Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is a phenomenal game. I arrived a little late to the party, but after nearly 20 hours of gameplay, I can confidently say that this is one of my all-time favorites.

Everything about this game is fantastic. The gothic horror setting is enough to satisfy any Castlevania or even Bloodborne fan. The creature and world designs are more creative, distinct and memorable than most any other game I've come across. The soundtrack is composed masterfully and transitions organically between gothic cathedral organ numbers and heroic-sounding rock pieces accompanied with violins. The gameplay is fluid, and the map system allows for easy traversing throughout the castle. Boss battles are tough but rewarding per classic Metroidvania tradition, and the Action-RPG combat and weapons allow for maximum customization.

In conclusion, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is a visceral and rewarding experience for any gamer looking to be immersed in a fleshed-out world full of creepy monsters, memorable characters, and expertly-crafted environments.

I saw a trailer for this game and saw that it looked like another great game from back in the day, Symphony of the Night and I knew I had to get this one. It is made by the same creator as he apparently split Konomi and with the help of a go fund me was able to create this game. It shares quite a few similarities; however, it is different in many ways as well. The castle in this one is supposedly the biggest castle that the creator has designed as he has made several Castlevania games of this nature; though, having played only Symphony I can say that it seems a bit bigger, just not sure by how much.

The story has a young woman named Miriam trying to track down a man named Gebal. As children, both were part of cruel experiments meant to bring about some sort of demon apocalypse. Gebal survived the ritual; however, Miriam went into a deep slumber right before. She awakened years later and now a new castle of evil has appeared and so she sets forth to find out its dark and deadly secrets.

The game play is very much like Symphony of the Night in that it is side scrolling action game with some RPG elements to it as you must level your character and buy armor and weapons. There are a vast array of weapons to choose from as you have swords, daggers, whips and even guns! You also can take on abilities of your enemies. The game also offers you the chance to help out townsfolk and create weapons using alchemy. You can also cook meals that when you try them the first time you get a permanent stat boost!

So, this game is really fun. Symphony had a better story and had way better music, but this one is longer and you get to do a lot more. Both games are very good and I would not mind seeing more games of this type created as I like a nice side scrolling game every now and then. I would also love to see an old school RPG with the looks of Final Fantasy VI made with a super huge world, but that's just me. This game is definitely like revisiting the past with upgrades!