Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Ultimate Edition

 PC
  • Publisher: Konami
  • Release Date: Aug 27, 2013
User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 648 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 435 out of 648
  2. Mixed: 107 out of 648
  3. Negative: 106 out of 648

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  1. vigilanteOito8
    Jan 26, 2023
    8
    Jogo bonzin.
    Apesar de já ter uns 12 anos, o jogo ainda tem belos graficos.
  2. Nekrips
    Jul 24, 2022
    10
    Great game with good gameplay, an interesting world, lore, and characters. The most significant advantage of the game is a very interesting and exciting plot. A strong story holds intrigue from the very beginning to the very end. Although the game is not easy, it is played in one breath.
  3. Bruterake
    Jun 17, 2021
    8
    Muito bom pra um jogo de 2010/2013, e o boss final meu Deus demorei uma hora pra matar.
  4. DantasVGabriel
    Apr 25, 2021
    8
    Um jogo muito bom mesmo fugindo bastante da franquia principal com uma nova história, Músicas muito foda além de uma boa gameplay hack and slash, desafiante e com bons gráficos, essa versão é a definitiva e bem optimizada
  5. hseven
    Jul 14, 2020
    9
    A really good game. I like the combos and the game is so fun with a gamepad. Graphics are good not amazing. But from the beginning, the game bound me to it.
  6. ekabon
    Apr 18, 2020
    9
    Solid story and direction. Impressive visuals as well! And hey, vampires! What's not to like :)
  7. ricardomalias
    Dec 9, 2019
    9
    Excellent hack slack and puzzles union. It’s a great reboot to castlevania
  8. Genek13
    Nov 19, 2019
    8
    It's an God of War type of game released on PC :)
    Enjoyable and fun to play with also great story.
    Not easy one but beatable ;)
  9. M300
    Oct 20, 2018
    10
    It's an excellent game. Only thing i disliked is the MLAA AA option, it blurs everything.
  10. Panica3643D
    Jun 16, 2018
    9
    Зацепила игра своим трагическим сюжетом. Атмосфера и подача выполнены на высоком уровне. Механика боя местами раздражала, но в целом - неплохо.
  11. Darkvenom39
    Jun 1, 2018
    8
    Welcome to the Castlevania in a God of war skin ! story telling is a bit off but in the end of the game it has a good punch to it when you get to the sequel. The DLC is nice but the ending boss fight is so annoying !!! (but in a challenging way, but i really wish that they had made it a better fight like most bosses when its supposed to be epic !) Overall i dont understand the hate on thisWelcome to the Castlevania in a God of war skin ! story telling is a bit off but in the end of the game it has a good punch to it when you get to the sequel. The DLC is nice but the ending boss fight is so annoying !!! (but in a challenging way, but i really wish that they had made it a better fight like most bosses when its supposed to be epic !) Overall i dont understand the hate on this maybe because im a god of war fan i seem to like this game a lot but from reading fan comments i think that they are just cry babies who dont understand the true power and fun of this game !!! 8/10 pro's: great gameplay, fun levels, graphics, soundtrack, level design is beautiful !!!
    con's: the big boss fights are lame and annoying (especially in the dlc... the main regular size bosses are epic!), puzzle levels are badddddddddddd and will freak the **** out of you !!!, short levels with no interest's at time's (there are level's when you will ask yourself why am i doing this ???).    … Expand
  12. shadorn
    Nov 26, 2017
    9
    This is a beautiful little gem, albeit not perfect. I confirm the fixed camera is annoying at beginning, but after 4-5 hours in the game I've got used to it and I even started to appreciate that all the awesome scenery were always put in the best perspective.

    This is also the time needed to appreciate the game mechanics: having played the original (2D) Castelvanias I found many    This is a beautiful little gem, albeit not perfect. I confirm the fixed camera is annoying at beginning, but after 4-5 hours in the game I've got used to it and I even started to appreciate that all the awesome scenery were always put in the best perspective.

