User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 296 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Negative: 29 out of 296
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  1. Nov 19, 2022
    10
    love this game marvelous brought it on xbox digital big up to konami and kojima love it one of the best brawlers in video games
  2. Jul 26, 2022
    8
    A great game! I was invested in the character and the journey! The music also blended well with the scenes. I would say the only draw was that it wasn't a game I saw myself playing more than once. But for the one time I did it has many positive qualities.
  3. Jul 14, 2022
    8
    Nettes. Spiel es hat echt viel Spaß gemacht. Mehr davon! Nicht zu lang, nicht zu kurz. Genau richtig.
  4. Nov 16, 2021
    7
    This is a good game, very cool graphics, music and plot. This game is not a good Castlevania game. This is a problem if you are a fan of Castlevania, you will be kind of annoy by many things if you play this game expecting a Castlevania game on the style of Igarashi or even before with the first 4 games. If you don't care and you just want a fun hack/slash game totally recommended.
  5. Oct 15, 2021
    9
    amazing game, very good story, very good narrative, very good dialogues, awesome sceneries, the details in them are unbelievable, espectacular end, very good jugability ,the camera is very bad sometimes you can not see correctly the the game, the bosses, the enemies or the place of a puzzle, but the rest of the game is a very good game
  6. Aug 17, 2021
    8
    I enjoyed this game more than I thought I would. A few story moments could have been better but overall not bad, especially that its a full 3D Castlevania.
  7. Jul 8, 2021
    9
    C Lords of Shadow я познакомился, если честно, случайно. Конечно мне была известна серия Castlevania, видел её и на nes, и на sega, но чо то как то не зашло. Толи сложноваты для меня были, толи ещё чего, не помню.
    Но вот, на XBox 360, на рынке, я увидел эту игру и решил купить.
    Поначалу меня, как то, напрягла неподвижная камера, но стоило поиграть. И, о чудо, какая же это великолепная
    C Lords of Shadow я познакомился, если честно, случайно. Конечно мне была известна серия Castlevania, видел её и на nes, и на sega, но чо то как то не зашло. Толи сложноваты для меня были, толи ещё чего, не помню.
    Но вот, на XBox 360, на рынке, я увидел эту игру и решил купить.
    Поначалу меня, как то, напрягла неподвижная камера, но стоило поиграть. И, о чудо, какая же это великолепная оказалась игра. Причем, практически, по всем параметрам.
    Начну с боёвки. Она просто великолепна. Тот самый хлыст который меня так бесил на 8 битах, здесь стал просто идеальным оружием. Даже когда во второй части мы получили меч, всё равно хлыст был предпочтителен.
    В игре, так же, имеется система прокачка способностей, приёмов и т. д.
    Сюжет. Но тут, я думаю, ни у кого не вызовет сомнения, великолепен. Хоть бери и фильм снимай. Опять же сюжет продолжения, который мне нравится гораздо меньше, его хорошо дополняет.
    Графон. На мой взгляд, на 2010 год, один из лучших.
    Ну и главное, что должно быть на высоте в сюжетной игре, это атмосфера. И она здесь в стратосфере. Из игры, тупо, не хочется выходить!
    Но больше всего в этой игре мне запомнились............БОССЫ!!! Как же они хороши. Есть и великаны, по которым как по горе надо лазать. Есть и обычные, с которыми меряешься шкалой здоровья. А так же имеются и боссы с особым подходом, которых так просто не убьёшь. Хотя игра не совсем японская, боссы типично, в хорошем смысле, японские!
    Игра достаточно длинная, но проходится просто на одном дыхании.
    Есть небольшие недоработки. Как мне кажется из-за камеры. Иногда не видно куда бежать или прыгать. В Lords of Shadow 2 камеру поправили, но к сожалению, это единственное, что в игре стало лучше.
    Недавно прошел Castlevania: Lords of Shadow в третий раз, уже на РС, так как вышла русская озвучка. Остался доволен.
    Советую всем, кто не играл. Даже сейчас игра выглядит и играется прекрасно.
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  8. Jul 16, 2020
    0
    One of the worst games i have ever played! Gameplay sucks, camera doesn't work, bad platforming, repetitive to death! Most of its mechanichs dont work at all. What a waste of Time and money.
  9. Jun 4, 2020
    9
    played the demo just for kicks got hooked. what can i say i love Gow ripoffs.
  10. May 9, 2020
    8
    Aunque es un buen juego, no es un Castlevania. Lo mejor las batallas contra los jefes. Lo peor es que se parece a Bayonetta y GOW. No entiendo como un juego hecho en España no está doblado al español. Ah se me olvidaba, KOJIMA ha convertido un Castlevania en un pelijuego ... lamentable... aun así es un buen juego repito. Kojima a la basura!!
  11. Apr 11, 2020
    6
    Mas que correcto pero no ha terminado de engancharme.

    Me ha recordado demasiado al god of war... juego que no me entusiasma.

    Lo he abandonado tras unas 3 horas de juego.
  12. Nov 8, 2019
    9
    The good:
    Game that combines 2D platforms, 3D exploitation, Hack’n Slash fights and clashes against gigantic bosses with hits and QTE. The difficulty is very high. It has Backtracking (return to previous levels to search and obtain items to improve the character). The story is great. It has a plot twist that leaves you wanting more (although it was coming to kilometers). This Castlevania
    The good:
    Game that combines 2D platforms, 3D exploitation, Hack’n Slash fights and clashes against gigantic bosses with hits and QTE. The difficulty is very high. It has Backtracking (return to previous levels to search and obtain items to improve the character). The story is great. It has a plot twist that leaves you wanting more (although it was coming to kilometers). This Castlevania is based on the classics and those who do not follow the theme "Metroidvania". Backward compatible in Xbox One

    The bad:
    Camera changes are very rare and you never get used to it. Bosses and mini bosses must be defeated in a QTE sequence that if you fail will harm you and the boss will recover life. To advance and tell you that you found X or Y object you have to finish the level and if you fail to repeat it. In the highest difficulties the objects of improvement are of obligatory collection what will make you return again and again. Undervalued game just for not following that super-worn “Metroidvania” fashion

    The Meh!:
    If the Sony-ers (diehard playstation fans) were consistent with his speech, this game would be his favorite since he joins Hack’n Slash mechanics as in the classic God of War and fights against giant monsters like Shadow of the Colossus. Nobody takes away my idea that this game was actually another and when Konami saw it he asked Mercury Steam to try to transform it into an old-school semi-Castlevania.
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  13. Mar 17, 2018
    9
    Лучше что было сделано в игровой индустрии на тему вампиров.
  14. Jan 21, 2016
    7
    The game is cool and fun, but there are some problems in the story. The battle system and gameplay are very good, but after sometime it's very repetitious. I think that is the problem in all action adventure games, after some time playing you get a sensation of "deja vu". The Bosses in Castlevania are great, and require some strategy. The narrative is in third person, what drain much ofThe game is cool and fun, but there are some problems in the story. The battle system and gameplay are very good, but after sometime it's very repetitious. I think that is the problem in all action adventure games, after some time playing you get a sensation of "deja vu". The Bosses in Castlevania are great, and require some strategy. The narrative is in third person, what drain much of interest in pay attention in facts. But there is a plot twist very end of the game that make worth to try!Yes, i did was surprise with that. Castlevania is JUST a GOOD game. Nothing beyond this. Expand
  15. Nov 5, 2015
    9
    Extremely underrated, this is a pulpy thrill-ride through a horror monster gallery. There are issues but it is a risky game from an untested studio that I believe completely delivers.
  16. Jun 26, 2015
    3
    A bad God of War-clone which to me has no justification for existing. It has extremely little to do with the other Castlevania-games, except for the look of a few items and some names. The story to me is very unintriguing and slow-paced. I found myself skipping the cutscenes early on. The main character is stupid-looking, poorly voiced and unlikeable. The scenery is pretty nice, at leastA bad God of War-clone which to me has no justification for existing. It has extremely little to do with the other Castlevania-games, except for the look of a few items and some names. The story to me is very unintriguing and slow-paced. I found myself skipping the cutscenes early on. The main character is stupid-looking, poorly voiced and unlikeable. The scenery is pretty nice, at least it must have been back in 2010, but it also feels uninspired and clichéd. It's the same grey-and-brown color scale every damn modern game has to have today.

