Ben-DutkaThe anticipated Castlevania: Lords of Shadow sequel didn't really impress the critics.
However, a lot of gamers said the game was unjustly criticized, which led to our most recent poll question: Do you think the title was unfairly judged?
A fair percentage did feel that way, but the majority said in fact, the game's "just not that good." That was our assessment as well , as the production fell significantly short in several areas. The stealth sections were poorly conceived of and implemented, and the modern-day atmosphere just didn't gel with our perception of the vaunted Castlevania franchise.
This week, there's been a lot of talk about the future of Nintendo and whether or not the Wii U will survive. What do you think? Will the current system stage a big comeback? Will the company produce another console that can challenge the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One? Or are they going to bow out of the console game completely? Let us know.
Related Game(s): Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2
I'm still pissed a majority of the people on here were against a FFXII HD port. Jerks…
We didn't want to put ourselves through such a grind again just to get near an FF that wasn't total garbage.
A grind?! FF is all about the grind, sweetie!
Not THAT much of a grind, it shouldn't take a whole day to get from one town to the next.
Have you ever tried to walk from one town to the next? It sure would take me a day…
I'm warning you LV, don't try to suck me into one of your inescapable logic feedback loops. I'm on a whole other level.
LOL! I'm going to go play some Shadow of Destiny, came in the mail on Saturday!
Cool, that one seemed a little weird for me but I didn't get very far either. I'd like to try it again one day. I'm a little into "D2" for my strange game currently.
Shadow of Destiny? That's a good game. I liked the PS2 version better though. With the original voice actors.
I voted against the HD remake, because that is devoting unnecessary time, money, and personnel into a project when they could be finishing FF XV.
I was going to play LoS2 but now I'm thinking I'll just pass. With the modern setting and the fact that it's even less "Castlevania" than the last one I guess it's just not worth money or time. Unless it winds up free one day perhaps. I really hope a good team gets the IP next, one that knows what's what.
Ninty will have to stew in their Wii U soup for the next few years, it would be impossible to come up with a new console at this stage. But they will make another one with a new strategy, just not now. They will stick this thing out with their established franchises and the fans will support them while they tap out their Wii profits.
Well, according to some analysts, Nintendo has enough money in the bank (18 billion) to be able to hang in there for years. How many years?
Well the most pessimistic prediction suggests that Nintendo can have more Wii U debacles for the next 15 years.
On the other hand, the most optimistic prediction suggests that Nintendo can have more Wii U debacles for the next 40 years.
BTW, these predictions were done around the time Nintendo released their financial reports that indicated that they were losing money with the Wii U.
Even MicroSoft considers that Nintendo still has the resources and capital to stay in business. To be specific, shareholders from MS have recently suggested selling the Xbox brand to Nintendo.
I know, that sounds incredible, doesn't it? But it happened. And it did because the Xbox brand has been a money pit since the first one (losing 2 up to 4 billion dollars every year). The fact that the X1 has failed to catch on is making many MS shareholders consider turning to Nintendo.
And before you think that couldn't happen, consider that recently Sony's shareholders were able to pressure the company into getting rid of many divisions within it that were not making them a profit.
Not that I would want Nintendo joining forces with MS. That would be a nightmare scenario for me, personally.
Anyway, in regards to the Wii U, IMO Nintendo has enough cash to keep it going for at least 5 more years. Just until they can have their next console ready for showtime.
Wow if Ninty and Xbox teamed up that would make a formidable opponent.
Since last month, many influential shareholders within MS have been pushing to kill the Xbox brand. Because the brand has been losing them money since at least 2011 (it dates back further than that, but the trend got worse since 2011).
As a matter of fact, MS shareholders claim that the Xbox brand hasn't made them a profit in a whole decade. So they want to bail out of the gaming scene. And instead focus on selling enterprise software to businesses.
It appears that some suggested handing the brand over to Nintendo.
The thing is, people over at MS are desperate. And their gaming division is actually in worse state than Nintendo's.
Because Nintendo has the cash to keep the Wii U going for at least 5 years. While MS's shareholders have had it with the Xbox brand losing them so much cash. They want it killed.
I must admit, the thought of Nintendo publishing Rare games again is awfully exciting. Banjo, Conker and Killer Instinct back with Nintendo would make me one happy gamer.
@tridon,
Nothing can compare to the prospect of Rare getting to make new Donkey Kong games again.
Retro just doesn't have the magic Rare had in my opinion.
i didn't vote on this one cos i haven't played the game , i've seen gameplay but i didn't feel in a position to comment but wanted to see what u guys thought if u have the game
happy gaming =)
Nintendo will ride out the WiiU with their exclusives. Then they will hit us with the Health Console or whatever it is that they are up to. There is a 10% chance that it will miraculously bounce back to contend with the 4 and the X. Maybe %5.
