Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth hit the scene earlier in 2021 on PC. It was supposed to launch on all consoles in December. It almost did but the Switch version got delayed. That version won’t be out until the end of January 2022 which isn’t that far off.
Record of Lodoss War has an even deeper history behind it as it is the first game to hit the West since Record of Lodoss War: Advent of Cardice. That was a 2001 Dreamcast game. The overall franchise began in 1988 as a series of Japanese novels. It has since blossomed into many other media forms but most have been Japanese exclusive as well. Was the long wait for the next game in the West worth it?
7 Best: Symphony Of The Lodoss War
Record of Lodoss War is the closest thing to Castlevania: Symphony of the Night released in 2021. The gameplay loop mirrors that of the Metroidvania classic. There are tons of games released in the genre every year but most fall more on the Metroid side of things.
It’s nice to get an action platformer with RPG elements every now and again too. Leveling up just feels so satisfying in one of these types of adventures. There is backtracking but it’s more subtle in this game which is nice.
6 Worst: The Bow Based Puzzles
The bow is Deedlit’s secondary weapon. It can be used against monsters but it is mostly a tool for solving puzzles. Most of these come in the form of weight leveraged gates.
Players have to shoot their arrow to cut through a rope or turn a wheel which should then raise a gate. Things start off simple but they get increasingly more challenging like when magnets get introduced. Stopping in the middle of an action game to solve one of these puzzles halted the momentum. They’re not super hard. They’re just very finicky.
5 Best: Dual Elementals
One of the coolest parts of the combat system is Deedlit’s dual elementals. Sylph is a wind spirit while Salamander is the embodiment of flames. Switching between the two will imbue Deedlit with their powers. Some enemies are weak or strong against each spirit, so swapping between them on the fly is essential to dominating combat.
Deedlit will learn new traversal moves through Sylph and Salamander as well. For example, Sylph starts off with the ability to float Deedlit along planes. There are a lot more nuances to each spirit. Overall, they both add some great flavor to an otherwise traditional Metroidvania action platformer.
4 Worst: Warp Points Are Separate From Save Points
The Metroidvania genre is seemingly divided when it comes to saving, traversal, replenishing health, and so on. Metroid Dread, another 2021 example, separates fast travel, healing, and save spots. The same is true for Record of Lodoss War.
It would be nice if games could combine these elements into one room. Splitting these things apart makes games more complicated than they need to be. At the same time, their separation in Record of Lodoss War isn’t terrible. It’s just inconvenient.
3 Best: PS1 Era Sprites
Record of Lodoss War looks a lot like a PS1 game. That’s a compliment since it’s another throwback to Symphony of the Night. The sprites are nice and chunky while still managing to be bright and colorful. Even the back dash animation is eerily similar.
Record of Lodoss War even has a Bestiary. This is a great way to study monsters for weaknesses and drop rates. It’s also a great way to just admire the artwork in the game. It’s great to get 8-bit and 16-bit inspired indie games on the regular, but Record of Lodoss War just shows that the PS1’s visual style has its merits in modern games too.
2 Worst: The Story Is Impossible To Follow
This series has been going on for over three decades now. Most of these pieces of media, from novels to games, were never released outside of Japan. There has been a small fan effort online to translate some of these things, but fans can only do so much.
Without the knowledge of three decades worth of material, it’s almost impossible to understand the story in Record of Lodoss War. Character revelations may be a big deal for those that know the lore. However, for most Western gamers, these reveals may fall flat. It’s not a bad story. It’s just hard to get sucked into the game without a good sense of context.
1 Best: Weapon Variety
The weapon variety in Record of Lodoss War is great. It’s yet another callback to Symphony of the Night. Deedlit starts off with a dagger but she will soon discover bows, various swords, clubs, spears, and so on. Each weapon has its own sets of advantages and weaknesses too.
A dagger may stab hard or inflict poison, but it comes at the cost of a short distance. Some swords may be massively powerful at the cost of having a slow swing speed. The overall balance opens the doors for player experimentation. That’s the sign of a good Metroidvania right there.
Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth was released on March 27, 2021 for PC. It was later launched on December 16, 2021 for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
