Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 glitch & things of interest file
v. 1.0 (4. 4. 2014)
Written and partially discovered by findlestick and AKheon
0. Table of contents:
0. Table of contents
1. Intro, glossary and abbreviations
2. Common or game breaking glitches
3. General techniques and mechanics
4. About Dracula's skills, weapons and possessions
5. Level-by-level listing of tricks & glitches
6. About this FAQ
Version history:
v. 1.0 (4. 4. 2014)
- the first published version. Should have the most essential things and more.
file size: 130kb.
1. Intro, glossary and abbreviations
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 is a 2014 sequel to the original Castlevania:
Lords of Shadow that was released in 2010. Like its predecessor, it is an
action adventure game mostly focusing on hack 'n' slashing, although it also
features platforming, stealth and a few puzzle elements as well.
Since we wrote a Glitch FAQ on the first game, we thought to continue and do
the same thing with this game as well. So what is a Glitch FAQ? It is a file
intended to document all sorts of fringe information about a game and its
mechanics. We look at a game from a glitcher's or a speedrunner's point of
view, talking about oddities and special techniques like how to jump higher or
longer than normally possible. We list where it is possible to skip things or
otherwise cause glitches, or simply warn about potentially game breaking
glitches. Things like that. In other words, a Glitch FAQ is a (miserable)
little pile of secrets.
To note, these glitches have been mostly tried out on PS3... things might vary
in unforeseen ways on other ports of the game. Also, if you have patched your
game, some of the tricks below may not work.
Abbreviations:
C: LoS = Castlevania: Lords of Shadow
C: LoS 2 = the sequel
NG = New Game
NG+ = New Game+
OoB = Out of Bounds
Glossary:
cinematic cutscene = a cutscene that you can skip by entering menu. Contrast
with a non-cinematic cutscene that you can't skip. Sometimes the properties of
the two can overlap somewhat.
launch / lift-up = any attack that takes Dracula into air, like Rising Whip.
out of bounds = going outside the intended level area. Another term you may
have seen for this is going out of map.
softlock = a softer variant of game crashing. Basically, it's a situation where
you get stuck and can't continue without resetting the game, although the game
hasn't technically crashed and the PS3 menu will open. It's not a that common
phenomena in LoS2, but the term may still come up later.
unhandled error = Lords of Shadow 2 doesn't crash - instead it prints out a
black screen that says Unhandled Error, forcing you to shut off the console.
2. Common or game breaking glitches
Here's a small, hopefully informative section about glitches that a normal
gamer might stumble upon and that might ruin his evening. Glitches that occur
suddenly and are more of a hindrance than anything else. There's info on what
the glitch does and how to possibly avoid it.
>>Getting stuck inside objects
Near cramped places, like in tight corners or near lamp posts or indestructible
boxes, Dracula can become stuck. He just sinks a little inside the collision
and after that you can't get him out of there. Nothing will work - not jumping
or attacking or turning into Mist, so you have to retry.
It is therefore advisable that you stay away from tight places. Especially
jumping or evading near such a place can get Dracula stuck.
Videos:
1, DridriKon's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mwbur2KWY98
2, Luciano Ghuidotti's vid of getting stuck in some railings
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fh2IacGQjQ
>>Sudden invisible walls
Some people have reported being unable to proceed to their goal or getting
stuck in a collectible room because of random invisible walls in the way. So
far it's unknown why this might happen...
Well, there is no denying that this game is quite heavily scripted, and the
player is occasionally tended from place to place with a good helping of
invisible walls. It could be that some triggers managing invisible walls have
been set too wide, and the player can accidentally hit them ahead of time,
locking them behind wrong invisible walls. Retrying should fix the problem and
let you continue.
Videos:
1, Ali AlGhazals vid of getting blocked by an invisible wall
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4M6tYwxN7Y
>>Unhandled errors
It's possible to get some severe errors during gameplay. On PS3 you get an
official looking message that says "Unhandled Error" and you have to shut down
the console. For the most part you can consider this message as a typical
random game freeze that will probably not happen again after reloading the
game.
However, sometimes the glitch can happen consistently as well. "Ohem1"
suggested that the glitch might have something to do with enemy spawns of an
area malfunctioning somehow. If that is the case, the glitch can be defused by
leaving to another area and returning to the problem spot - the glitch should
no longer happen.
Videos:
1, Ohem1's vid:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=192Oj3l2H68
2, MasterLL's vid:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biLG4e7oGTg
>>Invisible enemies and more
Occasionally Dracula can be assaulted by invisible enemies. People have
theorized that the lag caused by autosaves could cause odd yet harmless
phenomena like this to happen. Better keep your eyes open...
Videos:
1, MasterLL's vid of an invisible enemy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKn6HLJP8Oc
Some enemies can become semi-idle and seem unsure as to where Dracula is.
Videos:
1, MasterLL's vid of semi-idle enemies:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjyC6Zc0LAc
A glitch involving displacement after being grabbed by a Boss.
Videos:
1, Hoy Soy Gustavo Simo's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVAeYufy-XQ
A few YouTube users have complained to me about an audio glitch which can occur
at the 3 Gorgons cutscene.
Videos:
1, TheLoneGamer1986's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGN1UxkdyFI
At the Satan�s Daughter battle, it�s possible for Dracula to become stuck in
place. This also happened to me when I tried to use Blizzard at the moment that
the whirlwind she created hit me. Though I can�t be sure that�s what caused
this glitch.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=3m49s
2, Thee Slayer's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozibmgp1QiY
3. General techniques and mechanics
Here starts the section of the FAQ that concerns itself with special techniques
that are relevant for speedrunning or otherwise breaking the game.
>>>>>High jumps and long jumps
Being able to jump higher or longer than the developers intended can be a
surprisingly powerful thing in a video game. We call the techniques for doing
this high or long jumps... here is a list of the known techniques we have in
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2.
We might as well start from long jumps since gaining height is a bit of an
issue in this game. It's almost like the developers saw the high jumping antics
from the first game and decided to make all Dracula's attacks harmless in this
respect, almost never giving any height. Anyway, here goes, from simpler
techniques to more complex ones.
>>Air melee attacks
Just your basic technique of doing an air attack at the end of a jump to get
further in air. It is most effective when trying to reach a platform on the
same height that is just out of reach.
Air Evade also increases your jump length, but it has the problem of dropping
Dracula down at a very steep arc. It should be used at the end of an air combo,
just to squeeze everything out of your jump.
Videos:
1, Aphox's vid of skipping puzzle part with this trick:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzBU_L30A2w
>>Sprinting and jumping
Like in the first game, Sprinting and jumping allows you to do a jump with a
higher speed than normal, letting you reach further. However, a Sprint jump is
not as high as a normal jump, which might be an issue.
>>Somersault / Sprint long jump
A variation that gives you slight advantage for long jumping. If you do
Somersault but cancel its cooldown by buffering Sprint and then jump, you can
do a Sprint jump that starts a little above ground level. The height difference
isn't much, but any advantage we can get is useful.
>>Avalanche long jump
Same principle as with Shoulder Charge long jump from C:LoS 1. Stand at the
very end of a ledge, and do an Avalanche. Dracula will complete the horizontal
move in air, but while losing quite a lot of height. Ground moves can be done
at the end of it, including launches and jumps if you have wings. Death
collision has to be pretty low to do this technique properly.
Buffering a weapon-switch during the initial forwards surge, seems to lessen
height loss a small amount. A good way to extend the jump is to do a launch
followed by certain combos, in-between Mist form floating.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsQTlb4yR7M#t=329
>>Launch-from-air high jump
When Dracula jumps, he responds to the ground as being underneath him way
before he has even landed. He can also temporarily think that ground is still
below him, even though he�s beyond a ledge. So it�s possible to start a launch
from higher off the ground than is intended, or even in air beyond ledges.
This technique�s main use is as a type of high jump, since it gets less
horizontal distance than most other simpler techniques. The timing to get
optimal height is pretty strict, and is done in the following way. Jump, then
attack before Dracula stops detecting the ground below him, then do a launch.
If you timed it correctly, Dracula starts his launch from higher up than
intended. How do you know when Dracula stops detecting ground after having
jumped? Unfortunately, you�ll only know with practice and observation. A good
way to measure the height-limit of this technique, is to jump and see if the
top of Dracula�s head can reach that height. Because you can approximately get
up to where Dracula�s head reaches to during a normal jump. You get even more
height if you follow it up with available finishing moves.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of Launch-from-air high jump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lru7h-C-Mgs&t=0m03s
>>Somersault high jump
While the jump Dracula does during a Somersault does not look like much, it
actually lets you reach much higher platforms that you'd expect. Especially if
you do a Somersault from air (the same way you do launches from air, as
detailed above), you actually jump higher than what Dracula can normally jump!
The bad part about this trick is that Somersault is a pretty clumsy move when
you think about it. It steers automatically towards nearby objects and enemies.
You can't cancel out of it once started until you have Mist form, making it
difficult to use your extra height. This jump is at its best if you have a
platform quite close in front of you a little higher than you could normally
reach.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsQTlb4yR7M#t=101
>>Mist Form High Jump
The general gist of this minor high jump is to launch or jump, then do an
attack where Dracula lifts up as he starts to "wind up" to do his technique.
Then cancel it with Mist Form at the attack's peak, and travel over while in
Mist Form. Some attacks which are good for this are Smashing Stab (Sword),
Smashing Punch (Claws), Guillotine (Whip).
>>Mist Form High Jump extended
With very precise timing, the motion of doing Mist Form and any of the
mentioned attacks can be repeated a few times to keep gaining height. The bad
part is that your Mist meter will run out pretty quick when doing this... but
extra height is extra height.
Videos:
1, PewableShift's vid (done God Mode on, explaining a large Mist Meter)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tv2_DMnT8PQ
>>Special Collision Jump (SCJ)
Dracula's air attacks work differently when they hit something. Dracula won't
fall down as quick and can even gain height or length by doing repeated air
attacks. Usually you need an enemy for doing this, but in one particular
situation a wall gives you the same reaction, allowing you to do an unique
high/long jump.
Sadly, the only place - to date - that this type of hittable collision has been
found is at the Mechanical Titan at the start of the game. This technique is
done best with the Void Sword and Chaos Claws by first doing a launch, then
hitting the special collision with a direct air-attack, and then repeatedly
cancelling direct air-attacks by blocking at a certain moment.
Aiming Dracula's direction is tricky, because the cancelling button (block) -
in combination with pushing the controller in some direction - also does air
Evade. Which quickly drops you, ruining your jump. The trick to navigating is
to - very quickly - change direction in-between doing the technique. If you
lose your timing, spam direct attack for a while to stop you from falling until
you can get your timing back.
Getting over the top of some walls can be difficult, this technique is in need
of a decent finisher.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsQTlb4yR7M#t=167
>>Angled Collision Jump (ACJ)
Some angled collision in the game is practically like floor, only with the
fatal flaw that Dracula cannot stand on it and will just slip off if he tries.
However, all air attacks become ground attacks in the vicinity of this
collision, and Dracula can do multiple lift-ups in a row against it to
conveniently (and quickly) rise upwards.
Trying to use a relic or do a grab after a jump also works, making Dracula land
on the slippery floor safely. And from there you can do another jump or more
ground attacks to proceed. Using relics is trickier than just doing a grab, so
doing the latter is recommended.
Videos:
1, PewableShift's vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heoXMl-P7DM
2, AKheon's vid of using relics on angled collision
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi4McK1p8Bw#t=55
>>Enemy Collision high jump (ECJ)
You can use launchable enemies to gain pretty good height. This technique is
identical to SCJ, except that you use an enemy instead of the special
collision. This is because noticeably "hitting" something gives Dracula anti-
gravity properties.
The technique is done by launching an enemy towards a wall or ledge you want to
go over and then - as with SCJ - repeatedly hit then cancel direct air-attacks
(preferably with the Sword. The technique works better with it, plus it does
less damage). I recommend switching the difficulty to Very Hard in the menu
before trying this, to ensure that the enemy survives as long as possible.
Also, the technique is more effective when done against "tougher" foes. Also,
starting the technique with a double-launch enables greater height.
Some of the down-sides of this technique are that, launching an enemy towards
the direction you want to go is the only control you have in terms of
navigation if you don't have wings. There is - seemingly - no way to change
direction.
Finishing the technique is done by going over the wall with the enemy, or by
doing a few air attacks followed by any weapon�s downwards smashes. Another
good finisher is to use Mist Form high jump to float over the top of walls.
The technique is best done while having Void Shield or Chaos Shield activated,
otherwise enemies can interrupt your technique by shooting projectiles at you.
If you don�t have a shield (which would be likely during most of a New Game
speedrun). The technique is quite easy to do if you first freeze other
surrounding enemies, or distract them with Bat Swarm before starting the
technique.
The technique can also be done without any of these protective measures. But in
order to continue with your technique uninterrupted - you should block twice
very quickly during the technique after every 6 to 7 air attack-cancels. With
practice it's possible to continue with your technique. As a last resort you
could kill every enemy except for one, before doing the technique.
If you decide to use a shield. Ideally, you want to use Void Sword for the
attack-cancels and Void Shield for protection (with the Ensnared Demon item
active) you�ll do less damage to your foes this way. Avoid getting hit by your
targeted enemy, should you use the Chaos Shield, it will deal the enemy great
damage. You can also use Void Shield, in tandem with Claw attack-cancels. But
this should only be used against tougher foes that can only be launched with
the Claws. The Claws do too much damage when used on weaker foes, the Claws
lend themselves to giving you much further horizontal distance.
Doing this overall technique against those soldiers who turn yellow (and
invincible) lets you go extremely high, albeit agonisingly slow. The fact that
the enemy is invincible, means that he will survive a lot more hits, meaning
more height for Dracula. But you have to make sure that you wait for the cue
that he is about to become invincible. If you wait too long, you can�t launch
the invincible enemy.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WESMBDIShz0
>>Breakable object high jump
It�s possible to reset your jump-counter by doing Air Dash against certain
breakable objects, ones which you would normally not be able to stand on, much-
less jump off. The most notable breakable objects to do this technique with are
those tall winged-statues. But even then, they need to be placed in a certain
way against wall for the technique to be effective.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of Breakable Object high jump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lru7h-C-Mgs&t=1m05s
>>Damage boost long jump/finisher
Time enemy-projectiles to either knock Dracula across chasms, or to knock you
upwards, over the top of ledges with a well timed jump. A good method for
getting over small chasms with this is to do a series of combos which allow you
to stay in air for long enough so that you don't have to time the enemy's
projectile. You eventually get knocked across the chasm if you are in air for
long enough.
>>Enemy-somersault jump
Somersault automatically jumps over the top of enemies when performed. This can
be exploited by double-launching an enemy towards the direction you want to
high jump, and then doing a Somersault (the ground-move-in-air version) over
the enemy and - if lucky - over the wall. One way to double launch an enemy is
to launch an enemy> block, before Dracula lift-up occurs> launch> continue
lifting up.
A similar technique can be done against larger Boss-sized enemies. Firstly,
lure them towards a wall you want to go over. Then simply Somersault over them
towards the targeted wall, but cancel the Somersault with Mist Form and float
over the wall. You may need to do combos in-between floating if the distance
requires it.
Videos:
1, PewableShift's vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFYcwY16Hss#t=39
>>Infinite falling jump
Dracula can get stuck on top of a specific type of collision so that he
infinitely falls against it. If you keep idly falling for a long enough time,
around 2 seconds maybe, your first jump resets, allowing you to, in some very
rare case, to get higher than normally possible. At the very least it allows
you to escape the collision you just fell against.
>>Death floor jump
Sometimes if there is normal floor right beneath death floor, you are able to
do a safe jump off the normal floor without dying. This is possible in one of
the early City of the Damned screens, for example, jumping into lava.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi4McK1p8Bw#t=41
>>Mist Form infinite jump
A technique to reset Double Jump in air, giving you infinite jumps. Great!
However, you can only do it towards the end of the game since you get Double
Jump so late. Bummer, but hey, it's still an infinite jump, a luxury we never
even had in the previous game.
You have to have Mist Form, either of the special moves that allow you to do
Mist Form dashing (Hoarfrost Fog or Chaos Wave) and Double Jump.
First double jump into air, then do the Mist dashing move, but interrupt it by
letting go of Mist Form a little after Dracula has started his dash. Yes, the
dash actually has to start for this to work. Then you'll find that your double
jump has been replenished and you can do a double jump and an interrupted Mist
dash again, repeat endlessly.
Although, this jump is only infinite with the caveat that you need to keep your
Mist power up. This means the jump can't be taken very far at this point,
unless you start inserting filler moves into the air combo to help the mist
gauge revive between double jumps. Some attacks that seem to work decently for
this purpose are Rising Current and unpowered Shadow Daggers, for example...
Another thing that limits this technique is that you need end game gear to do
it.
To note, I've heard a report that this jump might not work on PC.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1sOWr2Pqyc
2, AKheon's vid of using attacks to extend the Infinite Jump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYFE6QAFUE4
>>Slowing down your fall, or "hovering"
After Dracula has done a move in air and its animation is over, he enters a
special falling mode that you can slow down by flicking either Chaos or Void
power on and off rhythmically. This allows you to fall down in a steady
diagonal angle instead of a very quickly escalating normal fall, helping you
make the most of a single jump.
The different air moves have very varied lengths, and you can't really deduce
an air move's length by just looking at it. One way to test is to jump from
somewhere high, do an air attack and during the air attack switch weapons. The
air attack is officially over at the time when Dracula's weapon finally
changes. For maximum effectiveness of this trick, pick an air move that has an
extremely short animation length... for example doing air absorption for a
moment, a quickly cancelled Shadow Dagger throw or your basic air Whip sweep
attack.
Spamming the Chaos or Void power doesn't have to be very fast. In fact, doing
it too fast will reduce the technique's effectiveness. Admittedly, even a
relaxed use of this technique will eventually become tiresome for your hands
because of the repetitive motion it involves.
This technique has an effect on ground too. Dracula is unable to land on ground
when "hovering", although sometimes floor height differences will force him to
land, ending the glitch. So, what's the use of having Dracula fall endlessly on
ground level? You can move around like normal during the glitch, although
Dracula's animation looks silly. Those small invisible ledge boundaries don't
exist for Dracula while hovering, so you can just slide off into any chasm
without being stopped. Dracula also latches onto anything climbable from
further away than normal. Finally, if there are any collision flaws or strange
indentions in the floor collision, Dracula will instantly sink into it. Perhaps
this technique could this way come in handy when trying to find collision flaws
around the levels... testing is still underway.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTLjgXzQ0W4
>>Hovering v2
Another way to slow down your fall is to cancel out of your air projectile
shots in a certain rhythm while having Void Sword or Chaos Claws equipped. Done
right, Dracula will descend extremely slowly. This technique is more useful for
simply staying in air than moving forward in air. If you switch magics during
this technique, Dracula will advance forwards, but it�s useless since it�s only
really effective while you are above ground.
Done while Dracula is just above ground - but with Bat Swarm instead of sub-
weapon projectiles - Dracula will stay in air in one spot indefinitely. Again,
Void Sword or Chaos Claws are required for this effect to happen.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of other Hovering methods
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=0m50s
>>Fastest movement technique?
You have a stylish vampiric Evade available for you from the very beginning of
the game which is a decent way to get around. Holding down Evade while spamming
Void Sword or Chaos Claws attacks makes Dracula Evade faster and even move a
little bit forward in between each Evade. This is probably the best common
movement technique at your disposal.
At times when you don't have secondary weapons with you, doing normal Evades
should suffice, or maybe quick air evades. It has not been timed which is
faster.
Another thing you have readily available for you from the start is the Sprint
ability. However, the Sprint is somewhat nerfed from C: LoS 1 and Dracula
refuses to take more than a few dainty running steps before stopping. This
makes using Sprint a hassle, but at least sprinting speed carries on to your
jumps, so that is a plus.
Later on you get some new attacks that have a lot of forward momentum to them.
Most are a bit bulky to use for movement purposes, but the two Mist specials
(Hoarfrost Fog and Chaos Wave) can be combined for one very fast movement
style. Hold down Mist Form, attack button and forward and then switch between
Chaos and Void power to do the very fast dash motion repeatedly over and over
again. This doesn't expend too much magic either, but your Mist gauge is
constantly depleting, limiting how long you can do this technique.
An special movement technique that also ranks among the fastest in the game is
only doable during stealth sections. Hold down Evade while spamming down
Daggers or Bats, and Dracula will move at exquisitely fast speeds. It only
works during stealth sections because Dracula's mechanics are different at that
time.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid of the Mist special movement technique
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTLjgXzQ0W4#t=61
2, findlestick's vid of the special movement style of stealth sections
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTtsGgZ26n4
>>>>>Doing attacks off a ledge
As in the first game, doing ground attacks off a ledge can be used for various
exploits. Here is its own section dedicated to this topic.
>>How to do ground attacks off a ledge?
You have probably noticed a small invisible wall preventing you from doing
ground attacks off ledges. It can be bypassed by just doing a small jump past
it. Get Dracula standing at the very edge of a ledge, and you should be good to
go.
>>Evading off a ledge
If you do a ground evade off a ledge, you not only move in air a decent length
but are also able to do ground attacks in air afterwards. Just a shame that
Dracula is affected by gravity during all this time, and you tend to plummet
down so quickly that you don't have much time to enjoy the trick. Still, an
evade into a lift-up could in some cases work as a long jump for Dracula.
>>Sprinting in air
If you sprint off a ledge, Dracula keeps running in air for a significant
distance but also loses significant height. Like with evading, you can do
ground moves after sprinting. Just hope that the death collision isn't too
close below...
You can double-jump at the end of the sprint if you have wings. Interestingly,
instead of your first jump being normal (wingless), both jumps include the
"Wings animation" (which gives more distance?) and looks really odd. Either
way, you have two jumps at the end of this long jump technique to work with.
However, before getting wings you can't jump in air after a Sprint.
If you try to jump at the end of this technique - before getting the wings - he
doesn't seem to jump, there is an odd, very subtle move that he does (as he
transitions from being "on ground" to falling?). Should be examined closer at
some point. �
>>Normal melee attacks off a ledge
Nothing is stopping you from just doing normal melee attacks off a ledge, but
you can't follow up ground attacks with other types of ground moves afterwards.
You can do a lift-up in air, which is a plus at least, but other techniques
tend to be more effective than this.
>>Avalanche off a ledge
Avalanche is a quick dash-type move that is a good asset in long jumps. Dracula
gets a tremendous speed boost and flies through the air a long distance when
done off a ledge, and you can do a lift-up afterwards as well.
The other dash-type moves (like Whirlwind) can also be considered to be used
for this purpose, but they are not as effective. Avalanche is definitely the
best move of the bunch.
>>Relic usage in air
You can use relics in air, but only after Evading or Sprinting off a ledge. So,
what's the use? Well, it looks strange to have Dracula be in the relic pose
while falling. Other than that, Dracula automatically latches onto any uneven
or angled collision nearby and stops his fall. This way you can sometimes find
places to stand on from unexpected places! So it could be something useful to
keep in mind.
>>>>A section about break-outs
Break-out in this context refers to Dracula being able to start some action
like turning a switch but breaking free. It's helpful in a speedrun since
skipping this kind of animations saves time. So, here's a list of known
techniques to break out of things, as well as info on effects breaking out has
on specific prompts.
>>Somersault break-outs
(c: PewableShift)
If you do a Somersault and then activate a prompt instantly afterwards,
Dracula's animation for using the prompt becomes skipped. This works at many
places and is a nice common technique for skipping prompt animations and at
best saving a little bit of time. Other, rare side effects can happen too,
depending on the prompt, but these are looked more closely in the level-by-
level glitches section.
Videos:
1, PewableShift's example (using Wolf Altar)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLbD9Cm8r9E
>>Absorb / Jump break-out
Functionally almost exactly the same as a Somersault break-out, but done in a
different way. You have to jump and activate a prompt at the same time you are
holding down the button to absorb orbs. The timing may be easier with this
technique than when using Somersault, but it doesn't seem to work with all the
prompts that you can break out of with Somersault, like Wolf Altars.
>>Mist Form break-out
Activating Mist Form at the same time you activate a prompt can cause Dracula
to break free of the ensuing animation. This works for example at Shadow
Portals, where the camera doesn't show Dracula transforming into a rat pack if
you do this.
>>Bat Swarm cutscene "break-out"
If you enter a non-cinematic cutscene while in Bat Swarm aiming mode, Dracula
does not stop like usual. Instead he keeps automatically walking to a direction
during the cutscene. This can save some time since you can keep moving during
an unskippable scene, and in some cases it can lead to extra glitches as well.
Instances of this are listed in the level-by-level glitch sections ahead.
>>Bat Swarm switch "break-out"
If you use Bat Swarm right after activating some prompts, Dracula will become
frozen on the spot while the HUD disappears. You can break free of this state
by attacking, for example, after which things go back to normal and the prompt
remains unactivated. �
>>Whirlwind / Avalanche "break-out"
Activating some prompts while being in a Whirlwind or Avalanche charging
animation, Dracula freezes in the animation even if you let go of all the
buttons. This is quite useless, and actions like attacking free Dracula again.
>>Pile of Sacrifices
These are easily broken out of by attacking slightly after activating one of
these statues, Dracula breaks out of it and the statue stops having any solid
collision. So Dracula can walk right through it. Not of any real use. If you
activate the prompt again while in this state, Dracula's "wrist-slitting
animation" can become displaced. And you get a comical situation where it looks
like Dracula is slicing his wrist against an invisible blade floating in
nothingness. Yet the blood has teleported to the real blade and drips down it
instead.
The ground version of some of these Fonts are very easily broken out in a
similar fashion. All that happens is that the prompt activates normally, except
for that the cutscene never plays and you are free to move around.
>>Shadow Portals (Rat-morphing prompts)
Activating Mist Form slightly after you activate these prompts, the scene of
Dracula morphing into a rat does not play. Instead, all the Rats completely
freeze and the camera abruptly changes to its post-morph camera angle. After
what seems like an eternity, you get control of one of the Rat which is
obviously Dracula.
