The art direction transition is one of the biggest gaming crimes to ever be committed (it hurts my soul more than my eyes) but otherwise Dawn of Sorrow is a very solid experience and a suitable follow-up to Aria.
Aria of Sorrow was one of the most surprising experiences I’ve had this year, and after sitting on it more I’m starting to realize it may have cracked into the upper echelons of Metroidvanias for me. Aria is concise, rewarding, and (most importantly) very cohesive. All of Aria’s ideas flow very naturally into each other and that philosophy extends even into how the castle itself is designed. Unlocking a new power, for example, oftentimes also unlocks a route nearby that connects back somewhere very close to where you’ll need to go next for progression. Similarly, branching paths close to requires areas will usually reward the player for experimenting with these new powers by granting powerful new weapons and armor. In other words, Aria’s gameplay loop is very cohesive and it constantly sets fires to the neurons in my brain in the best way, and I think Dawn of Sorrow’s biggest flaw is that it lacks that same cohesive glue.
Dawn’s castle doesn’t really have that same masterful level of flowing into itself and it’s much easier to get lost wandering aimlessly as a result. It definitely doesn’t help that exploration feels a lot less satisfying, too, because the overwhelming majority of the good weapons are attained through sheer luck by getting a good enemy drop….or by sheer luck (with extra steps) since you also need these same enemies to drop souls to create weapons with at the shopkeep. Both methods to obtain new weapons are effectively the same thing, in other words, and it’s pretty antithetical to how Aria approached this in its design which was already pitch perfect. I always felt a lot weaker than I actually was because my weapons were constantly below the grade they should have been just because I didn’t feel too particularly keen on engaging with this aspect of the game (aka, grinding until I get the right drops).
Dawn of Sorrow also does have some “early DS syndrome”, which is as charming as it occasionally frustrating. Admittedly, I do love me some early DS era crustiness but the way it’s implemented here is a bit cumbersome. After defeating a boss in Dawn of Sorrow, you have to use the touch screen to draw these (memorized) sigil patterns to completely finish the fight. If you fail, the boss regains some health and you have to do everything again until you get it right. Now, I’m no stranger to forced touch screen implantation, and it’s honestly a pretty inoffensive mechanic in the grand scheme, but man is it frustrating when you get one of these wrong. The biggest problem here is that they’re timed, and you have to contort your fingers from resting comfortably on the buttons to suddenly reaching for your stylus to doodle some lines. It takes my brain a couple of seconds to shift modes which leads to the gimmick feeling a bit disconnected from everything else that’s happening. Again, nothing too egregious and it’s an issue that’s definitely overstated, but not a great inclusion either.
Despite my negativity on some things, there’s definitely a lot to be enjoyed here too. Outside of the drawing thing, the bosses themselves are a highlight and a lot of fun to master. The souls themselves are maybe even more distinctive here than in Aria and they’re legitimate use for most of them. My favorite addition is probably being able to switch between two combat kits at the press of a button without having to pause the game to fiddle around in menus. Sprite animations and the like are top notch, especially for an early DS era title, and weapons all have a proper feel to them depending on what you’re rocking with. The soundtrack is also pretty great, but that goes without saying with Castlevania.
Overall, Dawn of Sorrow is a fun time even with some ideas that don’t feel as meticulously baked as Aria’s. It’s a good follow-up to a game that expands on the story premise and gameplay concepts of its predecessor in many ways, and that’s all I could really ask for. Also, I guess I’m a big Castlevania fan now on a binge of the series? Wasn’t expecting that one.
Aria of Sorrow was one of the most surprising experiences I’ve had this year, and after sitting on it more I’m starting to realize it may have cracked into the upper echelons of Metroidvanias for me. Aria is concise, rewarding, and (most importantly) very cohesive. All of Aria’s ideas flow very naturally into each other and that philosophy extends even into how the castle itself is designed. Unlocking a new power, for example, oftentimes also unlocks a route nearby that connects back somewhere very close to where you’ll need to go next for progression. Similarly, branching paths close to requires areas will usually reward the player for experimenting with these new powers by granting powerful new weapons and armor. In other words, Aria’s gameplay loop is very cohesive and it constantly sets fires to the neurons in my brain in the best way, and I think Dawn of Sorrow’s biggest flaw is that it lacks that same cohesive glue.
Dawn’s castle doesn’t really have that same masterful level of flowing into itself and it’s much easier to get lost wandering aimlessly as a result. It definitely doesn’t help that exploration feels a lot less satisfying, too, because the overwhelming majority of the good weapons are attained through sheer luck by getting a good enemy drop….or by sheer luck (with extra steps) since you also need these same enemies to drop souls to create weapons with at the shopkeep. Both methods to obtain new weapons are effectively the same thing, in other words, and it’s pretty antithetical to how Aria approached this in its design which was already pitch perfect. I always felt a lot weaker than I actually was because my weapons were constantly below the grade they should have been just because I didn’t feel too particularly keen on engaging with this aspect of the game (aka, grinding until I get the right drops).
Dawn of Sorrow also does have some “early DS syndrome”, which is as charming as it occasionally frustrating. Admittedly, I do love me some early DS era crustiness but the way it’s implemented here is a bit cumbersome. After defeating a boss in Dawn of Sorrow, you have to use the touch screen to draw these (memorized) sigil patterns to completely finish the fight. If you fail, the boss regains some health and you have to do everything again until you get it right. Now, I’m no stranger to forced touch screen implantation, and it’s honestly a pretty inoffensive mechanic in the grand scheme, but man is it frustrating when you get one of these wrong. The biggest problem here is that they’re timed, and you have to contort your fingers from resting comfortably on the buttons to suddenly reaching for your stylus to doodle some lines. It takes my brain a couple of seconds to shift modes which leads to the gimmick feeling a bit disconnected from everything else that’s happening. Again, nothing too egregious and it’s an issue that’s definitely overstated, but not a great inclusion either.
Despite my negativity on some things, there’s definitely a lot to be enjoyed here too. Outside of the drawing thing, the bosses themselves are a highlight and a lot of fun to master. The souls themselves are maybe even more distinctive here than in Aria and they’re legitimate use for most of them. My favorite addition is probably being able to switch between two combat kits at the press of a button without having to pause the game to fiddle around in menus. Sprite animations and the like are top notch, especially for an early DS era title, and weapons all have a proper feel to them depending on what you’re rocking with. The soundtrack is also pretty great, but that goes without saying with Castlevania.
Overall, Dawn of Sorrow is a fun time even with some ideas that don’t feel as meticulously baked as Aria’s. It’s a good follow-up to a game that expands on the story premise and gameplay concepts of its predecessor in many ways, and that’s all I could really ask for. Also, I guess I’m a big Castlevania fan now on a binge of the series? Wasn’t expecting that one.