Full disclaimer here, I did not complete the 3DS original version of Mirrors of fate, but I was still able to deduce the “Major Twist” in the plot that the game heavily hints at within the first 15 minutes. Like seriously. The whole thing. Which is quite surprising, given that the game follows Simon Belmont, his father Trevor Belmont, and Alucard, three generations of the Belmont family, in no particular order, until the big “Tada!” conclusion.
Yes this is Konami’s Mirrors of fate HD, developed by the talented Mercury stream. The game kicks off from where the first Lords of Shadow left off, and the three protagonist’s stories start off separate, but the tales are entwined by the end of the tale. Trevor Belmont, a knight of the Brotherhood of Light, sets off to avenge his mothers death, which came at his own fathers hands. Gabriel Belmont has become Dracula, and has declared war upon Trevor’s Brotherhood. I wonder where that will lead? like I said, predictable.
Fans of the 2.5D platformer will be right at home here with the side scrolling, button mashing vampire action, albeit without the familiar tropes of the typical RPG, such as new weapons, instead spending experience points on new abilities, with each character having their own special moves, like turning into a werewolf, or summoning spirits to shield you in combat. All these things consume your magic bar though, which you have to recharge, along with your health at special fonts around the world. The platforming itself takes second stage to exploration though, as it isn’t very difficult, allowing you to focus on sticking your nose in every nook and cranny of the game world.
Not that you’ll need them, as the game regularly saves your checkpoints as you progress, and if you’re playing on anything below hard, it is quite difficult to die, as I found out before moving up the difficulty to stop me feeling like some kind of vampire slaying god. So play it on hard mode from the start. Unless, yknow, that’s your kinda thing. Weirdo.
The graphics of the game have been updated, but what you have to keep in mind is that updated 3ds graphics, whilst a marked improvement in resolution and smoothness from the original, still cant compare to games aimed at the PC and console demographic.But what did you expect from a game ported from a handheld? shame on you. It still holds its own in comparison to other download only titles, and doesn’t overreach on what it is. The game does run at a silky smooth framerate, a massive improvement over the choppy action on the mobile platform, due to the removal of limitations in hardware. They have also made the smart decision to remove those tedious QTE sequences, allowing you to fully control the boss battles without being ripped away from the immersion by overly flashy cut scenes and PRESS B NOW OMG OH TOO LATE pop ups. In place of them, the game has polished the controls, and added intuitive dodges, parries and other combat centered abilities absent from previous portable Castelvanias. The score is typical Castlevania, with the full orchestra in unison almost narrating the action on screen, add that extra sparkle of epic.
In short, Castlevania Mirrors of Fate HD is a solid re imagining of what was a flawed mobile Platformer, removing what fans disliked about the original and adding some pizazz to make the jump to Desktop tangible.
Pros: Art style is as flashy and pretty as ever, Controls are improved and more accessible. Epic Score.
Cons: A little too easy on lower difficulties, still plagued by the slow pace action of the original. Predictable story twists.
Disclaimer:All scores given within our reviews are based on the artist’s personal opinion; this should in no way impede your decision to purchase the game.
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