>>Scrolls
Breaking out of these makes them glow permanently, and the prompt becomes
inactive. And it seems like you don't get the scroll.
>>Dungeon key prompts
So far nothing seems to break out of these prompts.
>>Door opening prompts
These can be in the form of small handles, levers, sword-statues, spinning-
wheels etc. Usually Dracula is free to move around afterwards.
The game has plenty of places where you pull a switch that closes a door and
opens another. But even using a break out and being really fast, you can't
escape through the door that is closing - there is always some invisible wall
in the way.
Also, I've seen Dracula go flying really far during failed crank breakouts.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of basic prompt break-outs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsQTlb4yR7M
>>>>>Notes on other game mechanics
>>God mode
You can wilfully activate a God Mode from the game's own Cheat-menu. It makes
Dracula invincible, as you'd expect, but also reduces Secondary Weapon meter
costs a whole lot. For example, Mist Form loses its hefty transformation cost.
This makes God mode handy for testing purposes, for example seeing where you
could potentially get using the Mist infinite jump.
>>Chandeliers/Candelabras and Swinging Platforms
I once saw a strange momentum glitch when trying to jump from a chandelier to
another. Dracula flew through air with a much higher speed than is normally
possible, then hit a wall and landed down, skipping a chandelier in the
process. Wonder if this could be done at will...
Also, doing attacks at the moment that you are about to land on a Chandelier,
causes Dracula so simply fall through it. It�s almost as if the Chandelier�s
collision didn't exist.
>>Climbing walls
If you detach from some climbing wall points with Mist Form, your Double Jump
is replenished. This might save some time in the climbing sections of the game.
>>Balancing Poles
While on balancing poles, Dracula's animations change to much bulkier ones.
Avoid this by jumping precisely before he completely lands on a pole to retain
normal running and jumping speed in these parts. However, there are only
certain parts of a pole that count as normal floor, so be mindful of where to
jump... to use this technique as a speed strategy needs practice.
Using Mist Form, you can sink inside balancing poles. In general the pole
collisions work strangely, and you can even start infinitely falling on one
after doing this.
>>Enemy Grabs
Dracula can suddenly go flying away from the enemy, during grab prompt
breakouts.
>>Autosave indicator
You can't open up menus while the autosave indicator is visible, which is very
annoying.
The autosave indicator disappears if you have activated cheats. This could make
a dubious speedrun tactic, because without the indicator you can open up menus
sooner and that way skip cutscenes faster.
>>Restart Chapter glitch
You have the option to restart the current chapter from the menu. However,
sometimes your current checkpoint does not reset - it depends on what chapter
you are in. So you can restart the chapter, then retry checkpoint to end up
back where you last where. It's unknown if this could be used for something...
- list of chapters this works in:
The Three Gorgons
The Antidote
Next Stop: Castlevania
Start of Agreus Stealth section
�
>>Fans and Grates
It�s possible to go down through some grates which are actually designed for
you to go up through them. Done by simply activating Mist Form near its edges,
avoiding the wind blowing up through it.
You can also go up some grates even without a visible draft using by getting
close enough to the grate in Mist Form. Easiest when doing the Mist Form
infinite jump.
>>Stealth sections
Stealth sections are a controversial new things in this game. During them,
Dracula meets enemies that he can't kill and has to hide from. Other things are
different too, like most of Dracula's character mechanics. Here's a brief list:
- he loses the ability to do melee attacks.
- he can't Block, Stomp or Somersault. But even without a Block move, blocking
has an effect - it can interrupt secondary weapon attacks.
- he can switch secondary weapon while doing secondary weapon attacks.
- he can interrupt Evade with Bats or Shadow Dagger.
- using Tears of a Saint slightly in air makes Dracula stand on air.
- all other Relics are unusable.
Glitches involving Item-activation at Stealth Sections:
There are at least two ways to force the game to let you use items at all
Stealth Sections. First, more common method is done by jumping, then throwing a
Bat Swarm buffered by a Shadow Dagger throw (note that you won�t actually see a
dagger being thrown, but its input seems to be required). Then instantly select
item (on the d-pad) followed by activating an item.
Second, rarer method was noted close to the end of the game, before meeting the
2nd Acolyte. You have to jump while passing upwards through one of the grates,
then entering Mist Form will give you all your powers back. Just to note that
this trick can make the game unstable and prone to crashing, so use it at own
risk.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of item use at stealth sections (1st method)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTq0TtKtGQA
2, findlestick's vid of full powers in a stealth section (2nd method)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lru7h-C-Mgs#t=89
Here are some descriptions of using items at Stealth Sections.
Talisman of the Dragon:
-the game won't let you skip the Dragon Talisman scene if Guards are on alert.
-once the Dragon Talisman cutscene has ended, the final section (when Dracula
screams) can play with no sound.
-activating the Talisman while at a Shadow Portal Rat-prompt, causes the prompt
to be present throughout the entire Dragon cutscene. But it can�t seem to be
activated. If you then immediately enter the Shadow Portal, the Rats can look
like they are on fire.
-if you spam item activation after you�ve just broken a Dragon Talisman, you
can clearly see Dracula's mouth move as he says "it's not the time".
- Golgoth Guards cannot interrupt your Dragon Form scene or animations, once
they have begun.
-the Talisman doesn't seem to cause Carmilla any visible damage.
-Unlike the Guards, Carmilla seems to be more easily alerted as to your
location once the Talisman is activated. When she finds you, she sometimes says
"you�re mine now" twice in a row, other times she just finds you but her audio
won't play.
-if Carmilla finds you after Dracula breaks the Talisman, the camera suddenly
cuts to her and Dracula remains off screen - assumingly - completing his
animation. She waits for him to finish, then everything continues as normal.
-if Carmilla finds you at the same moment that you break the Talisman, the
scene of her finding you and the scene of Dracula starting to turn into the
Dragon, rapidly cut back-and-forth. Then the PS3 freezes totally.
-the Talisman doesn�t seem to cause Agreus any visible damage, asides from
glowing red a little. Using the Talisman doesn�t seem to alert him to your
presence any more than regular activities.
-Agreus can interrupt your final animation, but only after running in circles
around Dracula, which can make both of them zip around if you are standing in a
tight area.
-Agreus can�t seem to interrupt Dracula while he has started breaking the
Talisman. You can see Agreus standing next to Dracula making threats, before
grabbing him when it's all finished.
-lab scientists are obliterated by the Talisman.
Dodo Egg:
-the text that tells you that the Dodo has "found something" won�t appear (or
is cut short), if you enter a Shadow Portal shortly after having released a
Dodo.
-alerted Golgoth Guards will try to rush Dracula during a Dodo release, but
cannot interrupt him until it has flown off.
-after using a Dodo egg, Dracula will get stuck doing an animation that looks
like he�s endlessly hopping on the ground with both feet at the same time (this
also occurs if this glitch is done during regular gameplay). During this
hopping-animation, you can get these glitch-effects:
(a) He won�t respond to any regular inputs except for Jump, Bat Swarm, Dash and
Shadow Portal. Gorgoth Attacks break him free of this hopping state, but he
still won�t respond to most inputs. You return back to normal if Carmilla finds
you.
(b) If you try to throw a Shadow Dagger or try to use a relic, he�ll release a
Bat Swarm instead, and then resume his normal stance.
(c) Although inconsistent, it�s possible to immediately do another item
activation without having to set-up any sort of trick beforehand (most times
he�ll just throw Bat Swarm though). I�ve only attempted to use another Dodo egg
afterwards, which worked. Maybe he�ll use an item only during certain frame/s
of his hopping animation?
(d) He can Dash, but then he gets stuck. And afterwards he still won�t respond
to many inputs.
(d) if this glitch is done during areas that you are supposed to use items. For
example, let Dracula do his hopping-animation off a ledge, he will do his Bat
Swarm animation automatically, once he's gone beyond the ledge.
-if Carmilla finds you during your actual Dodo release-animation, the animation
is suddenly interrupted by the scene of Carmilla finding you. The number of
Dodo Eggs you have won't go down, since technically it never left you.
-Agreus can�t interrupt any of your Dodo release animations, he runs around
Dracula several times and grabs him once the Dodo has flown away.
Ensnared Demon:
-once the timer has elapsed, you see some graphics at the bottom left and right
corner of "magic depleting", from where the Magic Bars would normally be.
Stolas' Clock, Seal of Alastor, Tears of a Saint:
Tears of a Saint can normally be used at these Stealth areas, so we can put
that aside. But all the other items have no noticeable effects, since you need
to have your regular attacks for them to take effect.
General:
-activating the Shadow Portal prompt, stops Dracula from completing his item
activation lead-up actions.
-you can clearly see Dracula�s mouth move as he says "it�s not the time", if
you try to activate items as you use a Shadow Portal (excluding Tear of a
Saint, which can be used under normal conditions).
>>>>>Mystery/Random glitches:
>>Camera glitch
I once had a glitch where the camera switched to almost 1st person view.
Dracula was nearly completely off-camera during battle or the camera was
cropped extremely close to the back of his head. This occurred after I swung
the un-assisted camera, so that Dracula was nearly off-camera (during a
battle). I then switched the assisted camera to become un-assisted. I briefly
tried to reproduce the glitch without success.
4. About Dracula's skills, weapons and possessions
>>>>>General moves
Dracula starts reacting to ground surprisingly high up in the air. You can
accidentally do ground attacks in air because of this. There is its own section
for this above above.
You can spam air Evade much faster if you attempt to do melee attacks in
between. This is in most cases completely unnoticeable because you land so
quickly in an air Evade, but during longer falls, you can have fun with this.
Doing air Evade against certain collision can push Dracula a little under
ground. So far this has not been useful.
Somersault is a handy move doable with all the three main weapons. In it,
Dracula jumps to the other side of the opponent and he can do a special
somersault combo afterwards. Since Dracula will jump over the opponent no
matter how big or high it is, Somersault can be used to do a type of high jump.
More about it above in the jumps section.
The normal jump of Somersault reaches higher than it looks, and can help
Dracula reach some hard-to-reach ledges. More about this as well in the jumps
section.
The properties of Somersault are subtly different depending on what weapon you
have active. For example, with Whip active, Somersault can push you slightly
inside ground (like air Evade). But in the same circumstances, Sword or Claws
Somersault does not do it.
If you stand at the very edge of a platform, Dracula will start doing Stomp
instead of Somersault, despite standing on ground.
In some circumstances flicking on Void- or Chaos-powers will slow down
Dracula's falling speed and create other effects. Read more about this in the
techniques section.
>>>>>Main Weapons
>>Shadow Whip
Shadow Whip is essentially the same weapon as what Dracula had in the first
game. Only with a few less specials and squishier sound effects. It's a good
all around weapon with the best range and second best damage. When the demo was
released, the Shadow Whip was regularly referred to by many reviewers and
others as the "Blood Whip". Not sure if this was its official name during the
demo, but inside the main game's menu, the name "Blood Whip" does not appear.
>>Void Sword
Void Sword is a weapon with a decent range but weak damage. Its specialties
include life restoration for Dracula and being able to freeze enemies with some
attacks.
If you quickly switch weapons during the basic Slash combo's first or fourth
hit, then quickly jump, Dracula won't follow up with a lift-up but instead with
a normal jump. Just a minor detail... wonder why it's just these two attacks
that have different rules than the rest?
Infinite Blizzard glitch
(c: jellybeanmaster)
If you are using Blizzard when a cinematic cutscene starts, the Blizzard's icy
aura remains on Dracula even after the attack has ended. This way he will keep
automatically freezing any and all enemies he gets close to while
simultaneously becoming healed. All destructible objects will also break when
Dracula goes near them.
The Blizzard effect ceases temporarily if you transform into a rat, but
continues again once you transform back into Dracula.
However, a drawback is that you are unable to store Void Magic for long while
this glitch is active. It all keeps automatically draining away every second,
and the Claw refuses to activate for more than a split-second. But is it but a
small price to pay for being able to win all fights effortlessly? The glitched
weapons side-effect cause the Claws to self-cancel when activated, and Dracula
immediately switches to the whip. This can be used to make Dracula do some odd
and unintended movements. Having said that, recently I did the Infinite
Blizzard glitch but while avoiding the above-mentioned side effects. The Void
Magic would never drain, and the Claw would work as normal. But more testing is
required to find out what exactly caused this.
The first place in the game where you can activate this glitch is at the end of
the fight where you defend Trevor from Dishonored Vampires. However, doing this
is not very useful since soon after you can't complete a stealth level because
you are unable to possess enemies without killing or alerting enemies. Second
place where you can do this glitch is after having fought Raisa Volkova, and
that seems to be the best way to do things in a speed run.
The glitch ends if you die or retry.
It�s possible to possess technicians at the game�s stealth sections while
having Infinite Blizzard active. This causes the technician to die but while
Dracula is still inside of him, and the technician�s health bar stays despite
his death. Dracula cannot be seen during this time, and you cannot move him
either. Any further technicians that emerge to replace him, get instantly
killed by Dracula�s Infinite Blizzard effect. Once the dead technician�s health
bar is emptied, Dracula emerges...from thin-air.
