A Castlevania Revelation

On 03/02/2013 at 11:36 AM by Surfcaster

After trying out the new Castlevania - Lords of Shadow: Mirror of Fate (still a mouthful) demo on my 3DS yesterday, it got me in a mood to play some Castlevania. I had actually played a full run-through of Symphony of the Night back in October, so I thought I`d boot something else up.

I was going through my Gameboy Advance titles, as I also just received a new Gameboy Player in the mail the other day. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to boot up one of my GBA Castlevania games and try out my new device!

My GB Player all set up and ready to roll.

As I was going through the games I realized that I had a copy of Castlevania: Circle of the Moon. Out of all the CVs that I'd played on the GBA, I had actually missed out on two: Circle of the Moon and Harmony of Dissonance. I've actually purchased two copies of Harmony of Dissonance in the passed five years or so, but both ended up being faulty. One day, while I was at The Last Game Store (a local video game shop) I saw a copy of Circle of the Moon, so I snagged it!

I had it in my head, however, that CotM was akin to the original CV games, like Dracula's Curse or Super Castlevania. I knew that HoD was an RPG, SotN-styled game, but I did not think CoM fell into that category. I just booted it up and how wrong I was!

I found this save point after a few minutes, and I can already see that free-roam style that I love so much in my Castlevania games is present. You have no idea how excited I am!

The controls seem a little clunky so far, which isn't helped by the fact that the only working controller I have for my Gamecube right now is a crappy third party device, in which the buttons often stick, but I think I can get into this! It makes me all that much more tempted to dish out the money for one of those Hori Gameboy Player controllers for the Gamecube, but they are so expensive. Right now I see two on eBay, one at $100 and another boxed for $260. I just can't justify buying one, but man would I like to have one right now!

So tempting!

Anyway, I'm going to get back to playing some Castlevania. I just thought I'd share my excitement with everyone.

Happy weekend,
Surf

Matt Snee Staff Writer

03/02/2013 at 11:43 AM

I'm thinking of playing SoTN, which I've never completed to get my Castlevania fix now. I think it's on PSN but I'm not sure.

Surfcaster

03/03/2013 at 02:32 PM

It is a PSOne classic, so you can easily pick it up!

Ranger1

03/02/2013 at 11:53 AM

Castlevania is one of those series that I completely missed out on. I should probably try one some day.

I can't help but recommend it! I'd say stick to the 2D stuff, though, especially where you're just trying. I can't speak for the newest title, but the other 3D Castlevania games left a lot to be desired.

leeradical42

03/02/2013 at 12:31 PM

Yes Castlevania SOTN is on both platforms XBLA & PSN and is a freaking awesome game, and im surprised how well the Lord of Shadows played to be honest I couldnt picture any Castlevania game doing well outside the sidescrolling platformer but they did it, and did it very well.

03/03/2013 at 02:33 PM

It's always been a hope of mine to play a 3D Castlevania game and it actually be good! I liked one of them on the PS2, but I can't remember which. I'll have to have another look at those someday.

Aboboisdaman

Those gameboy players are great. I have one for my gamecube and a couple of GBA titles. $100 for a gamecube controller? That's outrageous!

03/03/2013 at 02:34 PM

Yeah, the GB Player is awesome! I really like it. I feel like it's breathing new life into my GBA games. Also, I found an adaptor on RetroUSB that allows me to plug my existing SNES controllers into my Gamecube for $17! I ordered one, I'll make sure to write a post about it when it gets delivered.

Super Step Contributing Writer

03/02/2013 at 08:50 PM

That controller looks awesome, too bad the others are HOW MUCH?!

03/03/2013 at 02:35 PM

Yeah, I know, right! I actually found an adaptor on RetroUSB that lets you plug your SNES controller into your Gamecube, so I ordered it. Only $17! I'll report back on whether it's actually good or not!

Coolsetzer

03/02/2013 at 09:08 PM

CotM was a really bad attempt to copy SotN's success, imo. The controls are clunky in that game. It's not your controller. HoD was pretty good for a GBA game, however. That controller looks pretty cool, too.

03/03/2013 at 02:38 PM

I would love to play HoD. Both copies I bought had different issues, though. One wouldn't boot up at all, and the other wouldn't save games! One of these days I'll find one that isn't defective.

Serraxor

03/02/2013 at 10:05 PM

SoTN is pretty slick, but for some reason, I got really attached to Castlevania Chronicles for PSone. Maybe because I had just gotten my first pair of glasses ever, and the TV I played it on was a monster (at the time) 36" model. It was like the monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Except with Castlevania.

It turned out to be super limited, so I'm glad I snagged one at release. Hard as heck though!

03/03/2013 at 02:36 PM

Chronicles was the first game I picked up on the PSN! I thought it was more of a remake of the original NES title, but ended up being a remake of Haunted Castle, the original arcade version of Castlevania. It is very difficult!

Joaquim Mira Media Manager

03/03/2013 at 12:44 AM

Circle of the Moon is my favorite Castlevania game for the GBA. Period. Flaming whip for the effing win!

The controls aren't clunky. Go back and play a Castlevania on NES, or SNES. I think you will see they are very similar.

03/03/2013 at 02:37 PM

I'm sure I'll get used to them. I think my crappy GC controller is just making things a bit more difficult. The buttons keep sticking at the worst times! Regardless, I'm enjoying the game so far.

asrealasitgets

03/03/2013 at 02:53 PM

Pleased to see Castlevania fans here!

My biggest regret was selling my DS Lite. I have a ton of GBA games that I can't play now since I can't find my gamecube which also had the GBA player attached. I could go the ROM way, but I like having the proper hardware really. Aria of Sorrow is my favorite game. I also like the stage-by-stage games like Dracula X on Wii Virtual Console.

Circle of the moon in 20 min.

03/04/2013 at 12:42 AM

@speedrun: Tool assisted? Bah, that's so lame.

Temperance

03/04/2013 at 08:55 PM

I don't need to see that picture right now. I bought Circle of the Moon at launch with my GBA, and I played it to death (crappy lighting and all). Just seeing that image is digging up memories of me putting together an enemy drop table, as well as the enjoyment I got out of the game's arranged soundtrack. It makes me want to put aside what I'm playing right now in favor of some CoM!

That said, I really liked the dual card system. I know quite a few gamers were grumpy with it in the past, especially coming off of the equipment splendor of Symphony of the Night. But, each ability had a specific use which made each combination important.

As for getting a good controller to play these games, if you happen to own any PS2 controllers you can buy a converter that allows you to use that.

Finally, I'm guessing those previous copies of HoD just needed a little cleaning. Unless they were submerged, of course, which puts them beyond rescue.

03/05/2013 at 12:16 PM

I actually found an adapter for my SNES controller on RetroUSB. I'm just waiting for it to get in!

One of the copies of HoD wouldn't boot at all or it was just black screen. I tried cleaning it a bit, but to no avail, so I returned it to EB. For the second one, the game would play, but I couldn't save. I tried and tried, but nothing would happen. It was really weird. Had to return that, too.

I will find one that is fully operational!

FAF101

03/06/2013 at 09:39 AM

I want to try the new demo for the new Castlevania for the 3DS but I have not enough space on my SD card haha. I have always enjoyed the Castlevania series. I haven't really played much of the games but I did enjoy the DS ones which I really got into.

03/06/2013 at 10:01 AM

The DS games are some of the best ones, so that's a good start!

I've seen mixed reviews for Mirror of Fate, actually. Apparently there are those that don't like the short lenght (like 9 hours or so). I personally don't mind short games at all, so I'm still keeping an eye on it!

PixlBit