    This is also the time needed to appreciate the game mechanics: having played the original (2D) Castelvanias I found many similarities: for example the whips and other powers, the breakable object giving small collectibles, how some parts of the games are not accessible until you get the right power (a great feature - although limited compared to early castelvanias)

    The game is epic, with an excellent soundtrack and a very dramatic storytelling (sometimes a bit exaggerated :) and god-of-wars-like boss fights are stunningly beautiful and exciting.

    I really enjoyed the game, and I totally recommend it to the Castelvania franchise fans and to the god of wars fans, especially if you can buy it on discount.    … Expand
  13. zimmer600
    Aug 19, 2017
    8
    For the slasher, the game is simply gorgeous. It observes the canonical rhythm, neatly alternating the dynamic battles with puzzles and jumps along the cornices, and at the end it blossoms with a variety of game situations and scenery.
  14. alexfsmw
    Feb 10, 2017
    9
    The graphics is beautiful, the story and setting is interesting, a lot of different characters. Loved it and will definitely play the second part! Definitely recommend it!
  15. Krzych
    Dec 23, 2016
    9
    Amazing journey. May not have the most impressive start, actually I liked it on second try few months after I abandoned it after first try, but I am glad that I came back. Amazing atmosphere and design, great storyline and characters, tons of content, sometimes challenging. This is more than just a game, its an art. One of those very few games that really got me seriously involved.
  16. Detraxxx
    Sep 3, 2016
    9
    I think that Castlevania LoS is a very good game worth playing. I was delighted with most of the game's aspects including graphics, audio and story. However, the game has minor problems with locked camera and therefore the gameplay is sometimes uncomfortable and some areas in the game are harder to explore because of this. It should be mentioned that this game should be played with aI think that Castlevania LoS is a very good game worth playing. I was delighted with most of the game's aspects including graphics, audio and story. However, the game has minor problems with locked camera and therefore the gameplay is sometimes uncomfortable and some areas in the game are harder to explore because of this. It should be mentioned that this game should be played with a gamepad controller.

    + Beautiful graphics
    + Interesting story
    + Exciting orchestral soundtrack
    + Good combat mechanics
    + Nice puzzles

    - Locked camera
    - Story loses focus on important characters

    Nice game in overall.    … Expand
  17. sashaalexander
    Aug 25, 2016
    10
    Awesome game, one of the best I've ever played. Very beautiful graphics, great story and gameplay. Lots of different monsters to slay and many different moves and combos to slay them with, which I really like. It plays smooth on my 2011 laptop. Highly recommend it if you played and liked Devil May Cry, any part.
  18. neopolx
    Jul 10, 2016
    10
    Good game, full of action, great cinematics, fuid game, magic powers, great story, challenging enemies, great graphics with beautiful backgrounds. its a great and fun game.
  19. Vozzlefox
    Sep 4, 2014
    8
    Gameplay: Surprisingly fun; combat is your usual hack and slash DMC/god of war/bayonetta style with many unlockable upgrades and moves. Involves a lot of dodging and parrying and can at times be a little more punishing than it is challenging, which is my only pet peeve about this game. The second part of the gameplay consists of solving puzzles and 3D platforming.

    Graphics: Graphics are    Gameplay: Surprisingly fun; combat is your usual hack and slash DMC/god of war/bayonetta style with many unlockable upgrades and moves. Involves a lot of dodging and parrying and can at times be a little more punishing than it is challenging, which is my only pet peeve about this game. The second part of the gameplay consists of solving puzzles and 3D platforming.

    Graphics: Graphics are fine, nothing crazy but pretty enough to bring out the beauty of the environment and to make combat and platforming clear.

    Enviroment: The boards in this game are quite beautiful. You can tell the a lot of care has gone into the story and the environments in this game. Ranging from snow capped mountains and frozen lakes to swamp-filled forests and the famous breath-taking Dracula Castle.