Videos:
1, findlestick's demonstration of the Blizzard glitch
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVOHGuSFb9I
2, findestick's vid of Infinite Blizzard minus the side-effects and unusual
mechanics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=4m00s
3, findlestick's vid of possessing technicians during Infinite Blizzard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=6m08s
>>Chaos Claws
Chaos Claws is the most damaging weapon in the game, but it has a somewhat
short range. You can also break through enemy armor using Claws with ease.
Avalanche is almost like the Shoulder Charge of this game. However, using it
does not slow time, it's just a charging melee attack. Done off ledges, it can
be used as a long jumping technique... but is talked more about in the
techniques-section of the FAQ above.
The shock wave of Meteorite can hit enemies more than once, making it at best a
really destructive move. However, sometimes it can also miss completely even
when it looks it should have hit. It's a risky move in that way.
On rare occasions, it�s possible for the Chaos Bombs or Void Projections
effects to stay permanently on Dracula�s arms. This can happen while swapping
magics during Void Projections or Chaos Bombs (and while possibly cancelling
them mid-shot). The permanent Chaos Bombs effect has no effect when near
enemies, but I�ve heard that the permanent Void Projections causes enemies to
freeze when Dracula is near them.
>>>>>Secondary Weapons and Relics
>>Shadow Daggers
Shadow Daggers are the first secondary weapon you get in this game, right
before infiltrating Bioquimek Chemical for the first time.
The move is basically a quick long-range projectile that flies in a straight
line at your enemies, the equivalent to Silver Dagger from the first game,
although now powered by a slowly refilling meter so you basically have an
infinite amount of Shadow Daggers at your disposal. It does weak damage by
itself, but it has an use in some puzzles, and can be powered with Void or
Chaos magic to create a more powerful projectile.
Like with any other projectile move, holding down the secondary weapon button
makes Dracula enter an aiming pose. You can turn Dracula around, browsing for
targets, and let go of the button to shoot when you are ready. There is its own
version of aiming pose in air as well.
If you fall down for too long while in the air Shadow Dagger aiming pose, the
pose becomes stuck on Dracula. It stays on even if you let go of the secondary
weapon button. But it's just a minor glitch and most fixes itself if you land.
This, like all the other air aiming pose oddities can be best seen while
infinitely falling against certain types of collision.
Dracula loses almost no height if you quickly spam this attack in air. That way
it can come in handy doing the Mist infinite jump while waiting for your Mist
meter to refill.
>>Void Projections
You get Void Projections after having beaten up the Blood Statue in the Castle.
They're the Void-power powered version of Shadow Dagger. They still won't do
much damage, but as a specialty you can use them to freeze enemies or
waterfalls in certain parts of the levels.
>>Chaos Bombs
Chaos Bombs are the Chaos-powered version of Shadow Dagger. They're the most
damaging projectile in the game. A secondary use for Chaos Bombs is also to
activate certain things in the environment, like knock down ladders.
If you do Chaos Bombs but then cancel the shot and then quickly do another
Chaos Bombs, repeating the motion, Dracula will stay in air almost suspended.
This can come in handy in a few places in the game.
>>Bat Swarm
Bat Swarm is the second secondary weapon you get during the game, during one of
the early stealth sections. Doing this move, Dracula throws a bunch of bats at
his foe, temporarily blinding them. They are the equivalent of Fairies from the
first game - a tool for distracting enemies. They are most useful in stealth-
sections for blinding guards. Sadly, in normal gameplay you'll find that many
of the more powerful enemies are immune to Bat Swarm, reducing its usefulness
by quite a lot. You can also only send out a single Bat Swarm at once (unlike
Fairies).
Bat Swarm�s aiming-mode has an exploit which can be used as a general speedrun
strategy. Namely in that, if you enter non-cinematic (and in rare cases,
cinematic) cutscenes while in aiming mode, Dracula will keep walking during the
scene automatically in the direction you had him enter the scene.
Interestingly, he will keep walking and aiming on his own after the scene has
been completed. If he walks over irregular collision or off a ledge, he will
release a Bat Swarm automatically. If you enter a scene that won�t allow
Dracula to walk during, on the scene�s completion...Dracula can sometimes be in
his Bat Swarm pose and walking automatically, and with no Bats in his hand.
If do Bat Swarm close to ground level, for example instantly after having
jumped, Dracula will complete his Bat Swarm throwing-animation, and everything
sounds and looks like you have thrown a bunch of bats...but minus the bats.
This is close to being wasted potential, because the Bat Swarm meter doesn�t
deplete during this. Would've been nice to have an infinite Bat Swarm glitch.
If you repeat this quickly while you have the Claws or Sword equipped, you can
stay in air suspended for quite a long time. See more in the section about
Hovering v2.
If you activate Bat Swarm slightly after activating some prompts, Dracula will
no longer respond to your left controller and is actually stuck on the spot.
The d-pad will also be non-responsive. Doing any other type of attack makes
everything return to normal.
If you fall down in Bat Swarm aiming animation for more than several seconds,
Dracula's animation freezes. The move also can't be cancelled anymore after
that point. The glitch fixes itself if you fire up the bats or land on ground.
>>Void & Chaos Shield
You can create a Void- or Chaos-powered shield for Dracula once you've
purchased the right moves. This eats up all of either Void or Chaos power,
depending on which shield you use. You can also cast Void or Chaos shield in
air, unlike most secondary weapon specials.
Void and Chaos Shield disappear over time, if enemies attack Dracula a few
times or if Dracula falls into a chasm. One of the main differences in the two
shields, is that Chaos Shield does a great deal more damage to foes, should
they strike it.
Rarely the shield can glitch up so that it does not have the big bubble-like
graphic when cast. Or even rarer, the shield can become twice its regular size,
with its graphics appearing very fuzzy with an undefined edge.
Chaos Shield has some vulnerabilities Void Shield doesn't have. You can switch
secondary weapon while casting it to prevent a cast. Or if you switch to Void
magic all of a sudden, Dracula will cast Void Shield instead of Chaos Shield.
Strange that the mechanics of the two (otherwise identical) casting animations
are different.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid of a Shield without the bubble graphic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi4McK1p8Bw#t=83
>>Mist Form
You get Mist Form after having beaten Carmilla, a little before the game's
half-way point. The primary use of Mist Form in this game is to pass through
certain types of collision (like grates) or avoid getting hit by enemy attacks.
However, you can also slowly hover in air during Mist Form, making it a part of
some high jump variations.
Mist Form is powered by a self-replenishing meter that runs out deceptively
quick, so be wary. If you want to experiment things with a larger Mist Form
meter, try activating God Mode. It will remove the transformation cost of Mist
Form entirely, allowing you to spam it like crazy or simply stay in Mist Form
longer. Could make testing some things easier.
Mist Form is a very high-priority action and you can cancel almost any attack
using it. This can be useful for many reasons - for example, it wouldn't be
such a great defensive tool in combat if it didn't start instantly.
You can enter inside some possibly unintended objects in Mist Form, such as the
Magic Fonts. You can also start Misting while standing on top of balancing
poles to sink inside them.
During long jump techniques, be aware that the first few moments of Mist Form
give the most distance and speed, after that your momentum tapers off. So it
helps to combine the first moments of Mist Form with combos.
Mist form can be used to consistently break out of various prompts around the
game. This is done by activating Mist Form at nearly the exact same time that
you activate a prompt. (More on breakouts at the Prompt Breakouts sections
above).
You can Mist while on some climbing walls to detach Dracula from them. While on
a wall, transformation into Mist doesn't cost its usual meter cost, for some
reason. Usually after having done this your Double Jump is replenished, so this
could actually be a handy way to save time somewhere. But disattaching doesn't
always happen: sometimes Dracula just turns into mist for a second and
automatically reverts back while grunting, still hanging onto the wall.
Apparently you can get stuck in the floor, if you unmist at a wrong time when
passing through a grate.
Video:
1, Marcelo Santos' vid of getting stuck in floor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYVQpWDZG3s
2, AKheon's vid of Mist Form at climbing sections and poles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTLjgXzQ0W4&t=3m13s
Perpetual slow motion glitch
(c: yehspur)
Mist Form can be used to put the game in a state of perpetual slow motion if
done over those red spike-traps that Riot Police usually deploy. Activating
Mist Form just after Dracula becomes impaled is a good way to activate the
glitch. It seems like he gets to "keep" the slow motion effect that you see as
Dracula pulls the spike out of himself.
The slow motion effect will only cease by restarting. Cutscenes are also
affected by the slow motion glitch and the audio often plays out-of-sync, and
you can even take the effect to the Arena-battles at the Chupacabra store.
Video:
1, yehspur's original vid of the Perpetual Slow Motion glitch
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtZvt6s9np0
2, findlestick's vid of other actions in slow motion
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=2m13s
Hoarfrost Fog & Chaos Wave
You can purchase two offensive skills for Mist Form. The other is Void-powered
and makes Mist Form freeze any enemies in contact. The other is Chaos-powered
and causes damage instead. Dracula also moves in fast dashing motions when
using these two moves to help catch up to the enemies better.
You can spam the two attacks extraordinarily quick by switching between Void
and Chaos powers while holding down the attacking buttons. Doing this is the
fastest way to move in the game, and could be a potentially destructive
fighting tactic against very large enemies since it is not very cost-intensive
on your magic meters.
Doing either attack in air causes Dracula to steer heavily downward during the
dash, not looking dissimilar to the arc your air Evade makes. This means that
their use for doing longer jumps is limited... However, as mentioned in the
jumps section, these moves are the key to doing Mist infinite jump once you've
gained Double Jump.
>>>>>Relics
You start finding relics after fighting the Stone Golem after first returning
to the Castle. Using them is like using a Dark Crystal in the first game,
although in this game you have many different relics to use which all give
different effects.
Common to all the relics is that Dracula has to spend a few seconds pulling one
out from his jacket pocket first before using it. You can't move during this
time at all, which makes using relics slightly unwieldy in an intense combat
situation.
The relic animation can be done while falling after doing a ground evade or a
sprint off a ledge. Dracula tends to get tangled on collision while falling in
the relic animation, allowing him to find spots to stand on from unexpected
places. Could come in handy somewhere.
Rarely Dracula may lose the ability to use Relics. Pressing the secondary
weapon button with relics active does nothing. However, the glitch fixes itself
if you just retry.
The game sometimes won�t let you use Relics in certain situations it considers
inappropriate, such as Stealth sections. But there are ways around that as
described above at the Stealth Section.
Skipping getting relics
You can skip picking up the first Tears of the Saint relic when the opportunity
comes up, and this makes you entirely skip getting relics. The way to do it is
this: after climbing up the frozen waterfall, stay close to the waterfall and
far away from the crates ahead where the relic will spawn. Bombard the boxes
with Shadow Dagger until they break. Since you are not close to the boxes, a
non-cinematic cutscene showing you the relic does not automatically start, and
you can activate it at will by approaching it. So, enter Bat Swarm's aim-mode
when walking into the cutscene to break out of it and keep automatically
walking during the cutscene. This way Dracula just walks past the relic and
never picks it up. Doing this has the following consequences:
-relics never appear as a skill in the Inventory (inside main menu).
-the game will never give you any items when you break objects or kill enemies.
The only place you are offered items is at the Chupacabra store. Buying tears
seems to cause everything to return to normal.
-you get the Talisman of the Dragon when the Chupacabra gives it to you (as
normal), at which point the radial menu will start working.
-the radial menu won�t work until you purchase an item, or get the Talisman of
the Dragon from the Chupacabra.
-once leaving the Chupacabra�s store, you can see the ghosted-out symbol for
Tears of a Saint below your health bar, as if the game thinks you got the
ability earlier. But there is still no indication of this in the Skills Menu.
If you enter the radial menu at this point, there is no symbol inside. Instead,
the location where Tears of the Saint should be, appears graphically glitched
until you switch to another item. Any time you restart, this will reset the
graphical glitches in the radial menu.
>>Tears of a Saint
The first relic you find. It has a very basic, yet useful effect of completely
refilling Dracula's health when used. It also gives him some extra health on
top of his usual lifebar for temporary extra protection.
>>Ensnared Demon
A relic used to give Dracula infinite Void and Chaos-meters for a given time.
But once the effect wears off, both Void and Chaos-meters are completely
emptied.
>>Dodo Egg
A relic used for finding secrets from an area.
If you've collected all the secrets from a given area OR you're really close to
a secret OR during a boss fight, Dodo Egg stops working. Dracula simply says
"It's not the time." and nothing else happens when you try to use it. However,
if you buffer a Shadow Dagger or Bat Swarm after an attack, then quickly switch
to relics and hold down the button to use a relic, Dracula will use a Dodo Egg
anyway! You get the Dodo cutscene and the typical message about Dodo having
found a secret. But no orange marker appears on the map, so it's like nothing
else happens.
Dracula also refuses to use a Dodo Egg during stealth sections, but you can go
around this restriction. There is more about this above, in the section about
using items during a stealth section...
Using a Dodo Egg right before a cutscene, the Egg usage interrupts and Dracula
won't lose a Dodo Egg although one just broke in his hands. No other effects or
glitches seem to happen.
