/vr/ - Retro Games

>>2388438

Play Rondo before you play Symphony. Symphony is the sequel to Rondo. They make a nice duology.

>>2388439
ehh
rondo is good but you don't really NEED to play it first
Symphony is more fun imo because it's not as linear

>>2388443

Symphony and Rondo are the perfect gateways to the two kinds of Castlevania games.

>>2388438
Your pic is very much related, my friend.

>>2388439
>>2388443
Hmm, good thing I have my old PSP tucked away somewhere - or would you recommend the Wii port of Rondo? I don't have a TurboGrafx, unfortunately.

>>2388460
I've heard that the NES version isn't very good and has some incredibly difficult parts, requiring you to crouch down on some random wall while selecting an item, stuff like that. I think I might have gotten that idea from some ancient AVGN video I watched years ago, though.

>>2388438
1 is awesome, 3 is the same basic thing, 4 is more polished than its predecessors but a bit too easy, Bloodlines is cool but not as great as the others than I listed, Rondo of Blood is VERY highly regarded but I've never played it personally so I can't comment, and Symphony of the Night is a metroidvania if you're into that.

>>2388468
2 for NES is SHIT, but the other NES ones are excellent.

>>2388472
Just went back and checked out that early episode of AVGN, sounds like I was referencing 2 in my previous post (>>2388468).

So it looks like 1 > 3 > 4 > Rondo > Symphony of the Night is the way to go.

>>2388438
Start with SotN and if you enjoy it go back to the classic style Castlevania games. Try either Super Castlevania IV or Rondo of Blood.

>>2388476
are you trying to do a "save the best for last" type deal?

>>2388482
Not particularly. I wasn't sure of the quality of the NES games, but if 1 and 3 are highly regarded then I may as well work my way up. Would you recommend a different order?

Are all the game stories linked, or are some self-contained?

>>2388486
I'd only recommend that you start with the NES era ones only if you're used to the frustrating difficulty level that games had back then. Super Castlevania IV and Rondo of Blood are much more accessible if you want to start with the classic CV gameplay. I would still say SotN is the best one to start with though.

>>2388489
I'm with this guy

>>2388468

>PSP

I don't like the remake at all. Fairly ugly graphics.

>Wii

Yeah it's a nice port.

You could also go with Mednafen or another good PCE-CD emualtor.

My favorites of the series:

>III
>Bloodlines
>Rondo
>Symphony
>Aria

>>2388476
Sounds like a plan Stan

>>2388489
>>2388490
Awesome, I look forward to playing 1 and 3 (assuming I can finish the first one in time) this weekend.

>>2388496
Thanks for the heads up, Wii it is.

I think that pretty much answer all my questions, except for about the stories between linked or stand alone. Castlevania general, I guess?

>>2388489
>frustrating difficulty level that games had back then

How much of a pussy do you have to be to get "frustrated" by NES games? Seriously, that is some weak shit.

>>2388486
The NES games are spectacular.

>>2388515
it might not have been frustrating for you, but you certainly couldn't say it was easy
are you familiar with my friend the Medusa Head?
even SCIV was a pain in the ass sometimes
some people like a good challenge, though

>>2388518
4 is a cakewalk.

>>2388520
it was annoying sometimes, but yeah it was pretty easy relative to the NES ones
my point being that the NES ones were not easy, and people not used to NES difficulty probably would find them frustrating
if you grew up playing the likes of this and megman, of course you're probably gonna find every game easy
i know i do

You should start with the first one you total pleb
Castlevania is one of the best platformers of all time, missing it is like missing Mega Man, just worse

>>2388524
>just worse
well, I don't know if I'd go THAT far...

