Alastor replays and ranks all the Igavanias (Mission complete!)

[Alastor15243]

22 minutes ago, Dayni said:

Eccleisa does sound interesting.

It's DS though, right? That might be tricky honestly for playing (It's like me trying to play DoS on Desmume, I do not have the ability to effectively use those sigils)

I kind of guessed this would be first though, you sound like you had a (mostly) good experience.

Oh, if it's magic seals you're worried about, don't be. 1, there's a mod to get rid of them, and 2, they're only in DoS to begin with. They realized pretty quickly that they were a bad idea.

[Punished Dayni]

9 minutes ago, Alastor15243 said:

Oh, if it's magic seals you're worried about, don't be. 1, there's a mod to get rid of them, and 2, they're only in DoS to begin with. They realized pretty quickly that they were a bad idea.

A mod you say? That could be the ticket, but my laptop would likely still slow down honestly. This'd be so much easier if my DS Lite worked any more (Sadly the hinge broke and I'm pretty sure from there the wiring went because it wouldn't turn off or sleep, leading to the death of the DSl.), It's not like the seals on paper are infuriating (if gimmicky).

[Karimlan]

On 6/13/2019 at 9:26 PM, Interdimensional Observer said:

Library Cards exist in SotN if you forgot that. Although bizarrely I don't recall a warp room anywhere near the Library. They were barely useful, unless you were far in the Inverted Castle and wanted to return to the old one for some reason (not that you ever need to).

You needed to warp out of the final boss battle against Daddy Dearest to boost your clear percentage and get the best ending.

[Alastor15243]

Oh dear.

 

So, apparently, while my copy hasn't arrived yet, the switch port of Bloodstained is... really bad right now. And the problem is that's the only system it was released for that I have. So I'm not sure what to do here. I may have to wait either for a switch patch that brings it in line with the other releases, or get a PC/PS4.

[Dai]

1 hour ago, Alastor15243 said:

Oh dear.

 

So, apparently, while my copy hasn't arrived yet, the switch port of Bloodstained is... really bad right now. And the problem is that's the only system it was released for that I have. So I'm not sure what to do here. I may have to wait either for a switch patch that brings it in line with the other releases, or get a PC/PS4.

Yeah, it’s apparently pretty awful to the point that most Switch players with the game are under the belief that they didn’t even try with this port. Patching could very well take a while. Bloodstained can apparently run on a potato pc, but I have it on PS4.

[Alastor15243]

1 minute ago, Dai said:

Yeah, it’s apparently pretty awful to the point that most Switch players with the game are under the belief that they didn’t even try with this port. Patching could very well take a while. Bloodstained can apparently run on a potato pc, but I have it on PS4.

This really sucks. I pre-ordered it because I wanted a physical copy and due to being a huge fan and doing a retrospective I was in an "I need this even if it's garbage" situation. To be in that mindset and still wind up wasting my money is indescribably frustrating. Looks like I won't be putting off my PC purchase any longer. Hopefully the switch one will be patched up to spec eventually.

[Dai]

Just now, Alastor15243 said:

This really sucks. I pre-ordered it because I wanted a physical copy and due to being a huge fan and doing a retrospective I was in an "I need this even if it's garbage" situation. To be in that mindset and still wind up wasting my money is indescribably frustrating. Looks like I won't be putting off my PC purchase any longer. Hopefully the switch one will be patched up to spec eventually.

I recall Derrick from GameXplain mentioning that the Switch port at a convention some months ago was in a similarly awful state and shouldn’t have been on the showroom floor. The fact that it’s still in such a state leads me to believe the intent was to get the game out, first.

[Interdimensional Observer]

Oh dear... I only have a Switch, and I did want this game. I don't care about resolution and 30 FPS vs. 60, but it's fundamentally terrible, then I guess I'll wait until later. Halloween or Christmas, a bloody good sale this game should have, and maybe a good fix.

I've been wanting to replay OoE, but I feel hesitation from overplaying it as a kid, and...

Spoiler

the somber ending. I know it isn't much, but it got me all that time ago.

 

[Alastor15243]

2 minutes ago, Dai said:

I recall Derrick from GameXplain mentioning that the Switch port at a convention some months ago was in a similarly awful state and shouldn’t have been on the showroom floor. The fact that it’s still in such a state leads me to believe the intent was to get the game out, first.

I heard rumors that it was only delayed a week so that it wouldn't taint the initial week's press. Just rumors though.

[Dai]

5 minutes ago, Alastor15243 said:

I heard rumors that it was only delayed a week so that it wouldn't taint the initial week's press. Just rumors though.

That’s certainly a pessimistic outlook on the situation, but I can certainly see where they’re coming from.

[Zapp Branniglenn]

welp, mine is the switch version. I didn't anticipate I'd have a PS4 by the time this game came out. Certainly didn't anticipate it would take all of four years to release either. Oh well, I'm not in a hurry to play so the game will probably be updated by the time I do. Mighty No. 9 was by the time I started on my Wii U copy.

