Castlevania: Harmony of Despair Coming To XBLA

[The 1 2 P]

As part of their now yearly Summer of Arcade promotion, XBLA will be getting a new exclusive(perhaps timed) 2-D Castlevania game called Harmony of Despair (http://www.cheatcc.com/ccc_newsserver/Article.aspx?PostID=377274). Of note is the online co-op mode and competitive online multiplayer mode entitled Survival Mode. I'm not sure how thats going to turn out but it sounds interesting.

As a side note, all three systems(including the PS3 and Wii) continue to get really good exclusive downloadable games. I told myself at the beginning of this gen that I would rarely(if ever) support DL only games because I prefer to have a physical disc, case and manual. But Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo are making that damn near impossible with all the great XBLA, Wiiware and PSN games they keep releasing. Atleast hard drives are getting bigger.

[Fiesta Rocket]

Well isnt that dandy!

[Fiesta Rocket]

Well isnt that dandy!

Oh and I need to quote myself as well!

[Overbite]

XBLA and PSN own. A great place for companies to release great games that wouldn't do well at retail and at a low price. Games like Shadow Complex or Castle Crashers wouldn't sell if people had to pay $60 bux for it, but at $15 as a download they own.

It's also a good way for companies to release smaller, more experimental games.

[BetaWolf47]

Wait, why is Soma in that image? Don't tell me that those of us in the GBA/DS crowd need to buy an Xbox 360 to play Soma's latest quest!

[Baloo]

Is that Alucard on the cover?

[Kitsune Sniper]

It's a multi-game crossover. Soma and Alucard are in it, along with other characters.

[heybtbm]

Thankfully the 360 controller has an excellent D-pad for precision 2D gaming...oh wait.

Still excited for this one, but will probably stick to the wired SFIV gamepad I bought a year ago and never really used.

[Oobgarm]

If you can do most everything in single player, count me in.

Who am I kidding, I'll end up buying it anyway.

[The 1 2 P]

Gotta love those second accounts:shameful:


XBLA and PSN own. A great place for companies to release great games that wouldn't do well at retail and at a low price. Games like Shadow Complex or Castle Crashers wouldn't sell if people had to pay $60 bux for it, but at $15 as a download they own.

It's also a good way for companies to release smaller, more experimental games.

I think all three consoles have a good variety of these affordable download only games and the $15 and below price point you mentioned is definitly helping them to sell.

I wouldn't be surprised to see this get a PSN release as well, unless they have an exclusive PS3 one in the works. I heard awhile back that a Symphony of The Night 2-D sequel was coming to the PS3 and 360 but I guess it either fell thru or was never more than a rumor.

[Zthun]

XBLA and PSN own. A great place for companies to release great games that wouldn't do well at retail and at a low price. Games like Shadow Complex or Castle Crashers wouldn't sell if people had to pay $60 bux for it, but at $15 as a download they own.

It's also a good way for companies to release smaller, more experimental games.

I would love to pay the extra $5-$10 bucks if it would have a disc, manual, and box. Branding the game sucks.



It's a multi-game crossover. Soma and Alucard are in it, along with other characters.


This just looks like mad fun. I'm so getting this, and I rarely look forward to download only games.

[The 1 2 P]

Just a minor update. This game is coming out on August 4 for 1200 Microsoft points($15).

[Voliko]

I am going to DL this, and so are a couple of my friends. Judging on Konami's most recent work on 2-D CastleVania's, this should turn out to be excellent. I am still very curious/sceptical as to how well the co-op is going to be excecuted though.

[Oobgarm]

Still no word I've seen on single player. At $15, this had better offer a decent amount for those of us who'd rather play a CV game alone, like God intended.

[Jorpho]

But we already got Harmony of Dissonance! Have they run out of useful title words already?

Someone somewhere is already heralding this as the end of originality and goodness and purity, I'm sure.

[megasdkirby]

I'll wait until it gets a reduction, perhaps 50% off.

[Oobgarm]

I've searched everywhere and still nothing on a single-player mode. I've really enjoyed all of the GBA/DS Castlevania games, so putting all of them together would be really cool...but I don't have the desire/ability to drop money on XBL just to play this game.

