Fans that missed out on Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate on the Nintendo 3DS earlier this year are anxiously awaiting the release of the HD version of the game on Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network October 25. And if a tweet from series producer David Cox is any indication, PC gamers will soon be able to play the game as well.
This tweet is good news for anyone who doesn’t own a 3DS and is eager to play the latest Castlevania game. Though it didn’t receive overwhelmingly positive reviews, long-time Castlevania fans will likely gobble it up.
My Takeaway: If A Game’s Broke… Don’t Fix It?
When does it make sense for developers to release games like this to multiple platforms months after its exclusive launch? In this instance, the game wasn’t received well, so what benefit is there to releasing it again on more consoles, unless significant work has been done to remake the game and fix the problems that plagued it the first time around? Is it worth the cost in development time to release another “bad” game?
We’ve seen this happen many times over the years, and while I don’t know the ins and outs of the expenses or politics involved in making this happen, it’s hard to believe it could possibly be worth it. IGN gave Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate a 4.7 out of 10, which is hardly a score that screams, “Please bring this to all consoles!” So unless Konami has put in extra time to fix what IGN (and other review outlets) didn’t like, what’s the point?
IGN’s Colin Moriarty criticized the game for the following:
- Poor gameplay that forces you to use the circle pad
- Fragmented environments that aren’t obviously connected
- Emphasis on multiple characters dilutes the experience
- Shallow leveling system that gives players no feeling of fulfillment
Those are some pretty serious issues, and unless Konami has put in the time to fix them, PS3, Xbox, and PC gamers who are considering purchasing the game will have to determine if these issues are an important factor in their decision.
I, personally, don’t understand the decision to bring this game to the PS3, Xbox 360, and potentially the PC. The sales for the game clearly must have been good enough on the 3DS despite the negative reviews that Konami decided it was worth it to upgrade the graphics and release it everywhere else as well. I certainly won’t be buying it, but for the sake of those who do, I hope Konami took the time to fix what was wrong and release a much improved experience on these other consoles.