    Gameplay is repetitive and tedious, remembering the combos is a chore, so in the end you just mash the attack button even though you unlock a million different other attacks. The climbing parts are entirely unnecessary and there are A LOT of them. There is no gameplay to them since you can't fail unless you really want to. You literally just go through the motions. Most of the boss fights are exactly the same kind of game of doding their attacks and then attacking. And there are a lot of boss fights too. Some of the worst QTE's I've seen in a game are here as well (the timing ones with the shrinking circle). Once you have completed the dumb QTE's at the end of a battle and think it's over, out of the blue another QTE comes up and if you fail you have to start the fight over again. QTE's to me are the final evidence that AAA-developers have completely lost touch with their audience. I have never in my life heard anyone stating they even remotely like them, still modern games are absolutely filled with QTE's.

    Apparently Konami are going all-mobile now which for Castlevania I think might be a good thing. It's time to let the vampire sleep in his coffin so to speak if this is the best they can come up with. In all honestly, the first Castlevania game is light-years better than this game, an almost 30 year old game and that says a lot. Dante's Inferno is also a God of War-clone but it was much more interesting both theme and story-wise, as well as the gameplay.
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  17. Dec 15, 2014
    9
    An amazing 'God of War' style blood fest that will keep fans and non-fans of the Castlevania series playing for well over 20 enjoyable hours. If it wasn't for the poor camera at times this game would be perfect. Not to give anything away, but this game still to this day has the ending that has blown me away more than any other I've ever seen. With several difficulty selections and manyAn amazing 'God of War' style blood fest that will keep fans and non-fans of the Castlevania series playing for well over 20 enjoyable hours. If it wasn't for the poor camera at times this game would be perfect. Not to give anything away, but this game still to this day has the ending that has blown me away more than any other I've ever seen. With several difficulty selections and many unlockables to find, it is easy to find yourself wanting to play this until you reach that 100% completion.

    CONS:
    - Poor camera makes it very hard to see at times
    - Sometimes unclear what direction to proceed (mostly due to camera)

    PROS:
    - Don't need to be follower of series to jump in a play
    - Very satisfying game play and progression
    - Amazing visuals and music
    - Fun puzzle solving to break up the action (which you can skip at the cost of experience)
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  18. Mar 20, 2014
    9
    I originally played a portion of LOS when it first came out and it was ok... Fast forward to the launch of LOS-2 and I never realized how great this game is! I am still in the middle of playing put for some reason, I don't remember how great it looks and how fun it is to play! Was I just not looking to have fun with this game? I don't know. All that matters is that 4 years later I can'tI originally played a portion of LOS when it first came out and it was ok... Fast forward to the launch of LOS-2 and I never realized how great this game is! I am still in the middle of playing put for some reason, I don't remember how great it looks and how fun it is to play! Was I just not looking to have fun with this game? I don't know. All that matters is that 4 years later I can't wait to play when I get home from work. I decided to start with this before I move on to the sequel. I have always had fun with Castlevania games and believe this and the sequel will be added to that list! Expand
  19. Feb 22, 2014
    7
    i love the castlevania series specially castlevania sotn that's i castlevania lord of shadow on xbox 360, and i was kinda dissapointed because it doesn't feel like castlevania it feels like I'm playing God of War or a DMC game and it feels so linear that you don't have any other options while playing but eventually there are hidden items and upgrades along the way,

    The game is
    i love the castlevania series specially castlevania sotn that's i castlevania lord of shadow on xbox 360, and i was kinda dissapointed because it doesn't feel like castlevania it feels like I'm playing God of War or a DMC game and it feels so linear that you don't have any other options while playing but eventually there are hidden items and upgrades along the way,

    The game is beautifully made the, details the animation and the cutscenes are amazing, and i'm just wondering why the game is not set up in a castle i mean cmon it's a castlevania game, but as you play the game you will know why.

