“Where did this game come from?!”

That was a question I put to myself over a dozen times as I played through Mercury Steam and Konami’s Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, an action adventure game that could be written off as a ‘simple’ God of War clone by casual observers, but once the action is experienced and the adventure completed, the game amounts to so much more than a mere ‘clone.’

There are indeed elements of God of War in this 3D iteration of the classic Castlevania franchise, but there are also pieces of Uncharted woven into the title, too, with ingredients borrowed from Zelda and even Shadow of the Colossus mixed into the concoction to form a game that may be a little unrecognisable to Castlevania fans, but is wholly unique and amazing.

“But… where did this game come from?!”

I had paid attention to Castlevania: Lords of Shadow since it was first announced, but like a few others, I wasn’t convinced that the Spanish development outfit, Mercury Steam (which had worked on ‘American McGee presents Scrapland’ and ‘Clive Barker’s Jericho’), would be able to deliver anything other than a generic ‘God of War clone,’ even with the help of Hideo Kojima and Kojima Productions.

After playing the game to completion, however, and discovering a title that is anything but generic, with stunning environments, a gripping story, memorable characters and truly interesting gameplay and scenarios, I’m of the opinion that Castlevania: Lords of Shadow has outdone God of War in every way that matters, and stands alongside Bayonetta as an action game to beat.

Continue reading El33tonline’s review of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow.