Introduction
Today we are going to look at a Metroidvania game, one that might be short but is it fun? This game is called Record of Lodoss War – Deedlith in Wonder Labyrinth, for this review we will simply call it Lodoss War. This game has a lot of different bosses and some neat mechanics which have you switching sprites to change your element! We will get more into how the sprites work in the gameplay.
What did I think before playing Lodoss War?
I literally had no clue what to expect from this game, neither if I would like it or not. I only knew that it was a Metroidvania, I also believe that the Lodoss War is a whole franchise, but I am not sure. It is something that I want to look at in the future as it might hold more reviews! For more information on this game, I went to the Steam page!
The Steam Page
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1203630/Record_of_Lodoss_WarDeedlit_in_Wonder_Labyrinth/
While the Steam page is quite simple, it tells you exactly what you need to know! Use your weapons to explore a 2D Metroidvania world. The sprites are also mentioned. After reading the Steam page, I got pretty excited about how this game would have played out!
Rating
I rate Lodoss War with a 7.8 before playing.
At first glance, it seems that this is another general Metroidvania, but there is only one way to find out!
Story
Deedlith wakes up in an unfamiliar place where nothing is at seems, Even weirder is that her lover seems to be alive while he died. It is your job to figure out what exactly is going on!
Rating
I rate the story of Lodoss War with a 5.5.
I found the story confusing and odd, I am also not familiar with this gaming franchise. The story will fly by, and you will be barely noticing it. The strong suite of this game is the gameplay!
Gameplay
The gameplay is similar to some Castlevania games. The game is in 2D, and you will need to explore different areas, which most of them house different enemies and usually a big boss. Along the way you will fight the enemies which will grant you experience points to level up. Leveling up is essential to make sure that you stay alive!
Your goal is to find the endgame boss to end your suffering from this weird nightmare. Along the way, you will find weapons that you can equip, either a sword or bow and arrow. You can equip both of them at the same time, which makes it easy to take down a lot of monsters. You can also learn magic, the skill Will o Wisp is useful for the whole game!
As you explore the areas, you will also learn new abilities which you are going to need to backtrack to find new items! Not only that, you will also unlock new kinds of doors that can lead to new weapons and bow arrows! While fighting enemies, you can switch sprites. One is a fire sprite and the other is a wind sprite! When using the wind sprite, you can hover short distances.
When attacking with the wind sprite, your fire spirit will gain energy with a max of three energy. This will increase the fire spirit’s damage, but when you get hit while using the fire spirit, your fire spirit energy will lower. If you attack with the fire spirit, the wind spirit will gain power. You need to switch carefully, as the level three energy can also heal you.
Rating
I rate the gameplay, Lodoss War, with an 8.8.
The gameplay is quite amazing, but the game can be finished in one Sunday, but where is that last room?
Sound and Graphics
Graphics
The graphics are quite good in this game. I do not know of the series of Lodoss War, but I feel that the graphics do this franchise good. I also liked how the enemies look, the bosses look great! There is also a boss rush mode to re-enjoy the bosses! The final boss also has two forms! However, the screen will also be very small or full screen, the graphics option were quite limited.
Sound
I liked the soundtracks and sound effects, if you liked music from the Castlevania games, you will enjoy the music in this game!
Rating
I rate the sound and graphics, Lodoss War, with a 7.1.
There is nothing special, but the music is enjoyable! The graphics options are quite limited, though.
What did I think after playing Lodoss War?
I had a great time when playing Lodoss of War, butt the story was very weak and not fun at all. It also took only one afternoon to finish off the game. If you are a casual gamer it will take longer, but the game is just very small.
I liked how the mechanics complement the battle system, as you can heal if you are able to keep one spirit at level three. The bosses usually also have a weakness to one of the spirits. Some of their elemental weakness can also be absorbed for mana points.
Rating
I rate Lodoss War with an 8.5 after playing.
I had more fun with this game than I had expected, but sadly it was over very quickly.
What are my personal thoughts about Lodoss War?
While I enjoy Metroidvanias a lot, I also have a hard time with finding the last piece of the map, somehow this last secret can and will elude me!
Rating
My personal Rating of Lodoss War before the Ashes is a 7.0
I had a lot of fun when playing this game!
Last Words
Pros
- Experience the story of what happens in Lodoss War!
- Amazing graphics and soundtracks
- Use your spirits wisely to fend of strong enemies.
- Fight epic bosses and try to learn their patterns!
- Level up and use weapons that suit your playstyle!
- Explore the map and find all of the secrets!
- use magic to dispose of your enemies!
Cons
- Record of Lodoss War is a short game!
If you like Metroidvanias, this is a must play!
Final Rating
7.5
Let me know what you think of Record of Lodoss War in the comments!
I hope you enjoyed reading this review, I hope to see you in the next review!
If you liked reading this review, maybe you would like to share this review with your friends!
Game reminds me old days 🙂
great game and great review!! how it can be short with such a big map?
The rooms are very small, and you can complete stages very fast!
This one looks really good, definitely got some Symphony of the Night vibes going on here.
It indeed does!
This is a pretty good retro styled game
Yeah, I agree!
I always thought that the Record of Lodoss War games were startegy, now I know different. Looks pretty fun.
It is a Metroidvania!
I think that a short game that gives positive emotions is better than a long game that gets boring towards the end, or even in the middle.
I agree!
retro vibes, added this game in wishlist
Great to hear that!
I love the metroidvania genre! I’ll keep an eye on this one!
I like the style of this game
I do too!
this looks really nice