    It's a cool game gameplay is good like GoW, Boss Fights are engaging that you want fight them over and over again, and the puzzles are well made simple and rewarding, however it's not a castlevania game, and while playing the game there are some times that i'm just playing the game because i want to know the story not because im enjoying the game
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  20. Jan 1, 2014
    10
    Lords of Shadow is the most beautifully realised and designed game I have ever played, hands down. The artistic nature is enough to draw you in, but the story and the emotions you feel throughout the game just pile on to the positives. Mechanics can feel clunky, but this is hardly a drawback. It also transitions neatly between platforming and climbing, a la Uncharted, and grueling combat,Lords of Shadow is the most beautifully realised and designed game I have ever played, hands down. The artistic nature is enough to draw you in, but the story and the emotions you feel throughout the game just pile on to the positives. Mechanics can feel clunky, but this is hardly a drawback. It also transitions neatly between platforming and climbing, a la Uncharted, and grueling combat, which can at times be more than just a little tricky. The boss fights are tremendous, some reminiscent of shadow of the colossus, where you must climb all over the monster to find it's weak spots, and then strike. The game, like most others these days, does have it's QTE's, but these aren't strictly a problem. As a matter of fact, some even feel as though they are adding to the experience, making cutscenes feel more involving to the player.

    I could go on and on about positives, so how about the downsides? Well I mentioned one earlier; the clunkiness of the combat and the climbing can be rather disorientating, but nothing strictly problematic. Besides that, I genuinely cannot think of anything to complain about this game. It's very almost perfection, which is insanely rare in games these days. The one thing I must say about this game; playing on the highest difficulty in boss fights is hard. I mean, it's HARD. I attempted the final boss fight on this difficulty, and was dropped in with minimum health, making for a frantic battle to recover my health before I was obliterated. This is by no means a bad thing; a game SHOULD challenge the player, only unlike Dark Souls, such a challenge should be left an option for the player, rather than being mandatory. Because if you wish, the game can be a breeze, with amazing puzzles, beautiful backdrops, fantastic art style, unique story uniting many different myths and legends from around the globe and across the span of time (probably my favourite feature of all), and an emotional ending leaving us wanting more...far, far more. Good thing the second is just around the corner, huh?

    So, if you have not already, buy this game...I mean, do it now. You do not want to miss out.
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  21. Dec 28, 2013
    10
    that s best game i v played ever. If you have not played this game then you are missing out on a 50% of ur life!!!!!! story: Gabriel is a member of the Brotherhood of Light, an elite group of holy knights who protect and defend the innocent against the supernatural. His beloved wife was brutally murdered by the evil forces of darkness and her soul trapped for eternity. Neither living northat s best game i v played ever. If you have not played this game then you are missing out on a 50% of ur life!!!!!! story: Gabriel is a member of the Brotherhood of Light, an elite group of holy knights who protect and defend the innocent against the supernatural. His beloved wife was brutally murdered by the evil forces of darkness and her soul trapped for eternity. Neither living nor dead she realizes the horrific truth of what is at stake and guides Gabriel to his destiny and hopefully salvation for the world... but at what cost?

    Thus, Gabriel must travel the destroyed world, defeating the evil tyrants in order to use their powers to bring balance back to the world. Armed with the versatile Combat Cross the world's last hope must encounter the three factions of the Lords of Shadow and end their unholy rule.
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  22. Oct 27, 2013
    8
    Ok so this one was a bit of a surprise. Being a long time fan of the Castlevania franchise (Castlevania IV infact on the snes being the first game I ever played) I had my reservations about this game. Most of the really excellent entries in the series have been in the classic 2D and I feel there's a certain eerie quality to the animations that just cannot be captured in 3D. There's alsoOk so this one was a bit of a surprise. Being a long time fan of the Castlevania franchise (Castlevania IV infact on the snes being the first game I ever played) I had my reservations about this game. Most of the really excellent entries in the series have been in the classic 2D and I feel there's a certain eerie quality to the animations that just cannot be captured in 3D. There's also the matter of the game play and the game feel usually being completely altered once the transition is made often removing many of the qualities that make a great Castlevania title. My surprise then when I actually found this game most enjoyable and actually found myself a little addicted to it.

