When Mercury Steam, under Kojima’s watchful eye, rebooted the Castlevania continuity in 2010 and brought the series into the third dimension successfully where so many previous attempts had failed, many lauded them for finally making a good, 3D console Castlevania game. However, a more common sentiment was outrage: whereas Lords of Shadow was a competent 3D game, and a perfectly serviceable action game, most people felt that in their haste to make a God of War clone, Mercury Steam had completely lost what makes Castlevania Castlevania.

The fact that Mirror of Fate falls in this continuity automatically creates problems for the title from the get go, bringing this entire baggage upon it before the game has even been booted up. The problem is exacerbated when one pauses to consider that traditional Castlevania has had an incredibly rich heritage and history on Nintendo handhelds, with the trilogy of GBA games, and especially the trilogy of DS games winning accolades from fans and critics alike everywhere. The fact, then, that Mirror of Fate is such a visible departure from the games that immediately precede it only compounds these issues.

And yes, I will say this at the outset: if you go into Mirror of Fate expecting traditional Castlevania, anything like the GBA and DS games have been, then you will come away sorely disappointed. Whereas Mirror of Fate succeeds in retaining core elements of the series much better than the original Lords of Shadow did, it is still by and large its own thing. Go into the game, however, expecting what Lords of Shadow set you up to expect- an excellently made action game, with some incredible production values- and you won’t be as let down.

The story of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow: Mirror of Fate is set 25 years after the original game, at least to begin with.It jumps around in time a lot, and actually moves backwards, detailing cause after effect. Coupled with the fact that it also completely switches perspectives between three primary characters- Simon, Trevor, and the ever elusive Alucard- it makes for some refreshingly unique storytelling, that keeps you on your toes as much by the novel and inventive ways it is told as it does via what happens. As for that, without spoiling anything, I’ll just say, the narrative speeds towards a thrilling and rather unconventional conclusion, although a whole lot of players might be able to guess what the big twist is beforehand because of how often Mirror of Fate shows its hand.

It all doesn’t matter, though. it’s a great story, and it keeps you guessing more often than it doesn’t. It’s certainly a more inventive Castlevania story, actually choosing to focus on its characters somewhat rather than just recounting their struggle against Dracula. Make no mistake the epic nature of the story doesn’t feel downgraded or anything. Rather, it feels fleshed out because of the character development that Mercury Steam’s new approach to storytelling affords them.

Almost as refreshing as the story and its structure itself is how the story is told. The game adopts a still, 3D graphic novel cinematic cutscene style (resembling the movie 300, or the original God of War game), and these are perhaps the best looking portions of the game, looking highly stylized, and rather expressive and emotive as well.

These are also perhaps the only sections of the game that benefit from the 3D effect (but more on that later), and they are backed with some consistently good music and voice acting. The only thing that stands out as being jarring is that the actual voice clips do not match lip movements at all: the lip movements are generic, and almost never sync with whatever is being said by the character. I don’t know what the reason for this was- maybe they were trying to go for a universal lip movement, to ensure consistency across all language versions of the game. Or maybe it’s a stylistic choice, to further channel the graphic novel aesthetic the cutscenes adopt. Be that as it may, it’s highly distracting, and even detrimental at the beginning of the game.

Of course, not many will actually play Castlevania for its story, good as it may be. Most people play Castlevania for its immaculate platforming, and for its famed ‘Metroidvania’ design. Those people will largely be disappointed. Whereas the game follows a non linear progression (and right from the outset, it throws sections of the map very obviously inaccessible until later at you), it is nowhere near as intricate as the GBA and DS games were. There’s hidden passages and some backtracking, but on the whole, little incentive to actually go out of your way to explore. Similarly, while the game has some tight platforming, with some interesting hooks, such as grappling, thrown in, and the world you are traversing is itself a fairly interesting looking one, once again, it does not hold up to the previous entries.

Don’t get me wrong, the platforming and the exploration on their own merits are pretty great (and certainly better than most AAA console releases these days, including the original Lords of Shadow); the problem is that it is impossible to assess Mirror of Fate in a vacuum. If your point of reference regarding these elements is the original Lords of Shadow, you might be pleasantly surprised at how much more open and varied this game is (including its penchant for the occasional puzzle, some of which can be really stumping). But if you were comparing this to the other handheld Castlevania games, then you would find yourself gravely disappointed.