    Story: Excellent gripping story    … Expand
  20. Satirus
    Aug 26, 2014
    9
    Lords of Shadow is aesthetically expressive, immersive, has a great narrative, fantastic boss fights, a deep and melancholic atmosphere, differentiate and inspired sceneries, charismatic characters and engaging gameplay!
    It is a very interesting take on the Castlevania series, using references from another games like Legacy of Kain, Shadow of the Colossus and God of War but with an unique    Lords of Shadow is aesthetically expressive, immersive, has a great narrative, fantastic boss fights, a deep and melancholic atmosphere, differentiate and inspired sceneries, charismatic characters and engaging gameplay!
    It is a very interesting take on the Castlevania series, using references from another games like Legacy of Kain, Shadow of the Colossus and God of War but with an unique personality.
    Lords of Shadow is among my favourite games of the most recent years, side by side with Witcher 2, L.A.Noire, Resistance 3, Dark Souls and a few others.    … Expand
  21. 123yumyum
    Aug 13, 2014
    10
    this instalment of Castlevania is one of the greatest games i have ever played. it is challenging, the controls are brilliant, and the story is something else. the best thing about it, in my opinion, are the puzzles that you must complete to get to different areas- something i have noticed bothers many gamers, but what is a good game if there are no proper challenges. the little thingsthis instalment of Castlevania is one of the greatest games i have ever played. it is challenging, the controls are brilliant, and the story is something else. the best thing about it, in my opinion, are the puzzles that you must complete to get to different areas- something i have noticed bothers many gamers, but what is a good game if there are no proper challenges. the little things also impress me: the endless amount of combos, the fact you need to press keys to absorb energy is quite a good feature (so its not too easy to overpower everything), and the main character is quite fantastic. so all in all it is a perfect score from me.… Expand
  22. Fuz
    Jun 18, 2014
    8
    Pretty good game with some flaws.
    It's fun to play, the combat can be challenging and rewarding and the controls are responsive and easy to learn (maybe one less key to absorb energy would have been nice) and work pretty well on a PC keyboard. The platforming is kinda boring and just a waste of time, there's no challenge in it, you basically just follow a rail The combat has lots of    Pretty good game with some flaws.
    It's fun to play, the combat can be challenging and rewarding and the controls are responsive and easy to learn (maybe one less key to absorb energy would have been nice) and work pretty well on a PC keyboard. The platforming is kinda boring and just a waste of time, there's no challenge in it, you basically just follow a rail The combat has lots of skills and combos, maybe too many, but you'll end up using always the same moves to be on the safe side; you'll almost never use 90% of the combos and skills, there's no incentive to do it and it's just an useless added danger.
    But the biggest, worst, most unforgivable flaw is the camera. It's bad. It's very bad. It keeps switching angle while you're moving, making you go back or toward places you didn't intend to go to. It keeps enemies out of the screen. A few times it kept the main character out of the screen... during a platform puzzle. It's a terrible, terrible camera and I'm amazed at how it could pass the QA testing.

    All in all though, it's a pretty good and fun game.    … Expand
  23. obertron
    Mar 11, 2014
    9
    I tried to play previous Castlevania game on the original Xbox and could not even play for 2 hours. This game I played for 5 hours every night for a week, losing much sleep, but having so much fun.

    It has a great sense of style and sense of progression. The character Gabriel Belmont really builds up to be a strong fighter. The control is very smooth, each time after you level up and    I tried to play previous Castlevania game on the original Xbox and could not even play for 2 hours. This game I played for 5 hours every night for a week, losing much sleep, but having so much fun.

    It has a great sense of style and sense of progression. The character Gabriel Belmont really builds up to be a strong fighter. The control is very smooth, each time after you level up and buys new ability, you can develop a new longer combo. The game encourages you to play earlier chapter to discover more collectible and you can relish in defeating earlier enemy with ease and style. By the end of the game, when I acquired the Ultimate Light and Shadow Magic, fighting the last boss was easy on Normal difficulty because magic is unlimited and I have maxed out all the stat.

