Bloodstained Ritual of the Night Metroidvania Review - Soulsborne Seeker

[@soulsborneseeker]

Apologies for the release date blunder. I meant to say "Summer of 2019" instead of "2021" 😱

[@1Synner]

Gotta ask, have you tried some of the Alt. Characters? My personal favorite was the secret "BLOODLESS" character, where you play as the titular boss that's locked in the tower. Her gameplay actually transformes the game into a true Metroid-like title and feels very different to Miriam's gameplay.

[@soulsborneseeker]

@@1Synner I haven't tried them yet, but Bloodless was the one recommended to me by some Bloodstained veterans! They told me you have to name your profile Bloodless to get her, so I'll be trying her out!

[@1Synner]

@@soulsborneseeker Make sure you capitalize all the letters (you can change the name after you have her character profile). But yes, she's an amazing character. Also, she has a neat little easter egg to her. Because her dress is literally made of blood mana, you can actually change her color by changing the blood color in the options menu.

[@soulsborneseeker]

@@1Synner Awesome, thanks for letting me know!

[@paxhumana2015]

@@1Synner , personally, I gravitate towards Aurora because, once she gets to Level 20, she is nigh unstoppable. Yes, she does not have as many attacks as the other characters in the game, nor can she use other weapons, any sub weapons, any armor, she cannot visit stores, and she has far fewer familiars than Miriam, but she hits like a freight train, plus she can use her ultimate form to both swim, as well as fly, indefinitely, which makes her FAR better than anyone else in those regards, plus she is the only true flight capable playable character in the game. I hear that there is going to be a fifth playable character that is going to be released soon, though, so I am saying what I am saying with some caveats.

[@StarlitSophie]

this was a great game but can't help but agree- the graphics could've benefited a lot from an HD 2d sprite art direction. or even pixel art style like the spinoffs. also really felt like miriam ran wayy too slowly, like she was daintily prancing rather than --running-- at least without using the black panther soul.

[@soulsborneseeker]

Agreed! They could have done a much better job with the visuals and animations, and I do agree that maybe a more pixelated art-direction could have been a better choice, considering that the spin-offs were very well-received!

[@Choom2077]

I agree about the running animation. Right from boot, I noticed it and felt a bit turned off by it. It's not dynamic looking.

[@Leo___________]

Many people have complained about the graphics being simplistic, but I ran the game flawlessly at 1080p with max settings on my IGP. I think this is an achievement on it's own instead of expecting a new Crysis.

[@soulsborneseeker]

I didn't mind the graphics, I actually found them to be quite nostalgic! I do think, however, that they could have done a better job on some of the animations.

[@qlewds]

Wow thanks for the review. I’ve been on the fence with this one… I just can’t get over the graphics. I’m not even a graphics guy, but this one hits a weird uncanny valley feel for me. I’d probably prefer it if the graphics were worse as weird as that sounds. I’m glad you liked it though and appreciate your commentary!

[@soulsborneseeker]

Thank you for watching! If more retro-graphics are your thing, there's also Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon, kind of a spin-off to this game. Check it out!

[@qlewds]

@@soulsborneseeker yea that has a better aesthetic in my opinion. I think I’m going to sink my teeth into moonscars, I enjoyed your review of it!

[@soulsborneseeker]

@@qlewds Have fun with it!

[@soulsborneseeker]

@@TrueRandomization They could have definitely done a better job about the visuals!

[@supercosmonut647]

Big fan of Sotn. def checking this out! ty!

[@soulsborneseeker]

Very much inspired by SotN! You'll probably like it!

[@nanite97]

This was a really good review, thanks 😊

[@soulsborneseeker]

Thank you for the compliment! Glad you enjoyed it!

[@jaketaylor5376]

I have to say. I am somewhat new to the Castlevania series I've only ever played two Dracula's curse on the NES years ago as well as Curse of Darkness would this be a good game to play to get back into the Castlevania franchise.

[@soulsborneseeker]

This is a bit different than those initial Cstlevania games in that it is an Igavania, a kind of unofficial term that started with the Castlevania: Symphony of the Night title created by Koji IGA Igarashi. It was the first game in the series to introduce a large map to explore with ability gates (as far as I can remember). I'd recommend Symphony of the Night to get back into it, it's an incredible game! If you enjoy that, then follow up with Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, since it is kind of a spiritual successor!

[@The_GamingMagpie]

Apologies if I missed it in the review, but the Randomizer is a great way to add a lot of replayability to the game rather than the usual harder modes 😁

[@The_GamingMagpie]

If you wanted to replay it of course!😂

[@soulsborneseeker]

@@The_GamingMagpie Thanks for the addition! Indeed, I did not mention it since I didn't try it out. From the extras I tried, I have to admit the one I loved the most was Classic mode!

[@The_GamingMagpie]

@@soulsborneseeker Yeah, classic mode is cool. Although I can't standthe jump mechanic, but I do understand it's intentional for the "classic" side of it!

[@soulsborneseeker]

@@The_GamingMagpie Indeed it is!

[@iamfat6164]

It saddens me greatly everyone compares this game to symphony of the night before aria of sorrow because symphony was the more popular game

[@soulsborneseeker]

Oh, I loved Aria of Sorrow! Played it on Game Boy Advance many years back, one of the best Castlevania games ever!

[@welon17]

This game is wonderful

[@soulsborneseeker]

Glad you enjoyed it! have you also played the Curse of the Moon spin-offs?

[@welon17]

@@soulsborneseeker I was very skeptical about the game, until Curse of the Moon came out. Which is obviously inspired by Castlevania 3, I played it and the story got me hooked for Ritual of the Night (it was supposed to be a prequel to Ritual) The game came out and I was ready! Buuuuut, they changed the story so it was a stand alone and Curse was changed into spin off, and that got me a bit disappointed, but the game was still fun, so it got the seal of approval. I'm still yet to play Curse 2. I hope it follows Curse 1, but no worries.

[@soulsborneseeker]

@@welon17 I'll definitely be playing both of them!

[@paledrake]

Ngl the combat looks incredibly boring. Do all weapons just have 1 attack with no combos or skills or anything different? I know you have shards from enemies, but doesn't that consume mana or something?

[@soulsborneseeker]

It's been some time since I played it but, if I remember correctly, the weapons I used had one attack. That being said, I did find the game incredibly engaging despite that!

[@Castapher]

There are "Techniques" for each kind of weapon. For example, there are two types of Katanas, the thinner one lets you block attacks. And the thicker one lets you do a "Leap Attack" at enemies. OFC, you have to find the technique (on the various book shelves found throughout the castle) to be able to perform it.

[@soulsborneseeker]

@@Castapher Indeed, those collectibles add special attacks/actions to your weapons once discovered!

[@leandromartins4505]

Ele é bom, porém não traz nada de novo. Eu esperava bem mais.

[@soulsborneseeker]

I agree that I kind of expected a bit more out of it as well, especially considering the budget!

[@leandromartins4505]

​@@soulsborneseekerexatamente.