Next on the "I guess I'm reviewing every Igavania" agenda is none other than Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia. This entry follows the adventures of Shanoa as she hunts for the three glyphs of Dominus, said to be one of the only means of destroying Dracula. Unlike most entries in the Castlevania series, players will spend half the game exploring regions outside of the Dread Lord's Castle. Shanoa will trudge through forests, valleys, and a couple of mysterious mansions. It's somewhat of a tribute to Simon's Quest. Shame there wasn't a Bloody Tears remix or anything of that sort. Anyway, her main goal is the Dominus, but Shanoa should also keep an eye out for the villagers of Wygol, who are imprisoned throughout the land. Rescuing everyone is required to even visit Dracula's Castle and they'll provide side-quests with some pretty nice rewards. All in all, if you like action and adventure, then this is a must-play.
Thanks for reading the short review! Stick around if you want something a bit meatier.
Right then, so one of the many existential crises that I'm currently grappling with is whether or not I actually love Metroidvanias. I mean sure I enjoy them, who doesn't? The effortless blend of platforming and exploration. The thrill of acquiring new powers. The maddeningly addictive cycle of returning to previous areas to reach items that I couldn't reach before. It's all... fine. Just fine. However, I've started to notice that I'm not making time in my schedule for them. On the occasion that I actually finish a Metroidvania, it's because I'm working on a review of it. A surprising number of play-throughs sputter out after a few hours. I have Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown lying around somewhere, hardly played. After Zero Mission, the last Metroid I remember playing was the fan remake AM2R. However, with as little effort as it takes to roll out of bed, I'll replay a Igavania. You've seen as much in a handful of my most recent reviews.
By Igavania, I'm of course referring to the games produced by Koji Igarashi. That dude has the magic touch, I have to admit. Granted, the exploratory and platforming aspects often take a backseat, but I adore the wealth of weapons, abilities, and subsystems. The games also tend to have natural control schemes as well as a hefty amount of movement tech. If you're the kind of person that prefers back-dashing over plain ol' running forward, then these games were made for you. I sincerely believe that the extra effort to wring out a small yet noticeable increase in speed adds to the engagement factor. Another example is the first 3D Ninja Gaiden. Ryu's running speed is fine for what it is, but alternating between hops and rolls is a wave of hooks digging into my flesh like something out of Hellraiser. It shouldn't feel good, but yet it feels amazing. Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia is no different. Hitting the L button causes Shanoa to perform a backflip, which functions exactly like a back-dash. The R button summons the Glyph attached to her back. With the right timing, players can cancel out of the backflip with R and then immediately resume, causing the heroine to move significantly faster. Now I must reiterate that the timing is tight, but executing it perfectly is like landing innumerable shoryukens in a row.
Getting in the way of the perpetual backflip machine are a menagerie of monsters, taking every size and shape that you'd expect to see in a gothic horror game. They're also exponentially more dangerous than in prior installments. For starters, I don't think I've ever seen an enemy do less than double-digit damage. Every hit is significant. The trade-off is that Shanoa also hits extremely hard. As long as she's striking her adversary's weakness, they won't live long enough to do much or any damage. This however is limited by two factors, a small MP pool and a mostly situational selection of attack glyphs. MP functions a lot like stamina. Each use of a glyph, whether its equipped to Shanoa's left arm, right, or back, costs a portion. It quickly replenishes but doesn't support prolonged assaults. That's fine, since players will likely need those moments of rest to avoid an enemy's counterattack. Resistances play a much more substantial role here as well, as most adversaries are only weak to slashing weapons, or fire, or one of a handful of other attributes. There's going to be a lot of glyph swapping. It reminds me a bit of Vagrant Story with all of the different weapon types, but with a much friendlier UI.
In time, Shanoa's limited arsenal and MP will become mere afterthoughts. This is best exemplified by Nitesco, one of the attack glyphs found shortly after entering Dracula's Castle. It's a purple laser with great reach that cuts through anything weak to holy or fire. Maybe this wouldn't be a big deal in a science-fiction game, but in a Castlevania where 3/4ths of the population are undead? Yeah, it's a crazy weapon. Like most other glyphs, Shanoa can dual-wield them for double the damage output. Also, certain glyph combinations produce special techniques performed with up + attack button. These moves cost hearts and are best saved for boss battles. Pairing Nitesco with a sword creates a lightsabre. By this point, you've likely found some INT-boosting gear. Throw on a death ring and you're an instant glass cannon. Now point that lightsabre at the nearest boss and laugh as it dies pitifully. For me, one of the highlights of an Igavania is turning the protagonist into a force of nature, so this is an absolute treat.
Now if you can believe it, there's more to this game than killing bosses with comically overpowered weapons. Large chunks of the adventure will be spent navigating platform challenges. These often utilize the Magnes glyph, which lets Shanoa grab onto metal bolts to sling herself onto high ledges or over spike beds. It's a neat feature but feels a little underutilized. While there is an optional challenge area packed with difficult Magnes-related jumps, not enough of the main game puts this method of traversal to serious work. It would've been neat if the heroine had to contend with more obstacles while jumping around, such as bone pillars or flying skeletons. A couple rooms that contain crows or medusa heads aren't enough. Still, as far as complaints go, a somewhat underutilized feature is not something I can really dwell on.
Though Shanoa eventually becomes all-powerful, Order of Ecclesia surprisingly doesn't suffer from "reverse-difficulty". The bosses only get tougher as the game progresses, culminating with a Dracula who doesn't mess around once he quits his teleporting schtick. The Hard mode is also much more substantial than just a stat-boost. Early areas receive a heaping influx of enemies, making the normally serene trips through the forest soul-wrenching nightmares. I never realized just how much I missed the double jump when I tried navigating through a swarm of medusa heads, all capable of knocking out Shanoa with a touch. The difficulty eases up slightly once several upgrades are obtained, but players can apply more pressure on themselves by lowering the level-cap. It's that kind of challenge that grows with the player and lends the game an impressive level of replay-value.
Now, I'd like to draw your attention to The OoE+ Improvement Hack. The purpose of this romhack is that it fixes the whopping two flaws in the entire game. First, it boosts the rate at which Shanoa obtains attribute points. Attribute points are earned by killing enemies with the specific attribute. The idea is that if you use a lot of ice glyphs, then your ice attacks will become stronger. The execution is that you'd have to slaughter a thousand monsters to see an appreciable effect. With this hack, that thousand becomes a couple hundred or so. Secondly, but no less importantly, is that drop-rates have increased. In this game, many of the quest items are obtained from the fresh corpses of monsters. Problem is that the rates are so low you could farm the same creature for a long time and have nothing to show for it. That's also been fixed. Indeed, drop-rates across the board are much higher than before, but not to the point where farming becomes unnecessary.
While everybody has their favorites, I believe Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia is the most rock-solid all-around great Igavania in the series. What it lacks in build variety, it makes up for in raw difficulty. Pros are granted a multitude of options that'll make their adventure extra spicy. Struggling players can rely on ultra-powerful weapon combinations and generous healing items. Learning the movement tech provides an additional layer of depth. It's a rewarding game in many ways.
Give it a replay whenever you can.
No comments:
Post a Comment