Arriving at a support and finding the titles that will leave the queue in itself is not too complicated. However, if we want to know what the works of worship are, it is likely that we will invest a little more time and effort and, in addition, we will end up with a good pool of opinions because, well, no one said it will be a cult work was easy. Whether Castlevania’s first offering is an indisputable classic is not up for debate, but its sequel, Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest, is another costal’s meal. If the Belmonts’ first foray into Drácula’s castle was an adventurer in its own right, the most diverse and hard-to-calibrate monsters in old age, its retinue was felled by some of the most dangerous villains. With more specific RPG elements, a step forward marked by linearity and, on top of that, its incredible day-night transitions that alter enemy encounters and durations, this delivery is as divisive as it is influential in every generation of developers.
Not in vano, in the middle of the 21st century, a title like Infernax is revealed.
Developed by Berzerk Studio, Infernax puts us on our knees as Alcedor, a crusading nobleman who returns to his duke after winning a thousand battles to conquer his conquered lands by unstoppable hordes of demonic forces. Fast and fast, Alcedor – the name we have chosen for our hero, in my case Sir Jandemor, the Protector of Devils – tries to clean up the evil, but for him he will have to break the five seals that keep a forgotten and impoverished cathedral takes on importance…
With this simple but infectious premise to launch a game that does not play with drums. Infernax is, without a doubt, inspired by the classic Castlevania and, in particular, the characters in the opening of this text, but with a certain touch of gamberro. Since the same introduction, we are warned that the blood will break the buttons of an adventure in which the least will bring its influences to the gala. If the Clan Belmont has had its whipping lesson, Alcedor sets off in pursuit of the infernal spawn with the pervert who carries off the crusaders. Our masculinity, of course, will be somewhat less likely than the weapon to beat and nurture, that is, one of its identifying signs: a distinct mismatch between our pulse and the execution of the attack. So, follow the trend started by the Konami saga to have our attacks calculated with precision so as not to cause immersive varnish in fewer problems.
And it is that, although it is able to deflect any other attack with our trusty shield, the difficulty of Infernax is, well, a little less than hellish. It goes without saying that, of course, it is an assumable net, but the fact that from the beginning we are planted with a choice between the difficulties of the old school and another more suitable path should have known us . From falling in battle, the first will take us to the previous guard point without the experience and gold that we have acquired until that moment. The second, on the contrary, will be worse and will allow us to keep part of what we have until our death. That is to say that at any time we can take the road but this decision will not have to go back. This commitment will not be the only one we will make during our periphery where, in addition and without notice, we will plant problems – some more obvious, others less – our resolution will have an impact on the development of our peripherals.
Peripherals which, as is logical and given the references of Infernax, will develop in a form quite close to the metroidvania genre. Our judges will take us from side to side with a perfectly consistent map but that, at the same time, there will be obvious sticking points that we can only overcome by acquiring certain skills. These improvements, as it could not be otherwise, will only be obtained after our adventures in the castles where the Great Demons, guardians of the Saaellum Maelificarum – that’s the name I invented, but it sounds turbo -demonic – which will close the mausoleum where the Supreme Demon is. If this dynamic result strangely resembles that of the other classics of the metroidvania because, in fact, that is his intention. The obvious growth of our characters through the acquisition of useful powers and abilities – vertical impulse or devolved projects to enemies – goes hand in hand with an improved system that will allow us to invest our experience and our gold in the evolution of our hero. Because being a crusader won’t stop us from taking our first steps down the path of magic or running our hands full on bras, masks, and armor.
An investment that, in the long run, will pay dividends as we move beyond the comfortable limits of our city. In the rest of the areas – some other cities including – we have no choice but to exorcise the clean mazazo of all infrared entanglements that cross our path. Ghasts, Zombies, the ever-welcome Skeletons and Floating Eyes will be the first enemies in a list with a well-defined hierarchy and its long-range representation – similarly to total game practice – more directly than 8-bit in general and Castlevania in particular in terms of aesthetics. However, small brushstrokes of modernity appear at times much more cinematic and depict with greater detail, brilliance and precision conditions that require greater visual impact. All of this while sounding like a flawless soundtrack that would have stuck without twists in any of the Belmont Saga titles.
But not only mazazos, battles against skeletons and bruises on the teeth to see the Sun live the difficulty of Infernax. While we can’t stop paying attention to enemy encounters at all times, a big part of Infernax’s high difficulty curve has to be platforming that reaches its quarters in streets that will correspond to castles. Each of these sections will receive us with a simple room that will show us the dynamics that we will find far from the rest of the rooms of the castle. Stacks filled with lava or acid, pinched by the doctor, platforms that will dissolve our feet or impossible salts will be just a few examples of the rocks that poison our lives and our patience as a precursor to final encounters. Just as these mechanics are classy in their origin and design, so will they be in their difficulty, requiring heavy doses of precision if we don’t want to see our hero fall into a cruel and detailed death sequence that , in case of taking advantage of the difficulty of the old school, we will solve at the entrance. What we are, will also happen in the clashes with the final bosses. Joy.
Several times I swore by the old and new gods while playing Infernax and without restriction the crashing network, its techniques and the multiple references to each era and a variety of video games threw me to lead to good an adventure which, in sum, deserved the pen. While it is certain that some of its final enclosures could have been calibrated better – in fact, some are somewhat anti-climactic when compared to the enduring platform that came before – the care taken in the whole design that enters this Inferna is inevitable. Other details such as secondary objectives, its secrets or even an intention that we will experiment with everything that comes our way with its techniques will only add irresistible value to a title that is, in the end, of a powerful and judicious aesthetic, which knows how to rise on its own.
