JBoc924Whether you love or hate its design approach, you have to admit that Castlevania: Harmony of Despair is a co-op game that’s loads of fun. Even on solo mode the game offers an entertaining slate of stages that each provides a challenge and will have you coming back countless times trying one last time to get that piece of equipment or spell. Then we get DLC added to an already superb package, ranging from characters, music tracks, and stages. The latest stage (Chapter 8), titled “The One Who is Many” is now available for download at a convenient price of 320 msp (Microsoft points). So what are you waiting for? Go and download it! But, if you’re having second thoughts, then maybe this review will help you.
Chapter 8 brings with it a good amount of new additions. For starters, the game brings a nice chunk of Symphony of the Night’s castle , more specifically: it’s underground segments. And with that, you also get the awesome music to go along with it. Fans of the PS1 classic will definitely appreciate this game’s remix of “The Lost Portrait”. But wait, there’s more.
As has been advertised as being this chapter’s biggest feature, yes, you do get to face the ever so popular Legion. And while I found his stature to be on a more minimal scale as opposed to his previous appearances, I had loads of fun taking it down, especially with a full team of 6 vampire hunters. And yes, Soma players can obtain Legion’s soul for use. While Shanoa players can get the globus soul which is a very useful ability to utilize and it’s quite satisfying to see it fill up a room, killing everything in its path.
Fear not whip users! There’s also goodies in store for you. Jonathan, Richter, and Julius are able to obtain a new sub-weapon in the javelin. So you know the drill, go get it maxed! There’s also something else for whip wielders, and that comes in the form of Simon’s Cloak. What’s special about that piece of equipment, besides it belonging to Simon Belmont, is that it allows you to increase the HP cap for your whip-using character once you have them completely maxed. Good stuff here for those who like to whip it good.
And I’d be a fool to not mention the fact that we get some new enemies to destroy in this chapters. You’ll definitely recognize them if you’ve played through Symphony of the Night, or pretty much any other vania game. And lastly, it’s worth stating that the map is huge. It is also very detailed, putting it among the best stages in the game.
All in all, if you’ve been actively playing Castlevania: Harmony of Despair then you should definitely pick this up. For everyone else who got the game initially and just drifted away from it, jump back on and discover all the new additions. Here’s to another hundred hours of item-hunting and monster-slaying! Now, bring on Chapter 9 and Belzeebub.
5/5
I’ll leave you all with this amazing piece of vania music.