4 hours ago, Alastor15243 said:

I heard rumors that it was only delayed a week so that it wouldn't taint the initial week's press. Just rumors though.

Rumor or no that's a smart idea. When Mighty no 9 released with a Wii U port that allegedly bricks your system, game journos were all over it.

Edited June 26, 2019 by Glennstavos

[Rapier]

4 hours ago, Dai said:

Yeah, it’s apparently pretty awful to the point that most Switch players with the game are under the belief that they didn’t even try with this port. Patching could very well take a while. Bloodstained can apparently run on a potato pc, but I have it on PS4.

I had to run it on Low settings for my notebook with a NVidia GEForce 720GT, but my much better PC could run it on Cinematic pretty well. Not sure about how the other ports are right now, though.

Also, sharing my thoughts. Fight me irl, OP.

Spoiler

Bloodstained felt a lot like a mix between SOTN and Order of Ecclesia.

The aesthetics, weapons, familiars and some other things better left unspoiled...

Spoiler

Invert was fun, and in this case it adds a layer of exploration without requiring you to go through an entire backflipped castle that is pretty much the same thing, but added there just for the sake of occupying space.

... reminded me of the former, while gathering Shards, improving your own arsenal, taking quests, using collectables for alchemy, having more weapons and weapon skills, the game's setting and story and Miriam herself reminded me more of the latter (well, gathering souls started with Soma, but still). 

The castle really is massive, although I feel that even though there are more biomes than I've counted in other Castlevanias, some are shorter than expected. Most are of average length, though, while only a few drag on with scarce teleporters and save points in-between (I can think of at least one). At least there is an item that returns you to the main waypoint, and it's reasonably cheap. It's also nice that I could mark the map for spots I knew would be relevant later on, such as higher platforms, doorways etc. iirc Ecclesia had this.

Bosses are either easy or mildly challenging, but they were still fun to fight, and the abilities they gave went beyond what you expect from Metroidvanias (yes, there is a double jump, but some other abilities were hardly seen on the genre). It was a bit annoying to switch Shards in order to interact with gimmicks on the stages, although there is a shortcut system for that which mitigates it a little.

It's good that the game also helps you orient yourself on how to proceed to areas you need to go next, instead of leaving you for trial and error and blind exploration. This isn't always perfect, because the game won't tell you if there was a tiny detail or easily overlooked gimmick in an already explored area that you need to interact with in order to move on, and seeing the blind spots on the map and moving there only does so much for you. I think one of the most bullshit parts was when

Spoiler

I needed a spike resistant item to pass through a set of traps. The good part was that, after finding out I needed that item (by talking with a friend of mine who had played the game before me), I also noticed I already had it with me, but it simply fades in your inventory, there's no sign that it is important (it's just an armor) and you *need* to equip it. It's also the only part where it is mandatory. If you sold it, well, good luck (you can buy it back or craft it iirc, but it's an easy mistake to make).

Items are more diverse and do more than simply boost your stats, which is nice and all, but I found most of them not that relevant - you're usually going to pick the ones that give more defense/offense and that's it. Skills are nice, but I personally didn't find them that relevant, and having them cost MP made them unviable to me most of the time. There are plenty Shards that might as well be copies of each other - many of them summons a monster as an attack, or fires a projectile, or boosts one of your stats. I think Iga tried to be ambitious with the sheer amount of stuff in his game, but they felt more like quantity-oriented than quality-oriented to me. I think monsters repeat themselves a lot as well. There are at least three variants of a Lilith, the horses, the armors, the medusa heads etc. which are pretty much stat boosted with maybe one different attack to set them apart.

All in all, I'm loving the game. It could very well be a main Castlevania title, if only Konami didn't throw it all from the window instead of continuing down the path with Metroidvanias and Igarashi. Bloodstaind exceeded my expectations. I'll certainly be looking forward the next projects he'll come up with.

 

Edited June 26, 2019 by Rapier

[Dai]

Here’s a direct-feed comparison between the Switch and the PS4.

Apparently, they gave the Switch port to a third-party developer. Absolutely terrible mistake.

Edit: Rumor has it that 1.03 has kind of broken the game again. Testing it for myself, I see no issue, though some people reported certain rooms taking far too long to load to the point of just failing to do so outright.

Edited June 27, 2019 by Dai

[Alastor15243]

Alright, I'll be getting my long-overdue PC in a day or two. It's become clear I'll be waiting a long time before the switch version is up to snuff with the others, and thus it wouldn't be right to use it to compare. I'll start on the PC version of Bloodstained as soon as I can.

[Dai]

Closest thing to an actual Bloodstained thread, but for those on consoles, it seems that the Iga’s Back Pack DLC has been delayed.

https://bloodstained.forums.net/thread/4281/update-kojima-slipcase-digital-rewards

Edited July 4, 2019 by Dai

[Alastor15243]

7 hours ago, Dai said:

Closest thing to an actual Bloodstained thread, but for those on consoles, it seems that the Iga’s Back Pack DLC has been delayed.

https://bloodstained.forums.net/thread/4281/update-kojima-slipcase-digital-rewards

That's a shame, but it's good to see they're prioritizing fixing the Switch version. Thankfully I won't have to wait. I'm playing the PC version as we speak. This will take longer than before to review, because I haven't unlocked hard mode yet since it's a new game. And I don't feel comfortable reviewing it until I've played it on hard.