    The game always save your experience point so you don’t feel like you wasted time even if you are dead. This also allows farming for points. You also don’t feel you need to be stingy with using the items because this is not a survivor game. Chapter VI, Part III: Castle Hall, when you finish the rune puzzle and it turns night, the vampires do end after a few waves. If you stand and kill all of the vampires, the last one seems to drop a full load of EVERY item (daggers, holy water, faeries, and crystals. You get about 50 experience points per vampire, and there is a magic fountain there so you can easily use up your item and magic to kill all enemy in just 3 minutes, you can then go to the game menu, “Restart on Last Check Point” and fight them again. You can get as much experience as you want. If you can afford to wait though, go to Chapter VI, Part IV: Refectory, the boss Evil Butcher, there is a 30 second QuickTime prompt event before you kill him, and you get 1,000 points for doing that. You can definitely max on all the skills and relics by doing this.

    The visual is amazing, there is hand drawn black and white bestiary and storybook like intro in each chapter, and then when you play the game there is the animated cut scene. There is the QuickTime sequence / prompt event where you have to push the attack button when the circle shrinks down smaller than the indicator circle. This was very confusing for me at first because I am used to smashing button when the prompt comes up. In fact, in the first sequence where I ride the horse to escape the goblins I keep getting knocked down. I also recommend you lose the prompt event sometimes because some of the Gabriel’s death animation is pretty amazing. This is especially true when you fight Carmilla the Vampire Queen’s true form, Dark lord of the Vampires (BOSS), the animation there is really long and you would never find out if you win at the prompt.

    The game has the blatant steal from Shadow of Colossus where you have to climb on a Titan and attach each of the spot on its body, and the Titan will attempt to throw you off. It is quite exciting.
    Patrick Stewart of the Star Trek Enterprise / Captain Picard fame is one of the main story character Zobek . He narrates all the intro level descriptions / stories. The first time I heard him I was very impressed by his acting and happy that this game has a big budget to hire good actors.

    On the downside, the game does have some repetitive points, and the DLC which continues from the end of the game, it is very difficult and repetitive even on the normal setting. In the DLC you help Laura the vampire daughter with The Forgotten big evil boss that is trapped under the castle. Gabriel chooses actions which leads him to become the man he is in Lords of Darkness 2. You also see the trailer for the 2nd game if you wait after the game credit ends.

    If you just want a fun run through, it will take 20 hours, if you go back and get all the crystal and collectibles and challenges, it will take about 40 hours.    … Expand
  24. Storm1672
    Mar 10, 2014
    9
    One of the best of the genre, the game is epic. Epic boss fights, epic music, epic atmosphere. Great game and tough as hell on the highest difficulties. Great pacing overall and a combat system to master.

    After 3 years from the original release, the graphx hold up quite well but some of the mechanics could be more user-friendly. This is one of my favourite games of this gen.
  25. Pr8Dator
    Mar 7, 2014
    10
    In my first 2 hours of this game, I would have rated it no more than 4 / 10 due to not having any camera control and the fact that it is unplayably laggy using keyboard and mouse. However, once I bought a gamepad, this game truly transformed... not having camera control became a plus as controlling camera seperately using gamepad is truly a chore and gamepad control is sooo incrediblyIn my first 2 hours of this game, I would have rated it no more than 4 / 10 due to not having any camera control and the fact that it is unplayably laggy using keyboard and mouse. However, once I bought a gamepad, this game truly transformed... not having camera control became a plus as controlling camera seperately using gamepad is truly a chore and gamepad control is sooo incredibly smooth and responsive, its amazing. From then on, the music, atmosphere and how the protagonist transform over time into the epic character he is throughout the castlevania series dragged me deeper and deeper into the lore and story of the game. By the end of the game, I just wanted more... more of the story, the emotions, the excitement, the immersion... I wanted so much more of this that I pre-ordered the sequel. If you enjoy an epic, emotional story that leads to a story and lore of epic proportion (and you enjoyed other similar games such as Darksiders), this is a must buy!… Expand
  26. Jason312
    Feb 26, 2014
    8
    I would recommend Castlevania: Lords of Shadow to anyone who enjoys 3rd person type adventure and combat games. As the game looks reasonably good but not amazing it will run on less powerful PC's as opposed to only a high end system.
  27. Sdric
    Feb 24, 2014
    8
    Castlevania:LoS is adifficult game to rate.
    Oldscholl gamer hate it, since this is not Castlevania.
    It's Devil May Cry. Good things first: +Good graphics +Interesting and great story +Many good cutscenes +Takes quite some hours to finish +A lot of skills to use +Riding enemies is a really cool feature +Finishing moves are awesome Now to the bad part: -Very linear -The    Castlevania:LoS is adifficult game to rate.
    Oldscholl gamer hate it, since this is not Castlevania.
    It's Devil May Cry.