[Graham Mitchell]

I read about the game in the latest issue of Game Informer. It states that you can play "up to" 6 people cooperatively. Hopefully, that's indicator that there's a single-player mode.

They said in the article that how the game works is that each playable character has different powers that allows them to unlock different areas of the castle, and whenever somebody picks up an item, everybody in the party gets it. This encourages people to split up and explore independently to cover the most ground.

They also stated that keeping track of your party and all the monsters is easy because the map function in this installment just zooms the screen out really far, giving you a diarama-like view of the whole area and indicating where your buddies are.

I have been BEGGING to God for a new sidescrolling Metroidvania style CV game on the newer high-end consoles (sorry, but that Wii Ware game looked pretty disappointing compared to some of the great DS titles we've been getting) and this game is an answered prayer. Also sounds like a great thing to do with my buddies in SF and Seattle on a Saturday afternoon. I'm all over this.

[AWinterFuneral]

I'm mega stoked for this game, pretty much the only one of the summer game releases I am actually going to get, especially since it's going to be multiplayer. :guitar:

[heybtbm]

sorry, but that Wii Ware game looked pretty disappointing compared to some of the great DS titles we've been getting.

I'm right there with you waiting for a modern console SOTN-style Castlevania. But...

Castlevania Rebirth is more in line with Castlevania IV than the newer "Metroidvania" style, and let me assure you...it is excellent. I'd even say it's better than the last two DS entries...and that's coming from someone whose favorite game of all time is SOTN.

[Graham Mitchell]

I'm right there with you waiting for a modern console SOTN-style Castlevania. But...

Castlevania Rebirth is more in line with Castlevania IV than the newer "Metroidvania" style, and let me assure you...it is excellent. I'd even say it's better than the last two DS entries...and that's coming from someone whose favorite game of all time is SOTN.

well, heybtm, I actually really trust your opinion, so I'll take your word for it. Unfortunately, I don't currently have a wii (though I may get another one when the new zelda game comes out...) so I have no way to try it for myself.

My big gripe with what I saw in video reviews about it was that it was somewhat aesthetically lackluster in the clips that I saw, and the animation looked pretty half-assed. To me, a good ambience is something I specifically seek out castlevania games for.

But if the gameplay for Cv: rebirth is half as good as Rondo of Blood, it's probably a damn good game.

[kupomogli]

Didn't Konami release Castlevania Rebirth/Contra Rebirth on disc as some sort of collection? I thought I've seen it before but don't remember the name. Can't find it.

*edit*

Nevermind. Castlevania SotN, Super Contra, and another game which were on XBL Arcade were released on disc together on the 360. I thought I saw just two games and it was for the Wii but maybe I just thought they might have been released since they're both the Konami Rebirth games.

[Jisho23]

Watching the videos and such for this one... not as excited as I've been for Castlevania games in the past. It kinda seems a little frantic.

[Ed Oscuro]

From what I can see, they just crammed as much low-rez GBA visuals as possible onto a single television screen. Imagine a bunch of GBA screens side by side, that's more or less what it looks like.

No word on what they have in mind for gameplay, but if having the main screen serve as the map as well...I'm not sure what the point of being able to see your friends whip skeletons a couple rooms over is.

[Oobgarm]

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/08/04/review-castlevania-harmony-of-despair/

Does not sound promising at all. Oh well, that's $15 saved.

[megasdkirby]

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/08/04/review-castlevania-harmony-of-despair/

Does not sound promising at all. Oh well, that's $15 saved.

No surprise.

Konami should have just stuck with the original formula, either the "metroidvania" type or the classic type.

[The 1 2 P]

It still looks interesting to me. Theres also suppose to be downloadable content coming(according to the box info on the 360 dashboard). I'm going to hold off on spending $15 on it but I'll definitely be picking this one up later when it gets a price drop.

[portnoyd]

Ouch. What a shovelturd.

[megasdkirby]

Downloaded the trial a few moments ago.

The game isn't really bad, it just feels...silly. There is no "Castlevania" feel, unlike previous titles.

