Back From the Dead

The E3 is passing by and wow, what an overwhelming experience! As we entered the show floor for the first time, we gunned for the Nintendo booth and stayed there for a good portion of the day. I've got the chance to play a whole bunch of WiiU titles and I can tell you right now that I love how the WiiU controller pad feels in your hands. It got a certain weight to it and the handles make it really comfortable. I already look forward to playing with it again.

I also tried a new 3DS game : Castlevania Lord of Shadow - Mirror of Fate. As a fan of the 2D Castlevania games and the "Metroidvania" style, I was more than happy to see a return to this format for Mirror of Fate. I got to play around with the character, explore a bit of the map and test my combat skills against a few skeletons and bosses.

Graphics

The setting was really good and felt like a creepy Castlevania. You entered the castle and navigated through a couple of rooms, not only going from left to right but also up and down across these old walls. Character models looked pretty good with enough details to them and the animations were really fun to watch. Like Donkey Kong Country Returns, the 3D models in a 2D world works perfectly and makes for a very appealing game.

Gameplay and Controls

Mister Belmont is pretty acrobatic this time, he can double jump,grab on to ledges, swing from his whips and roll around to evade enemy attacks. It's all easily done and makes for fluid action when things get moving. It seems that they are aiming for a good mix of the more recent action titles and the old Symphony of the Night type of games.

The control scheme shows how the game is aiming for more action and won't be as slow as the older games of the series you might remember. You have a weak attack and a slow one, you can block/evade and when the enemy is damaged enough, you can grab it for a finishing blow. All those moves are executed pretty quickly and once you get comfortable, you won't think twice about evading, jumping and attacking all at the same time.

Last details

I tried it with the 3D on and it worked well too. I like how they didn't try too hard to throw the 3D at my face. It's just there, it compliments the game while not being forced. Unfortunately, since it's so loud in there, I couldn't really pick up the soundtrack or the sound effect but I'm confident that the sound department will get the same polish as the rest.

For any fan of the Castlevania franchise, this is one worth keeping an eye on!