Castlevania celebrates 20th year of vampire violence
by Ludwig Kietzmann 
{ Aug 3rd 2006 at 6:20PM }
Aside from usually being an absolute blast to play, the Castlevania games can have the strange effect of prompting one to engage in rather dubious debates regarding some of its more colorful traditions. Certainly, the startling presence of gold coins inside candles and chandeliers is a popular topic, as is the nebulous gender of whatever whip-wielding protagonist winds up exploring Dracula's anarchic abode. There's also the more obvious question as to whether or not Castlevania works in 3D, a question which once lured me into the following (and very real) conversation:"Hey what did you think about Castlevania: Lament of Innocence? I thought it was a bit crap."
"Well, the level design was far too repetitive, but the atmosphere was really true to the series. As an action game, it works pretty well -- I must admit, it has an ace combat system."
"It has an Ace Combat system?"
"That's what I just said."
"Meaning you fly your Belmont around and shoot down vampires?"
Luckily (?), that particular version of Lament of Innocence never saw the light of day, though if it did, it would likely be mentioned in 1UP's great series retrospective. To celebrate Castlevania's 20th year of existence, the article delves into the pivotal points, the exacerbating enemies and the obscure oddities that litter Dracula's castle. It's well worth a read, especially if you enjoy masterfully written subtitles. Castlevania: Waltz of Discontentedness -- where are you?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
IslandLife @ Aug 3rd 2006 6:29PM
Symphony of the Night is still the best Castlevania yet. Glad I got my copy when it first came out, 'cause its rare and pretty expensive. You would think that after the 3-D versions were so mediocre the series would return to 2-D, but one can only hope.
Nick Dunn @ Aug 3rd 2006 6:38PM
To celebrate Castlevania's 20th year of existence, the article delves into the pivotal points, the exacerbating enemies ...
Do you mean exasperating?
32_footsteps @ Aug 3rd 2006 6:39PM
Ahh... reflecting back on a whole three months ago...
http://www.joystiq.com/2006/05/03/castlevania-game-name-generator/
Symphony of the Night deserves to stand out because that really established Castlevania as a video game series. Sure, plenty of people played the earlier ones, and quite a few gamers had one or two. But SotN made the series take off and turned Castlevania from a steady and reliable series to an A-list franchise.
Crazylink @ Aug 3rd 2006 6:40PM
Castlevania 64 wasn't so bad.
Thad @ Aug 3rd 2006 6:44PM
..."Anarchaic"?
holyice7 @ Aug 3rd 2006 6:45PM
I actually liked the N64 entries in the series. The music truly drew you in, and even if the controls...well, took the worst aspects of the old games, Carrie still kicked butt.
But I have to say, IGA is really causing trouble in the series. Symphony had a system that worked for it, great, but if it could break the Castleroid mold just once and give a hail back to what made some of the other games great, I'd be happy.
soco @ Aug 3rd 2006 6:58PM
speaking of Castlevania, Symphony of the Night is on it's way to Xbox Live Arcade according to 1up.com. ( http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3152635 )
Ludwig Kietzmann @ Aug 3rd 2006 7:41PM
Nick - Nope, I meant exacerbate. The enemies definitely made things worse and more violent for the player. :)
Thad - Rogue "a" deleted. Though I prefer the sound of my version of the word...
weezbs @ Aug 3rd 2006 7:49PM
Is it just me or did Alucard get his head shrunk by a Voo Doo priestess?
Pince @ Aug 3rd 2006 8:17PM
I
Belcho @ Aug 3rd 2006 8:24PM
Fucking spell check/grammar whores. Shut up.
Pince @ Aug 3rd 2006 8:27PM
hmm ok, dont know whyt eh previous post didnt work.
Anyways, I looooove castlevania. SOTN is such an amazing game. I spent an entire summer beating that game over and over again with alucard and richter, and it has become one of the games that truly made me a gamer.
Anyways, enough fawning.
First of all. i think the N62 versions were really quite fun games in their own right, but were compared too much to the other games in the series. They were good games, they just didnt fit in the castlevania universe.
Secondly, it is sad that konami is wary to create a 2D styled castlevania for newer consoles. the series shines in 2D, belongs in that gameplay style.
I see no reason why they could not produce an incredible detailed 2D castlevania for a newer console which would loook just gorgeous. The series is known for its beautiful and detailed graphics and newer machines would only allow for more of that beauty and meticulous detail in environments and enemy design to come through.
Also, sidescrollers, if done right, ahve still been successful this generation. Viewtiful Joe has a unique graphical style with classic sidescrolling action gameplay and has done very well. Also, konami created a Contra game for ps2 that had 3D graphics without ditching classic contra gameplay (other issues with the game aside).
I think that a 2D (or even a system with 2D gameplay and 3D graphics) castlevania could turn out to be one of the most gorgeous games ever if released on a next-gen console. I highly doubt that people would write of the game for being 2D or a sidescroller, especially since the last few console Castlevanias have been written off for their 3D style.
