Very exciting adventure though co-op and multiplay not all it was hyped up to be...
User Rating: 9.1 | Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin DS
To be fair I have always been into Castlevania, so when I heard another one was coming out I was excited. I've logged in 10 hours already, and I must say overall the game is quite excellent and proof of how quality always wins over graphics. The gameplay is quite excellent with plenty of action and little need to grind through low level enemies just to train up for boss battles. The sound is very good, with numerous speech lines by Jonathon and Charlotte, as well as various other characters and enemies. Plus the tried and true Castlevania music was rendered quite well here, with several classics and new tracks. Also the new idea of having two main characters that are switchable or available at the same time is quite innovative. My only problem with the nonactive character is that it can be hard to get them to attack with you, but that just encourages switching between characters. However, the multiplay and co-op were emphasized greatly in the previews, and just did not live up to my expectation. The shop is interesting but why should you buy items that you can get for free in the game? It is nice though to earn cash without losing items, as I was able to purchase several items in the game with cash I earned through shop mode. Likewise the co-op only has a few different courses and is not within the actual game but is similiar to boss rush mode, though quite challenging.
