Castlevania: Harmony of Despair

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

So for those of you who don't know, Castlevania: Harmony of Despair is a new co-op Castlevania game that was released today on XBLA as part of Microsoft's "Summer of Arcade" program.

The game is essentially a mish mash of older, slightly HD-upscaled maps in which you traipse around trying to kill the target objective(a boss) located at a certain area of the castle map(of which there are currently 6 with more to be added via DLC later). You can play with up to 5 other friends through Xbox Live in either survival or co-op modes and can pick between 5 characters from Symphony of The Night and the GBA/DS games: Alucard, Johnathan Morris, Charlotte Aulin, Soma Cruz, and Shanoa, each of which retains all their abilities from their respective games, with more characters added as DLC later as well.

So anyone thinking of grabbing this or has it already? Also, for PSN users, don't worry. I'm sure that if anything, it's just a timed exclusive which Konami is also using to test the waters.

[Sindra]

Ya know, I'm torn. Being the Castlevania fan I am, I have high curiosities about the game, and I'm itching to play through so I can review the game and report on it.

However, I can't in good conscious support actual spending money for points to download the game, because I don't condone the fact it is nothing more than a Frankenstein of several previous games with NOTHING new whatsoever that I know of being added. I can't bitch about Castlevania Judgment being a piece of shit game, then go out and buy this, because it's basically saying I selectively like shitty Castlevania games and don't want to give the message that I'm ok with more being produced.

Do I want to play the game? A little. Do I want to pay for it and have Konami think they can keep making crap like it? No.

Bring on Lords of Shadow.

[EdgeCrusher]

Bought it, and horribly underwhelmed by it. Shoulda tried teh demo first I guess. Too much of it just feels like a "hey, fan service! money grab!" and the multiplayer set up for getting games together with friends sucks a big dick.

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

So I just bought it not 15 minutes ago, and holy crap I love it.

[Tables]

I would totally get it if I had friends

[Chernabogue]

I would get it if I had a Xbox 360. It seems to be a fan-service game, but the videos I saw are great. Interesting game.

I'm still impatient to see more from LoS however!

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

OK more solid impressions. Sorry for the lackluster reply earlier. I had just gotten home from class and was ready to crash for the night.

I have yet to do any multiplayer just yet, as I'm still figuring out the ins and outs of each character, although it's plainly obvious that the game was designed to be played with others. This is especially evident in the "Lost Vikings-esque" style of helping other characters get through different sections of the castle by flipping switches and levers scattered throughout, and the boss fights, which can be pretty tough if you aren't aware of their patterns. While the game is catered to the multiplayer experience, don't assume that you can't have some fun hunting solo, as I can tell you from my experience that it's pretty fun in its own right... Just be ready to die much more often.

Now let's talk turkey, er... pot roast.

There are five(thus far) playable characters with their own abilities from the games(as I mentioned before). Soma has his soul system in which you can acquire enemy souls after defeating them, which confer different abilities from throwing bones, axes, to stat boosts, to transforming into stuff. Jonathan has the signature Vampire Killer which can be spun around in 8 directions a la Simon in CV4, as well as the ability to equip different subweapons like crosses, daggers(hell I even found a paper airplane) that will all gain stat boosts the more you use them. He also apparently has different martial arts abilities which I have yet to see just yet. Charlotte has become pretty interesting: she is now effectively a blue mage that can absorb and thus equip different enemy spells such as raging fire and ice needle from PoR. Alucard is relatively versatile, as he can equip many different weapons and has access to dark magic spells like hell fire and such, while Shanoa has the use of her glyph system from OoE.

While there are 6(thus far) different maps that are essentially ripped and combined from previous games, they're all still really fun to go through, and when you take into account that different abilities and equipment can be gained from the same enemies by using different characters(Alucard might get an Axe Armor Shield from an Axe Armor, while Jonathan might get an Axe subweapon), you get a lot of variety. The graphics themselves are upscaled to HD, and spell effects are very nice looking. The audio is remixed stuff from previous games in different styles(usually metal), and as a bonus, you can mix and match what music you'd like to hear going through different maps and boss battles.

There is no experience system, but rather you'll be engaging in a lot of loot whoring to increase your stats and elemental boosts(of course Jonathan and Soma get extra stat bonuses through their own abilities). Best part is that even if you die you are able to keep all the gold, gear, and items you found up until your death, so when in doubt, you can always hit the shop to buy better gear.

As soon as I get a feel for the different maps(using the zoom out function is a godsend for tracking and planning your route to the target), I'll probably jump online for some multiplayer impressions. Several things that are added are the abilities to revive dead team members(which wander around as skeletons that can do minimal damage until revived), and the Dual Crush ability from Portrait of Ruin. If any of you guys decide to grab the game, hit me up on Live and we'll definitely play.

More to come later.

[EC2151]

As soon as I saw the trailers/etc., two concepts immediately came to mind:

"ROM hack"

"fan game"

That's REALLY what this boils down to.

[RoeTaKa]

Bought it, and horribly underwhelmed by it. Shoulda tried teh demo first I guess. Too much of it just feels like a "hey, fan service! money grab!" and the multiplayer set up for getting games together with friends sucks a big dick.

