Lickiwrath
Bio
Looking for other people on this website who have opinions worth reading. (Somewhere between total dumbass and completely pretentious)
My current favorites are my gaming highlights from the last year.
Star Ratings
5: One of the best games I've ever played. An exceptional experience, and you're doing yourself a disservice if you don't play it.
4 1/2: Incredible; a game that is 100% worth your time
4: A great game and I highly recommend it
3 1/2: Really good. Enjoyable, maybe even thought provoking. I may or may not revisit it, but my time was well spent
3: Good. Perhaps not noteworthy, but I'm glad I played it
2 1/2: I'm very mixed on this one. Has good and bad in about equal measure. Passable
2: Overall a game I didn't enjoy, but one with some notable enjoyable moments
1 1/2: Don't waste your time
1: Revolting
0.5: I'm speechless...
Looking for other people on this website who have opinions worth reading. (Somewhere between total dumbass and completely pretentious)
My current favorites are my gaming highlights from the last year.
Star Ratings
5: One of the best games I've ever played. An exceptional experience, and you're doing yourself a disservice if you don't play it.
4 1/2: Incredible; a game that is 100% worth your time
4: A great game and I highly recommend it
3 1/2: Really good. Enjoyable, maybe even thought provoking. I may or may not revisit it, but my time was well spent
3: Good. Perhaps not noteworthy, but I'm glad I played it
2 1/2: I'm very mixed on this one. Has good and bad in about equal measure. Passable
2: Overall a game I didn't enjoy, but one with some notable enjoyable moments
1 1/2: Don't waste your time
1: Revolting
0.5: I'm speechless...
Badges
Gone Gold
Received 5+ likes on a review while featured on the front page
Pinged
Mentioned by another user
Adored
Gained 300+ total review likes
Shreked
Found the secret ogre page
Trend Setter
Gained 50+ followers
Best Friends
Become mutual friends with at least 3 others
Loved
Gained 100+ total review likes
Organized
Created a list folder with 5+ lists
Listed
Created 10+ public lists
Donor
Liked 50+ reviews / lists
3 Years of Service
Being part of the Backloggd community for 3 years
N00b
Played 100+ games
Well Written
Gained 10+ likes on a single review
Popular
Gained 15+ followers
Liked
Gained 10+ total review likes
GOTY '20
Participated in the 2020 Game of the Year Event
Noticed
Gained 3+ followers
Favorite Games
157
Total Games Played
013
Played in 2024
007
Games Backloggd
Recently Played See More
Recently Reviewed See More
If nothing else, the atmosphere is second to none. The intro cutscene spoken entirely in German(?), the chilling choral piece accompanying the main menu, the BADASS opening with Richter fighting Death on horseback, the effects of the turbo-grafx 16, the rockin soundtrack, the cutscenes (dated as they are) as far back as 1993, the almost comic book presentation. Come ON, man! I don't know if I'd go so far as to say that its atmosphere is what's kept classic Castlevania relevant, but I would say that you'd be hard pressed to find another game of this era so atmospherically impressive and immersive.
And the central gimmick (for lack of a better term) of this game, with unlockable alternate stages, putting an emphasis on secrets both in visuals and level design, and generally diverting away from bottomless pits, is SUCH a good direction, and feels ahead of its time. And even cooler is the secret moves and ultimate attacks between Richter and Maria and the subweapons. This game is so fucking COOL!
All of this to say, it's so PAINFUL to see how it's held back by unnecessarily restricted controls. In a post Super Castlevania IV world, why in the world can Richter only whip directly in front of him!? Why can you only sort-of manipulate your direction in mid-air?!?! Why, for the love of Dracula, do you get so few I-frames after being hit?!?!?! These archaic, sloppy choices clash so hard with a game that feels like it's going even further than its contemporaries could ever dream of. This feels like it was supposed to be the magnum opus of the series, and many people do consider it that. It's the perfect difficulty, made arbitrarily frustrating due to Richter's lacking mobility and offensive capability. Maria is a godsend, I exclusively used her once she was unlocked, because sometimes this game just isn't fun with Richter.
I will likely warm up more to this game with time and retrospection. It still captures the elation of victory that Castlevania does so well, and I think this series deserves to be remembered because of that. And the atmosphere, again, can't be praised enough. But until Dracula returns, this game sits at the bottom of my Castlevania totem pole. Wie tragisch.
And the central gimmick (for lack of a better term) of this game, with unlockable alternate stages, putting an emphasis on secrets both in visuals and level design, and generally diverting away from bottomless pits, is SUCH a good direction, and feels ahead of its time. And even cooler is the secret moves and ultimate attacks between Richter and Maria and the subweapons. This game is so fucking COOL!
All of this to say, it's so PAINFUL to see how it's held back by unnecessarily restricted controls. In a post Super Castlevania IV world, why in the world can Richter only whip directly in front of him!? Why can you only sort-of manipulate your direction in mid-air?!?! Why, for the love of Dracula, do you get so few I-frames after being hit?!?!?! These archaic, sloppy choices clash so hard with a game that feels like it's going even further than its contemporaries could ever dream of. This feels like it was supposed to be the magnum opus of the series, and many people do consider it that. It's the perfect difficulty, made arbitrarily frustrating due to Richter's lacking mobility and offensive capability. Maria is a godsend, I exclusively used her once she was unlocked, because sometimes this game just isn't fun with Richter.
I will likely warm up more to this game with time and retrospection. It still captures the elation of victory that Castlevania does so well, and I think this series deserves to be remembered because of that. And the atmosphere, again, can't be praised enough. But until Dracula returns, this game sits at the bottom of my Castlevania totem pole. Wie tragisch.