If you fall into a chasm at the same time you use a Dodo Egg - rarely possible
since there aren't that many long falls in the game - the Egg cutscene will
start but interrupts as Dracula dies. After respawning things are back to
normal.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid of using Dodo Egg when it's not the time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTLjgXzQ0W4#t=118
>>Talisman of the Dragon
A relic that makes Dracula unleash a very powerful attack in the form of two
cutscenes. It is the most powerful attack in the game, dealing � damage to
everyone in the vicinity. (except some bosses?)
While a relic like any other, you get it a bit later than the rest, at the end
of the chapter The Three Gorgons. The relic animation also works differently
than the others: Dracula is immune to gravity while trying to use it.
Using Talisman of the Dragon can glitch up upcoming cutscenes. Most likely
happens in a boss fight, like against Carmilla.
Sometimes the cutscene of this Talisman can glitch up so that it endlessly says
"loading" when you try to skip it. This just means that you can't skip it and
have to watch it normally. Not sure what causes it, but restarting the entire
game should fix it.
Pressing Start at a particular frame can cause the cutscene to not appear at
all. The screen still gives you the "Yes" or "No" options to skip it, but you
are seeing the regular game-play screen (paused) during this time (as opposed
to the cutscene screen). Pressing back causes the game to continue, without
actually seeing the cutscene.
In some circumstances, if you restart during Dracula�s scream, it can carry
over into your restart.
>>Stolas' Clock
A relic that slows down enemies' movement and makes them stunlocked much easier
when you hit them. It remains to be tested if this relic could come in handy
during enemy collision jumps. �
>>Seal of Alastor
A relic that gives Dracula full masteries on all of his weapons and unlocks
every attack he can use for a given time.
>>White Wolf Medallion
The White Wolf Medallion is a trinket you get right after fighting Dishonored
Vampires for the first time. It allows you to activate Wolf Altars wherever you
see them, transitioning Dracula from the Castle into the City or the other way
around.
You can skip the Medallion usage intro with a Somersault break-out, saving a
few seconds each time.
If you double jump backwards to where the Wolf walks out from, the game will
sometimes softlock, with Dracula stuck in place. But sometimes double jumping
up to that area, can cause the game to skip seeing Dracula walking to the end
of the walkway. Dracula just vanishes after the double jump, then you suddenly
see him walking with the Wolf. This can be used as a speed strategy.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of speeding up the Wolf portal sections
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=1m44s
>>Dungeon Key
Dungeon Keys don't have much of an effect in gameplay: you can just open
certain types of locks with them. Mostly the locks conceal some extra
experience points, that's all. You can only carry a maximum of 3 keys at a
given time.
I've heard of a glitch where an experience point reward from a dungeon key
stash became stuck on Dracula's hand. Not much else is known of this glitch at
the time.
>>Kleidos
Kleidos is a mysterious artefact that opens up special challenges during the
game. More about the challenges themselves in the level-by-level glitch section
of this FAQ (hopefully).
>>Mirror of Fate
It's a Mirror you get near the end of the game, used for unlocking some doors.
It is shattered, and since Dracula doesn't have superglue, he has to assemble
it anew every time when it is needed. There isn't much to say about it, really.
>>>>>Vampiric Powers
>>Void & Chaos Power
The equivalent of Light and Shadow magic from the first game. The skills
related to these powers have been detailed in the above sections already.
>>Plague of Rats
At certain locations called Shadow Portals, Dracula can transform into a pack
of 9 rats. In rat form he can't do much else than run and jump, and getting
over even the slightest height differences is an insurmountable task. On the
other hand, enemies are unaware of Dracula in this form, and you can enter
small holes in the walls to reach new areas.
Activating Mist Form at the same time you activate a Shadow Portal, the
transformation animation is skipped. But since you won't regain control any
sooner than normal, doing this is not very useful.
In case you were wondering, if Dracula loses all of the rats, it's a game over.
>>Vampiric Possession
Vampiric Possession a special skill that allows Dracula to possess unaware
enemies. However, it never comes to play outside very scripted stealth
sections.
4. Level-by-level listing of tricks & glitches
Prologue: Castle Siege
+Map location: Castle Siege (Dracula's throne room)
Info: at the start of the game, the fully powered Dracula you play as actually
lacks quite a many moves and skills you'll gain later on. While he has all his
weapons, he doesn't have most special moves for them, and he also doesn't have
any secondary weapons and can't absorb orbs, gain experience, somersault or
sprint. As a compensation of sort, he has infinite magic.
+Map location: Castle Siege (Battering ram room)
Angled Collision location: at the angled column behind the battering ram,
though you can only go so high. No real use for it at this date.
Wasted potential: you CAN make it to the other side of the chasm with long
jumping techniques. But there's a huge invisible wall in the way, and you can't
get around it.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi4McK1p8Bw
+Map location: Castle Siege (Paladin I)
+Map location: Castle Siege (Mechanical Titan)
+Map location: Castle Siege (Mechanical Titan's forearm)
Special collision location: the blades to the right of the screen, but it
doesn't go very high. So can't get much height from it.
Wasted potential: when the Titan's forearm lowers, the game freezes Dracula
completely even if he's in mid-air. So it seems like there is no chance of
trying to avoid sliding down the arm, by doing an enemy-collision high jump
during that time.
Speed strategy: once the Paladin is about to release his arrow to shoot the
final arm-rivet, you have enough time to climb all the way up to symbol of an
eagle, before the game freezes you momentarily. It�s tricky but possible to do
with good timing.
+Map location: Castle Siege (Titan's shoulder)
Special collision location: the lion head door and its adjacent walls.
Wasted potential: if you try a Collision Jump as the Paladin is trying to shoot
you, Dracula will auto-target the Paladin and ruin your jump. Also, any Enemy-
collision high jump attempted is quickly ruined by his shots.
Wasted potential (?): after killing all enemies and removing the rivets, these
walls seem either impossible or very difficult to get over with Dracula�s
current gear.
Special Collision (V1) location: the largest gear you can stand on that divides
the arena and the cogs, as well as the Titan�s head, shoulders, upper right and
left of him. The front seems to be normal collision, from what I can tell.
Other: if you jump into the blades located at the final largest cog that you
can stand on - at a random moment. Dracula will spawn back to the area before
the cogs, but the entire collision and graphics of the Titan can be completely
out of sync. When the Titan�s graphics rock to one direction, all of its solid
collision - and Dracula - rock in some other direction. This gives the
impression that Dracula is out-of-bounds under the floor. Nothing can be done
with this glitch, which resolves simply by climbing to the ledge that leads to
the cogs.
Videos:
1, See findlestick's video below
>>Climbing wall skip: the final climbing wall that leads to the Titan's head
can be skipped with SCJ 1. After you have climbed over some gears and cogs, do
a collision long jump towards the screen, and continue left-of-screen around
the large gear in front of you until you end up on the arena.
Videos:
1, See findlestick's video below
>>Other: if you reach to just outside the battle arena while out-of-bounds, and
trigger the fight, but then fall into the death collision. The game will spawn
Dracula back to the small area that leads to the cogs, but the final battle at
the Titan has began...but without Dracula there. Interestingly, the Paladin -
instead of being at the final battle arena - follows Dracula to the start of
the area before the cogs.
You can then make the Paladin re-shoot the rivets belonging to the first "Lion
door", even though the rivets or door are no longer there. And once the game
thinks it has removed the - non existent rivets - it loads the prompt to lift
the door that is no longer there, the prompt has no function and vanishes if
you activate it. However, if you leave the prompt there it will occasionally
freeze Dracula to tell him to "use the door prompt to proceed". Eventually the
prompt goes away after you lift the Titan's helmet off.
Now, if you get close to the final battle area with all this going on, the game
adds a second interruption to your actions. It will also freeze you every now-
and-then to hint to you that you need to remove the rivets belonging to the
Titan�s helmet, however the game doesn�t realise that you might be in the
middle of some dramatic activity, like descending down the final dangerous cog
towards some blades. This lack of control over Dracula can force you to get
killed in the cogs.
If you now remove the helmet rivets, you�ll get two alternating prompts
fighting for your attention, with the camera glitchily panning back-and-forth
abruptly through collision walls.
Videos:
1, See findlestick's video below
>>Wasted skip potential: you can also get inside the Titan's helmet early with
SCJ 1 from the top of the cog-area, but there is no loading trigger behind the
helmet. The cutscene trigger is directly tied to lifting up the helmet. Going
inside the helmet leads to falling out-of-bounds.
>>Other: if you get to the helmet early via an out-of-bounds route, and trigger
the Paladin to appear as you fall out-of-bounds. He will follow you down on
your fall forever, while trying to shoot you with arrows, however Dracula�s
rapid descent foils his attempts. I once left them falling together while I
went and did something else. When I returned nothing interesting had happened,
still falling.
Videos:
1, See findlestick's video below
>>Other: with SCJ, you can get to the Titan's opposite shoulder. But it has no
collision when you reach it and you just fall out-of-bounds.
Videos:
1, See findlestick's video below
+Map location: Castle Siege (Titan's head)
Other: if you engage in a Neck Bite while standing on one of the rivets - at
the same time as the Paladin has committed to shooting it - the Paladin will
kindly pause for you to finish killing his friend.
Other: If you have the prompt-interruption glitch active, but then lift the
helmet at the same time as the 1st prompt tries to interrupt. The 1st prompt
will carry over and appear on screen during the cutscene of Dracula vomiting
blood. It then vanishes during the same cutscene at some point.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of the Titan glitches mentioned above
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsQTlb4yR7M&t=2m36s
+Map location: Castle Siege (Paladin II)
Chapter: Awakening
Wasted potential: trying to walk over the road to a wrong direction causes
Trevor to complain to you, stopping you from leaving.
+Map location: Arts District (Alley battle)
Info: in this part you play as "weakened Dracula". He doesn't have a real
weapon on him, but he swings his arms as if wielding a Whip. The few attacks he
has do not impact his enemy at all. You can also do painfully slow Evades. You
can't jump or do anything else. You can have the Demon to knock you on some
boxes, but it doesn't serve much purpose.
Speed strategy: you can�t win this battle no matter what, and the battle is not
timed either. So the sooner you are defeated the quicker you can proceed.
+Map location: Downtown (Family murder mini-game)
Info: if you wait too long in this part, the rays of sun will completely
evaporate Dracula.
Chapter: Bioquimek Corporation
+Map location: Sciences District (Bioquimek yard)
Other: once you appear in the fenced-off yard of Bioquimek, this is the first
moment the game lets you access your Travel Book. If you are playing in New
Game+ mode, you can start upgrading available weapons with all the XP you
gained during your first play through.
+Map location: Sciences District (Guard stealth section, Plague of Rats
tutorial)
+Map location: Sciences District (Guard stealth section, Bat swarm tutorial)
Other: if you let the Guard immediately see Dracula, you will see a scene of
the Guard exclaiming. Afterwards Dracula breaks free of being in stealth mode,
so you have all your attacks. Which isn�t much...and considering the
invincibility of the Guards, it wouldn't matter if you had more attacks anyway.
Other: the Golgoth Guards are unable to look up, and won't notice Dracula after
he has reached the higher level. You can safely bombard them with Shadow
Daggers if you want, causing them to curse "damned mosquitos".
If you hit a Golgoth Guard that is blinded by a Bat Swarm with a Shadow Dagger,
the Bats instantly scatter away, causing the Guard to return to normal
behavior.
Speed strategy: by keeping Dash held and then spamming Bat Swarm or Shadow
Daggers, Dracula will move around much faster.
+Map location: Bernhard's Wing
Other: at the ledge where the game tells you that "you don�t yet have the power
to break this" the game can think that you are standing on a balance beam even
though there are no balance beams around. This can be done by jumping up on the
spot (near the ledge) and start aiming Bat Swarm in any direction, then just
before you hit the ground cancel it. Dracula will enter his pose that he uses
to cross balance beams, complete with a screen-prompt telling you that "L2
highlights your path". The state only lasts a few moments before Dracula
returns to normal, but jumping into the chasm during this can cause the screen-
prompt to remain permanent.
Angled Collision location: some of the vertical wood planks that line the
cylindrical structure that you have to climb up through.
+Map location: Bernhard's Wing (Balcony)
Other: if you break out of using the room switching switch for the first time,
you get a cutscene glitch. Dracula stands in one place for a pretty long time
while nothing happens. Then the game zooms into the enclosed compartment where
the blood clots are while Dracula complains about the blood. But you can't
shoot them with Shadow Daggers until you open up the compartment for real with
another switch pull.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi4McK1p8Bw#t=128
+Map location: Bernhard's Wing (Candelabra room)
Speedrun strategy: you can skip the minor climbing sections in the room after
the Candelabras. This is done simply by doing a higher-than-normal launch up to
the ledge located to the right of the room. An air-Somersault at the top of a
launch will also do it, however this method is slightly trickier and you also
have to have purchased Somersault.
Or just jump to the last pole before climbing up to still skip a few seconds of
the climb without any special trickery.
+Map location: Bernhard's Wing (Stone Titan Boss fight)
Other: the cutscene of Dracula having ran out of Void Magic only activates
after a melee attack. So, if you purchase some Void Sword special and use it to
drain all you Void Magic without making contact with the boss, the cutscene
does not start. However, your next Whip attack starts it anyway, which causes a
slight graphical glitch as the Void Sword quickly appears and disappears in
Dracula's hand during the scene.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi4McK1p8Bw#t=162
Wasted potential: you can drop into a chasm at the same time you freeze the
waterfall for the first time and view the cinematic cutscene for it. But this
doesn't cause anything interesting to happen.