I agree with this and yeah setting up games is a bitch. The best part about the game is probably the diversity of characters and what they can do, however all your stats are equipment based so just hope to find nice stuff as you casually play. I wanted to play as Alucard but I found myself playing as Jonathon the most as it just seems more fun. But the fan game nostalgia does start to seep in after a while, as levels are quite mish mashy and sometimes have their annoyances. Playing Chapter 1 by yourself has a couple of "time your double jumps as high as they can go" areas and that's not an understatement. Try not to get hit and you should survive the boss encounter.

But then after you play it for a while and turn it off...think about it for a bit, just what the hell is this game? The controls are great and the characters do what they do best but then after a while there's no sense or purpose in what you're doing. It looks the part but doesn't feel like it.

If you like Castlevania gameplay and like to just enjoy that in short bursts then that's what you're getting to the penny. But if you're looking for a rewarding and atmospheric experience then think about one of the Castlevania games you haven't played and go buy that one, or play Super Castlevania IV because it rocks.

[BardicKnowledge]

I've now played the first five levels (haven't done the finale yet), here are my first impressions:

First and foremost, this is not setting out to be the next great evolution of Castlevania, so if you want that you're out of luck. It is a great deal of fun if you can get past that though.

My biggest issue with it is that the character balance is not very good. Soma and Alucard are the dominant solo players, while the Portrait cast gets left in the dust offensively...though apparently they're supposed to be good if you level all of their stuff. Takes too long for an arcade title though, so I will likely not be using them.

Shanoa is inbetween -- she is easily the most mobile due to the Magnes power, but lacks some of the offense that Soma/Alucard do. Her glyph system appears to be limited to 3 or 4 extra spells, so unlike Charlotte what you see really is what you get.

Finally, only Soma and Alucard (thus far) have found any new usable weapons. It would be nice to have small variations on things for the other three (I'm told Shanoa can find weapon glyphs from bosses, but it hasn't happened for me yet).

I'm a diehard CV fan and this game ranks a B- from me. I love the idea of multiplayer Castlevania -- IGN's review said that the groundwork was set for a great followup title, and I agree wholeheartedly. Hopefully the next one is better, and hopefully Konami continues trying new things as this did turn out largely better than the reviewers have said.

[Chernabogue]

Someone working for Konami posted pictures of the first DLC: Julius Belmont and Maria Renard will be playable, and a new level (based on PoR's pyramids) will be added!

[EC2151]

I know it was naive but I thought that when Castlevania Rebirth came around I seriously believed that Konami was going to try to make another classic Castlevania again.

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

Holy god... I've been on this thing all day and FINALLY managed to kill Dracula with my team of hunters. I really need to gain more of Charlotte's spells and Jonathan's sub weapons.

Well worth the cash I say.

[Arek the Absolute]

Alright, I am sold.

Getting gold and this game by Sunday.

Gonna be good times.

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

Awesome, so we've got the two of us and Bardic(sorry about not playing earlier dude). We can get our hunt on.

[relyanCe]

kinda wanna see shanoa and alucard out monster-slaying together

makes me wish i had an xbax

[ParanoidDrone]

I lack an XBox, but the concept of a massive Castlevania crossover intrigues me. (I'm not counting Judgement, since the only compliments I've heard about it were about the music.)

I'm happy they're giving the Puppet Master some love though. That was a fun boss in Dawn.

[Arek the Absolute]

If we hunt together, I call Soma.

:3

[Chernabogue]

This

And this

[Arek the Absolute]

Wish they would make Julius's game already

[Chernabogue]

Wish they would make Julius's game already

Yeah, me too, but he will be playable when they'll release the first DLC! That's great to see him back!

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

Seeing Julius and Maria in the game is going to be interesting, although I'm not entirely sure what abilities they'd give J since Jonathan already has sub-weapons and martial arts. I suppose they could give him Simon's ability to swing from objects with his whip and a different set of martial arts, but other than that I can't see much of anything... Maybe holy magic as opposed to Alucard's dark magic. Maria would probably have the use of animals if anything.

The new pyramid level looks pretty sweet from the image I saw earlierm although more than anything, I'd like them to add new glyphs for Shanoa, more balancing, loot, and a BETTER INSTRUCTION MANUAL!

Edit - Julius can swing from Shanoa's Magnus Glyph spheres with his whip.

[BardicKnowledge]

First of all: Hard mode is hard. The puppet master boss is sick when he does >300 damage per capture.

Shanoa could use another spell or two also -- I only have 2 weapons and 4 spells for her.

If anyone is just picking this up, stay away from Jonathan and Charlotte unless you like to grind a LOT. Both of them are pretty terrible without having lots of things leveled up. Shanoa has the most mobility and can finish levels the fastest, while Soma and Alucard are the hardest hitting characters with no leveling at all. Alucard is probably the only char that can easily solo Hard Mode, as his mist makes him invulnerable to everything (including Puppet Master's warp).

[ParanoidDrone]

Can you not destroy the marionettes before the Puppet Master sticks them in the iron maidens anymore? o_O

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

You can, it just takes a shitload more hits and chances are you aren't gonna make it anyway. Seriously, I was with a full party of 6 earlier today, and my Charlotte was the only one left alive once we finally killed the sucker. >.>