The one area where Mirror of Fare indisputably shines is the combat. More than perhaps anything else, this game works as a great action game. Using the same two button attack scheme that made the God of War games famous, you are asked to chain together strings of attacks to take out enemies that you may encounter. There are a multitude of combos available to you, and more are unlocked, as you level yourself up. Combat is kept exciting with the grab/block/stun abilities, as well as the inclusion of magic and secondary weapons. The game keeps things thrilling by having you battle hordes of enemies as you try to accomplish some really precarious platforming.

The boss battles in the game are a thing of beauty. The bosses are huge and intimidating, and the perfect mix of dexterity and timing is required to bring them down. Every boss battle concludes the same way: in a rather cinematic God of War style QTE. Whereas it feels fresh and exciting the first few times, it begins to feel grating by the end of the game. It also doesn’t help that Mercury Steam sprinkled the game with QTEs so liberally.

Mirror of Fate is a stunner. It looks exceptionally good on the 3DS screen (screenshots won’t do it justice), especially during the cutscenes, and holds a steady framerate (even though said framerate seems to be locked at a low ~30FPS, causing some of the more exaggerated character animations to look ridiculous); the 3D effect adds some really delicious visual depth to the image on lower levels. I say lower levels because at maximum, the 3D in this game will make your eyes bleed. The effect is painfully strong, and absolutely impossible to maintain, leading to cross images, and interference and distortion. It works much better during the cutscenes, but while you are actually playing the game, you’d be well advised to keep it around the 40% mark.

In the end, there will be as many people disappointed by Mirror of Fate as there are who can appreciate it. What you take away from this game depends entirely on whether you assess it for what it is, or for what it is not. Because this is not a traditional Castlevania game, not in the way it handles it world, traversal, combat, story, storytelling, anything. It is the perfect distillation, rather, of the Lords of Shadow formula, and a realization of that distillation into 2D.

It is also an incredibly fun and accessible action game, and one of the most well made handheld titles around. Whereas unlike previous handheld Castlevania games, Mirror of Fate isn’t even close to being the best game on the system it is on, it is still great fun, and anyone with any appreciation for the Castlevania license who doesn’t mind the developers taking liberties with it, or anyone in the market for a fun action game in the vein of the original Lords of Shadow, should definitely check it out.

This game was reviewed on Nintendo 3DS.

After hinting at it and then more or less confirming that it will be released sooner or later, Konami has dropped another hint that Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2, sequel to the 2010, critically acclaimed action-adventure title, will be released soon and is in the works.

Speaking via hia Twitter account, Konami producer David Cox gave a huge tease for the game today. He said: “Today and tomorrow I am in the land of Dracul… What am I doing there?? You will see…. :)”

This isn’t even a hint, this is more or less a flat-out confirmation. And yet it isn’t. Way to tease, Konami.

We obviously want a sequel to LoS, sooner rather than later, so I’m being optimistic here. And it’s about time an announcement came.

Stay tuned, we’ll keep you updated. Till then, leave behind your feedback in the comments section below.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow producer David Cox recently tweeted that he is working on two unannounced projects right now, when asked if he there would be a sequel to Lords of Shadow.

“I am currently working on two unannounced projects Dave. I couldn’t possibly say what they are,” said Cox’s tweet.

We already know that a sequel is indeed in development, so what do you think these unannounced titles are? Tell us in your comments.

The ‘Reverie’ DLC for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, which was released last week for the PS3, has been delayed for the Xbox 360 due to some ‘last minute issues.’

Executive producer Dave Cox said via Twitter, “There is a last minute issue with 360 version which we are working with Microsoft to fix. Hopefully will be quick.”

The DLC pack is supposed to be the first of the two add-ons planned for the game.

[Twitter]

MercurySteam Producer said that fans ‘hated the idea’ of a Castlevania reboot and did not approve of what they were doing, while talking to CVG. “The fan base absolutely hated the idea that we were working on it, to be honest,” he said. But despite the fans’ protest Cox “only ever entered this with the aim to do the series justice.”

He said that the team had to work very hard, so that they could make sure that the game “couldn’t get bogged down with the various intricacies of the canonical storyline.”

However, after the positive reaction at E3, Cox thought, “I think we may be starting to win them over.”

“We have made sure that fans of the original series will see and experience elements that they will recognise, while also appreciating the way we have extrapolated key ideas from the past and reinvented them for the more powerful consoles,” says Cox.

Check out our exclusive LoS preview here.

As the 3D generation came, though, the beginning of the degeneration of the Castlevania series was marked. Castlevania (N64), while a decent enough game, lacked the spark that made the Castlevania series so good. Castlevania, unlike other classic franchises like The Legend of Zelda and Final Fantasy, couldn’t do a perfect transition to 3D.