    Lets not beat around the bush, there are many faults in this game some of which could be game ruining if not for them just not quite prominent enough to be really damaging. For example some of the enemies are pretty standard fare, the warewolves in particular are super generic and grow tiresome especially as they are the main enemy for the majority of the early stages of the game. However when you realize just how long the game is this becomes less of an issue. The game totals at around 20 hours which is a huge amount of play time for this type of game. As a result you tend to end up fighting enemies specific to the chapter/area of the game you are currently engaged with and many of the later enemies designs are actually very interesting. I have to say I don't care much for the titan battles as they become very tedious very quickly and feel really unnecessary in this game. Its like they tacked them on to play it safe and try their hand at GOW style gameplay. It would have been far superior if they'd gone with more traditional bosses in place of these. Anyhow, its true in terms of game play style the game doesn't really have an identity of its own, I found the combat to be very fluent and it can be quite satisfying also but it is taking all its ques from GOW and Devil May Cry. However, the game world is frankly stunning on many occasions and while the ageing xbox 360 hardware chugs the frame rate down pretty drastically on occasions its never awful. I honestly think graphically this game is woefully underrated and I take my hat of to the designers.

    All in all there are problems with this game and it won't be for everyone, there are elements of old school 'vania to be found in the atmosphere and Gothic decadence of many of the environments however there also modern gaming trappings applied and stylistic choices by the developers making this an interesting game in its own right. Also the game is difficult to an extreme degree in some instances, its never too difficult though and makes you test your abilities in ways that many modern games shy away from in order to appeal to a wider audience. I was pleasantly surprised by this title and as a result look forward to playing the sequel in a month or so.
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  23. Oct 6, 2013
    7
    This game was not that bad, but It did not capture my attention for very long sadly. When I first played this game I though it was a holy game because of the armour well I was mistaken by the surprise that awaited me. Over 20+ hours.