Also, the controls seemed a bit stiff. I was at a part in which a pendelum would rock back and forth and I had to jump on it...this was a real problem, as I had to jump before it was heading towards me, but trying to do this was sluggish. I really can't explain why, though.

[exit]

I'd get this, but considering I don't have a Gold account to play multiplayer, it would be a waste of money in the long run.

[TonyTheTiger]

Castlevania is seriously losing me. And considering I'm such a die hard about the series that is very difficult to say. Even disregarding the indulgences of crappy fighting games and unambitious digital downloads, the entire series has started to feel stale outside of a couple of entries here and there over the last few years.

And I know how, as a Mega Man fan, saying that is completely hypocritical. But on the other hand, there must be something actually wrong for a Mega Man fan to say a series is getting stale.

[RPG_Fanatic]

Does not sound promising at all. Oh well, that's $15 saved.

It's not promising at all, that's my $15 down the shitter!!!! I should have bought Limbo instead.

[Graham Mitchell]

This is a bummer. I was expecting something conceptually like Symphony of the Night optimized for multiplayer. This sounds like a time attack. Bullshit.

[heybtbm]

This is getting universally mediocre reviews. The multiplayer doesn't interest me at all, and review after review makes it clear...playing solo doesn't even unlock half of the castle.

I'll be skipping this one. I was looking forward to it too.

[kupomogli]

Atleast we have Lords of Shadow to look forward to.

[Ed Oscuro]

Atleast we have Lords of Shadow to look forward to.
Thank god for that.

I'm with Tony as well, Konami's been doing some silly things with its franchises with regularity in recent years. But then they do good things as well, so yeah. But I never thought this looked promising in the least - sometimes something looks so ridiculous, like putting something like six screens of GBA castle design and sprites onscreen at once, that it doesn't really deserve a second look.

[kaedesdisciple]

So I'm going to go ahead and buck the trend here by saying I'm actually enjoying this one so far. Caveat is, if you're only interested in single player, don't bother because it's no fun.

However, I had one great team of six last night and we ran through stages until we could run no more. Without using many words we were able to understand and help each other get through the castle and get as many items as we could. While I don't enjoy the randomness of the item gathering, I do like the fact that once one person opens the chest, everyone gets an item.

I'm going to put some more hours into it, for me I think it will pay off.

In short: Having fun? Yes (with multiplayer). Worth $15? I would have been happier paying $10, but I don't think I'll ultimately regret it.

If I'm online, come find me and I'll run for a bit.

[TonyTheTiger]

I think the price is what gets people more than anything. It sounds like a neat bonus feature you'd find as an optional component of a larger game. Like some unlockable novelty. Just that on it's own for more than $10, though, is a tough sell.

[Zthun]

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/08/04/review-castlevania-harmony-of-despair/

Does not sound promising at all. Oh well, that's $15 saved.

Yeah, I've heard all over that it sucks hard. That $15 is better spent on limbo.

[Tempest]

The timer was a deal breaker for me. I don't like being rushed when I'm exploring. I also don't play anything multiplayer, which is apparently most of the game.

Tempest

[BHvrd]

I am awaiting this on PSN despite the naysayers. I mean I can understand the complaints, but honestly they could have made nothing and this is certainly better than nothing and the content reminds me of the same reasons people complained about Resident Evil: Outbreak, which I majorly disagreed with popular opinion then and really hate they took the servers down.

I have seen the game in action and it looks fairly addictive. At least they aren't still trying to make it 3D, that has to be a plus! :p

[Princess-Isabela]