>>2388529
I used to think MMs were the pinnacle of platforming for NES, but I've changed my mind. I've gone through Castlevania about a dozen times, it's still amazingly fun and satisfying. Literally perfect game

>>2388535
I don't think there's any denying that Mario is the pinnacle of platforming on the NES

>>2388438
Pick your favorite platform and play the CV on it

There is no correct order, it doesn't matter, and almost all of them are very good so there's no way to predict what your favorite would be

>>2388535
The number of well thought out design decisions in that game is amazing. A number of the NES Mega Man games are similarly great.

ps. What the hell counts as bread captcha?! Give me like four bread choices and ask me to pick two sheesh!

>>2388562
The captchas are totally ridiculous. You get like a soup with some bread on the side that you have to squint to see

>>2388438
SotN->CV1->Akumajou Densetsu

you're welcome

>>2388523

The "IV is easy" meme has spread a lot.

I find Rondo of Blood easier than IV, and Bloodlines about the same. Yet most people say Bloodlines is harder than IV and that Rondo is a masterpiece.

I personally think they're all great, and difficulty shouldn't determine whether a game is better or worse.

If you want pure difficulty, go play the NES Castlevanias. Anyway if you want to get started on the series, the NES games are the way to go.

After that, I'd reccommend doing the 16 bit ones, IV, Bloodlines, Rondo of Blood, and Dracula X on the SNES if you want some challenge. To that, you can add the Sharp X68K Akumajou Dracula, which comes included with Castlevania Chronicles on PS if you can't emulate the Sharp X68K.

SOTN is good, but it's a spinoff, it plays vastly different than the real Castlevanias, there's a reason why they're called metroidvanias/igavanias, etc.

>>2388975
>The "IV is easy" meme has spread a lot.
>valid opinions that diagree with my own are memes
The world's smartest human being, ladies and gentlemen.

>>2388975
Next you'll tell me that the people that say Castlevania 4 is easy haven't played it because you can't fathom the idea of disagreeing with you so you'll just make assumptions instead.

>>2388981

But they aren't valid opinions, just parroting from e-celebs.

I'm not saying IV is hard, just that it isn't any easier than Rondo or Bloodlines are.

At any rate I agree with >>2388523

It's easy if you've already played the NES games, otherwise IV, Rondo or Bloodlines are a good introduction to the series (albeit i'd reccommend just starting with CV1)

Your passive-aggressiveness amuses me, either way. But yeah, you are the one who can't take other people's opinions, and probably aren't very smart at all, either.

>>2388975
I dare yo to name one part of Castlevania 4 that could be considered hard.

Elder God Tier:
Super Castlevania IV

High Tier:
Dracula's Curse
Bloodlines

Mid Tier:
Rondo of Blood
Adventure ReBirth
Sharp X68K/Chronicles
Belmont's Revenge
Castlevania
Dracula XX

Low Tier:
Legends
Simon's Quest

Shit Tier:
The Adventure

Beyond Shit Tier:
3D Castlevania

Metroid Tier:
Anything by IGA

>>2388986

But that's hugely subjective. I dare you to name one part from Bloodlines or Rondo that can be considered hard. I can 1cc all 3 games without losing a single life.

>>2388984
>But they aren't valid opinions, just parroting from e-celebs.
So whenever someone says something you disagree with, you automatically assume it's "parroting from an e-celeb" even thought you have no way of knowing whether they've played the game or not.
So, what's stopping me from making the same assumption that you've never played the game?

>>2388986

Stages A and B are pretty hard.
The cellar stage can be a bitch too.

>>2388520
If 4 were a cakewalk I wouldn't die to cheap stuff on the water level or the hexadecimal stages.

Bosses however were easy as piss.

>>2388989
>I dare you to name one part from Bloodlines or Rondo that can be considered hard.
I never even said they were so hard so I don't even know why you're asking that of me. Most Castlevania games are pretty easy, actually.

