A solid iteration of the Igavania, with its own identity in the form of the portraits and two-character set-up. The former I'm a bit mixed on, particularly considering the decision to hide essential backtracking within one of these portraits. It's just bad Metroidvania design in my opinion. The latter works really well, and allows for some fun combinations. The game does overstay its welcome a bit, with some level reuse towards the end, and the attempt to lengthen play with uninteresting quests falls flat on its face.

Most of the things that make this game great are high-quality executions of old Castlevania ideas. Progression, level-design, boss battles, superb music etc. It's hard to get too passionate when the path is so well-trodden, but it is a lovely path don't get me wrong.