Isn't the last two choices in the Wii U poll basically the same thing?
The third choice can mean bowing out altogether.
Completely from the games business? Would never happened. Doesn't make any sense.
I want Nintendo to make me want the Wii U. Likely, they'll try to keep pushing it with exclusives, but I have a feeling they'll make a new console earlier in the cycle than planned if they can't pull it through.
I didn't buy C:LOS2 though I had planned to. The review convinced me otherwise.
I read an article a few months ago on a different website that stated Nintendo had something like 5 billion dollars from the success of the Wii. I think they will release a new console before going the route of software only. They can afford it, so they might as well do it. They already know the specs to aim for or beat. If they release a system that can compete with the PS4, I'd probably buy it.
I hope they continue to make consoles. I wasn't a fan of the wii or wiiu. I hate motion controls and controllers the size of a gamegear. If only they would go back to standard controls and games I'd be happy. I fully support them in the handheld market. It just sucks that the last console Nintendo made that I loved was made over a decade ago.
They had around 6-7 billion dollars before the Wii came to the scene.
After the Wii years and with the relative success of the 3DS, they currently have 18 billion dollars in the bank.
still really want to play CLoS 2, but typical steam refuses to let me play it so………….
i swear to god if i ever get hold of a nuke it is going stright for steams servers!
EVERY SINGLE time i buy a game it NEVER works!
most of the times the games wont even boot, they just refresh the page each time you hit play.
though from what ive seen, and reviews ive read, yea bloody oath it was unfairly judged.
you read 2 page reviews, and ALL they say, is wah wah the stealth is crap, wah wah its so illfitted, wah wah its so poorly done, wah wah, it keeps coming back, wah wah im freaking dracula why am i hiding?
and wah wah the modern setting just does not fit the game.
which is fair enough, but last time i checked theres A LOT more to a game than the setting, and 1% of its gameplay!
this perfectly illustrates whats wrong with todays reviewers, they review PART of a game, and they review it for what they want it to be not what it IS!
WHOLE point of a review is judging what something does and how well it does it, not judging the things it does not do.
you dont see top gear reviewing cars and constantly whining that x car does not have their favorite features.
a reviews suppose to be judging WHAT a game does, and how WELL it does it.
not what the reviewer THINKS the game should do!
as for ninty, WTF would you pick there going to release a new system?
no, seriously!?
who thinks there going to turn up, even 3 years from now, at E3 and said oh yea, you know that tiny black thing under your TV?
well throw it out because we have a new system coming!
NO ONE is releasing a new system for at least another 5 years!
ninty will be fine they just need to get some goddamn games out!
what really hurt them was they underestimated the workload of creating HD games, iwatta and myamotto have said this countlessly.
so allot of games they were expecting to be out by now are not, and wont be for some time.
hell the next zelda is not due out till 2016!
thats 3 years after release, thats like ps4 not having a killzone, or xb1 not having a halo, till 2016!
yes they have mario, they have donkey kong, they have kirby coming soon, but come on people buy ninty machines for 2 things.
zelda, and metroid!
one which wont be out for another 2 years, the other which has not even been announced yet!
ninty REALLY needs to come out at E3 thins year and show off absolutely everything they can even if its just a frigging concept trailer!
show us the new zelda, show us a new metroid, show us super mario galaxy 3, show us a new donkey kong game, show us maybe even a HD remake of skyward sword to tide us over.
ninty really needs to get out as many cards as they can because theres really not a single reason on the horizon to purchase a wiiu!
at least if they show whats coming, no matter how far away it is, people have reasons to look at them.
they need to be far more active with showing off games too, i mean mario kart 8 is out in 2 months time, and i dont think ive even seen a gameplay trailer of it!
so ninty will be fine they severely underestimated the requirements for HD development and that has made them hemorrhage money, and there games are no where near as far in development as they should be.
but thats all been rectified now so all they need to do is show their cards and give people reasons to pick up a wiiu.
allot more third party support wouldnt hurt either, bayonetta 2 has caused allot of buzz, and id be nice to see a new conduit.
maybe pokemon can FINALLY come back home to the home console?
no, seriously, why has ninty kept such a popular franchise, exclusive to portable systems for so long!?
Nintendo will continue manufacturing the Wii U and it will continue to sell horribly no matter how many rehashes of 30 year old franchises they release for it. There's no way they could come out with a new console in the near future – you can't tell your entire fanbase that the console they just paid $300 for is obsolete already. That would be corporate suicide.
