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Castlevania: Lament of Innocence Preview
Mark Simons
18/07/2003
We take a look at what we know so far on Konami's latest game in this long running series...
The Castlevania series has provided some of the finest moments in two-dimensional gaming all the way from the NES through to the SNES and PlayStation, where 'Symphony of the Night' is regarded as one of the pinnacle moments of the series and indeed of the platform genre in general. Sadly when the series made the transition to three-dimensions on the N64 the result was not as spectacular as fans were hoping for.
Bland and repetetive rather than spectacular and innovative is not what was needed to secure the future of the Castlevania name. Thankfully with series producer Koji Igarashi in charge of this 3D update, tellingly it was Konami USA who developed the N64 titles, and 'Lament of Innocence' is shaping up to offer an experience far closer to the classic side-on games.
Set in 11th Century Europe, during the crusades and a period of intense political, religious and social oppression you take on the role of Leon Belmont. A character who rather than trying to loot the treasures of the East in the name of God, tries to take on the Prince of Darkness in order to rescue his fiance, so he can settle down and plant the seeds of the Beaumont family tree. Seems like a much better choice to us.
Gameplay wise 'Lament of Innocence' seems to owe something to Capcom's wonderful 'Devil May Cry', with some spectacular attacks combining magic and multiple weapons. There is no over the top gunplay but it seems the lessons demonstrated in Dante's adventure with regards to cameras and multiple enemies, have been learnt for this game, hopefully eradicating the major camera and control issues that plagued the N64 games. Castlevania fans will be happy to see the familiar whip returning as well as secondary weapons; the cross, dagger, holy water, crystal and an axe - all of which can be levelled up as the game progresses.
The combat is fast and furious, with a number of characters on screen at once and some epic boss confrontations, but we'll have to wait until more hands-on time with the game before being able to pass judgement on whether this remains involving or grows repetitive over time. Leon himself seems very agile, able to backflip and jump around with a great deal of agility, which is handy when there are multiple enemies on screen, or facing up to a rather large fast boss character. From what we have seen we are quite looking forward to finding out, mainly because in addition to the combat the game seems to have got the platforming aspects of the game sorted.
With camera work being a major determining factor in whether a three dimensional platformer, especially one that relies a lot on jumping, is any good. As hinted at earlier, 'Devil May Cry' is an influence on the way the camera in this Castlevania title works. The direction is good, with the camera moving and panning around to ensure that you always have a good view of the action, and generally speaking is far enough out to allow you a good view of the action. This is apparent when you see Leon jumping around all over the shop, using his whip to grab and swing - Indy Jones style, looking slick and not too fiddly.
There are numerous set pieces involving spikey things, swinging things, shooty things and many other things doing various classic two dimensional platform tricks, but with slight twists to make them seem fresh and interesting. With a good camera system and levels that are rather atmospheric, the platforming action looks to be challenging but crucially not frustrating.
When you first step into Dracula's castle you face choice of doors, each one, naturally, taking you to a different location within his house of darkness; either the Cathedral, Theatre, Garden, Alchemist's Laboratory or the Dungeon. There are apparently hundreds of rooms in which to fight the thirty five plus, different enemy types as you battle your way through to the final boss, the dark prince himself. Along the way you will find out the real truth behind the story of the Beaumonts and Draculas, and there are sure to be some twists along the way!
It seems that the RPG elements of the previous title have been toned down in order to focus on the combat and platforming, but as ever in a good game, a bit of curiosity and exploration will no doubt prove fruitful.
