It was 2010. MercurySteam, a relatively small Spanish developer, teamed up with Hideo Kojima and Konami to do the unthinkable: they rebooted Castlevania. For some people, it was a masterpiece. For others? It was a betrayal of everything the 2D "Metroidvania" games stood for. Honestly, looking back at the Castlevania Lords of Shadow games today, the trilogy feels like a fever dream that shouldn't have worked, yet somehow defined an entire era of action gaming.
Gabriel Belmont wasn't your typical whip-cracking hero. He was broken. By the time you reach the end of the first game, the twist—which we’ll get into—completely flipped the script on what it meant to be a Belmont.
The gamble that changed everything
The first entry wasn't even supposed to be a Castlevania game originally. It started as a prototype for a Lords of Shadow IP. Konami saw the potential, slapped the vampire-hunting brand on it, and gave us a 20-hour epic. It felt more like God of War or Shadow of the Colossus than Symphony of the Night. Fixed camera angles. Heavy combat. Massive scale.
I remember the initial shock. Fans were used to 2D sprites and backtracking. Suddenly, we had Patrick Stewart (Professor X himself!) voicing Zobek and a story that felt more like a dark European folk tale than a gothic anime. The combat was crunchy. You had the Combat Cross, a mechanical whip that felt heavy and dangerous. Using Light and Shadow magic wasn't just a gimmick; it was a survival necessity on higher difficulties like Paladin.
But here is the thing: the game was long. Maybe too long. By the time you get through the snowy wastes and the clockwork towers, you’re exhausted. And then the ending happens. Gabriel, the man who fought to save his wife, becomes the very thing he hunted. Dracula.
Making Dracula the protagonist
This is where the Castlevania Lords of Shadow games really took a hard left turn from the rest of the series. Usually, Dracula is the big bad sitting in his throne room at the top of a disappearing castle. In this timeline, he is a tragic figure.
- Mirror of Fate bridged the gap, bringing back 2D-ish gameplay on the 3DS.
- It introduced Trevor and Simon in this new universe.
- The realization that Alucard is actually a transformed Trevor Belmont was a gut-punch that cemented this as a "Belmont vs. Belmont" tragedy.
The lore was dense. MercurySteam didn't just copy Koji Igarashi’s homework. They threw the notebook out and wrote their own. They took characters we knew—like Carmilla and Death—and gave them visceral, gross, and terrifying redesigns. It wasn't "pretty" horror. It was grime and blood.
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Why Lords of Shadow 2 is so divisive
If the first game was a triumph, the sequel was a mess of brilliant ideas and baffling decisions. You’re Dracula. You’re in the modern world. You have the Void Sword and Chaos Claws. On paper, it’s a dream come true. You finally get to play as the Prince of Darkness at full power.
But then... the stealth sections happened.
Why does Dracula, the most powerful being on Earth, have to turn into a rat to sneak past guards with rocket launchers? It felt like a massive pacing killer. Fans hated it. Critics were lukewarm. Yet, if you look past the modern-day city sections, the "Memory" versions of the castle are some of the most beautiful environments in the entire franchise. The Toy Maker boss fight? Pure nightmare fuel and incredible mechanical design.
The game struggled with its identity. It wanted to be an open-world-adjacent epic but felt cramped in the urban environments. Still, the combat was arguably perfected here. The transition between the health-stealing Void Sword and the shield-breaking Chaos Claws was fluid. It was fast. It was punishing.
The Dave Cox and Enric Alvarez Vision
We have to talk about the people behind it. Dave Cox (Producer) and Enric Alvarez (Director) were incredibly vocal about wanting to move away from the "stagnant" 2D formula. They wanted a cinematic experience. They succeeded in making something that felt like a high-budget Hollywood production, but they also alienated the "Igavania" hardcore base.
It’s a classic case of a reboot doing its job too well. It became its own thing.
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The music deserves a mention too. Oscar Araujo moved away from the catchy, synth-heavy tunes of the 80s and 90s. Instead, we got a sweeping, orchestral score that felt more like Lord of the Rings. It was epic. It was lonely. It matched Gabriel's descent into madness perfectly.
The mechanical legacy of the trilogy
What people forget about the Castlevania Lords of Shadow games is how much they pushed the hardware. The first game on PS3 and Xbox 360 looked impossible. The lighting, the rain effects in the opening level, the sheer size of the Titan bosses—it was a technical showcase.
- The Combat Cross: A versatile tool that allowed for grappling and area-of-effect attacks.
- Focus System: Rewarding players for not taking damage by dropping orbs.
- The Brotherhood of Light: A religious order that felt more cult-like and dangerous than the "holy warriors" of previous games.
The difficulty curve was real. You couldn't just mash buttons. If you didn't learn to time your blocks for a "Synchronized Block," you were dead in seconds against a pack of Lycans. It required a level of intentionality that many modern action games have since abandoned.
Sorting through the misconceptions
People often say these games "killed" Castlevania. That’s just not true. Konami’s shift in business focus and the departure of key staff did that. If anything, this trilogy was a last-gasp effort to keep the franchise relevant in a world where God of War and Devil May Cry were the kings of the genre.
Another myth is that the story doesn't make sense. It actually makes perfect sense if you read the loading screen diaries. Gabriel’s journey is a closed loop of grief. He was manipulated by the Gods and by Zobek. He was a pawn. Becoming Dracula wasn't a choice; it was a curse forced upon him by a universe that refused to let him die.
Is it "real" Castlevania? That’s a philosophical question. If Castlevania is about a Belmont, a whip, and a castle, then yes. If it’s about 16-bit sprites and "Bloody Tears" remixes, then maybe not. But as a standalone trilogy, it’s one of the most cohesive and visually stunning reimagining' of a classic IP ever attempted.
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How to play them today
If you want to dive back in, the best way is actually on PC or through Xbox backwards compatibility. The PC versions of the Castlevania Lords of Shadow games run at 60fps, which fixes many of the stuttering issues the original consoles had.
- Start with Lords of Shadow 1. Don't skip the DLC (Reverie and Resurrection), because that’s where the actual transformation into Dracula happens.
- Play Mirror of Fate HD. It’s short, and it sets up the emotional stakes for the finale.
- Go into Lords of Shadow 2 with an open mind. Ignore the haters on the stealth sections; the boss fights are worth the price of admission.
You’ll see a version of the Belmont legacy that is darker, grittier, and significantly more depressing than the main timeline. It’s a story about a man who lost everything, including his soul, and had to find a way to die in a world that wanted to use him as a weapon.
The combat still holds up. The art direction is still top-tier. Even if you prefer the old-school 2D games, there is no denying the ambition here. MercurySteam swung for the fences. They didn't always hit a home run, but they definitely changed the game.
To get the most out of your experience, focus on mastering the "Perfect Guard" early in the first game. It opens up the entire combat system. Also, pay attention to the environmental storytelling in the second game's castle sections—there are details about the fall of the Belmont clan that are easily missed if you're just rushing to the next waypoint.
Don't go in expecting a Metroidvania. Go in expecting a dark fantasy tragedy. You'll find a trilogy that, despite its flaws, has more heart and soul than most modern reboots. Gabriel's journey from a holy knight to a weeping monster is a character arc that few games have the guts to pull off today.