When developer Mercury Steam began crafting its Lords of Shadow series, hardcore Castlevania fans were largely brought along kicking and screaming. After all, the studio was intent on doing its own thing, on weaving its own unique tale in the larger Castlevania universe. The result – 2010’s Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – was wildly successful, and surprisingly so. It wasn’t the first 3D Castlevania game to be good, but it was, perhaps, the first to be great. It understood Castlevania, even if it felt and played more like a God of War game.

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Absolutely beautiful.

Wielding the Void Sword.

That’s why it’s so confusing that its long-awaited sequel – Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 – seems like a major step backward, a game that has taken far too many cues from its contemporaries in an attempt to please as many people as possible. While some of these changes – like going from a linear campaign to a non-linear open world, for instance – prove largely successful, other changes, such as the addition of unseemly stealth sections and an underwhelming modern-day setting, have significantly harmed the final product. Lords of Shadow 2 is technically well made, but in trying to do a bunch of new things, it lost grasp of the spirit of what made the original so great.Where Lords of Shadow 2 does shine is in its combat. Gabriel Belmont – now known as Dracula – feels a lot like Kratos does in the God of War games, with fierce and light attacks that can be used in conjunction with one another to devastate your foes. I especially loved the depth of the new experience system, which opens up a litany of new moves as you fight. The fact that this system encourages and rewards using all of the moves at your disposal forces some depth into the experience.I likewise enjoyed how Dracula has three core weapons at his disposal that all have different purposes. His standard whip attack will do the trick for the most part, but his Chaos Claws and Void Sword – both fueled by limited magic gauges – add a special dynamic to combat, especially because you have to use them with regularity. The Chaos Claws can pound through enemy armor and shields (in addition to causing massive damage), while the Void Sword is weak, but heals Dracula with every successful swipe. There are ancillary additions to Lords of Shadow 2 that make combat stand apart from the original – including a handful of special items that I barely ever used – but switching between Chaos Claws, the Void Sword, and the whip always kept me on my toes.Unfortunately, Lords of Shadow 2 is less successful when it comes to its setting. While a modern-day Castlevania isn’t necessarily unheard of, it lacks the gothic atmosphere that makes previous games in the series feel distinct and memorable. Walking around a 21st-century city, replete with cars and computers – while talking to a man in a beautiful suit smoking a cigarette – feels awkward and out of place for this character. Thankfully, Dracula can travel back and forth between the past and present, but even the various areas he explores in the past don’t feel or look all that interesting, either. Without an engaging series of locations, you’re left only with characters and story to string you along, at least in those many sequences when you’re not playing.But even there, Lords of Shadow 2 doesn’t succeed. Dracula’s interesting enough, but the characters that surround him aren’t (with few exceptions, like the Toy Maker or Dracula’s wife and child). And the story – seemingly dragged out of Capcom’s folder of rejected Resident Evil tales – is muddled and uninteresting. Castlevania hasn’t exactly been known for its amazing stories in the past, but if you’re going to foist a heavy-handed plot onto us, it had better be good, and Lords of Shadow 2’s decidedly trite story completely misses the mark. It’s way too long-winded for its own good, and focuses on a few disparate issues that revolve around – among other things – a modern pharmaceutical corporation.Making matters worse is Lords of Shadow 2’s roster of enemies, foes that are – for the most part – bland and boring. Some of the bosses are really cool; many of these fights are epic, and really mix things up. But between them, little differentiates lesser enemies from one another. Then there are the enemies that don’t seem to fit Castlevania at all. Why is Dracula fighting missile-launching mechs and alien-looking creatures with machineguns? For all of the standard Castlevania fare that’s here – skeletons with swords and shields, for instance – there are many more enemies that made me scratch my head.Fighting a largely bland array of monsters is one thing – especially because Lords of Shadow 2’s excellent core mechanics can mask some issues – but what can’t be obscured are the horrendous stealth sections littered throughout the campaign. Not only do these sections confusingly and inexplicably remove your ability to fight, but they foist upon you weak mechanics and little explanation of what you’re expected to do. They destroy the rhythm of the game and bring up huge questions – namely why Dracula can kill 99 percent of the enemies in the game, but not the specific creatures set upon you during moments of stealth. For as fun as playing Lords of Shadow 2 can be, these sections break up the experience and cause massive frustration time and time again. They’re not only badly designed and ill conceived; they cripple your powers because it’s convenient to the level’s design at that moment, and not because it makes sense.To its credit, Lords of Shadow 2 segues the series away from linearity and towards an open world. That’s a great decision, especially because the world and everything in it is so beautiful. Lords of Shadow 2 is a pretty game – even if it’s hamstrung by long, often disruptive, and poorly masked load times – and there’s no shortage of gorgeous vistas, gothic architecture, and attractive character models to behold. The further you get into the campaign, the more non-combat moves you’ll unlock – like turning into mist or earning a double jump – that let you see more of the sprawling map, both in the past and present. All of this exploration is accompanied by a beautiful score, a soundtrack that’s different for the larger Castlevania franchise, but still fitting and well-executed.Exploring Lords of Shadow 2’s sprawling open world is rewarding in that there is a ton to find, including – but not limited to – upgrades and a slew of documents. The latter contribute to Lords of Shadow 2’s exceptional production values, and the acute attention it pays to its own lore is commendable. It’s just a shame that this adventure – which will last at least 15 hours – doesn’t have more to string you along.