Games To Dust
A Weekly Look Into Video Game Culture From A Casual Point Of View
By: Bren Inou
My Shanoa!
Castlevania: Order Of Ecclesia for the Nintendo DS. Now I know I have mentioned this game before in previous artcilces, But for some reason I never reviewed it. With no new games to play I thought it would be a great time to give my opinion on my favorite game. The game stars Shanoa, a young female warrior of the church of Ecclesia. A group dedicated to doing research and development into the powers of gylphs which Shanoa can use to destroy Dracula. To sum up the story…Shanoa needs to destroy Dracula and save the world from his eternal darkness. Anyone who has played any of the previous Nintendo DS Castlevania games will be back in familiar water. Just run around each area, kill a bunch of monsters and defeat the end boss to move on. You need to level up which I highly recommend you do a lot, I was level. 54 when I finished the game for the first time so its about where you should be before facing Dracula (My opinion anyway).
With dipping back into the 2-D Action/Adventure/Role-Playing Game well that Konami has yet to cap off with this series. The gameplay still holds up really well. The game has plenty of action and some of the toughest boss battles I have ever seen and thats probably one of the few complaints I really do have about the game. The boss battles are tough since its not just about knowing enemy weakness and which weapons work best. But also about counter attacks and quick reversals. Trying to beat the bosses without taking any damage to win the “Boss Medals” is a challenge yes, but unless your an expert at this game some of the later boss fights seem just too difficult to win without taking even a point of damage.
The games best point in my mind is the story telling. Shanoa’s journey has more then a few plot twists to it and seeing how Shanoa interacts with the villagers she rescues and how she reacts to Albus really gives her a stand out above the cookie-cutter personality. The way Shanoa talks is just awesome and her over all appearence is totally awesome and beautiful proving Shanoa has both beauty and power. Speaking of power, Shanoa does not need to have weapons in the traditonal sense. Her weapons come in the form of magical glyphs that she gains through out her mission. These glyphs can become powerful swords, Axes, and even elemental magic type attacks. The artwork is really amazing and a total breath of fresh air when compaired to other Castlevania DS games in my mind. Even the short video that plays before the title screen is just stunning in not only the animation but the still art really stands out. Awesome job on the artwork. Whoever did the art for the game should get a raise!
Another really big point of interest is the games music. In my mind it is one of the best in the entire DS library of games. The music certainly fits the mood of the overall game and compliments the well balanced gameplay and fine art direction. It is this detail that even I can appreciate the music and voice work, The actress that provided Shanoa’s voice did a fantastic job. The director and the rest of the development team at Konami did an above and beyond job with this game and hope to see another adventure with Shanoa soon.
But with even such a beautiful game comes well…imperfections. This comes in the disguise as the games multiplayer modes. First is race mode. All you do is race an opponent from start to finish. You battle monsters and climb and jump over obstacles along the way but for the most part its just a simple race. Then there is shop mode where you can buy and sell your goods to other players in hopes of gaining more gold or better items.
Another difficult spot was trying to find all the villagers. The villagers are well hidden through out many of the areas in the game prior to your battle with Albus. If you don’t rescue all the villagers after you fight Albus, you recieve the games bad ending and will not be aloud to enter Dracula’s Castle. Some of the villagers also offer some of the most tedious side quests ever. This can really bring the game down a level. Thank goodness that only rescuing the villagers are required to get the good ending and not having to complete the side tasks they give you (Don’t these people care about the fact Shanoa has to defeat Dracula?)
Besides a few minor details in side quests and a shallow multiplayer mode. Castlevania: Order Of Ecclesia really is one of those games that makes owning a Nintendo DS worth it for both the casual and the hardcore…Or maybe for those who enjoy a night of zombie slaying in a wedding dress.
I give Castlevania: Order Of Ecclesia a 4 out fo 5!
+ Awesome,Nonstop action game play mixed with role-playing elements.
+ Perfect presentation. Graphics, controls, gameplay and music by only the best.
+ Shanoa is truly one of the most awesome video game characters ever in my mind!
- The games multiplayer modes need to be more diverse. Co-op game play through the main game would have been cool.
- Can’t these villagers handle thier own problems? Annoying side quests.
- Death at the door. Some of the boss battles can be a little over whealming
See you all next week!