    Graphics ***
    Gameplay **
    Sound ****
    Lasting appeal **

    This game I would say is good for casual-hardcore gamers.
  24. Mar 10, 2013
    7
    i love this game, and the castlevania franchise, besides some flaws, this game still is okay! sure, you have no control over the camera, and yes, i know, some bosses are ripped of shadow of the colossus, and i don't know how people are hating on that, it brings back memories for me! and i'm sure for many other people who have played both Castlevania: Lords of Shadow and Shadow of the Colossus
  25. Sep 3, 2012
    9
    Expansive and varied environments, awesome NPC's, enemies and bosses, and an awesome use of the Castlevania IP makes Lord Of Shadows a must have for fans of the series. This is a fairly standard 3D exploration combat game but what sets it apart is the excellent use of the trademark Castlevania whip mechanic along with some of the best locales, vistas, and mythological characters you'reExpansive and varied environments, awesome NPC's, enemies and bosses, and an awesome use of the Castlevania IP makes Lord Of Shadows a must have for fans of the series. This is a fairly standard 3D exploration combat game but what sets it apart is the excellent use of the trademark Castlevania whip mechanic along with some of the best locales, vistas, and mythological characters you're likely to see in a single game. Expand
  26. Jun 1, 2012
    9
    9.5 - Forget everything you know about adventure games and play Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. This is a remarkable and extremely phenomenal game. Castlevania is an astoundingly epic adventure that will take your imagination on a joy ride. The story is action packed and intense (a little sacrilegious at parts), balanced combat is deep and rewarding, and the boss battles can only be9.5 - Forget everything you know about adventure games and play Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. This is a remarkable and extremely phenomenal game. Castlevania is an astoundingly epic adventure that will take your imagination on a joy ride. The story is action packed and intense (a little sacrilegious at parts), balanced combat is deep and rewarding, and the boss battles can only be described by the carbon copy term of the decade: Epic. Castlevania is an absolute epic from start to finish, I can't stress that enough. It does suffer from some blemishes, such as some very strange camera angles leading to confusion on screen, some imbalanced and downright cheap moments during later battles, and iffy platforming. But to be honest, you can easily look past these blemishes. The graphics are incredible and the attention to detail is astounding. The art design and level design is bar-to-none some of the most genuinely creative, and the world that you journey in is an incredible feast for the imagination and the senses. Lords of Shadow creates such an intense sense of insignificance and smallness as you journey to the different and often gigantic locales, a feature that is missing from adventure games of late. A gorgeous original score accompanies your adventures, and the sound effects and voice acting are top notch. (Although it is sad to see Sir Patrick Stewart a...whoops spoilers!) The puzzles in the game actually require some thinking as well, a welcome change of pace for "god of war" style games. It may have it's blemishes, and they may even be frequent, but I could care less. This is an expertly crafted, intense, epic, and downright phenomenal game with a great sense of scope and imagination that never ceases to impress me. A must play for Castlevania fans, and a must play for any gamer looking for a refreshing twist on epic action adventures. Expand
  27. Mar 6, 2012
    10
    Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is an AWESOME game!, one of the best games this generation.. Its really underrated, i dont know why it gets much hate from castlevania fans! I know it not a side-scroller caslevania but that doesnt mean it a bad game! Its a GREAT game
  28. Mar 6, 2012
    10
    I dont care what people say! This game is AWESOME!!! one of the best games this gen.. Its sooooooo **** underrated, i dont know why it gets much hate from castlevania fans! Just because it not a "TRUE" caslevania doesnt mean that it sucks! Its a GREAT game
  29. Feb 21, 2012
    1
    When is Castlevania not Castlevania? When it's a poor immitation of God of War + Devil May Cry + Shadow of the Colossus. All forms of entertainment media nick ideas from others - it's what helps create great games, music, films etc. - but when something does that, but does it very poorly then it really isn't worth bothering with. CLOS as you may have guessed is such a game, from the veryWhen is Castlevania not Castlevania? When it's a poor immitation of God of War + Devil May Cry + Shadow of the Colossus. All forms of entertainment media nick ideas from others - it's what helps create great games, music, films etc. - but when something does that, but does it very poorly then it really isn't worth bothering with. CLOS as you may have guessed is such a game, from the very outset you just don't feel as if you are playing anything other than a poor rip off. The game itself is gash, playing with a weird, sloppy feel to the combat and a very linear approach to levels and bosses........which wouldn't be so bad if any of it was any fun. However the design of the game itself really feels ported from a bygone era and there's just not very much fun to be had at all. Decent graphics and environments are complemented by some good sound, but boredom poor gaming are all that await under the surface. Awful game and a disgrace to the Castlevania name. Expand
  30. Feb 19, 2012
    9
    Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is an awesome game. I've played some of the 2D Castlevania games and I enjoyed them but I can honestly say that I think this is a great new direction for the series to take. Lords of Shadow has a few flaws, and can be a bit frustrating at times, but the rich world, excellent combat, and epic story combined with the game's length make up for that in the longCastlevania: Lords of Shadow is an awesome game. I've played some of the 2D Castlevania games and I enjoyed them but I can honestly say that I think this is a great new direction for the series to take. Lords of Shadow has a few flaws, and can be a bit frustrating at times, but the rich world, excellent combat, and epic story combined with the game's length make up for that in the long run, which is why I'm giving it a 9 out of 10. Anyone who likes grandiose adventures should go buy this now! Expand
Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 70 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 62 out of 70
  2. Negative: 0 out of 70
  1. Apr 28, 2011
    80
    The franchise needed this. It's not remotely original and it occasionally threatens to drown under the weight of its own bluster, but it's also clever, challenging, bewilderingly pretty in places and a ripping good yarn.
  2. Jan 16, 2011
    85
    Fabulous action game with nice riddles and cool fights, but with lacks in camera perspectives.
  3. Jan 12, 2011
    90
    Although the basic gameplay borrows heavily from other franchises it is still done with such style and panache it is hard to find faults.