Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night

Right when I started this game, I felt at home. It is basically a combination of the best the Castlevania series has to offer. You won't encounter any groundbreaking new mechanics, but a refinement of what made the series great. The 'souls' from the Aria/Dawn of Sorrow games make a re-appearance as 'shards' and the familiars from Symphony of the Night do too. There is a crafting system, the well known treasure hunt all across the map and lots of nerdy references to other games (including Shovel Knight). If you liked those three games, you will love this one. The story doesn't offer any big surprises either, but it is well written and the atmosphere of the game draws you right in. But a serious warning: it is hard to stop playing, once you have started! "I will get that shard!", "I just need some more of that resource", "I'll just have a look how the next section looks like..." - and suddenly it's 4 am. The one caveat is one that is shared by most 'vanias: if you do explore everything and obtain the best gear and fully leveled shards, the game becomes quite easy. But still it is fun to rush through those formerly terrifying enemies at ease while hunting that elusive last secret. So, if you are a 'vania fan or want to become one, get this game!

I'll keep it as short as possible. Dev promised support for Mac and Linux, changed their mind, and didn't offer refunds when requested (outright ignored messages). You've had a great launch, and the two communities you ditched are relatively small as to minimally change your bottom line. You could have done the right thing and refunded the game. I'm disappointed in the Dev for not working with backers who supported your work and for grossly misunderstanding the social contract aspect of kickstarter (yes, devs are to blame as much as backers here), and I'm disappointed in the gamers who turn a blind eye to this behavior.

I have no complaints! :-O I know, it's weird...... The gameplay is solid and fun. The music is good. The graphics are pretty. The story is involved and the characters are unique. Anyway if you like to explore, get powered up, collect lots of stuff and kick ass then this is a fun game for you! The only thing I am hesitant about is the full price. I waited till it was on sale to buy it; it was worth the wait!

Review based on the PS version (don't think there's any difference) Game difficulty is quite flexible : so not too easy not too hard for a first playthrough Story : Is o, nothing really bad nor very good. Mechanics : excellent - one of the very good point of the game, even during the first play through the protagonist could be played like you want, Exploration : good - another good point (there is somewhat an incentive to fully each area and you should) Game replay : After finishing the game : you have the option to play some others characters unlocked during the 1st playthrough. It changes totally how to play the game. & extend the lifetime of the game. The game is better and more accessible than i expected . Hope this little review helps.

Yup, you're looking at that for completionists. Graphics: 90/100 [The blend of 2D+3D graphics is excellent for a metroidvania styled game. The characters facial expressions and body animations during cutscenes are stiff and could use a lot of improvement]. Gameplay: 100/100 [Very addictive and fun]. Story: 40/100 [The game lacks a proper narrative and has little character development. These four points represent the merit of the setting as a whole as well as the world's overall creativity, both of which were great.] Art: 95/100 [Bloodstained features stunning scenarios, several character customization options and excellent weapon and item designs. The lack of armor variety is disappointing, though.] Level design: 85/100 [Exploring the map feels great. However, levels could have been bigger and more varied]. Absence of technical issues: 90/100 [Bloodstained has a small memory leak if you play it for several hours straight and some barely noticeable performance issues when using some shard powers. No game-breaking glitches were encountered]. Soundtrack: 80/100 [Bloodstained has a great soundtrack, but a few repetitive and out of place tunes keep it from deserving musical excellency.] Overall score: 580/7 = (82/100). Definitely worth a full price purchase.