Game Boy Advance Longplay [019] Castlevania Circle of the Moon

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Played by: Tsunao

Fact: Xbox 360 D-Pad sucks!
I'm considering using my DS as a pad. Yes, it is possible with a R4 flashcart, some other programs, and some homebrew. ;) Sadly, you can't use it properly for stylus-heavy games. =/

To the topic at hand:
Up there as a difficult Metroidvania game (I put this as second, since Order of Ecclesia is harder). Still plays like good ol' Symphony of the Night, but with a lack of a shop (ups the difficulty). Gameplay mechanic revolves around the Dual System Setup (DSS), where you combine two cards for various effects, like a Fire Whip (Mercury + Salamander), increasing attack (Venus + Salamander), and a fire sword (Mars + Salamander) to name a few. You can get a gun through DSS (Mars + Black Dog). :3 It sucks in my opinion.

THis is just a standard ol' 100% Map Rate playthrough (I always do that), so that includes the hellish Battle Arena. =_= Also played as Vampirekiller (more classes are unlocked upon clearing the game. Others are Magician, Warrior, Shooter, and Thief). I'm not the best at playing CotM (last time I played this was about 3 years ago). Took me awhile to adjust to the game. I also need to plan my routes better. =_= I try to get as many rooms as possible, but after the Chapel, I decided to just bumrush the game until I get the Roc Wing (the game's Gravity Boots). After that, I go around the world, covering as much as possible before going to the Observatory Tower. There are times where I had to go back to get a room, like Adrammalech boss room, Observatory Tower boss room (did this after Arena. -_-), and one small room in the Clock Tower (also after the Arena while I was replenish Hearts) Oh, and there will lots of map viewing and game pausing.

Trick of the trade: DSS glitch. Since I loathe grinding (especially for the cards), I decide to utilize the glitch, gaining access to combinations I can't even get at whatever point of the game...unless I was a Magician (like Summon Thunderbird on Cerberus and Summon Unicorn for regenrating health). The glitch is activated by activating the DSS, going into the menu, and switching around the card combination for whatever combination. I usually use the Diana + Manticore, since the poison ball breaks things in a few seconds (same can be said of the Crucifix). Somewhere, Summon Thunderbird is used to wreck Batman and the Zombie Dragons. Summon Unicorn is for the healing (Potions aren't easy to get, y'know.)

Another trick of the trade: Luck manipulation. Since I was recording a movie and abusing savestate, all errors are not shown. The awesomeness of rerecording emulators. Anyway, I use luck manipulation to get 2 Double Grips (from Black Armors), Mirror Armor (from Devil), Black Dog Card (from Evil Armors), and Unicorn Card (from White Armors). All I had to do was weaken it, make a savestate, and keep killing at different intervals until I get whatever I want. I could've did it for the cards, but I didn't feel like it. Technically, I am grinding, so it is rather ironic. -
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