just listening to this game and taking up all of its sceneries.
You rarely play a game, which is told so epic and beautiful at the same time.
I bet the reviewer played it on easy mode.
Definitlely right. Exploring combinations is just one of the many factors that made me buy this game twice. That review did the game no justice. It is true that some games are going to resemble others. Biting your ememies to get life back and seeing the blood makes the character stand out on it's own. Makes you feel as though you are controlling dracula and not just a hero in a game.
he doesnt point that as a critique in the review.
also can't u just turn the hints off in the options menu
This game is in my classics collection, and will always be.
This game was one of my all time favorites.God i wish oart 2 was as good....what happened??
review sounds like tina from bob's burgers
haaaaaaaaaaaaahaaaaaaaaaaaaa good 1
Love how this review states that elements were ripped from God of War.....I bet they don't mention the games that GoW drew inspiration from in that review. This review sucks. LoS is by far a very underrated game. One of my personal favorites on the 360.
I totally agree. Most games today get compared to GOD:/ Some how that is standard now a days.
I think it's better than god of war :)
You know, the grappling hook is probably a call-back to Super Castlevania IV from 1991. I remember the first level showing you things to latch onto with the whip. Perhaps the Castlevania series started most, if not all, of these hack-and-slash mechanics.
Ah, can't you turn the hints off in the options?
@Rulictar No - you can not swing around weapons far away from you in DMC hitting opponents all around you at once, and you don't use any attacks with your blade that ends with something explosive down to the ground. It's pointless to argue with me about it, son - I own all the games of both franchises... with the exception of DMC2.
You said, "it is the best Lord of the Rings game out there...bc there's no way in hell LOS is a Castlevania game other than in name." I agreed with this statement bc LOTR and Castlevania: LOS both had a Belmont/Aragorn type character using a whip, holy water and daggers to kill vampires, werewolves, skeletons, killer bats, zombies, grim reapers, and demons in settings such as a haunted castle, swamps, burning village, or haunted forrest. Classic Castlevania games had none of those things.
I agreed with this review for about the first quarter of the game, but then something happened, all the borrowed elements came together seamlessly to offer one hell of an experience. It's a slow start, the gorgeous art, graphics, and music is what kept me going at first, but then I was completely sucked in to one of the best games this generation has offer. The foundation has been laid for what could be an amazing new series.
I really don't see how people are saying this is nothing like Castlevania games. It's a vania game for this generation. With quite possibly the biggest plot twist at the end ever. Which makes this entire story leading to that event that makes you smile and go "holy SHIT" at the end.
@andoc actually, what piss me off is that I look at this Castlevania and then Castlevania IV and LoI and I see many things about it that look alike..I don't really understand why people say that it doesn't look like a CV game..but anyway, this is a reboot, not a sequel
amazing game play it twice a year. once you get to the lycan lord the game takes off. I find myself stopping and looking in aww at the visuals from the vampire castle.
My favourite game ever. 💖
This game has definitely charmed me,can't wait to see what there is in the add ons.
How can the reviewer say that Castlevania has "copied" from other games, when in fact, these other games you speak of ORIGINALLY copied from Castlevania?
@millienl Actually Lords of Shadow is chock-full of visual and audio references to the classic NES games and particularly Super Castlevania IV, which Lords of Shadow was initially conceived as a remake of. I still don't understand the argument that this game feels nothing like Castlevania, if you ever played 1-4 you'll feel right at home with the gameplay mechanics (ie. limitations in changing direction while jumping, being knocked back whenever your hit, the importance of subweapons to success)
@RyunSharp GT gave it a 7.9, and Edge an 8. Besides, I pretty much agree with those reviews. Now, I do think this game is pretty enjoyable and I would recommend it, but there's certainly a lot of things that need to be improved with the design. The puzzles and platforming here are particularly painful.
THIS WAS THE FIRST CASTLEVANIA I PLAYED AND IT PISSSES ME OFF HOW UNDERRATED THIS GAME IS ..ITS TRULY A MASTERPIECE ..GREAT STORY..GREAT PUZZLES..GREAT BOSS FIGHTS..GREAT VOICE CAST JUST EVERYTHING..YEA IT DOES BITE OFF GOD OF WAR AND SHADOW OF COLOSSUS BUT IT'S MORE FUN TO ME THAN EITHER OF THIS GAMES..AND THE ENDING AFTER THE CREDITS IS ONE OF THE GREATEST IVE EVER SEEN..ANYBODY WHO READS THIS AND HAS A PS3 OR 360..THOUGH FRAME RATE IS BETTER ON PS3..U SHOULD CHECK THIS AND THE 2 DLCS REVERIE AND RESURRECTION(WHICH FILL IN THE GAP BETWEEN THE END AND THE VERY END AFTER THE CREDITS)..U WONT REGRET PLAYING THIS GAME I SURE AS HELL DIDNT
+Antonio Melendez Like you , this was my first CV . I actually like it so much that I wanted more , and went a head and bought the DS games . This a great as an entry point for gamers who want to get into CV , but not familiar with the series . It is heart breaking that Konami stopped making AAA games . Hopefully , someone would perches the rights to these games and make new ones .......
