More of the same...
But the truth is that this game is no different from SOTN like series and it has NOTHING to do with classic Castlevania's. Yeah it has locations, but that's all. There is a minimap for each. There is also a town, which you bring rescued citizens and do quests for them, which could seem innovative and entertaining. Unfortunately it is not, as the quests often require that you kill a monster 100.000 times until it drops the item you need, which is frustrating.
About the game itself and the gameplay, I guess it's fine. It has nothing special. Just you don't use weapons, you equip glyphs to fulfill that task. Two slots for 3 combinations possible. While it could be unique, you will have to access the menu multiple times to realocate glyphs as each one is useless against some type of monsters. The third glyph is either a self-buff, a useless summon or a field ability that lets you get to some places. Again, it is annoying to suddenly having to switch to the "magnetic" glyph because if not you don't make progress. I know that you needed to change "souls" in Aria / Dawn of Sorrow at certain times but it was rare. To be forced to access the menu so often is annoying. In SOTN you are able to do ALL your special attacks and magic, transformations etc without accessing the menu. You only have to access to change your minion or change gear. THAT is called "swift" gameplay.
The graphics are good but nothing special I tell you. Music is okay I guess.
About its famous difficulty, it is true. You will die a lot, at least in your first playthrough, almost on every boss, as they are able to one-shot you if you are not prepared with the right glyphs / gear or simply kill you because you have no idea which is the strategy. I admit i liked the bosses, as you need to learn the strategy, but some of them are irritating. Anyway you can access the menu and drink potions to survive.
As for the story and the main character... I rofl when I read reviews saying that the game has a great story and a charismatic protagonist. None of that is true. The story is no better than Castlevania 1 NES, as all roads get you to Dracula. You are nothing but a sorceress tasked to gather Dominus force from a frustrated thief of your organization. Then there is a twist and Dracula resurrects... OMG Original !!!!!!!!!111 and then you have to go to Dracula castle to kill him.
As for Dracula Castle... I was disapointed it was really short and easy to make progress on it, as you have almost all your abilities when you get to it. Only a few bosses on it...
So, to sum up, the game is challenging because of its difficulty. But it is NOT innovative and definitely not the best Castlevania ever made as some people claim. It is completely overrated. I don't understand why. I think you won't miss anything for not playing it, really.