Castlevania Lord of Shadows

There is something genuinely wrong with video gaming this generation and I dislike the feeling that from this generation forward, we won't be seeing any original creative work in the industry.  There is a new Castlevania game out and to me it seems to be a game they're pitching to the gaming audience as a revitalization of the series.

So far I've only played the first three levels, but to me it appears to be trying too hard as a God-of-War clone while trying to be a Castlevania game at the same time.  The visual fidelity and concept design is similar to God of War 3.  The hack-and-slash button mashing combat is evidently akin to God of War [and even looks aesthetically like it].  Collecting a defined number of life gems to increase a health stat is obviously a copy of Kratos collecting six of the same item to boost his health.  There are even incidents of QTE.  I'm beginning to wonder if there is no longer any creative juices flowing in the minds of game developers these days and especially in the smaller development studios.

EA's Dante's Inferno?  Yes.  That was also a God of War clone trying to take some sales away from God of War 3.  Was it successful?  No.  This new Castlevania game on the other hand feels too much like a clone but with a proven name to support its back.  Alas it doesn't share the same effort and quality of God of War 3.  Though the graphics appear great so far in the first three levels, it seems the code isn't optimal or the team tried too hard to impress.

The game is choppy during combat and it is clear that the system (Xbox 360 on this session) is struggling to maintain a smooth frame rate.  The camera angles are annoying since it's always fixed at one perspective or switches to another for no reason.  The perspective is always facing forward so you won't know if there are enemies coming from behind.  I think what further makes it obvious the development effort wasn't there was when I saw Gabriel doing the same rolling over/standing up animation using the same leg in three different cutscenes.  That animation gets boring fast.

The biggest annoyance thus far?  Having to see big text on screen telling me to block now or attack now.  One tutorial is enough for one level.