Most times dracula is portaryed to be just as a gothic vampire figure with no feelings. Not this one. Still waiting for a movie. Its great that you can spend alot of time upgrading and mastering moves.
This isn't even Castlevania, not really
Castlevania was originally a linear game in the 1980s.
Super Castlevania IV was linear compared to this Castlevania.
And it was excellent. In fact this Castlevania is based on it.
This is a Castlevania game. And it's well made.
I give Castlevania: LOS a 9/10.
@Cobac
He wasn't actually complaining about that, you do realize that... right?
all of this complaints are trivial.and the review is also trivial. it is sad that this type of games(acion adventures whit deep combat sistem ) are dying sites like gamespot and ign(opinionmakers)are killing them because these games are hardcore and these reviews matter because they effect sales.i just pick up this game and its amazing.up there whit GOW 3 beter then GOW:Asension for sure.why did i just now pick these game,because of this and other reviews,i thought it was a good but mediocare.sorry about my bad english
when the fuck was mario 64 ever said not to be mario, or zelda ocarina of time. the games still felt like mario and zelda. mario still had the same feel, it was colorful, easy, yet fun gameplay. and zelda had the same story line, same feel. attacking with your sword, getting items to get through dungeons. this game doesn't borrow from any past cv games. it's not nonlinear. it doesn't have familiar levels. It's visuals are either bright or dark and depressing. cv1-4 were creepy, not depressing.
@Imtoold It said there were spoilers at the begining. It's your own fault.
How does the magic feel forced when it works well with combat?
Agreed. A lot of people say, that the game is a mish-mash of other games all thrown together under the castlevania title, but at the end of the day, its still an enjoyable game.
It's funny how people complain about how this game is a God of War ripoff, yet blatantly praise Symphony of the Night for borrowing the Metroid formula.
It's funny how people say it's a rip-off of GOW when GOW was inspired by DMC and what inspired DMC? Castlevania Lament of Innocence.
@Rulictar No - but God of War had it's own sense of style. I know Devil May Cry was most likely the first game to introduce the style - but God of War uses it in a different way, with attacks giving you chances of fighting enemies from almost all around you with weapons available to swing out, ending with explosive hits down on the ground.
@Rulictar There's little point in even bothering to explain that to them. Gamespot don't know the first thing about reviewing.
is it just me or is the music more awesome than the game?
@andoc it actually does feel like castlevania..you just didn't play it. you use the famous whip, you control a belmont, there are still warewolved and campires, it tells Dracula's origin story and you go to the famous castle at the end.....it's not castlevania hein?
How is 7.5 a low score? 7.5 is actually a relatively good score, and I feel, personally, Lords of Shadow did not do enough to deserve more or less.
Why do people negatively compare the platforming in games like Lords of Shadow and Enslaved to Uncharted? Uncharted's platforming system was taken wholesale from Tomb Raider Legend.
A: Uncharted series is more popular among current gamers and is therefore perceived as 'better' than it's contemporaries. Reviewers praising popular series over lesser-known quality titles is getting old. Fair enough that these series are popular for good reason (mostly), but they're not beat-all-end-all examples
One would think it would borrow its ideas from Metroid Prime... an obvious source, and no one ever criticizes those series of borrowing from each other.
unfortunatly satan was less of a challenge than expected. although it was amazing that people finally get to fight the true prince of darkness. Dante inferno satan battle was way better
I can't believe the Official Playstation Magazine (UK) said that this was better than God of War 3. They must have been out of their minds.
5:39 lol it looked like he knew that big ass spider was behind him, like a pet or something
Its a sad statement on the brevity of contemporary gaming that "15 to 20 hours" is considered a "long" game.
@hyperballad22 the difference between now and the old days is that games have much higher production values. even if they want a 60+ hour game, they're limited by budget
This game was great. So what if they got some ideas from newer games, most of those games use ideas Castlevania games developed 20+ years ago. If Bram Stoker was resorrected and started writing horror novels critics would probably be complaining that his new books were to much like Stephen King and Anne Rice, even though he'd just be changing with the times.