Still, they are simply delaying the inevitable. It's only a matter of time, and enough failed consoles before Nintendo goes the way of Atari and Sega.
I still love Nintendo, but they need to do a better job of marketing their product at 29 year old me.
They market their games like I am still 8 years old, or perhaps they are marketing to current 8 year olds.
Either way, it's as though I no longer exist in their eyes now that I am an adult, and have become a person that wants content that caters to a more diversified palate than Mario, Zelda, or any of the other Ninty exclusive titles can provide.
I'm not sure why this game gets so much flack. It's not perfect, but I found it incredibly enjoyable. I actually like the modern setting, because it still carries the dark, foreboding. There a lot of castles and gothic architecture in the modern times, so it does fit in well. I'm not to sure why people complain about the level design, because I never had any trouble getting from place to place.
I actually don't find the stealth sections that
offensive; using the rats to get into hard to reach places was something new and it brought more variety to the gameplay. Sneaking around as Dracula isn't my problem with it, however, (he's a creature of the night, so he should be able to sneak around) but I do have to question, the use of those guards. I've fought giant gorgans, demons, golems, and such and they're implying that these guys are the most powerful enemies in the game. Granted they can be killed via possession, but it is weird to have enemies that are nearly unkillable…
I found the story enjoyable too, although they seem to defeat/kill off characters a few minutes after you meet them.
This game deserves an 8 at best. I certainly enjoyed this than, say, the critically acclaimed AC 3, which bored me to death (coming from an AC fan no less…)
Last edited by sonic1899 on 3/10/2014 11:08:34 AM
Best thing it's that all the stealth sections combined are not more than 60 min of the game reviewers talk about them like if you have to do one after every combat encounter lol!, I doubt a lot of reviewers even finished the game, the selling point it's the combat they made it better imo that's why I enjoy the game a lot.
Last edited by Oxvial on 3/10/2014 1:00:57 PM
I believe Nin will ride the Wii U for at least another 5 years and continue to tie it more and more into the 3DS to keep it viable. Hell, they could rerelease the VHS/vinyl record player player and if they tied it into the 3DS it would succeed.
Their next home console has to be way more online based tho. Not just for gaming but as a total experience…and it should launch with a Pokemon or Zelda or Mario MMO. Let the registers ring with joy!
@sonic1899
I agree, its sad that most people on this site will miss out on a good game but thats mostly because there going by the mediocre score this site and others gave it. But i enjoyed it very much!
It's more than the score, the content doesn't seem all that interesting.
Like those days I told you several times Metal Gear Rising was good and you refused to accept it until you play it, CLOS 2 has a lot of interesting content, if the game become free for plus (like happened with MGR) I'm sure you would try it and agree with me xD.
Last edited by Oxvial on 3/10/2014 12:58:59 PM
Just my two cents as I too missed out on voting for this poll. I thoroughly enjoyed los2. I own and have beaten EVERY castlevania game since its first title and I wasn't let down one bit by this or the previous lords of shadow. As stated the stealth ares of the game make up maybe 10% of the whole thing and after cleared never have to be played again.
Furthermore and I don't think this is mentioned enough, the modern setting is only one half of the game, much like the upside down castle in symphony of the night. You can freely go between the two and though modern, its still grounded heavily within the castle and its foundation.
The combat system is awesome and the storyline was pretty much what I expected. It was admittedly slow starting for the first two hours or so but after that it grew to be exactly what I wanted it to be a combination of lords of shadow 1 and symphony
Just my two cents as I too missed out on voting for this poll. I thoroughly enjoyed los2. I own and have beaten EVERY castlevania game since its first title and I wasn't let down one bit by this or the previous lords of shadow. As stated the stealth ares of the game make up maybe 10% of the whole thing and after cleared never have to be played again.
Furthermore and I don't think this is mentioned enough, the modern setting is only one half of the game, much like the upside down castle in symphony of the night. You can freely go between the two and though modern, its still grounded heavily within the castle and its foundation.
The combat system is awesome and the storyline was pretty much what I expected. It was admittedly slow starting for the first two hours or so but after that it grew to be exactly what I wanted it to be a combination of lords of shadow 1 and symphony
Accidentally sent that prematurely……a combination of lords of shadows 1 and symphony of the night exploration and shops. I feel bad for those that don't check it out. I thought it was great. Easily an 8. Just a tad slow starting out for review purposes. Most probably didn't get a quarter of the way through before reviewing it and that's when it started to really hit its stride.
Heh, sorry for the double post there. My phones garbage