i've played quite a bit of Judgment so far. here are my initial impressions. i'll pass judgment on Judgment, if you will.
*crowd boos*
in short, it's a very basic game. it offers little to make it stand out, other than the Castlevania setting. anything it does has pretty much been done before. even movesets are kinda small. the only standout feature is the soundtrack, which is freakin awesome. so many good remixes in there. and even some surprises, like Mad Forest and Tower of Dolls.
does that make it bad? i don't think so. so what it doesn't have any bells and whistles? what it does have is done well. despite small movesets, many moves can be chained into each other, showing some sort of depth for the hardcore. yet it's somewhat friendly enough to buttonmashers. many reviewers have been complaining about the camera. me, i've never had a problem with it. it never got in the way. the controls are fine too. Classic/Gamecube controller, anyway. i haven't tried the Wiimote/Nunchuk combination cause i know better. only complaint i've had with the mechanics so far is i sometimes autoaim on a candle i don't want to. subweapons feel unnecessary, anyway. it is a little tedious to have to play through story mode 27 times to get the full story, but i can deal with it.
14 characters is a decent roster. and at least the only candidates of cloning are Simon and Trevor. but even they only share a few moves. the characters are mostly balanced. i say mostly because Dracula is very different from any other fighting character. he's incredibly strong, and can take a lot of damage. and his next to no speed doesn't hurt him at all. in the right hands, he's broken. Maria has a lot of cheap moves too. everyone else has enough drawbacks to compliment their strengths. and every super move is done well.
i've only been playing the story mode, because you're doing the same thing in every mode: fighting. story just offers some character of the characters. are some better than others? yes. Simon is a total dick. and Aeon saying "time" in every sentence is incredibly annoying. thankfully, those are the only flags raised. Eric is a brat, but i don't really mind. it works.
i really like the character designs. are they a little outlandish? perhaps. but something about them just feels appropriate. i can't complain about any of the costumes. not even Grant. in fact, quite the opposite. i love the way Grant looks. his manner of speech and backstory are also great. he's a good character to play as too. he's one of the people i'd be using a lot. others are Shanoa, Trevor, and Carmilla. i think the dub is good, too.
i think the game ain't too bad. for Castlevania fans, it's a good bit of fanservice. for the hardcore fighting crowd, you're going to have to dig to find something enjoyable. everyone else, i say give it a shot. but this is not worth $50. wait for a price drop.