>>2388986
at least iv had a second loop

>>2388993
>>Bosses however were easy as piss.
HA HA I BET YOU NEVER PLAYED THE GAME STOP PARROTING ECELEBS YOU STUPID FAGGOT

>>2388995
>at least iv had a second loop
oh no you might have to fight one or two extra bats per stage or fight a skeleton that takes one more hit SO HARD

>>2388991

Of course people can think IV is easy, but then again, as I said, Rondo and Bloodlines are very easy too, compared to the NES games. And as I said, I find Rondo easier than IV. Still great games.

But really, the whole "IV is very easy, sub-weapons are useless" meme came from one youtuber, can't remember the name now, it's one guy who /v/ loves from game grumps?
Then there's also the backlash from AVGN, I think IV is one of his favorite 'vanias, right? so it's cool to hate it because AVGN is popular, etc.

But again, nothing wrong with people thinking IV is easy. it still doesn't make it a bad game, and surely Rondo is easier, yet people hold it as the holy grail because it was unavailable for 20 years to the west. (it is a pretty great game though)

>>2389003
ionno i never played it

>tfw nobody ever mentions the comfiest Castlevania game in CV threads

>>2388998

seems like I struck a nerve with the e-celeb stuff. Sorry if it hit you.

>>2389007

Noooo , that games sucks! it's too ez! EZ PC!

>>2389007
This is more of a shooter, isn't it?

>>2389015
more like megaman clone

Start with the original on NES. If you don't like it, play Symphony of the Night on Playstation. If you do, you will probably like almost every other pre-SOTN Castlevania game.

>>2388438
> PSX
How had this thread not derailed?

Also please don't overlook Aria of Sorrow just because it's on GBA

>>2388975
4 is a joke if you played any of the other games before, or just any platformer at that. Bloodlines at least has a decent hard mode with a better ending. Rondo is hard as balls by comparison.

>>2389076

I don't get it. Bloodlines and Rondo are very easy to me too.
None of the levels on Bloodlines or Rondo are as hard as Stages A and B from IV, for example.
Then again, the bosses on IV are indeed pretty easy except for maybe Slogra. Rondo has harder bosses, but the stages themselves are easy and short. Not even having into account Maria, if you play as her, the whole game is probably the easiest Castlevania ever, bosses included.

Again, I'm not saying IV is hard, but the other 2 aren't hard either. That's what I don't get when people only criticize IV for being hard and not the other 2.

>>2389084

>That's what I don't get when people only criticize IV for being hard and not the other 2.

IV is the most popular of the 16 bit games, that's why.

I personally like them all, don't get why people try to get "hardcore credit" by saying this or that game isn't as good because it's easy or whatever.
As you say, Rondo of Blood and Bloodlines are also easy (compared to the NES games) but still amazing games, nobody should miss any of the 16 bit castlevanias.

>>2388975
I find CV1 the easiest Classicvania (excluding the cheap Death fight). It's so short and predictable compared to the others.

>>2389115

You may be onto something.

But yeah, it's nice that we all can have different opinions, I'm sick of hearing people say only IV is easy, when I find Rondo of Blood even easier, and they STILL are great games.

>>2389065
Indeed. Aria is my personal favorite Metroidvania.

>>2388438
Ive always found Castlevania 3 to be a lot more fun and challenging than the Original Castlevania.
but if you dirge something different from the classic action/adventure game, play symphony of the night.

>>2388975
Even as a kid, Castlevania 4 was a real dissapointment when i first played it.
I mean at the time i looked at Contra 3, Super Mario World and A link to the past, and i thought man they dont just look better they play better! and when i played Castlevania IV i was pretty much expecting a Castlevania 3 follow up, with the intensity, difficulty and great art style, basically i was expecting Rondo of Blood.

>>2389147
Also, the enmies in Castlevania 4 are boring as fuck, even the effects when you hit them feels boring.

>>2389147
Rondo of Blood had some of the most boring and uninspired levels in classicvania, even more so than 4. What intensity or difficulty are you talking about? If anything Bloodlines is closer to being a Castlevania 3 successor.

