If your looking for a fairly satisfying action game, pick this up if you see it in your bargain bin!
After playing the first Castlevania adventure on the PS2 (Lament Of Innocence), It was expected that the follow up would have even more to offer. I looked forward to playing this one because LOI was a good game.
At first I noticed that the character/enemy graphics were great. The levels had the familiar Castlevania feel, and so did the music.
As far as I know, this is the first Castlevania game to NoT use the standard Castlevania weapons, ie: the dagger,holy water, cross,axe etc.... Not even the whip !
Instead, the hearts you gather are used up by what are called "Innocent Devils" or I.D.'s. These are creatures that tag along beside you throughout your game and can be levelled up in a variety of different ways. They can either fight with you, be used to heal you, provide support magic, and in some times, unlock special areas. Its very fun to experiment with the levelling up of the ID's and seeing what different skills that can learn to help you out, and what different forms they can take on.
The only down side of the ID's, is that they may be TOO good, they can really make a difference when there is a screen full of enemies around you, and there isnt too much to stop you from using them, since there 'energy' is basically restored by the enemies they kill.
There also doesnt seem to be many secret or hidden areas to come back to, or special items that may be hidden.....which is kind of a let down because that was always one of the fun parts of the last few Castlevania games. In Curse Of Darkness, the levels seem to be quite linear. Overall, if I had to pick one big major problem, it would have to be the camera ! Sometimes it gets stuck to where you cant turn it, or when you lock on to an enemy, it just goes nuts some times and you lose track of everything. The cam maybe even a tad slow for some players liking.
The battle system, I find, isnt as intricate as LOI. In LOI, you were responsible for using a well timed combination of buttons to make your own attacks and combos. In CoD, its hit the X button twice, then O, or hit X three times then O, or hit X four times, then O. It may sound basic, and it is, but it comes in quite handy for every different battle situation you might encounter. Plus every type of weapon has its on different combo...so its not too monotonous.
Personally, I thought Symphony Of The Night was the best Castlevania game ever, and it seems like since that game, Konami has been trying to keep certain elements of SOTN going in releases since then. EXP. Points play alot in this game, whether it be leveling up Hector, or your I.D.'s.
Okay Okay, Ill try to wrap it up in this paragraph. If you like Castlevania games, this one will grow on you within a couple hours, and definately worth buying from the bargain bin...but not with a new price tag. Not too much of a storyline, but thats OK, we all get the point of Castlevania by now anyways. If your looking for a solid action game, with a bit of old fashion button mashing and RPG elements...Check it out!