Tears of a Saint skip: by activating Bat Swarm�s aim-mode and walking towards
the Tears of a Saint, Dracula walks right past it and you can skip it. Before
doing this skip, you have to break the objects in your way from further away
than normal with projectiles. There's more information about this and its
consequences written in the section about relics.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of skipping Tears of a Saint (@ start of the vid)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8
Wasted potential: you can also try to go past the Tears of a Saint by using
Whirlwind, but Dracula will automatically get Tears of a Saint afterwards, even
if you are outside the relic's normal pick up radius.
+Map location: Bernhard's Wing (Cylindrical ascent room)
+Map location: Bernhard's Wing (Protect Trevor battle)
Wasted potential: it�s possible to get to the upper area during the battle by
strategically dodging projectiles. However, you can�t get through the Wolf
portal yet and Trevor gets killed if you are up there too long.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of trying to leave Trevor behind, using Enemy Collision
jump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lru7h-C-Mgs&t=0m09s
Other: you can start Infinite Blizzard glitch here by finishing off the last
Dishonored Vampire with Blizzard. However, you have to end the glitch before
the Raisa Volkova fight because you can't approach any enemies to possess them
without accidentally killing or alerting them.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi4McK1p8Bw#t=181
+Map location: Sciences District
Speedrun strategy: you can skip the battle here by strategically dodging
projectiles as you climb the frozen waterfall. Although pointless and tricky,
can also use Enemy-collision Jump to go over the closed door in front of you.
Rat Swarm location: left-of-screen of the blowing fan.
Speedrun strategy: you can skip the scene of watching the fan�s water freeze.
By dodging to the Rat morphing area and activating the prompt, at nearly the
same time as you freeze the water.
Other: if you activate the fan�s prompt at nearly the same time as you activate
the Blood Font prompt in the corner, the game will give priority to the fan�s
freezing prompt. So the scene of Dracula drinking the heart is either not seen,
or cut short by the fan scene. Though you can still hear him drinking blood
off-screen.
+Map location: Sciences District (Rat Swarm stealth section)
Speed strategy: if you retry from last checkpoint after having gnawed the wire,
you are sent back close to the Shadow Portal in human form, probably saving
some time.
Info: it's not often you see Scientists as enemies, but here is one. You can
target him with Bats or Shadow Daggers if you want. The Bats blind him
temporarily, as you'd expect. Shadow Daggers make him say (in a posh tone)
"What the heck?" or "Ouch. What was that?". The Scientists are very frail, and
just two Shadow Daggers will in fact kill them. If one dies, the door opens for
a moment and another steps out. If at any time an alarm is going on, Dracula
can walk up to them and suck their blood like he does from any regular enemy.
Wasted potential: you can kill a Scientist to have the door open temporarily,
but this is useless - there is an invisible wall in the way preventing you from
going to the next area. You have to possess a Scientist to continue... Why do
these stealth sections have to be so scripted?
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi4McK1p8Bw#t=25
Other: if you then Possess the Guard instead of the technician, you can use the
door-prompt with the Guard instead. However, the game tells you that "Access
denied", so you are forced to do this section in the one way that the devs want
you to.
Also, if you possess the guard and wait for him to die while waiting next to a
nearby door (where Guards emerge from). You can possess newly emerged Guards
before they enter their state of alarm. You can - pointlessly - do this
endlessly.
+Map location (Gas production chamber)
Wasted potential: there is a cinematic cutscene at the end of this fight, but
for a reason or another you can't do Infinite Blizzard glitch here.
+Map location: Sciences District (Raisa Volkova boss fight)
Two Draculas glitch: for unknown reasons, you can get a rare situation where
you see two Draculas at the same time...one that the player controls and
another performing in the cutscene.
Videos:
1, virusinfection1's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcpzYC5c1tg
Other: you can start Infinite Blizzard glitch if you finish off the boss using
Blizzard.
+Map location: Downtown (Portal room)
Chapter: The Three Gorgons
+Map location: Bernhard's Wing (At some large doors)
Wasted potential: you are able to long jump from here to the map room corridor.
But the map room refuses to open up at the moment, and trying to enter can even
drop you out of bounds.
Videos:
1, Pewable's vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKbsFo2XJF0
+Map location: Bernhard's Wing (Large elevator room)
Fight skip / mystery: doing some careless sideways air evades as the elevator
is descending and the screen blacks out can cause Dracula to appear at the end
of the next fight, getting his first Dungeon Key. Hopefully this can be used
reliably as a speedrun strategy... �
Videos.
1, PewableShift's vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXQhkL_hDKQ#t=192
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpU5v0MtX04
+Map location: City of the Damned
+Map location: City of the Damned (Battle arena)
Wasted potential: the Blood Sacrifice prompts in this room can easily be broken
out of by attacking just after activating them. The scene won�t play but you
can move around freely as soon as you do, the door prepares to open. However if
you then try to exit an opposite door before it closes, you�ll be blocked by an
invisible wall.
+Map location: City of the Damned (Lava pits)
Sequence break/wasted potential: if you face the upper area where the Wolf�s
portal is located, you can get up there by doing a higher-than-normal launch-
from-air across the lava. However, this is of no use without having activated
the Wolf-summoning prompt.
Angled Collision location: the rocky slopes at the climbing section left of the
Wolf-summoning prompt.
+Map location: City of the Damned (Pit battle)
Speed strategy: strategically dodging projectiles can skip this battle, made
much easier by getting to the first climbing point very quickly.
+Map location: City of the Damned (Chupacabra puzzle)
Speed strategy: using Somersault break-out, you skip the animation of using any
device in this room.
Speed strategy: in the first phase of the puzzle, you can skip creating any
platform bridges after the first. Just reach the switch you must activate with
long jumps.
Videos:
1, aphox's vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzBU_L30A2w
Wasted potential: retrying from checkpoint during this puzzle changes how the
bridge is set and (once you've picked him aboard) where the Chupacabra is, but
that probably does not help to save time in this instance.
+Map location: City of the Damned (Harpy of the Depths battle 1)
Speed strategy: strategically dodging projectiles as you climb can skip this
battle.
+Map location: City of the Damned (Harpy of the Depths battle 2)
Battle skips: you can get to the upper left ledge of this area by jumping up
towards it at the moment a Harpy swoops you. The damage boost it causes will
take you up close to the ledge, then do a Smashing Stab (or similar) at the
peak, to get you over the edge. This also skips the next battle at the gates.
Videos:
1, PewableShift's vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPUAgnaGBrU
+Map location: City of the Damned (Gate battle)
+Map location: City of the Damned (3 Gorgon Boss battle)
Infinite Blizzard effects: having Infinite Blizzard glitch at this Boss fight
causes lots of strange effects. Firstly, one way to break the barrier in front
of the Gorgon, is to do a Collision high jump so that the Blizzard effect is
above it and stops hitting the barrier. But if you insist on
trying to break the barrier as normal, it won�t break and your Chaos magic
completely drains.
The game doesn�t seem prepared for this and you�ll suddenly see the camera pan
away and you then see some explosion occurring in unloaded blackness.
The permanent Infinite Blizzard effect can bait the Gorgon into attacking
Dracula during moments when there is text on the screen, when the game would
normally stop all actions. Also, during the time that you have to climb up the
Gorgon's arms, the Blizzard effect causes her to twitch oddly and abruptly.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of Infinite Blizzard glitches at the 3 Gorgons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=4m30s
Wasted potential: the Infinite Blizzard glitch probably can't be started at the
end of this battle because you have to kill the boss using a Void Projectile,
and there is not enough time to start Blizzard. �
+Map location: City of the Damned (Elevator room)
Battle skip: if you have Infinite Blizzard active, you can activate the device
without being interrupted. Or you can use other methods to distract the enemies
so you can use the device unfettered.
Speed strategy: reloading checkpoint after having activated the device, Dracula
will spawn a good way into the corridor ahead, at best saving some time.
+Map location: City of the Damned (Dungeon Jailer battle)
+Map location: City of the Damned (Chupacabra Shop)
Other: if you Somersault-break out of the elevator prompt, Dracula will enter
the slow walking mode like he does when riding the elevator. You can't do
anything else than walk or absorb orbs. Prompts are visible but you can't
activate them. This mode will stay on for good, and you have to retry to
continue normal gameplay.
Videos:
1, PewableShift's vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eUyF6L9-28
Other: at this point the game starts showing that the chapter is The Antidote"
but restarting chapter still takes you back to The Three Gorgons.
Chapter: The Antidote
+Map location: Downtown (Wolf medallion room)
+Map location: Downtown (Interrogation room)
+Map location: Downtown (Car park)
Wasted potential: Dracula is immune to damage or knock-backs from the two
flames blocking your exit, if you do Somersault against them. However, there is
an invisible wall there to spoil a skip this way.
+Map location: Downtown (Building exit battle)
Speed strategy: just run past the fight, since you are not forced to fight it.
+Map location: Downtown (Inside a book store)
Rat Swarm location: right of the main counter.
Speed strategy: retrying from checkpoint after entering the rat tunnels,
Dracula spawns to the next Shadow Portal in human form, potentially saving some
time.
+Map location: Downtown (Back room)
Rat Swarm location: at the base of the fallen book case.
+Map location: Sciences District
+Map location: Sciences District (A viewpoint)
+Map location: Sciences District (Statue area)
Speed strategy: strategic dodging of projectiles allow you to climb up to the
next area without getting hit.
+Map location: Sciences District (Decontamination showers)
Speed strategy: you can skip breaking the door by jumping up through the hole
from the top of a table, followed by some air-attacks.
Speed strategy: you can skip the minor climbing section by jumping off the
table towards the gap and doing a Smashing Stab to get over.
Rat Swarm location: in the corner of the room after climbing over a wall.
+Map location: Sciences District (One floor below)
Rat Swarm location: as you fall through the roof, turn into the room on the
right.
+Map location: Sciences District (Generator room)
Speed strategy: this battle can be skipped simply by activating all the prompts
quickly. Or by freezing/distracting the enemies while you activate prompts.
+Map location: Sciences District (Climbed up through a hole)
+Map location: Sciences District (Staircases)
+Map location: Sciences District (Elevator)
+Map location: Sciences District (Fenced courtyard battle)
Wasted potential: you can jump on some floor on the other side of the twisted
2nd floor fence before jumping down... but invisible walls are in the way and
you can't get to the post-fight area from there.
Also, there is a low wall leading to the area past the fight on the higher
floor. After the fight there is some extra angled collision there that you can
use to get across from this side, but not before. And it seems that not even a
Somersault high jump can get you over the low wall.
Videos:
1, Aphox's vid of the first wasted potential
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gusjcnoS6k4
+Map location: Sciences District (A viewpoint)
+Map location: Sciences District (Bioquimek re-visit)
+Map location: Sciences District (Decontamination hatch)
+Map location: Sciences District (Upper platforms)
+Map location: Sciences District (Fan revisit)
+Map location: Sciences District (Decontamination chamber)
+Map location: Sciences District (Gas production chamber re-visit)
+Map location: Sciences District (Decontamination chamber)
Speed strategy?: reloading checkpoint after having pulled the switch, Dracula
spawns a short way inside the next map. It's unknown if this could save time,
but if it does, it isn't much.
+Map location: Sciences District (Large climbing-pipes)
+Map location: Sciences District (A viewpoint)
Wasted potential: reloading checkpoint after having climbed up, Dracula spawns
closer to the broken bridge. But this probably won't save time.
Other: around this time, the chapter name changes to "Next Stop: Castlevania".
But restarting chapter still takes you back to The Antidote beginning.
+Map location: Sciences District (Destroyed Bridge)
Large unplayable area: from the north side of the large bridge, do a jump
towards north-east and hover as far as you can. Instead of hitting death
collision, Dracula will drop on some floor that covers almost the entire length
of the map. You can't seem to be able to activate checkpoints or else from this
low, so this is only good for sightseeing purposes.
Easter egg?: if you jump down this bridge from a correct spot and aim down to
the tunnel you climbed up through earlier, a meter appears on the screen
showing you the length of your freefall. So far it's not known what is the
point of the meter, as it only seems to appear here.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZf3_73D8zc
+Map location: Sciences District (Large elevator)
Chapter: Next Stop: Castlevania
+Map location: Sciences District (Industrial Containers Start)
Speedrun strategy: you can skip most of the navigation at this area in the
following way. When you get on the first container, jump off the back of it
towards the one far behind it. Start a hover until it reaches you, do this this
once more. Then jump down and long jump to the opposite platform far below. (c:
findlestick)
Video demonstration:
1, findlestick's vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66VcbMEl4_Y
Speed strategy: once you�ve gone past the first electrified obstacle, you can
jump from on top of the container you�re on, to another container that has
already passed the 2nd electrified obstacle below. This way you end up on the
other side of the obstacle early.
Speed strategy: you can get onto the container in front of you simply by doing
a single Avalanche towards it.
Speed strategy: jump and hover off the container as soon as you are within the
technique's distance to reach the ground below.
