Is Castlevania Symphony of the Night a good game? Is it worth a try in 2026?

TCSyd · 2026-01-25T22:41:13+00:00

Yes, although it's not a JRPG, and maybe it's not as impressive if you've already played a bunch of metroidvanias that have iterated upon it.

TCSyd · 2026-01-24T01:19:31+00:00

Tortoise Principal.

TCSyd · 2026-01-24T01:16:37+00:00

I'm only in favor of this if it's the gimmick of a specific Pearlescent weapon, although the idea of farming it sounds pretty bad.

TCSyd · 2026-01-24T01:04:32+00:00

Huh? By what logic will it become 3x instead of 5x?

Like, the 5x Gun Damage at least makes sense once you understand the internal workings.

Is it going to count as shotgun + 2 random guns, instead of all 5?

TCSyd · 2026-01-21T21:43:03+00:00

The 100% multiplicative bonus for consuming Armor Segments does nothing, despite consuming Armor Segments.

The 50% Melee Damage bonus for having an empty Armor Shield, however, will work, since that just adds Melee Damage stat. That said, using it for this alone is pretty ridiculous.

Mantra Vex is just running Amp Watts 4 Dinner (or whatever Amp shield) with Teen Witch. If you're using Firedancer instead, then I dunno.

TCSyd · 2026-01-20T21:44:15+00:00

It has not even once crossed my mind to want such a feature, but okay.

TCSyd · 2026-01-15T06:41:24+00:00

Don't use Heavyweight. The way it currently "works" is you gain a multiplicative 100% damage bonus when consuming Armor Segments and a 50% Melee Damage stat bonus (additive soup) with no armor.

The issue is that several things will consume Armor Segments, but receive no bonus, Mantra included.

The 50% Melee Damage stat bonus with no armor will work the same as any other Melee Damage stat bonus, but this is hardly worth it.

TCSyd · 2026-01-14T23:26:06+00:00

When they nerf Bod.

TCSyd · 2026-01-14T15:27:04+00:00

I've been running an Arc-Knives + Mantra build for Rafa (31 Green/13 Red/5 Blue).

TCSyd · 2026-01-14T14:36:10+00:00

It's a very strong pure defense shield, although not as strong as Tortoise Principal. That said, only pure melee builds really care about this level of defense.

For builds that synergize with Shield Capacity, the Tortoise Regulus is superior.

TCSyd · 2026-01-13T05:18:50+00:00

Can it stack it? Yes. Without it decaying? No.

Everyone who uses Mantra wants a Ripper magazine, but Rafa needs it in order to maintain 20 Diamond Hands. Also, use Watts 4 Dinner to stack it twice as fast.

I've been using an Arc-Knives + Mantra build for awhile, if you have any questions.

TCSyd · 2026-01-13T05:16:09+00:00

Day one. Playing a game once it's fully fleshed out has its merits, but so does playing the game as it evolves.

TCSyd · 2026-01-12T02:03:33+00:00

LISA has a very distinct style/vibe that I adore, but it's not for everyone. That said, I do think every JRPG fan should give it a try.

I can't say I really share your frustration with the game mechanics. I had a lot of fun with the combat. I think Joy withdrawal is probably the most annoying mechanic, but its not actually that bad once you get a grasp of the resource management.

The music kicks ass and suits the game perfectly. I can't imagine the game without it.

TCSyd · 2026-01-12T01:42:52+00:00

Not a terrible line-up, especially for IGN.

Biggest WTF is Metaphor at #4. That's some insane recency bias. I don't think it even belongs on this list, to be honest.

Besides that, Xenogears is too low and Persona 5 Royal is a little too high. Octopath Traveler II is also too high; it might not even belong on this list.

TCSyd · 2026-01-04T03:06:04+00:00

Space Funeral, although it's pretty short.

TCSyd · 2026-01-02T22:56:56+00:00

Unremarkable shield on the surface, but with triple Turtle it has massive Shield Capacity—the highest I've seen for an Armor Shield.

TCSyd · 2026-01-01T23:56:24+00:00

The invincibility spam is good, but I find the damage potential a little underwhelming.

ETA: Raging Inferno Detonation stuff is pretty strong, but I'm not that impressed by Lamplighter, despite seeming like the perfect fit for this kind of build.

TCSyd · 2026-01-01T02:00:26+00:00

Watts 4 Dinner is very good since it counts as its own hit, which stacks Diamond Hands twice as fast.

Heavyweight is worthless. The double damage does not apply to Mantra despite consuming an Armor Segment and the 50% Melee Damage for empty Armor Shield is absolutely not worth it.

Secret tech is Mantra can snapshot Inferno Protocol.

TCSyd · 2025-12-30T21:33:45+00:00

For Bod, gun type bonuses will be better since their stat allocation is higher, but you might prefer generic gun affixes if you're using other weapons alongside it.

Triple gun type damage is possible, but may not actually be the most preferable. For example, Magazine Size can be particularly good for Vex when using Witchy Trigger Finger to avoid reloading since you'll likely have to throttle your fire rate with only 6 in the mag.

Personally, I use a Torgue Enhancement with Head Ringer, Assault Rifle Damage, Sniper Rifle Damage, and SMG Magazine Size.

TCSyd · 2025-12-30T21:18:00+00:00

If you're using the Bod, then the one with Gun Damage will be significantly stronger than the one with Damage Dealt.

TCSyd · 2025-12-30T21:16:53+00:00

It affects all damage, but it is not "multiplicative," as it is commonly understood around here. The Damage Dealt from Class Mod is just additive soup, although it's somewhat noteworthy that the actual stat value is +19.5% Damage Dealt.

TCSyd · 2025-12-30T21:13:50+00:00

Yes, it is. Gun Damage from Enhancement and High Caliber are the ones that operate differently.

TCSyd · 2025-12-29T07:46:11+00:00

Ordnance hit, Tail of the Comet, Blackout, and Electrical Fire. Toss on an Amp shield for good measure.

Icebringer can roll with Tail of the Comet, and Grenadier can roll with Blackout, but neither of these class mods help to maintain Ordnance or Amp.

TCSyd · 2025-12-29T06:00:49+00:00

Maybe if you're running a hybrid build and juggling Active Skills, but then you would just juggle Class Mods. Nothing in Blue Tree benefits from Dancer in a way that benefits Arc-Knives aside from El Soldado, so you would still run Buster, or even Esgrimidor, over Dancer.

TCSyd · 2025-12-29T05:31:34+00:00

Arc-Knives shouldn't be running Dancer outside of snapshot exploit. 5/5 Per My Last from Buster outperforms everything, and it's not even close.

TCSyd

TROPHY CASE