Guys, he didnt say that the game is bad or something. 7.5 is a good score. The main reason this game doesnt have any high ratings that it doesnt have its own face. It takes ideas from other games. Pretty similar to darksiders which is a good game, but not great
The reviewer brings up some good points about problems with the camera and stuff, but overall this is just a fantastic game. I don't see any problem with it being slightly derivative of other games. Everything is at at least a little derivative of something else.
A game company shouldn't have to re-invent the wheel every time they put out a new title.
If anyone out there is watching this review questioning whether or not they should try it, trust me: Do it. It's damn good.
haha...the big spider @5:40 said "suprise buttsex" lool
I like how people think Castlevania is a rip off of God of War. When I first played God of War I immeditately realized that it had copied the original Devil May Cry.
I don't know whether or not to buy this game, I think I'll pass. One of the greatest things about Castlevania is exploration. This isn't the NES era, from the looks of it this game is wasted potential.
I will say this again.
Castlevania:Lament of Innocence was released in 2003 for the PS2
God of War was released in 2005. Look them up and also the gameplay.
Also I find it funny how the 360 version has framerate issues and the PS3 version doesn't and they don't make a big deal. But when Bayonetta was released, people (even reviewers) bitched about the PS3 framerate. Wha gives people?
First came Lament of Innocence (It's a Castlevania PS2 title for those born yesterday), then came.....you guessed it, GOD of War sporting the same Castlevania style gameplay as Lament, then again GOW II & III followed by Lords of Shadow. The point is while Lords of Shadows might've barrowed certain aspects from GoW III, GoW as a whole barrowed Castlevanias' COMPLETE FOUNDATION.
People, the whole idea of a review is to have the negatives parts of the game pointed out, if he's not harsh u wont be able to decide. So Stop COMPLAINING!
@sully9989 Exactly. That's why I said "silly acronyms" because they could easily be misinterpreted. But while we're on God of War, it was a good hack and slash, but it wasn't THE hack and slash beginning. So when comparing this game to God of War, you should be wary.
It's amazing how much these gamers of all ages fight each other here on youtube
Reviewers need to be fair when it comes to God of War. That game too suffered from similar fixed-camera issues, and yet it never gets called out for it.
there is nothing wrong with Taking the ideas of other games these days.
Because Face it, Everything has been done. might as well take the best of what you know, and add one badass story line.
@Rulictar He didn't put it down. And of course it takes stuff from God of War. The battles look identical.
did anyone notice resemblance to the classic titles? there is some, it's about the ambient of the enviornment
Hold up, GOW stole from devil may cry, it was the first game to master hack n slash. I don't get why people overlook that so diligently.
So that automatically means that if you weren't born when the first castlevania was developed you can't complain about the new game? That logic is completely flawed, you don't have to be born in that time to have played the older games. I wasn't born when some games came out, but I got to play them anyways, you see there is this mystical device that lets you play older videogames. I know, I was pretty shaken when I first heard. I'm still in shock.
From a classic Castlevania fan: This game is fucking AWESOME!
no, I didn't. Ocarina of time was considered one of the best n64 games then and is considered a classic now and my personal favorite game of all time. Mario 64 was the big launch title for a reason. it was good. everyone wanted a n64 when it came out. I remember people saying it perfected 3d gaming. I know you want to say they were hated, but mario 64 and zelda were great then and are classics now. if you don't like nintendo, just say it, nobody cares, but don't say bullshit things.
@simiolonga GoW started the button sequence finish moves they showed. The way he uses his whip is also very similar to the hook weapons. It's fairly obvious it was inspired by GoW more than any other hack n' slash game.
5:38 epic spider sneak
the one's who're gonna get this are gonna hate this game, the one's that are not gonna get it will love it "what a horrible night to play this game"
I like the idea of hybrid games, i wouldn't want to play a game solely based on god of war the way Dante's inferno is. I was actually glad I had elements from God of War, Shadow of the Colossus, and Uncharted all in a single game without it having to be broken. In reality if it wasn't for the "ripping off other games" the reviewer would just complain about it being "repetitive" which is definitely something i never felt from this title
lol just watched this, most people don't realize how hard it is for game developers to create new concepts without driving away us gamers. nowadays its impossible to find games that dont contain some elements from other games like god of war or shadow of colossus. in my opinion they did an amazing job incorporating those to make an awesome castlevania game, im also looking forward to the sequel!
I have to admit, that the game itself became ten times better the moment you enter Carmilla's castle. That's where the castlevania feeling started for me.