If only Konami was willing to risk such a venture in the next-generation. There is nothing wrong with 3D castlevania, but there is so much potential in keeping the game with its classic gameplay.
Ludwig Kietzmann @ Aug 3rd 2006 8:39PM
Just out of interest's sake, how many of you guys actually liked Lament of Innocence or Curse of Darkness? The level design certainly failed to impress, but they certainly "felt" like Castlevania games to me. I find them to be strangely relaxing -- just exploring and listening to Michiru Yamane's classy music.
Dr.Swiss @ Aug 3rd 2006 9:10PM
Aw come on, haven't you guys ever played Dawn of Sorrow?? It would of been the SOTN killer if it didn't use that crappy sylus thing you had to do after beating a boss. Heck, it even had Alucard as a playable character in it!
They're getting rid of that in Portrait of Ruin and even adding in online co-op play and an online shop system.
I ALWAYS wanted to play 2 player SOTN but at least I can finally play a multiplayer Castlevania this fall on my DS :)
Besides, forget SOTN, bring on Rondo of Blood as a XBLA & VC game!
apoc06 @ Aug 3rd 2006 9:25PM
Lament of Innocence was great; alot better than many 3D action games. The fighting system of God of War kept giving me LoI flashbacks. Curse of Darkness on the other hand was just 'eh...'. The core gameplay and story in Lament of Innocence was great, it was just the camera and level design that made people write it off. Needless to say, it's VERY annoying to have to backtrack [and all modern Castlevanias feature extensive backtracking] through the entire castle when every other room is a "lock you in until you destroy every single monster" room. Alas CoD kept that "feature".
I love the series, but no one wants to spend 5-10 hours leveling up a dayum fairy. I'm tired of warping back and forth to the "convenience store", especially when everyone knows monsters drop the best weapons anyways. I'm tired of cheap enemies, that would be easily demolished in 2D. I'm tired of the predictable "fight this guy to advance now/ your reward is to play as him [through the same story] when you complete the game". Maybe Kojima can have /some/ input on the series when MGS4 is done; at least the bosses would be interesting. =
Konami has gold in thsi IP if they just change the 3D design philosophy. Think: more Devil May Cry and Symphony of the Night and a little Resident Evil thrown in for good measure, and less Final Fantasy gold chocobo breeding. It is supposed to be based on a horror storyline; shouldn't I get scared, excited or disgusted at some point? Ugh!
David @ Aug 3rd 2006 10:32PM
A much better history of the series here:
http://palgn.com.au/article.php?id=3639
#3 "Symphony of the Night deserves to stand out because that really established Castlevania as a video game series"
Yeah, that and the OTHER TWELVE GAMES BEFORE IT, almost all of which sold MORE then SoTN, which while great, was a sales flop.
Sheesh, get some perspective noob. Castlevania was a top tier franchise on the NES and early SNES.
holyice7 @ Aug 3rd 2006 11:45PM
@ David
Thank you!
Jay @ Aug 4th 2006 6:56AM
For me, I don't care about any other Castlevania games barring the little Sorrow series. I've played a little in the earlier games including SotN. But they never impressed me more than the GBA and DS offerings. Especially Dawn of Sorrow, the music in that is absolutely incredible. Heck, just listening to The Pinnacle or Pitch Black Intrusion makes me want to go out and find the Claimh Solais.
I have worries about Portrait of Ruin, I prefer Soma's weapon system. I bloody hate that whip in other games, it's ruining Harmony of Dissonance for me.
But yea, I would still put Dawn of Sorrow as in the top 3 games of all time. Alongside OoT and Turrican 2.
32_Footsteps @ Aug 4th 2006 9:39AM
Given that I've been gaming for over 25 years, I'd really watch who you'd call a n00b, David.
Trust me, I know Castlevania. I beat the original on the NES before most people had even heard of the series. Once, during a particularly vicious bout of Nintendonitis, I played through Simon's Curse using my index fingers just to see if I could (and the answer was yes). I even know the trick in Simon's Quest to make Dracula stand still and not attack (easiest final boss of the 8-bit era, hands down).
Don't call me a n00b - I've beaten 8 different Castlevania games, and I know the series history all too well.
Read the comment again. I know that there were several games before it. But Symphony of the Night is the game that turned Castlevania into a top-flight franchise that was an instant argument in favor of the console in question (as opposed to the mid-90's, when the N64 games were panned enough that people were writing off the series as a whole).
Anyone who seriously knows the series knows what exactly I meant - SotN was a watershed moment when Castlevania truly moved into the top tier of franchises along with Mario, Zelda, Final Fantasy, Street Fighter, and the like.
Gonzo @ Aug 4th 2006 1:10PM
I've always loved this franchise ever since my dad got me the original nes Castlevania when it came out; he likes games almost as much as I do. I also had allot of fun with the sequel and every other incarnation I've tried on...well... it's made it's way to almost every console hasn't it. However the first one gives me that warm nostalgic feeling. And it's hard too. I've jacked it into my gbamp and after 20 years I still have trouble just making it to the end.