Castlevania Lords of Shadow: Mirror of Fate

Chained by fate. Cursed by blood. Revealed by destiny.

NA release: 5th March 2013
EU release: 8th March 2013
JP release: 20th March 2013
Developer: MercuryStream
Publisher: Konami
IGN Review: 4.7/10
Platforms: 3DS, Xbox 360, PS3, PC
Version Played: PC

The second Lords of Shadow game was, surprisingly, an exclusive to the 3DS. Despite having a subtitle instead of 2 in its name, it’s not a side adventure, but a vital part of the story involving two classic Belmonts being adapted into this new universe: Trevor Belmont and Simon Belmont. The game did later get a PC release, which is the version I played.

This one returns more to the series roots as well. Being a 2D Metroidvania. Sort of. While you can backtrack, it’s not something you’ll do often as you’ll be heading to the next objective. It never feels like you’re exploring, more shit doing what you’re told. You can go back to earlier areas to find more health and magic upgrades, but the game never gave me a desire to do so.

After a brief tutorial as Gabriel Belmont, you’re told that his wife was pregnant and had a son in secret, hidden away from Gabriel due to prophecies. It’s difficult to avoid spoilers, so you may want to stop reading if that’s of huge importance. Anyway, this son is Trevor Belmont, who is dead at the start of the game, so you play as Simon, knowing that Dracula killed his father – but he wasn’t told that Dracula is his granddad.

The combat adapts the Lord of Combat systems into 2D really well, with a direct attack and an area attack, and the takedowns no longer require a quick time event. Movement is slow, but combat is enjoyable enough. You’ll be directed to upgrades to get through areas, with the game stopping once you reach Dracula.

You then wake up as Alucard, working though different parts of the castle at the same time as Simon. He also has a whip, so combat is exactly the same, although he does get different magic abilities, sub weapon and movement upgrades, so there are some slight differences. Like Simon, Alucard also reaches Dracula and the two work together to take him out.

This feels like the end of the game, with act 3 being set 20 years earlier in order to reveal a twist. You play as Trevor Belmont now as he sets out to kill his dad for murdering their mother. The ending is instantly spoiled by how Trevor has the same voice and clothing as Alucard, which just makes the storytelling strange and the acts feel like the wrong order.

Even with its flaws, Mirror of Fate is still a decent game, and it’s quite curious how such an important part of the story is in a different platform to the original game. You do get some enjoyable movement upgrades, and beating up enemies is always fun, alongside some good voice acting.

Fun

The greatest shame with Mirror of Fate is that its heart is in the right place. As far as I can tell, MercurySteam did its absolute best to chart its own course with handheld Castlevania, one that borrows from the greatness that came before it, but without copying it outright. But in going off the beaten path, the studio ended up diluting what has made Castlevania so great in the last 15 years.
Colin Moriarty, IGN

Remake or remaster?

The HD version is a good version.

Official Ways to get the game

Mirror of Fate is available on Steam and the Xbox store.