I'm a huge Castlevania enthusiast and have been playing games in the series for nearly two decades.
Note that I have only played it in Single Player mode (Xbox Silver Account).
Let's start with this notion - Game is absolutely stunning and engaging, it keeps you hooked.
Presentation is fabulous, first time in HD, it looks great! (sprites have not been redrawn so they don't look super crisp but they have transitioned quite well for the first time to current generation consoles, it has a distinctive look and needless to say art direction is imaginative and instantly recognizable to a well versed player).
I have finished single playthrough in 9-10 hours (with one character) but there are five to choose from and each varies quite significantly so there is a lot to do (Soma for instance collects souls, Jonathan learns new martial arts, Charlotte learns new spells, Alucard is a well rounded player, etc...)
If you're a casual gamer, I wouldn't recommend going the single player route because you might get frustrated, difficulty is high and even though grinding definitely helps, it won't necessarily lets you finish desired level you if you're not skilled (many reviewers apparently lack in this department as they complain about the difficulty, - it's Castlevania, what did you expect?).
Game shines, don't let some of the reviews discourage you, it's a robust adventure game that has whole lot of replayability that made other Castlevania games so enjoyable to go through multiple times (level designs are very interesting, each castle/dungeon with its own vibe and scenery to go with).
Soundtrack Arrangements are top notch and keep adrenaline pumping, filled with heavy riffs and classic motives, reminiscent of those from Dracula Perfect Selection (arranged castlevania albums from the mid 90's, Japan only release naturally).
Downloadable content will hopefully come soon, adding new levels/possibly characters to choose from(judging by the music section in the game, I see track from Portrait of Ruin, the Pyramid level but level is not included so maybe that's the future DLC?).
At measly $15 it is been offered for, it's a fantastic value proposition for any adventure/platformer fanatic as it delivers in spades, giving player challenge, thrills and polished ride we've come to expect from Castlevania series and interesting multiplayer options are welcomed addition to the series.
I've been playing single player for 20 hours with various characters, beat game multiple times and I see no reason stopping doing so because new items keep popping up and keep things interesting.

I really like Limbo and Hydro Thunder but I can safely say that this is the game of the summer of arcade if you like Castlevania.

Highest Recommendation!

[diskoboy]

I'm actually enjoying this.

I like the dungeon crawling element. The upgrade feature is nicely polished. Even with the 1200 price tag, I don't see what the fuss is about...

MS has basically made all their new (good) XBLA titles 1200 points - it's just something we're obviously gonna have to get used to.

[TheCaptainniatpac]

But we already got Harmony of Dissonance! Have they run out of useful title words already?


Or they can make Castlevania 5 and continue it like that...

[Jorpho]

Or they can make Castlevania 5 and continue it like that...That's just crazy talk.

[kupomogli]

Or they can make Castlevania 5 and continue it like that...

Technically they need to make Castlevania 4 first. Super Castlevania 4 is only the US name. Akumajou Dracula is the Japanese name since it was a reinvisionment of the original Castlevania, which was also named Akumajou Dracula.

[Graham Mitchell]

I downloaded the demo and I kind of like it. I know the game has a level-based structure overall, but playing an individual level did feel like I was just playing Symphony of the Night, complete with exploration and character growth elements. I'll probably get the full version when I finish Limbo.

[old_skoolin_jim]

I can't believe Konami has the brass to call this "HD."
It's a sloppy, ugly mess of sprites ripped from PS1, GBA & DS. Looks like total poo.
They should have redrawn the sprites and at least TRIED to make it visually compelling. As it stands, this game is absolute hogwash and total disappointment. Glad I didn't waste $15 on this intern project!
/nerdrage

[D_N_G]

I can't believe Konami has the brass to call this "HD."
It's a sloppy, ugly mess of sprites ripped from PS1, GBA & DS. Looks like total poo.
They should have redrawn the sprites and at least TRIED to make it visually compelling. As it stands, this game is absolute hogwash and total disappointment. Glad I didn't waste $15 on this intern project!
/nerdrage

HD stands for Harmony of Despair, not High Definition

[Graham Mitchell]

HD stands for Harmony of Despair, not High Definition

Yeah, but the first DS game was called "Dawn of Souls", so I think the HD was implied. The little write up about the game on xbox live even advertises that it's in 1080p.

Personally, I kinda dig the chunky sprites. It feels like I'm playing a SNES game. The backgrounds are all fairly lively as well. It's neat to zoom the map way out and se all the animations going on in every room, and to watch what your teammates are doing. It's like a living dollhouse or something.

I can understand peoples' disappointment at the fact that this isn't the next amazing metroidvania release, but the game is not the complete abortion that people are claiming it is. It's just a fun, accessible multilayer performer in the style of the latest Castlevania games.

Btw-it is pretty cool to watch your characters grow as They collect more equipment and spells.