>>2389147

But Rondo of Blood isn't as intense or difficult as 3 was. I can see where you're coming from with the art style though. Rondo has that NES Castlevania art style with more detailed sprite work and a broader color palette. I still love IV's baroque, overcharged art style, though.

>>2389151

Really? I love how skeletones just explode, both the animation and sound effect.

I always prefered Rondo > Bloodlines > IV

>>2389162
I found Rondo levelsmore itneresting than Castlevania IV, i mean the first levels in IV are a fucking barn with pony heads and a swamp with dirtman things,by intensity i mean the game plays faster, like in the NES games, castlevania IV has a slower overall pace.
>>2389164
Yeah Rondo is not as difficult as Castlevania 3, but it has the alternate routes.

>>2389172
X68k > Rondo > Bloodlines > IV
They're all good though.

>>2389175
oh def just figured i'd bring Bloodlines into the discussion while on the subject of classicvanias

>>2389174
I'm not talking about the theme of the levels but the layout. Rondo of Blood feels like you're moving through very flat areas with little to no verticality or complex platforming. When it comes to level design it feels closer to a metroidvania game than classic Castlevania.

>>2389174
Does anyone else hate the "alternate routes" bullshit in 3 and RoB? I'd rather just play through every stage in one playthrough, a la 1 or 4.

>>2389174

The first 2 levels in IV are easy, but still not boring IMO. There's enemies everywhere and the ghost horse heads are awesome, you're in a stable after all.
And yeah, Rondo has alternate routes and all, but you figure in the end the amount of sheer levels is about the same in IV and Rondo. Not counting that Rondo's levels are very short and stage 6 is a boss rush stage.

IV starts easy, then gets proggressively harder toward the end. Stages 3, 4, 6 kind of feel like traditional 'vania to me, difficulty-wise. Stage 5 is short and more like a transitional stage so I don't count it, although it has the annoying harpy enemies and it introduces the whip qielding skeletons.
And then you get to stages like the cellar, the treasury and the last 2, and IMO those are harder than any level from Rondo, and harder than most levels in Bloodlines.

>>2389175

X68K>Dracula X>Bloodlines=IV>Rondo of Blood

>>2389181
Yeah, at least there's a stage select cheat.

>>2389147
>>2389151
Yeah, Super Castlevania IV is still good but it definitely feels like more of a technical showpiece for the SNES.

Guys, I can't beat IV without using a continue.

It bothers me because I know the game is (mostly) easy, and I can 1cc Castlevania I, Dracula's Curse, RoB and Bloodlines, but not IV.
I don't know, I lose too many lives in stupid ways and I can't help it. Stage 8's final part takes up most of my lives, these fucking floating platforms that disappear.
Then the bosses before Dracula rape me badly. Not Death, not even the flying guy... it's the bird-like guy with the spear. I can't seem to find a way to beat him without getting hit once his spear is gone, he will always do that annoying AS FUCK dive move, sometimes he does it repeatedly and doesn't give you time to jump. The fact he also is invincible for a few seconds after you hit him also makes it probably one of the hardest bosses I've encountered in the series.

For a game that's generally said to be the easiest in the series, I'm impressed, and right now kind of mad.

I'm also working my way on 1cc'ing Dracula X and 68k, but first I wanted to complete IV, but nope, can't. At this rate I'll do the other two first.

>>2390414
play the others first while you're still motivated
your not gonna suddenly lose all your skill just because you took a 2 week break

>>2390414

Slogra is one tough motherfucker. I hate him.

Once his spear gets destroyed and he starts doing that diving attack, you need to be as far from him as possible, and try to hit him before he reaches you. You gotta be fast.
Then again, as you say, sometimes he will go full berserk and do the dive attack right when he lands, and do it repeatedly. The AI seems to be all over the place during that boss fights.
Definitely a formidable boss. Good luck.