Edited July 4, 2019 by Alastor15243

[Dai]

4 hours ago, Alastor15243 said:

That's a shame, but it's good to see they're prioritizing fixing the Switch version. Thankfully I won't have to wait. I'm playing the PC version as we speak. This will take longer than before to review, because I haven't unlocked hard mode yet since it's a new game. And I don't feel comfortable reviewing it until I've played it on hard.

Edited in case of spoilers.

Far as I recall, Iga's Back Pack contains only a boss fight against Iga himself, a quest to take him on, and a reward for said quest.

 Other than that, that's about it. To be frank, it's a bit disappointing that, three weeks after PC got the DLC at launch, console players *still* have to wait even longer, possibly until the Switch version is fully playable. While I'm glad that the Switch version is being prioritized, I feel it's a little unfair for people who already have the game on xBox One or PS4 to have to wait longer still. Game's still fun, but I would at least like that before I am consumed by Three Houses.

Edited July 4, 2019 by Dai

[Zapp Branniglenn]

I've been meaning to ask: Is an Igavania marathon really complete without playing Simon's Quest? It's got the grinding, the open world, the multiple endings, and the progression of earning new abilities and weapons.

[Karimlan]

On 7/5/2019 at 11:24 AM, Glennstavos said:

I've been meaning to ask: Is an Igavania marathon really complete without playing Simon's Quest? It's got the grinding, the open world, the multiple endings, and the progression of earning new abilities and weapons.

not to mention its object (collecting Dracula's parts) is somewhat adapted by SoTN later on.

[Dai]

On 7/5/2019 at 11:24 AM, Glennstavos said:

I've been meaning to ask: Is an Igavania marathon really complete without playing Simon's Quest? It's got the grinding, the open world, the multiple endings, and the progression of earning new abilities and weapons.

I think most people don't count it because, while it started these concepts, they're executed much better later on. That, and I think most Igavanias have him as the lead developer or something? Producer? Something. I don't think he was that high up around the time of Simon's Quest, but its reception did allow him and the team to pitch Symphony to Konami.

[Zapp Branniglenn]

5 hours ago, Dai said:

I think most people don't count it because, while it started these concepts, they're executed much better later on. That, and I think most Igavanias have him as the lead developer or something? Producer? Something. I don't think he was that high up around the time of Simon's Quest, but its reception did allow him and the team to pitch Symphony to Konami.

He wasn't even hired at Konami by the time of Simon's Quest. His own genre predates him!

Have to wonder how the game was received in Japan. They didn't have to deal with an awful translation of vital hints like we did. But even if you play Simon's Quest with the aid of a guide telling you everything the game is still...experimental in a way only typical of second games in popular franchises for the NES can be.

[Dai]

1 hour ago, Glennstavos said:

He wasn't even hired at Konami by the time of Simon's Quest. His own genre predates him!

Have to wonder how the game was received in Japan. They didn't have to deal with an awful translation of vital hints like we did. But even if you play Simon's Quest with the aid of a guide telling you everything the game is still...experimental in a way only typical of second games in popular franchises for the NES can be.

According to, oddly enough, Igarashi himself, the villagers straight-up lied to you in Japan.

[Alastor15243]

Yeah, I'm not touching that game. This is an examination of Iga's work and legacy, with CotM included due to the 'legacy' part and also nostalgia. Sorry, but that does not sound like fun at all.

[Alastor15243]

Alright, so... I was just about finishing up my review when I discovered that there was, this whole damned time, a cheat code to unlock nightmare mode from the start.

I've poured 20+ hours into this game already, but my assessment of this game's difficulty seems incomplete without playing nightmare mode and seeing how the game plays when the only way to level up your stats is by finding new ingredients to cook meals with (something that sounds like a great way to solve the difficulty curve problem of open exploration in theory). And now that I know there's a cheat code for it, I can't exactly blame the game's demands for 40 hours of playtime before unlocking the best difficulty to justify not trying it out before giving my final verdict, can I?

So, looks like I'll be playing as much as I can of Bloodstained over the next few weeks to try and beat it again before Three Houses consumes every free moment of my life.

[Rapier]

5 hours ago, Alastor15243 said:

(something that sounds like a great way to solve the difficulty curve problem of open exploration in theory)

I find leveling up to be more effective than these items, although they are useful.

Also, it reminds me of how Rabi-Ribi has two modes: The standard one has bosses grow stronger as you obtain items/upgrades, while the other mode has bosses grow stronger depending on how far you are on the game (it is non-linear, bosses can be fought in pretty much any order). You either min-max (or defeat the most troublesome bosses first) to win or explore to win.

It's a game I wish I could convince more people to play, if it didn't straight look like a hentai from the cover alone.