Later 3D games like Castlevania Chronicles, and the horrendous PSP Castlevania titles only made it worse. Though it still got several good instalments on the GBA and the DS, the series could never retain its former glory.

And now, Konami’s having another shot at a 3D Castlevania, and this time, things seem more optimistic for the series. Why, though? What is going to be so different then? How can the same series, the same formula have changed so drastically? I have two words for you: Hideo Kojima. The man behind classics like Metal Gear Solid 4 and the recently released Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is the one who’s helping the team behind the latest Castlevania game, and hopefully, Kojima’s Midas’ Touch will turn this classic franchise into gold.

Blood, Gore, Violence… What More Do You Want?

People have been comparing this game to God of War the most, and it is pretty clear why. The gameplay videos so far shows some spectacular, bloody action sequences, with all sorts of violent combos and up-close one-on-one battles with beasts and creatures of unimaginable power. The protagonist, using a chain-like whip sword (The Combat Cross), slashes his way through hordes of hellish minions of an unseen foe, and a giant, bear-like creature, which triggers a typical cutscene. From what we can see in the gameplay videos, the game looks freaking awesome.

Not only will we get the typical Castlevania thrill and excitement while playing the game, we will also be subject to one of the best gameplay engines ever seen in any action-adventure game, with thrilling, relentless combat, mind-numbing puzzles and exciting platforming. What will make the combat ever deeper and the platforming and puzzles more complex is the whip that the players will use as their primary weapons. Not only can The Combat Cross be used to slice enemies into two, it can also be used to scale walls, sling ourselves across chasms and gaps, and for other platforming/puzzle purposes. We can also expect the game to feature the typical Konami boss battles- huge, mind-numbing, epic, large scale and fully interactive, akin to those in the much acclaimed PS2 title, Shadow of the Colossus.

Plot

Being a re-boot, though, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow’s story is not going to be a part of the canon Castlevania plotline.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is set in a fantasy world that has gone haywire, with devilish entities known as the Lords of Shadow, threatening the existence of the Earth and the Heavens, resulting in the apocalyptic “end of days” drawing nearer. A dark spell prevents the souls of the deceased to leave Earth, and evil creatures roam the land freely.

The game has the protagonist- Gabriel Belmont, member of the “Brotherhood of Light”, an elite group of knights of protect innocent people from beasts and monsters- searching for the three Lords of Shadow, to collect three pieces of a mask known as the God Mask, so that he can bring back the dead, and kill off his foes once and for all. With betrayal, love, revenge, anger and hatred, all stuffed into a single action packed story, coupled with the mind blowing, gory gameplay, we can expect Castlevania: Lords of Shadow to be one of the most compelling and immersing games ever.

But Is It Just A Rip-Off?

The game has a lot of similarities to Sony’s massive franchise, God of War. Not only are the enemy models, the presentation style, the music composition and the story theme very similar, the main weapon that is used by both the characters are very similar as well- chained swords/whips are very hard to differentiate from each other.

Even the boss battles seem very similar- giant bosses have often been the thing of God of War, and Gaia, Chronos and Ares best exemplify that. Even the magical spells look identical to each other. I don’t fear the game will not be good, just because it might be a God of War rip-off. I fear it will loose its identity, and be lost in the crowd, just as so many action adventure titles have.

But due to Kojima’s help, the game is starting to show a lot of differences. For one, the main protagonist isn’t a badass character who kills everything he sees. Then, the platforming and puzzles seem deeper this time, and the combat looks… it looks awesome (though, it looked awesome in God of War as well).

I’m pretty sure this game will have its own identity, and will be one of those games that set the standards for other games to come, and will always be remembered in the history of gaming as time goes on.

Konami’s playng smart, not releasing Catlevania: Lords of Shadow in October, as there will be several other huge (as in HUGE) releases this holiday season, and this being one of Konami’s biggest games this year, they don’t want it to flop and its sales to suffer.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow will be developed by Kojima, who is also working on a new Metal Gear Solid title (MGS: Rising), as of now.

In an interview with VG247 Cox said, “It’s certainly not about one console being superior to the other.

This argument is bollocks, frankly; it’s about making the best of what both machines are good at and focusing on that because, believe me, both machines are a challenge to develop on no matter what you are doing.”

He also stated that, “It is very important to me that no version is inferior.” However, he also said that his upcoming game Lords of the Shadow will make, “compromises in certain areas right from the get-go.”

No exact release date has yet been given for Castlevania: Lords of the Shadow, but it is expected to be on shelves later this year.