+Map location: Sciences District (Industrial containers end)
+Map location: Sciences District (Golgoth Guard stealth section)
Rat Swarm location: right of where you just landed.
+Map location: Sciences District (Decontamination chamber)
+Map location: Sciences District (Golgoth Guard stealth section)
Rat Swarm location: to your right next to a fence.
Rat Swarm: as you enter a room with guys in protective suits, just to your
right.
+Map location: Train flatbed I
Other: normally you can't use Talisman of the Dragon while on the train, but
with the buffering trick (the same one used to do Dodo Egg when it's not the
time), you can. In this screen doing it has no extra effects, it just does
damage to the Demon.
Wasted potential: if you rush past the Golgoth Guard that shoots at you instead
of climbing out the window, you'll hit an unexplainable insta-death barrier.
+Map location: Train climbing section
+Map location: Train flatbed II
Other: if you use Talisman of the Dragon in this screen, you can crash the game
in at least three different ways, depending on your timing.
First is if you use the Talisman as early as possible. Dracula will use his
attack, but you will get an unhandled error after the dragon cinematic and have
to restart the game.
Second variation is if you use the Talisman so that the game over-screen kicks
in right before the dragon cinematic. This way the game will ask you if you
want to skip a cutscene (instead of a game over-screen). If you choose yes,
afterwards the game will continue for a little while with Dracula and the Demon
falling down in slow motion. Then you get an unhandled error. If you choose no,
the scene where Dracula strikes a pose plays out in slow motion while things
are a chaos all around. Then the dragon cinematic starts, then gameplay
continues for a short while in slow motion after which you get an unhandled
error.
Third variation is if you get the timed game over-screen during the dragon
cinematic. Screen will black out suddenly. Cutscene audio continues playing in
the background, but after that nothing happens ever again. However, the game is
technically not crashed at the moment, since you can access the PS3-menu to
quit the game right now. Also, this crash can be avoided by quickly skipping
the dragon cinematic before the game crashes.
Videos:
1, AKheon's vid of these and other train glitch variations:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQsF1X1JWEk
+Map location: On top of train
Other: using a Talisman right before crashing makes Dracula spawn back to the
side of the train while in his attack animation. Afterwards he falls down,
something normally not possible in this part, and he keeps falling since there
is no death collision beneath. The camera also acts strangely, erratically
shifting to whatever direction Dracula is facing. After falling for a while,
Dracula respawns back to the side of the train.
Videos:
1, see the above vid by AKheon
+Map location: Train climbing section II + Golgoth Guard
Speed strategy?: if you wait until later to possess the Golgoth Guard, he walks
to the optical scanner by himself, and this might be a little faster than
having to walk to the optical scanner with a possessed Guard.
+Map location: Train flatbed III
Other: if you use a Dodo Egg here, you will reset the camera and are able to
freely rotate it. If you look to the wrong direction, you'll see that there is
barely anything rendered there. Just a drab, grey horizon!
Videos:
1, see the above vid by AKheon
Other: using a Talisman of the Dragon here (with the buffering glitch), you can
again create at least two unintended effects. First variation: just use a
Talisman early. You get another unexpected error after the dragon cinematic.
Second variation: use a Talisman relatively late, so that the dragon cinematic
doesn't get to start. You enter an endless loading screen this way, so it's
sort of a softlock.
Videos:
1, see the above vid by AKheon
+Map location: On top of train, light dodge section
Other: using a Talisman of the Dragon here doesn't cause any strange effects.
Just had to make sure...
Speed strategy?: getting hit while on top of the train may slow down this
section.
+Map location: Final train battle
Infinite Blizzard: defeating the Demon with Blizzard, you start the Infinite
Blizzard glitch. This is the sort that doesn't drain your Void Magic either, so
that's a nice bonus.
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Train station)
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Electrified cables)
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Horned Demon battle)
Battle skip: this battle can be skipped either with Enemy-collision jump or by
jumping towards the gate as the Horned Demon does his un-blockable attack. Once
you get high enough, do a Smashing Stab (or similar) to take you over the gate.
Videos
1, findlestick's vid of skipping the battle with Damage Boost High Jump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqsOEbCZBk0
2, findlestick's vid of the skip, but using Enemy Collision High Jump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEmE306lvPc
Other: If you use a technique to get over the fence, you�ll notice that the
switch that Zobek's lieutenant uses has no prompt for Dracula.
Helping scenario-glitch: once the Horned Demon battle is complete, there is a
section of the game where Dracula and the Lieutenant help each other to get
beyond the gate. Well, it�s possible to make this scenario play out...but in
the next room instead of the room it�s normally done in. This is done by
skipping the battle (by one of the methods described above) and once you are
over the gate, kill all the enemies (More easily done by using the Dragon Form
talisman).
If you then get Dracula to hang on any of the grapple points, the game will
show the prompt to get the Lieutenant to take your hand. If you activate it,
the game carries out the scenario where they both help each other over the
gate....but at this next room where it was never supposed to occur. Once you
use the prompt, the Lieutenant will teleport through the wall to Dracula�s
hand, and Dracula will help him up to a grapple point that isn�t really there.
The Lieutenant will hang in mid-air waiting to help Dracula. If you jump to
him, Dracula will jump and hang really high up in mid-air, sometimes going
through the roof or other collisions in the way (this depends on which grapple
point you use to carry out the glitched scenario). The game then teleports
Dracula and the Lieutenant back to the battle-room very abruptly, to complete
the rest of the scenario.
However, because you are doing this at an area that has alternative places you
can jump to during the helping-scenario, you can choose not to jump to the
Lieutenant. And instead jump to another grapple point. This leaves the poor
Lieutenant hanging in mid-air not knowing what to do. Eventually he falls down
and walks around aimlessly, as if confused as to what to do next. If you then
jump to any grapple point again, you�ll get the prompt again. If you activate
it, the Lieutenant doesn�t come (almost as if knowing he�s being mocked). You
then get totally stuck hanging there until restart, while you hear him -
seemingly - mocking you in return, telling you to "Come on! Let�s not waste any
more time!"
It turns out that you can also activate the prompt while walking on the balance
beam, and Dracula will suddenly go from walking on the beam, to suddenly
holding onto nothingness in mid-air, and starting the helping-scenario.
You can also activate the prompt after you�ve seen the cutscene of the
Lieutenant leaving, even though there is no actual prompt around. This results
in Dracula telling the Lieutenant to jump, but he never appears and Dracula
gets stuck until restart.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of the Lieutenant glitches
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lru7h-C-Mgs&t=2m27s
Other: for unknown reasons Dracula can end up hanging in mid-air during the
Lieutenant help section.
Videos:
1, ElHombreQueRie's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mznJWdQwSQ
Speed strategy: you can skip some climbing inside this room. Better
instructions may follow some day...
Videos:
1, Aphox's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tweISoJvBrw
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Climbing inner building ruins)
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Back alley)
Chapter: The Blood Curse
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Back alley fence)
+Map location: Carmilla's Lair (Blue flame room)
+Map location: Carmilla's Lair (Skeleton battle room)
Wasted skip potential: this battle can be skipped by doing a Somersault high
jump or an Enemy-collision jump over the gate. You can also use the winged-
statue on the right to get to the upper area (may even be able to use the
statue near the gate too). However when you get to the Carmilla battle arena,
the battle never triggers. If you then return to the Skeleton battle room, the
battle arena�s Gate is open and the Skeletons can wander into the library
section and beyond.
Videos:
1, PewableShift's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFYcwY16Hss#t=38
+Map location: Carmilla's Lair (Study room)
Speed strategy: by keeping Dash held and then spamming Bat Swarm or Shadow
Daggers, Dracula will move around much faster.
+Map location: Carmilla's Lair (Carmilla Boss battle)
Other: at the section that you have to choose which the real Marie is, and you
have
Infinite Blizzard glitch active, you will see both women become electrified.
They then fall
to the ground and their prompts can only work when you press it twice.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of Marie lying down glitch
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=4m05s
+Map location: Carmilla's Lair (Room after Carmilla defeat)
Chapter: The Antidote II
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Back alley fence)
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Magic Font room)
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Riot Police Plaza battle)
Perpetual slow motion location: spikes are hard to miss, on the balcony and
right in front of the Riot Police enemies.
Battle skip: this battle can be easily skipped simply by doing a high jump
followed by some
attacks, over the gap in the right wall.
Wasted potential: you can get over the higher gap in the far left wall with
high jumps, but the pothole prompt is not active.
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Underground car park)
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Station)
Speed strategy: you can skip actually having to use the elevator to get to the
higher floor by a few basic long jumps.
Videos:
1, Aphox's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNWsHJ1xs2g
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Gorgoth Guard stealth section)
Rat Swarm location: turn right as you enter the Stealth Section.
Other: if you have Infinite Blizzard glitch active and then possess a
technician (followed by his instant death). Any other technicians that emerge
from the door, will remain standing idle at the door. If you possess any of
these idle technicians, Dracula will temporarily breach into the room that they
emerge from. And you get to have a good look inside this room during this time.
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Antidote room)
+Map location: Acolyte battle arena
Chapter: Pieces of a Mirror
+Map location: Overlook Tower
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Brotherhood Warrior battle arena)
� Sequence break: you can skip the fight here.
Videos:
1, Aphox's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-hHoEm5CHE
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Trevor's room)
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Bridge battle)
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Garden viewpoint)
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Agreus' Stealth section)
Speed strategy: you can actually outrun Agreus if he is far enough behind you,
letting you
ignore all concepts of stealth or avoiding leaves. This is done by spamming Bat
Swarm or Shadow Daggers while keeping Dash held down the entire time. Doing
this gives you short - but extremely fast - bursts of speed, that is faster
than anything that was intended by the programmers at this area. So you can
quickly get to the gate activation prompt (and to beyond the gate) without
worrying about making noise with leaves, or even about Agreus catching you.
However, he can get you if you let him get too close.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTtsGgZ26n4
Freezing Agreus: if you have Infinite Blizzard active, you can freeze Agreus in
place so that he can�t get you. You can still hear him taunting you, and his
weapon is often seen floating in mid-air near him. Using Mist Form so that
Dracula is inside Agreus� collision at the moment that he freezes, can cause
Dracula to go flying abruptly when deMisting.
I once left Dracula damaging Agreus with Infinite Blizzard while I went and did
something else for about 20 minutes, but couldn�t kill Agreus (as expected).
Nor did any damage points carry-over to the final Agreus fight. Also, his
collision-box - while frozen - cannot be used to stand on or anything like
that, in order to try to jump over a wall to the elevator. Also, standing next
to a bell with Infinite Blizzard causes the bell to ring non-stop.
If you freeze Agreus at the moment that he gets you, and you then quickly
return to where he was frozen (after you�ve respawn), Agreus is still there but
he's invisible (and most likely still frozen). If you then stay near him, the
Infinite Blizzard stops him from respawning back to where the mini-map shows
that he should be.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of Agreus freezing and related glitches
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=5m24s
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Garden viewpoint re-visit)
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Bridge re-visit)
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Trevor's room re-visit 1)
Other: if you skip the scene of Trevor playing with his toys, and then quickly
dash to the
door that leads back to this place�s entrance. The area around the door appears
semi-unloaded, you can see unloaded nothingness near the base of the door. This
only seems to work if done directly after seeing the scene, not during a
restart. But it turns out that the collision there is still solid, the gap is
only graphical.
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Shooting gallery)
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Toymaker ramps battle)
Battle skip: this battle can be skipped by doing an Enemy-collision high jump
to the upper
level, or by disabling enemies by other means while you extend the ramp.
Alternatively, if you have Infinite Blizzard active you can activate the ramps
and proceed without interruption.
Video:
1, findlestick's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WESMBDIShz0
Other: by doing some combo that lets you stay in air for a little while, as you
jump towards
the other side of the gap. It�s possible to get enemy projectiles to knock you
across to
the other side. If you then manage - by luck - to get the ramp to fully
extend,it's then possible to get to the top before it retracts.
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Toymaker theatre)
Speedrun strategy: the Brotherhood battle can be skipped by strategically
dodging projectiles as you climb up.
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Main Stage)
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Steam room)
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Upper level)
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Rat section)
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Main Stage)
Other: if you breakout of the lever that starts the play, its prompt will
remain active during the play and Boss fight. Activating the lever prompt
during this time does nothing, except make Dracula to do his level pulling-
animation, but without the lever actually moving.If Dracula gets hit by the Toy
Maker while pulling the lever, he just breaks out of pulling it.
Other: if you break out of using the mechanism that activates the puppets, in a
certain way after the play is over. It can lead to a situation where the camera
will stay static on the stage, but while you backtrack to the entrance ramps
outside the building (with help from the mini-map). Unfortunately the camera
corrects itself when you get off the ramp and trigger a battle, at which point
the camera abruptly zooms through walls as it realises the error.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of the Toymaker mechanism breakout
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=1m52s
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Toymaker Boss fight)
Other: slightly before or after the Dragon does its ground-pound attack,
there�s a very brief, moment when you can do a Somersault jump over it. This
appears to be the only attack that lets you do this, and only if you try
Somersaulting along a certain part of its body (near the sides of the head). It
might be possible to use this moment to do a Somersault high jump to get up to
the upper area where you previously used a Shadow Portal. Possibly leading to a
situation where you can return to the Boss...but as a Rat...
