Here we are: after 5 years from the launch of the Kickstarter campaign, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is about to finally land on our gaming platforms. This awaited spiritual heir of Castlevania, created by its creator himself Koij Igarashi, will arrive on June 18th on PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, while on June 25 on Nintendo Switch.
Recently we went to try the final build of the game and we can say that we were quite satisfied. We've gotten to see and try the title several times over the past couple of years and it's always been amazing to see how IGA's work gets better from time to time. Especially in the face of that first demo made available for Kickstarter backers that generated doubts and fears in the hearts of the players.
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, let's remember, puts us in the shoes of Miriam, a girl who, due to some alchemical experiments, has become a creature capable of crystallizing and absorbing demonic energy. Awakened from a 10-year coma, Miriam will leave for the castle of Jebel, a crazed alchemist who is summoning demons in order to change the world.
As a good successor to Castlevania, too Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night presents a metroidvania structure, that is a gigantic map composed of interconnected areas that to be fully explored often requires skills or equipment obtainable in advanced stages of the game. The scrolling of the game is in two dimensionsi, although the graphics are in 3D, which is why Bloodstained falls within the games with definable 2.5D graphics. And that's right on the graphics that the game had the most significant boost compared to our last meeting and the good Igarashi had already shown it with a nice trailer that we propose below:
New textures, new management of lights and shadows and a restyling of the characters make the glance truly remarkable compared to the past.
The controls have also undergone an update and now moving Miriam through the various rooms of the map is much more pleasant and, above all, she is much more responsive to the commands given. The fights are decidedly more fluid and less woody than what we had tried previously, even if the only thing that still hasn't convinced us is the race: Miriam is particularly slow in moving, perhaps because later in the adventure she will get upgrades which will allow you to run faster. We remain hopeful in this regard.
On the other hand, the number of equipment is remarkable and, above all, of weapons available to our beautiful protagonist. Between daggers, swords, broadswords, spears, pistols, melee and the inevitable whip, there is really spoiled for choice. Each weapon clearly has its pros and cons based on parameter values, range and above all on the speed of execution of the various shots. But what really surprised us is that by exploring the castle from top to bottom it is possible to find books that contain secret moves for certain types of weapons. These require command inputs based on classic fighting games, based on timing and more or less complex executions.
These secret moves consume mana, just like the spells obtainable from monsters, another peculiarity of the title. By exterminating the same monster over and over again, there is a chance - quite generous in percentage terms - that Miriam will absorb its essence in crystal form and acquire unique and original spells, some active and some passive. 5 different ones can be equipped depending on the type. The spells can also be enhanced through special NPCs who, among other things, will take care of providing you with supplies, equipment and, in particular, a crafting service. Crafting is particularly effective for obtaining unique and powerful items, as long as you have accumulated enough resources needed by the defeated monsters, which we remember are also useful for acquiring experience points and leveling Miriam up.
But let's not forget the importance of exploration: we must in fact be careful with the conformation of the map and the state of some walls, because the hidden areas are always lurking and it would be a shame to lose all those rewards or even simply some very convenient shortcuts. There are rooms that allow you to teleport from one area of the castle to another, but they are rare and therefore it will be good to save often, especially when you are short of resources and it will be necessary to go back to refuel. Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is indeed a title not to be taken lightly. While Castlevania veterans won't have a hard time getting to grips with the game, underestimating it might not be a good idea, because when needed you could find yourself in a boss fight with no potions and low HP. Not exactly an optimal situation.
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is truly the Castlevania we've been missing for years, and what we have described to you is just the tip of the iceberg. In fact, Iga has enriched the game with various modes and even 3 playable characters. Although a lot of metroidvania have come out of them over the years, Bloodstained thrives on that authorship that only characters like Igarashi can convey, with captivating gameplay that keeps you hooked and encourages you to move forward to discover all the secrets that lie hidden. behind the game. Maybe technically it is still a bit rough, but as reiterated, the glance is pleasant and the artistic direction compensates a lot. Appointment in about a month for the review and the final judgment, which we hope will remain so positive.
► Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is a Metroidvania-type game developed by WayForward Technologies and published by 505 Games for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the video game was released on 18/06/2019 The version for Nintendo Switch came out on 25/06/2019
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is a beautiful game that cannot be missing from your collection: we have decided to evaluate it with a 82%, if you are interested in learning more you can read the Review of Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