>>2390416
>>2390427

I guess I'll use a password to practise against him. No point in investing another 1+ hour just to ge slayed by him. There's got to be a way to beat him without getting hit.

castlevania 1
castlevania 3
Super castlevania 4
Rondo of blood
castlevania X

those are the classics that are just action plataformers, the rest start the metroidvania stuff and add rpg elements

>>2390446
you mean dracula x or the x68k game?

>>2388438
Why the original for the NES of course

>>2390414
Its just timing dude, it helps a lot that the game is kinda slow. ive beated it without continues

>>2388496
While the psp remake hasn't got extremely nice graphics, you can unlock both the original Rondo of Blood and SotN in It, for him it would be quite a good chance to get both

>>2388438
At least play the first game first. Maybe some of the others, Rondo being obvious. You don't have to finish them or anything, just play a few levels and know what the basic gameplay is like. Then you'll get the proper feeling when using Richter at the start of Symphony and realise just how different the game is.

The first Castlevania is so short, with short levels, unlimited continues and its easy to cheese. Its one of these games were every inch is just classic though. You can finish it probably in a few hours tops.

>>2388476
Don't miss out bloodlines it's amazing.

Might be too late but:

1 (NES)>3 (Famicom, for superior audio)>4 (SNES)>Rondo (PC Engine CD)>Bloodlines (Genesis)>SotN (PS, don't know much about the Saturn version.)

If you absolutely must play 2 I recommend the Redacted hack.

Just played through Super Castlevania IV the other day, wasn't really impressed with it. I mean, it was good, but it didn't stand out from its competition the way Castlevania III on the NES did. And its difficulty was way tuned down from the earlier games, not sure if that was intentional or just an effect of the vastly improved controls.

The only other Castlevania games I've played were 1/2/3 on the NES and a couple of the way later handheld ones.

I really liked Simon's Quest. I say give it a try and form your own opinion on it

>>2395995
lol no AVGN said it sucked

Is there a franchise where it isn't a good idea to start with the first game? The only ones I can really think of are Street Fighter and Hitman.

>>2388975
>SOTN is good, but it's a spinoff

It's a direct sequel, just because it changed the core mechanics doesn't make it a spinoff. Something like the original Gameboy Castlevania games would be considered spinoffs.

>>2388474
This is overused and dead wrong. I swear the only people who say this have just been indoctrinated into saying so.
>>2388486
>Would you recommend a different order?
Play 1, then 2 and then 3 Or play 1, then 3 and then 2. It's nice that you haven't played the NES games in a way. You have the opportunity to ignore what everyone says about Simon's Quest and see how you like it for yourself. Here's a quick summary of 2 compared to 1 and 3:
>more and better whips
>more and better weapons
>non-linear (if you want to only be able to move forward, play SMB)
>puzzles
>inventory
>it has a story, dialog, password function, vast map...
I can go on but the rest is just opinion...the only things that can be argued is that the weapons and whips are better. Play for yourself with a walkthrough. If you don't like it you probably won't like Bloodlines or any of the other non-linear Castlevania titles that were intended for older audiences that wanted more than a walk-to-the-right-all-fucking-day side-scroller. There's only so long you can play 1 and 3 before it just becomes Mario with a whip. Most of the things people didn't like about Castlevania (linear, repetitive, lack of weapon and whip options, lack of difficulty variation throughout levels and so on) weren't issues in 2.
>>2388515
>The NES games are spectacular.
>Games
>all 3
Agreed.

>>2396297
>This is overused and dead wrong. I swear the only people who say this have just been indoctrinated into saying so.
No, the game just isn't very good. Even if you're on board with its arcane elements and the fundamental premise of the game you're left with truly awful level design and dull, thoughtless enemies.

Yes, people should play the game and come to their own conclusion on it, and surely AVGN's and the game's bad reputation aren't doing the game any favors in attracting people, but come on.

Then again, you also describe 1 and 3 as "Mario with a whip." So maybe you're just fucking clueless after all.