But I have to disagree with this review in one point. The soundtrack sucks hell. It's this classic boring, always the same, uninspred fantasy soundtrack that you find in any fantasy game nowadays. The CV series has so many so great themes and soundtracks. They should have rearranged these...
@lionheartodd God of War borrowed from Clash of the Titans and elements of Greek Mythology that have been told over and over again through the years... You can make that argument for pretty much anything in the modern era..
Good Lord. Gamespot loves to contradict themselves. Because they bash on this game for ''ripping off God of War'' yet don't do the same for games like Call of Duty when their game play is the same as previous FPS games.
Thats not possible since first Devil May Cry game is made in 2001 and Castlevania Lament of Innocence in 2003....
@InevitableTowers If i would have written a better comment I would not have used so much bad grammar and caps-locked so many words :) . I'm pretty sure I just meant that this game didn't copy others despite some small gameplay similarities .
This was one of those games that was kinda split between the "pro reviewers" and the real life gamers. read or listen to some of those reviews and you'll find this game got damn near perfect praise.
i believe the AVGN went over how the LAST 3d castlevania turned out
If you compare this game to symphony of the night with a little imagination you will appreciate what the developers were trying to do here. the incorporated game play from other titles are really just to put gamers into a comfort zone with the controls and feel of the game, it can be looked at as an industry standard. but the many upgrades and helpful and informative hints is what made symphony of the night a great game, that and the incredibly beautiful graphics.
Bought a new copy at Fry's for $19.99 , Sale ends at Monday i think.
@Cobac
- "its castlevania it used its OWN SOURCE i dont see here greek egyptian GODS to be gof of war , i dont see a sotry AROUND COLOSSY."
He was referring to gameplay mechanics / solutions, not the story.
A "greek egyptian god"...
You haven't actually played God of War, have you?
As far as I can recall, there is no Egyptian mythology in the series. Why would there be? It is based on the Greek mythology. Anubis would make no more sense in this context, than Fenrir or Mujaji.
@xXxGoyexXx Sorry to disagree?? Disagree to what? My comment? I wrote my comment in FULL support of the game! Wait,I think I understand what you are trying to say.I do not like the word 'awesome' especially for this game.For me this is one of the most 'beautiful' games I played.
hmm... so basically gaming is split into the following genres... God of War Clone, Grand Theft Auto Clone, Grand Turismo Clone, Half Life 2 Clone, Super Mario Clone, Arkham Asylum Clone, Resident Evil Clone, Starcraft Clone, World of Warcraft Clone, Call of Duty Clone, Halo Clone... clones, clones and more clones...
my uncle got me this game and its like god of war. the way the camera moves is like god of war, the fighting style when theres like a big force line and the boss battles are awesome like GOW
This reviewer used several negitive rebutals for the first three quarters of the review. Are you kidding me? What the hell happened? I thought that this title was going to be EPIC.
Not at all.. Its linked to LOS 2 which is gonna come out in 2013. And LOS 2 is linked to the whole castlevania universe! Whatever the case though the game itself is great
I like how he complained about some parts being hard especially the platforming. Um, its a CASTLEVANIA game! It's known for its difficulty and pitfalls. I guess this reviewer isn't old enough to remember that.
@hotvampire1992 If you're talking about Gabriel's weapon, keep in mind Castlevania had the whip first.
how can you say that this is a copy of 3 different games together? games keep evolving and just cause it feels like GOW and Shadow of the colossus in some areas, mean that they develop the game to be as good as GOW, Devil may cry, they put it at the highest lvl, none of those games are as long as this one
I cant help but feel there was too much put into visuals and not enough into gameplay and replay value. I mean, had this game been put on the Wii, more would be focused on gameplay and replay rather than on visuals. even a retelling of the original games in 3D would have been a nice touch, to even retouch the classics with 3D models would have been impressive.
the game has visuals, but it seems not much else. maybe they should remake the older N64 castlevanias on Wii with better graphics.
This game is a thing of beauty and is alot of fun. He does not know what he's talking about. Play the game yourselves folks.
Did, and I agree with him on many points. It's not a good mark on Kojima's track record.
lol review is about hating about stealing, about making a game many people use to love, sorry professional, i like the game and i dont care where it stole the ideas from, i enjoy even though it got minor problems. we aren't kids flaming about everything, are we?
this game was great, why everyone keeps saying it copies things from other games? btw, the titans were a tribute to SotC... to a gameplay copy
Lords of Shadow borrows a lot of elements from previous games, but it implements them well.