    Good things first:
    +Good graphics
    +Interesting and great story
    +Many good cutscenes
    +Takes quite some hours to finish
    +A lot of skills to use
    +Riding enemies is a really cool feature
    +Finishing moves are awesome

    Now to the bad part:
    -Very linear
    -The game tries to force you to play each level a dozen times
    -- You get told what the level's challange is AFTER you finish it
    -- You can't access certain items without another item which you get much later in the story
    -- The hidden "heart/magic containers" sometimes are hidden at incredible stupid spots, where even though levels are liniar they seem impossible to find
    -Fights are repetitive. Even though you have a lot of skills you most often will simply attack twice, dodge. Rinse & repeat until you got enough energy for your strongest attack, use it. Rinse and repeat. THis remains the most efficient strategy for the whole game.

    Taking everything into account:
    Though I really liked the map design, visuals and story I sometimes found it hard to keep playing since I got frustrated by the game trying to force me to replay former stages.
    Even though everything looks different (great map design) I felt I was playing the same all over.

    It's so linear, that you have to treat it like a Telltale game.
    Play it for the story and the great designed stages.
    See it as a book or a movie, not as the action game it is supposed to be.    … Expand
  28. mandy15293
    Jan 27, 2014
    10
    this game was awesome and also runs smoothly without any issue. It is the first game like god of war i played in pc. now i am excited that what comes 2nd part of castlevania lords of shadow
  29. GameHyena
    Jan 3, 2014
    8
    I'm a massive Castlevania fan, having played most of the 3d Castlevanias. This game stands out as one of the better. Though it seems some die hard fans of the "Metroidvania" styled Castlevanias that appeal to the Weeaboos out there who gush over SotN every chance they get disagree. However this game has huge amounts of appeal. The graphics are wonderful aside from a clip or awkward modelI'm a massive Castlevania fan, having played most of the 3d Castlevanias. This game stands out as one of the better. Though it seems some die hard fans of the "Metroidvania" styled Castlevanias that appeal to the Weeaboos out there who gush over SotN every chance they get disagree. However this game has huge amounts of appeal. The graphics are wonderful aside from a clip or awkward model movement from time to time, the story is very basic revenge spree and all that. However it is in the growth of your character not only in game but within the story that keeps you interested in what will happen next. Being a dedicated gamer that I am, I played through on the most difficulty setting right away. The starting to this game can be frustrating and annoying if you play on the hardest difficulty at first. Though after the first section of the game you become a power house making ever fight more smooth as you become attuned to the combat and as the overall strength of Gabriel grows. This leads us up to the ending, without giving away spoilers; is wonderful and is an amazing reboot to the series. This game has rather awkward platforming sections from time to time and the controls are not mirroring other games so if you are use to other games controls you may sometimes drop yourself down a pit. As far as combat goes remembering to parry and block is needed in the first section of the game unless you plan of check pointing half a dozen times. Although the beginning of this game left the dry taste of salt in my mouth, a refreshing beverage of power ups and ability boosts kept me wanting to play. Knowing that right around the corner I could find the next move to that made taking down that tough enemy just that much easier. There is plenty to do in this game once you have completed the main story, each short section is cut into segments of a chapter and can be replayed to find all the secrets and other interesting content. Packed with lore and not only 15-20 hours of gameplay this game keeps you interested deeply if you are a big Castlevania fan. Don't let fan boys of the back tracking flashy Metroid clone games that get puked out onto the portable consoles fool you. This is by far one of the best 3d Castlevanias, each moment in this game feels like such a waste to just rush through even though the feeling of epicness may come off as forced from time to time, I still found myself loving each boss fight. Overall this game is a must have, any platform, ignore the Fan boys that mock 3d Castlevanias. Lords of Shadow is an excellent experience for not only the casual gamers but the hardcore gamers alike. (Other mentions: Great voice acting, original designs, great background, great loading transition, probably the best "pause" menu I've ever had the pleasure to use, perfect uses of the "bloom" lighting, and vampires... real ones.)… Expand
  30. xuthan
    Jan 1, 2014
    10
    Lords of Shadow is a great game. If I were to rate it, it would get between 8.5 and 9 out of 10. I'm making this review 10/10 because of the lack of justified reviews for 0 and idiots saying the game looks outdated/pixelated/whatever junk comes out their mouth. Is the game 100% unplayable? No. Minimum I'd expect would be 5/10 because people's tastes of games vary. Anything lower is justLords of Shadow is a great game. If I were to rate it, it would get between 8.5 and 9 out of 10. I'm making this review 10/10 because of the lack of justified reviews for 0 and idiots saying the game looks outdated/pixelated/whatever junk comes out their mouth. Is the game 100% unplayable? No. Minimum I'd expect would be 5/10 because people's tastes of games vary. Anything lower is just garbage coming from another PC fanboy who doesn't know anything about computers, wishes he knows about computers, and blames consoles for everything negative in his substandard life.