Battle exploit: you can jump inside of the Dragon�s collision just as he does
his ground pound attack. You are safe from all its attacks while in there,
except for possibly the unblockable attack.
Angled Collision location: the entire front side of the fallen Boss is made up
of this type of collision, you can go up extremely high with it. You can stay
standing on top of it if after you've used an item.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of Special Collision at the Toymaker
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lru7h-C-Mgs&t=5m01s
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Toymaker Ramps re-visit)
Wasted potential: you can�t knock any of the enemies into the shooting-gallery,
there is an invisible wall there that applies only to them. So no trying any
potential enemy-unloading antics allowed.
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Trevor's room re-visit 2)
Chapter: The Hooded Man
+Map location: Downtown (Car Park revisit)
+Map location: Downtown (Building exit)
+Map location: Downtown (Red Pipes area, beyond the gate)
Wasted potential: you can cross down to the opposite side of the broken bridge
with a long jump, and get a Memorial Scroll early. But since you can�t return
without dying or restarting, you don�t get to keep it. But worse than that, it
seems like you can�t progress any further to this wrong side of the bridge
without the required gear.
+Map location: Downtown (Riot Police battle)
Wasted potential: you can break out of turning the door-wheel at the end of the
cylindrical tube you�re in. But you can�t do anything useful with it, but it�s
amusing to watch if nothing else.
+Map location: Downtown (Riot Mech and Police battle)
+Map location: Downtown (Decontamination chamber)
+Map location: Arts District (Rooftop)
+Map location: Arts District ("Dovche" Corner)
+Map location: Arts District (Underground pipes)
+Map location: Arts District (Fire escape ladders)
Wasted skip potential: if you climb the extremely high roof ahead to the far
right, you can cross to the open window you can see on the other side with a
long jump. However, none of the prompts are active at this point. The prompts
only activate much later on, once the bridge collapse-scene has been viewed.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsQTlb4yR7M&t=5m29s
+Map location: Arts District (Abandoned warehouse)
+Map location: Arts District (Glass rooftop)
Wasted potential: by doing a long jump, it�s possible to get around the trigger
that shows the bridge falling, but there is no solid collision on the other
side of the bridge.
�Actually, I remember landing on the other side while in Mist Form...could it
be that I went through the bridge because that section is a grate? Needs a
retest.
+Map location: Arts District (Fuel tank room)
+Map location: Arts District (Library entrance)
Other: if you happen to drop down some gaps in the floor to the far left of the
door, but want a fast way to return to the Library entrance. Go and climb up to
the previous roof that overlooks an open window, there is now a destroyed
section of wall that can return you really quickly.
+Map location: Arts District (Abaddon Boss fight)
Wasted skip potential (Critical Game-ending glitch): It�s possible to skip the
Abaddon fight by doing a Somersault over the Abaddon�s head, breaking out of it
at its peak with Mist Form, and then doing some long jump combos towards the
upper area. From there you can get to the Hooded Man�s prayer-room without any
battles loading...including the Hooded Man fight. So, you guessed it, you get
can�t proceed. Interestingly, his room has the hole in the floor even though
that hasn't happened yet.
You can also backtrack to the library, to where you crashed through a large
window earlier and you can see the Abaddon down below looking helpless. If you
keep backtracking to the Arts District, the battle music stops but the
Abaddon�s Health Bar is still on-screen (minus the Abaddon�s avatar, which is
normally next to it).
If you then hit a particular checkpoint and restart, you appear at the area you
checkpointed at, but minus the Abaddon�s Health Bar. If you now return to the
Abaddon - he is there waiting for you and his Health Bar appears on-screen
again. Should you then restart from last checkpoint (remember we check-pointed
elsewhere), the game shows Dracula falling in blackness for short while. When
he lands, the screen is extremely dark, but you can barely make out that the
camera slowly pans in on Dracula standing indoors somewhere. You can see the
Abaddon�s Health Bar and then...soft lock. If you quit and load your game�soft
lock. In other words, this glitch completely ruins your saved game. So don�t do
it unless you are prepared for that.
Videos:
1, See findlestick's video below
Other: if you did the above glitch, except that instead of restarting (and
killing your saved game), you instead continue fighting the Abaddon. Sometimes
the Abaddon will go completely Idle, in a different way to his other semi-idle
state (as described above). This Idle state is permanent, and Abaddon becomes
invincible. This situation forces you into the game-ending restart. However,
sometimes the Abaddon won�t go idle, and when you finally drain all his
health...he unloads extremely abruptly without any cutscene. And the door that
blocks your exit unloads too, but no further battles or triggers load. But you
get stuck at the Hooded Man's prayer room.
Videos:
1, See findlestick's video below
Killing Abaddon twice: If you did the vanishing Abaddon-glitch as mentioned
just above, but instead you enter the secret room next to the Riot Police
battle and activate the switch there...the camera suddenly pans to show the
Abaddon spawning in black nothingness. His health bar returns, and you can then
go and kill him...again! If you do, the game can be resumed as normal. So you
can avoid the critical game-ending glitch mentioned above, if you do this
instead of restarting. It�s odd that activating a switch - that seemingly has
nothing to do with the Abaddon - causes him to respawn.
Videos:
1, See findlestick's video below
Battle exploit: if you leave the arena (as described above) and the Abaddon
then does his underground tail-spike attack, he can get stuck permanently in
that pose - even if you re-enter the arena. His tail is no longer searching you
during this time, and so you can wail on him and do damage to his back areas,
while he is stuck in this strange pose. After a while of taking damage he can
go back to normal, so be prepared for this.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of the wasted Abaddon skip and game-ending glitch
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lru7h-C-Mgs&t=3m45s
2, findlestick's vid of the Abaddon vanishing and re-spawning glitch
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJoQNeu2kG8&t=3m08s
+Map location: Arts District (Riot Mech and Police battle)
Speed strategy: as per usual, strategically dodging objects as you climb lets
you skip this battle.You can then avoid getting knocked to ground level by
jumping directly onto the Gargoyle�s head to get to the circular window.
Instead of using the swing-platform.
+Map location: Arts District (Rooftop)
+Map location: Hooded Man, Prayer-room
+Map location: Hooded Man, underground
+Map location: Arts District (Underground)
Wasted potential: breaking out of the door opening-prompt just causes the door
to open without seeing Dracula move.
Skip / wasted potential: you can skip some navigation in this area if you have
infinite jump... but currently, you don't have it. So this is only useful to
note it in case you backtrack through this area later.
Video:
1, AKheon's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTLjgXzQ0W4#t=169
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Plaza re-visit, Horned Demon battle)
+Map location: Inner Dracula Boss fight
Chapter: The Second Acolyte
Infinite Jump: if by now you have gotten all the other Mist Form Infinite Jump
requirements.
You are able to start doing the technique as soon as you get the Demon Wings
here.
Wasted skip potential: At this point in the game, you can skip directly to
behind the Mirror of Fate door early. However, the game still thinks that the
current mission is still active. If you go to the Basilica, none of the battles
begin and you get stuck permanently unless you find a way to get back behind
the closed Mirror of Fate door. This can be done because the level can suddenly
unload around you, if you hang around the door after restarting when you first
appear behind the Mirror of Fate door. From there, there are areas above the
next room's roof that allow you to fall through it with some effort.
This skip may be possible to do before you get the wings, but it would most
likely be just as pointless due to how this game's triggers work.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of getting behind the Mirror of Fate door early
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XnLkGsf8oU
2, findlestick's vid of the level unloading (@ the start of the vid)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lru7h-C-Mgs
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Underground)
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Gorgoth Stealth section)
State breakout: if you jump at a certain moment as you go up the fan-grate, you
can break Dracula out of his state of limited abilities. You can move around
and attack as normal, except that you don�t have any of your Void or Chaos
powers. However, for some reason the game gives you those powers if you use
Mist Form, and you can even use your items. So it is - after all - possible to
attack and hit the Gorgoth Guards. Your attacks bounce off them as if they had
a shield. And it really seems that these guards are invincible, even with these
powers at your disposal. Not even Dragon Form can scratch them; the only thing
that seems to protect you is the Chaos Shield, but only for one hit. However,
the game is really unstable under these conditions and can crash often if you
try to rush to the next area. Or do something unusual like shoot a Guard with
Chaos Bombs.
Speed strategy: doing the above state breakout also lets you get through this
section faster than intended. Thanks to having extra gear and skills. (c:
findlestick)
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5eDOrfDJoI
Other: there is an apparent sweet spot where the Golgoth Guards can see you but
can't hit you with their bullets.
Videos:
1, otakudownload's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9yqyZh7P8o
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Laser Puzzle)
+Map location: Victory Plaza (Green elevator)
Speed strategy: there�s no need to follow Trevor, you trigger the next battle
faster by going directly to Nergal Meslamsea�s room straight ahead after
leaving the elevator.
+Map location: 3 Riders of the Storm Boss fight
Chapter: The Mirror of Fate
+Map location: Overlook Tower (Castle Horn)
+Map location: Downtown (Building exit)
+Map location: Downtown (Just above the Mirror of Fate puzzle-room)
Mirror of Fate puzzle skip: this puzzle can be skipped by firstly going up the
cylindrical climbing section, then turn right and jump up to the bars ahead and
use Mist Form through them so that you�re standing on the ledge just past it.
If you then jump far left into some death collision, Dracula will re-spawn
(hanging) back at the cylindrical climbing section. However, the area is only
partially loaded, so you are actually out-of-bounds now. While holding onto the
3rd grip point from the top, activate Mist Form and float towards the graphics
to Dracula�s right in order to hit a trigger that loads the Mirror of Fate
puzzle-room. It�s fastest if you aim to the left of the arched graphics and
land on some collision next to it. From there you can infinite jump left end up
behind the Mirror of Fate door. Though, I doubt that this is even faster than
just doing the puzzle.
Videos:
1, See findlestick's video below
+Map location: Downtown (Pulley puzzle)
Pulley puzzle skip: this is simply skipped by doing an infinite long jump
across the chasm.
Videos:
1, findlestick's vid of both the skips mentioned above
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNy4GvAnnxA
Chapter: Revelations
+Map location: Downtown (Dark Apostle and Monk battle)
+Map location: Downtown (Basilica)
Door prompt breakout: breaking out of this prompt just causes Dracula to not
hold the bar while he asks the Lieutenant to use the other one. Once the
Lieutenant does this, Dracula abruptly moves into position to hold the bar.
+Map location: Undamaged Mirror of Fate room.
+Map location: Book Room entrance
+Map location: Castle Siege Memory-sequence
Other: Dracula is invincible during this special sequence, and his enemies die
in just one hit. Also, Dracula�s gear is limited here; you only have access to
your main 3 weapons here, so no projectiles, Mist Form, Bat Swarm etc.
Wasted glitch potential: due to your lack of gear here, and the fact that
enemies die in one hit. You can�t do Mist Form infinite jump or Enemy-collision
jump.
Other: as long as you don�t hit your enemies, the slow motion effect here is
quite a handy place to practice some combos. And despite some missing gear,
it�s handy to test for trick jumps. Since the slow movements let you clearly
observe Dracula's techniques.
+Map location: Paladin II Memory-sequence
Other: The previous special conditions that applied in the previous memory
sequence, also apply here.
+Map location: Basilica (Death Boss fight)
+Map location: Downtown (Basilica, Death/Zobek Boss fight)
+Map location: Downtown (Basilica Courtyard re-visit)
Other: you can infinite jump to the switch that Zobek's Lieutenant pulled
earlier on, but it has no collision and can't be activated.
+Map location: Downtown (Mirror Puzzle room re-visit)
Fastest route to the end: at this point is seems like the game gives you
options as to how to get to Satan. In that - initially - no arrows show you
where to go next on the minimap. It seems like the fastest way would be to use
the device next to the Mirror of Fate room, to teleport directly to the Arts
District. And backtrack through the library near the Abaddon Boss fight. �
+Map location: Arts District (Library re-visit)
+Map location: Arts District (Switch room)
+Map location: Arts District (Underground pipes re-visit)
+Map location: Arts District (Back Alley re-visit)
Chapter: The Summoning
+Map location: Arts District (Mirror of Fates, alternate room)
+Map location: Leviathan I (Climb)
+Map location: Leviathan II
+Map location: Leviathan III (Climb)
+Map location: Leviathan (Dark Monks fight)
+Map location: Leviathan (Satan-as-Alucard, Boss fight)
Other: for unknown reasons Satan-as-Alucard can become stuck in air, he can
take damage during this.
Videos:
1, Facundo Dutria's vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tITpeRpkMTU
+++++Game Completed, map location: Arts District (Outside Dracula�s Castle)
+++++
+++++Kleidos Challenges
Coming soon?
6. About this FAQ
====================================
Copyright � 2014 Hannu Ratilainen
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation
License.
http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html#SEC1
All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by
their respective trademark and copyright holders.
Newest version of this guide will always be at GameFAQs, so check there if
you're not certain.
====================================
For contacting, try the Youtube-accounts of either author.
http://www.youtube.com/user/findlestick
http://www.youtube.com/user/AKheon
FIN
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