Castlevania varies, but the DS incarnations are different than the rest of the recent series. well, not DoS - that one remains in the same Metroidvania, but PoR definitely was a pretty clean split between the platforming and the action you had with the whole portrait dungeons. OoE then turns around on the series and ditches Metroidvania, goes back to level picking, reduces platforming by a ton (sometimes even having areas with none), and gives you extremely smooth, quick, and somewhat-to-very challenging action-packed gameplay. by all means, OoE is an action game first.
which isn't the case for stuff like Sands of Time. that's more of a puzzle platformer than anything else. all the PS2 ones are, though the series progressively does become more like one with it especially being noted on the modern ones. but for that the division's clear - Assassin's Creed took over that field and has been running with the ball since. Batman: AA's another.
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The future must protect the clone's past.
"Maybe it's a tentacle, molesting the planet itself. - Aschen Brodel.