Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night - Released

HiddenX

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The side-scroller action RPG Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is now available:

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night



Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is an exploration-focused, side-scroller action RPG by Koji Igarashi. Play as Miriam, an orphan scarred by an alchemist's curse that slowly crystallizes her body. Battle through a demon-infested castle and defeat its master to save yourself, and all of humanity!
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It does look like a good game if you like this sort of thing, but I find so many reviews somewhat amusing. The game was just released earlier today, so the vast majority of those reviews are people who've only played it for a few hours. I skimmed through about 30 of them and the longest play time I saw was 6.5 hours, and most of them were far less than that.

I don't see the point of leaving a review for a game you've barely played. It's as if a lot of these people simply have a "I was here first!" mentality and don't care that they've only seen a portion of the full game.

Anyways, I'll probably play this eventually, but I'm a little burnt out on metroidvanias right now after recently finishing Steamworld Dig 2.
 
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I might have a bash, and see how it plays. The "feel" would have to be right, to give me the kick of the games I used to enjoy.
 
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It does look like a good game if you like this sort of thing, but I find so many reviews somewhat amusing. The game was just released earlier today, so the vast majority of those reviews are people who've only played it for a few hours. I skimmed through about 30 of them and the longest play time I saw was 6.5 hours, and most of them were far less than that.

I don't see the point of leaving a review for a game you've barely played. It's as if a lot of these people simply have a "I was here first!" mentality and don't care that they've only seen a portion of the full game.

Anyways, I'll probably play this eventually, but I'm a little burnt out on metroidvanias right now after recently finishing Steamworld Dig 2.

Yeah, well, a lot of those reviews are from people who love SotN and are looking for a similar experience. That is primarily who the game was aimed at and I'd think it probably wouldn't take more than a handful of hours to play to see if it succeeds... so I think those reviews and telling and useful in that regard. This isn't so much about reviewing a "new" game with a lot of systems to discover and a deep story to uncover but instead ascertaining whether it captures that "feel" of SotN.
 
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Yeah, well, a lot of those reviews are from people who love SotN and are looking for a similar experience. That is primarily who the game was aimed at and I'd think it probably wouldn't take more than a handful of hours to play to see if it succeeds… so I think those reviews and telling and useful in that regard. This isn't so much about reviewing a "new" game with a lot of systems to discover and a deep story to uncover but instead ascertaining whether it captures that "feel" of SotN.

That's fine if they feel that way, but I still think it's a little disingenuous to review a game after only a few hours even if they're not intending to be. It also makes the review useless for anyone who isn't already familiar with that type of game.
 
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I'm not a big fan of side scrolling games myself, but I did enjoy Symphony of the Night, so if it turns out to be similar to that game, I just might have to check it out.
 
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That's fine if they feel that way, but I still think it's a little disingenuous to review a game after only a few hours even if they're not intending to be.

Well, as part of the core target audience they want to appeal to, I'd have to disagree. I don't find them disingenuous at all. If someone has played 3 hours and only says something as short as "I loved SotN and this game makes me happy!" then that's helpful to me... and frankly, I think it a pretty clear statement when looked at in that context (ie. if you like this, you'll love this). And if you look at those reviews, the vast majority are contextualizing it based on their love of previous Castlevania games.

It also makes the review useless for anyone who isn't already familiar with that type of game.

Well, that's true but that's a content issue - not a time one, so you can't lump it in with a complaint about time played. They promised a SotN follow up and if a player can tell they delivered in the first few hours (and I think a previous SothN can tell that), then a player could write a review going over the game and how it works/succeeds, understanding the game mechanics it is delivering on. Conversely, someone could play the game for 60 hours and still not write a review that's helpful or insightful. So, I don't think it's fair to disregard a review solely on play time.
 
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Well, as part of the core target audience they want to appeal to, I'd have to disagree. I don't find them disingenuous at all. If someone has played 3 hours and only says something as short as "I loved SotN and this game makes me happy!" then that's helpful to me… and frankly, I think it a pretty clear statement when looked at in that context (ie. if you like this, you'll love this). And if you look at those reviews, the vast majority are contextualizing it based on their love of previous Castlevania games.

Yes, I get that many of them are riding their fanboy love for Castlvania. That couldn't be more obvious. I suppose that's fine for other fanboys, but it doesn't do much for others. That's my point.

Anyways, it's not that big a deal. I only mentioned it because it's something I noticed with other games as well. It's not as if this situation is unique.
 
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