>>2396314
>awful
>dull
>mario with a whip
If you want to leave opinion out of it altogether and just talk facts you can refer back to my greentext list of reasons that 2 at the very least gives 1 and 3 heavy competition. As I said before, just ignore the two times I said "and better" in the greentext and you've got simple facts, all of which most people would agree are generally pros.

>>2396134

Yeah, but supposedly IGA treated it as a spinoff because it's "Akumajou Dracula X". Story-wise is not a spinoff, but gameplay-wise it is.
Anyway IGA kind of didn't thought too much about it since Rondo is also "Dracula X" and it's a classicvania, but whatever.

>>2396331
They're only pros in-and-of-themselves if you subscribe to the most vapid of design philosophy of "more is better"--which is the underlying fault of Simon's Quest.

>>2388518
Medusa heads are at least for the first loop a bit overrated as difficult enemies. They repeat the exact same pattern so it's all about mindset and not letting yourself get taken in by their swaying motion.

And if you don't feel like putting this into your muscle memory, the holy bottle is the overpowered all-solution to the first CV. The arc of the medusa's makes them almost always pass through the bottle fire, and it's a cheap weapon to spam in medusa halls (also, stunlocks bosses)

tl;dr if you think CV is too hard you should get smart and keep the bottle through the whole game. Cross is useless by comparison.

>>2388975
>If you want pure difficulty, go play the NES Castlevanias.

Let's go further on the difficulty spectrum. Go play Haunted Castle in MAME.

Before any of ya nerds complain it's unfair go and play one of the Japanese revisions. The difficulty balance is night and day, and frankly the Japan revision is on the easy side of arcade games (still tougher than any console CV).

It's pretty cool in how the Hammer horror influences are clearer than on consoles from the time, though it's nowhere close to being the best CV.

>>2396684
Haunted Castle is HARD AS FUCK

CV1 is very good. Barebones but gets the job well done.
CV2 i'm simply not a big fan of, but it has it's share of fans.
CV3 is basically CV1 but far more complex, it's the best of the NES trilogy.
SCV4 is pretty good, but like others have said, very easy.
Rondo is probably the best overall.
Dracula X is a guilty pleasure of mine, it has a couple of flaws but that aside it's a very solid game.
Bloodlines is my personal favorite after CV3.
Game Boy games are okay, Simon's Revenge is the better one of the three.

Those are all the ones i've played, not counting Aria of Sorrow which is not retro.

CV2 is the first one I played and I loved it. It was one of those games that everyone talked about at school before walkthroughs were easily accessible. That was just part of the culture back then, probably my favorite thing about those days, you heard that gem of a secret or next move and couldn't wait to get home to play.
>you gotta kneel down for 5 seconds at the lake with the blue crystal on!
By the time I got to the Grim Reaper I felt like I Had to play the first one.
I was really let down. There were no crystal or garlic secrets, no Catholics selling cool whips (no currency system in general), no map to navigate with multiple stretches of land upon multiple levels . I got used playing a game where I had to safely find a town with a church and talk to the priest to heal, and jumped into a game that has plates of food hidden in walls to restore energy, like hidden bricks with 1-UPs. By the time I got to level 3 I realized nothing was really changing, long walks to a boss with no inventory and no fun secrets or challenges to go out of my way for. When I died there was no saving my position or progress. I was so sadly let down. CV3 came out, I excitedly waited for it to be on the rental shelf at the video store we went to, rented and played it. I naively thought it was going to take on and further progress the elements of CV2 but it took that big step back and played out just like CV1, just harder on my eyes ("better graphics").
Maybe it's because I played CV2 first or maybe it's because I liked rpgs with big maps and exploration options at the time but I have always thought that it was the best of the NES titles. I like them all and honestly play 1 the most but 2 is still my favorite out of all of the CVs.

>>2396297
>I swear the only people who say this have just been indoctrinated into saying so
You think people who dislike Castlevania 2 are part of some secret cabal? Some conspiracy that exists solely to piss you off? That sure is some ego you have there.

I like Castlevania 2, and it gets way more hate than it deserves, but you come off as a complete pretentious faggot. You want weapon variety? Find a stout bullwhip and hang yourself with it.

Daily reminder that nonlinear design is a cop-out used by developers who have no idea how to make a good game.

Metroid sucks. Igavanias suck. Most RPG's suck (except for roguelikes like Nethack, which are fairly linear in their design; getting the hint?)

The great thing about Castlevania 1 and 3 is that there's only one thing stopping anyone from beating it: Skill. Your skill is the only factor that determines whether you live or die. You don't have the option of grinding for ten hours, or combing a labyrinth of corridors in search of the +10 Longsword of I-have-no-life. If boggles my brain that there are actually people who think Shitphony of the Night is a better game than Rondo or Bloodlines.

>muh exploration
>muh immersion
"Immersion" is for manchildren. If you need your video games to simulate a world, to be more than just a simple game, you're pathetic. You want exploration? Why don't you take up jogging, you couch potatoes.

>>2398414
Fuck off nigger, people have different tastes.

>>2398414
Fuck off, don't ruin Mabel with your funposting.

I like pretty much every Castlevania.

Castlevania: the Adventure wasn't very fun (solved pretty well by the sequel and the remake), and Legends is entirely forgettable (ha!), and Lords of Shadow went straight to hell and killed the franchise, but Castlevania as a franchise in general is pretty strong even at its weakest points.

The argument between the "classic" style and the "IGA" style never really made any sense to me. Igarashi's first Castlevania was Bloodlines, pretty classic-style; that's a fairly strong debut for being considered a B-team. And Symphony of the Night pulling the rug out from under Castlevania 64 was nothing but good - though Legacy of Darkness solves most complaints I had about 64.

The PS2 Castlevanias get more shit than they deserve; they're strange, but the soundtracks alone were worth the admission fee; probably the best in the franchise.

Altogether, it's sad to see it go. It deserved better than to be ghettoed into the handheld realm and then shopped out to a western developer. Maybe Igarashi's latest venture will rekindle those feelings of mine.

>>2398501
>Lords of Shadow went straight to hell and killed the franchise
Why do people keep saying this? I'm not even a fan of those games but let's not pretend the series was experiencing some kind of renaissance prior to them, and let's not pretend the Castlevania franchise hasn't seen far shittier games--because it has.

I don't like the games (I'm not sure I'd call them outright garbage or anything but I'm not enthusiastic about them), but their status as scapegoat is extremely juvenile. The Lords of Shadow series was three games with middling success, not the bogeyman.

For fuck's sake Lords of Shadow 2 just came out last year and we got ReBirth at the very end of 2009. It hasn't been that long ago. Chill the fuck out.

Even if the series is dead, it's not any deader than it was before Lords of Shadow happened.

>guyse which castlevania should i play first?
I don't know, how about the FIRST one?

Stupid question, the answer should be common sense.

>>2398501
A Casltevania 3 Remake is all i want, with HD sprites and Symphony/Rondo of blood Art Style.

I like how even the hardest classvanias are still really fair, not like fucking Battletoads, Ghost'n Goblins or any limited continues game.

>>2399205
I find Castlevania trial and error at some points, yet still teaches you. Fuck the trial and error aspect.

And Battletoads is not a good game. It's like intensely dark chocolate. It has elements that make it good, but it's bitter as shit.

>>2399242
Limited continues combined with trial and error is just pure fucking sadistic shit.

>>2399242
I only think Castlevania is trial and error with the bosses, if anything. For the most part you're much better off if you just try to learn and understand the game's philosophy as opposed to just brute forcing it with repetition.

Any trial and error aspects that exist are very negligible in the best games in the series.

I'm not really fussed with Igarashi's new project, but I do like how it's spawned so many CV threads lately.