Despite all the mixed and negative reviews I found a lot to like in this game. The combat is fast and responsive, and there is quite a lot of depth in the levelling and upgrade system.

After four years of anticipating this game, I can say that it could have been so much more, story-wise. Doesn't seem to conclude the series really. But the fighting style was solid, visuals were great, and who can go wrong with playing as Dracula.

The first Lords of Shadow was a line in the sand for many old school Castlevania fans. Mercury Steam's departure from the familiar 2D gameplay and the non-canon nature of its story generated an outcry of naysayers, who still reminisced about the heyday of Symphony of the Night .

High production value; Engrossing combat; In depth upgrade system adds replay; Satisfying conclusion to series

Frustratingly tedious segments; Hidden load screens; Minor bugs and glitches

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is a good game, held back by repetitive button-mashing combat, framerate issues and an overly linear level design. There's a great balance between combat, puzzle and obstacle courses, which is great, and the magic aspect adds a superb layer of depth to battles.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is a gothic-inspired hack 'n' slashing platformer strongly derivative of the last decade's most successful titles in those genres. In spite of that, the game manages to wedge itself into a cluttered market and ask for your consideration.

Stunning presentation and a clever combat system; A much longer game than any other in the genre

Unnecessary filler content; Occasional difficulties with the camera; An overly complex skill system.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadows is occasionally beautiful, occasionally exciting, and occasionally rewarding. However, to fully enjoy its best parts, you must endure a handful of drab settings and boring stealth puzzles along the way. At times, it's enough to make you want to put the controller down.

Beautiful gothic architecture to explore; Impressive enemy and boss designs; A thoroughly satisfying conclusion to the game and trilogy

A weak start; Forced; boring stealth missions

Great game, unfortunately, the disc only includes the original game; literally. You'll be required to download and install 5GB of content to enjoy the all additional features advertised in the packaging, as soon as you pop the code on PSN.

If you've been getting your Belmont on since Castlevania's original outing on NES almost a quarter of a century ago now, Lords of Shadow - Konami's reimagining of the classic series - won't be quite the calamitous case of sacrilege some quarters might have you believe.

Just one word awesome

Since becoming a fan-favorite in 1986, Konami's Castlevania series has had quite the journey through the ages. It's had the Good (Super Castlevania IV), the bad (Castlevania: Judgement) and THE Masterpiece (Symphony of the Night. Need I say more?).

+ Amazing Production values that very few games can rival; + With over 20+ hours of gameplay; plenty of  gaming value for your dollar

- Gameplay; while good; lacks originality and borrows to heavily from the competition