(if a thread for this exists, a search did not turn it up, and feel free to direct me thence and lock this one)

I find it surprising that no one is talking about this game! First, its Castlevania, second its actually much much better than Lament of Innocence! And I'm one of the few who like LoI.

The level design is more dynamic with better rooms and more to explore. The backgrounds are beautiful, simply breathtaking in places. The fighting engine is pretty much the same, but much simpler with a sword than it was with the whip.

The Boss fights are truly amazing. The second boss, a big wyvern, is totally awesome. The fight is dynamic and there is a real feeling of reward when you defeat it.

All in all, this game is really great. My only two quibbles are the storyline and the lack of interactive environments. The story is only a Castlevania story tangentally (although the appearance by Belmont is pretty cool) and doesn't really seem to have much impact on the overall Castlevania mythos. And the backgrounds are practically useless. Invisible barriers keep you from ever touching the walls inside buildings and the environment is static except for things that you need to interact with in order to complete the game. It makes the game feel a bit narrow at times, and limits the amount of exploration possible.

But like I said, these are minor quibbles overall in my mind. I am loving it!