i was a defender of this game for a long long time off the merits of the dss system and upon replay in the advance collection.... i don't think i can really defend it in good faith anymore lol
starting positive, i still think DSS is an incredibly cool system. collecting them is always extremely exciting thanks to the way each one becomes more and more valuable the more you collect. just getting one card drop can suddenly give you access to entire mechanics, which is super cool! but wow does the game not want you to get to experience that system
the #1 cardinal sin the game commits is that exploration isn't fun. traversal is absolutely laborious thanks to needing to double tap to run every single time. lots of frustration due to not timing the inputs right and getting jumps with puny horizontal distance. really makes you just not want to bother taking nathan anywhere you don't have to
the second most glaring flaw is item drops. there's no shop in the game, nor are there any items hidden in the castle. any secret you find will always be a stat boost. which means, all items are random drops by enemies. and the drop rates are pitiful. it's bad enough that DSS cards and gear are behind <1% drop rates, but even healing items appear just once in a blue moon. if you want to see what the game has to offer, you truly have to grind out item drops, and there's nothing fun at all about it
it all comes together in a game that just feels like it lacks thoughtful design. more than any other castlevania game, this game's castle is full of long, straight-shot hallways with the same enemies repeated over and over. lots of monsters consistently inflict status ailment without reliable way to cure it. the only rewards you get for exploration are stat boos items. it's just not fun to play, and rarely feels rewarding. i wish we could've seen a revised DSS in another game, but for now the best you can do is enjoy it as much as possible in this game's magician mode
starting positive, i still think DSS is an incredibly cool system. collecting them is always extremely exciting thanks to the way each one becomes more and more valuable the more you collect. just getting one card drop can suddenly give you access to entire mechanics, which is super cool! but wow does the game not want you to get to experience that system
the #1 cardinal sin the game commits is that exploration isn't fun. traversal is absolutely laborious thanks to needing to double tap to run every single time. lots of frustration due to not timing the inputs right and getting jumps with puny horizontal distance. really makes you just not want to bother taking nathan anywhere you don't have to
the second most glaring flaw is item drops. there's no shop in the game, nor are there any items hidden in the castle. any secret you find will always be a stat boost. which means, all items are random drops by enemies. and the drop rates are pitiful. it's bad enough that DSS cards and gear are behind <1% drop rates, but even healing items appear just once in a blue moon. if you want to see what the game has to offer, you truly have to grind out item drops, and there's nothing fun at all about it
it all comes together in a game that just feels like it lacks thoughtful design. more than any other castlevania game, this game's castle is full of long, straight-shot hallways with the same enemies repeated over and over. lots of monsters consistently inflict status ailment without reliable way to cure it. the only rewards you get for exploration are stat boos items. it's just not fun to play, and rarely feels rewarding. i wish we could've seen a revised DSS in another game, but for now the best you can do is enjoy it as much as possible in this game's magician mode