    This is a port to PC but is it bad? No. The majority of these negative reviews don't even mention real issues. If the story ties well with the second game that is about to be released, then the cross reference could actually make this game extremely good. At the moment, it is at least a 7/10 for story for most players. Graphics.. if it's an issue, then I'd say you need to get some therapy. As for gameplay, it balances out between action, puzzles and platforming so you don't get the feeling of repetitiveness and this is a major plus. Ability upgrades are more situational to how you play and if you don't replay the stages to farm up points, you'll need to spend them wisely. The combat is fairly simple and if you've played God of War, you should feel comfortable to play on hard difficulty of your first run.

    A lot of the negative reviews (below 5) came from people who basically pirated the game or basement trolls. Anyone who has remotely played the game would agree that the art was well done and anyone who payed for it would have known that it was meant to be played on a gamepad and would be prepared for compromises when playing on a keyboard and mouse.

    All third person slasher games suffer from keyboard and mouse and it gets tedious because you can't move the character freely with kb/m but that also applies to every other game. The only advantages the kb/m have over a gamepad are more keys and precision for point and click games MMORPG, RTS and shooting games. Gameplay that is focused on direction and positioning will always be better on the gamepad/joystick. Try playing the following game types on keyboard and mouse: aerial combat, car racing games, sports games, any hack&slash games, 3D platformers it will be at a massive disadvantage without the joystick.

    To the people complaining about low resolution textures and outdated graphics, I don't know if I should feel bad for you. You want good graphics? Go on hiking trip at some tropical island, realism right there in your face. Real water, real trees, real rocks, real sunlight affects, real sand, and real sounds of nature. After your trip, you'll see that games even at this stage are nowhere near realistic and stop making bs excuses comparing this game with other games. Tomb Raider, Crysis 3 and BF4 look nowhere near "real" and these are 2013 titles.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

47
#47 Best PC Game of 2013
65
#65 Most Discussed PC Game of 2013
70
#70 Most Shared PC Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
81

Generally favorable reviews - based on 23 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 19 out of 23
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 23
  3. Negative: 0 out of 23
  1. Armchair Empire
    Sep 19, 2013
    75
    Castlevania: Lords of Shadow Ultimate Edition covers some traditional action game territory for sure but there are some memorable moments that make it worth a look if combo-based combat and exploration is your thing.
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  2. Eurogamer Portugal
    Sep 16, 2013
    70
    Overall, this is a game of acceptable quality, but a little dated in time.
    Read full review
  3. GameSpot
    Sep 10, 2013
    70
    The Ultimate Edition of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow breathes new life into the three-year-old game through improved graphics and extra content.
    Read full review
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