Castlevania: Curse of Darkness

Game Overview

By 2005, the Castlevania series was at something of a crossroads. Although the 2D series was a dependable performer, drawing in a couple of hundred in until sales per title for the two latter GBA releases, Castlevania: Harmony of DissonanceThe second Castlevania game for the Game Boy Advance, and third true Metroidvania, this title saw the return of Koji Igarashi to the director role, marking the full start of his tenure as the master of the series. and Castlevania: Aria of SorrowThe third title for the Gameboy Advance, Aria of Sorrow married the Metroidvania gameplay of Symphony of the Night with refined gameplay and an engaging soul-collecting mechanic, creating what many consider one of the best games of the series., along with the first DS title, Castlevania: Dawn of SorrowThe direct sequel to Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, this game continues the adventures of Soma Cruz, inheritor of the power of Dracula, who continues to be harassed by the creatures of the night as they seek to revive their fallen leader., only one game had really been a huge success in recent years, Castlevania: Circle of the MoonThe second Metroidvania-style game in the franchise, Circle of the Moon was developed by the KCET team within Konami, who had previously developed the much beloved Super Castlevania IV. Although not considered a perfect game by fans, this Game Boy Advance title did show that there was much that could be done with the Metroidvania mechanics in the series beyond Symphony of the Night.. On consoles, the series had floundered in the transition to 3D, with the generally reviled Castlevania for the Nintendo 64After a number of titles for non-Nintendo systems, Castlevania’s return should have been marked by much love and enjoyment from the fans. Sadly the first version of the game on Nintendo’s 64-bit console was a flawed game, interesting in places but not the kind of game fans were clamoring for in 1999. and the okay-ish seller Castlevania: Lament of InnocenceThe first title in the series for the Sony PlayStation 2, Lament of Innocence gave us the first glimpse of the earliest hero in the main series, Leon Belmont, he who first had to engage against the vampires by taking up a magical whip and knocking around the worst foes of the undead world..

Lament of Innocence is an important game to bring up at this point because it was the first foray in 3D that was overseen by series producer Koji "IGA" Igarashi. He's been the mastermind behind Castlevania: Symphony of the NightReleased on the PlayStation in 1997, this game, while not hugely successful in the U.S. at the time, went on to become on the most beloved titles in the Castlevania series. and, as that game became more popular among critics and fans, his cachet in the company also increased. His games since had been solid, but even giving fans a 3D game in his house style still didn't give Konami the big hit they wanted. It was back to the drawing board for the 3D market, and instead of just making another 2D/3D hybrid like Lament of Innocence, the team tried something bigger for sequel Castlevania: Curse of Darkness.

Functionally, Curse of Darkness (titled Akumajo Dracula Yami no Juin in Japan, translated as "Demon Castle Dracula: Curse of Darkness") wasn't just a sequel to Lament of Innocence, it was also a storyline sequel to Castlevania III: Dracula's CurseThe third, and final, NES entry for the series, Dracula's Curse returned the series to its roots with a more traditional adventure. But it also added in branching paths, multiple characters, and new hero Trevor Belmont. (thus the "Curse" in both titles). The adventure focused on HectorA former lieutenant of Dracula's, Hector, a devil forgemaster, helped to populate the minions of the damned. Having left the service upon Dracula's defeat, Hector is pulled back in when his former colleague and friend, Isaac, kills Hector's wife, setting off an adventure into Dracula's lands once more., one of Dracula's former lieutenants who forsook the Dark Lord after his defeat in 1476 ADIn the year 1476 AD, Trevor Belmont went to Dracula's Castle to find and defeat the resurrected villain. He was joined in his quest by three companions, aiding in one of the most difficult and treacherous journeys a Belmont would ever face., having a crisis of faith before settling down for a quiet life. His new life was shattered, though, when a former colleague, IsaacFormer colleague of Hector, who, like Hector, is a devil forgemaster. Still in the thrall of Dracula, Isaac murder's Hector's wife in an attempt to lure his former friend to Dracula's lands and use his power to resurrect the vampire lord., killed Hector's wife. Now on a quest for revenge, Hector had to go to the ruins of his former home and defeat the monsters within all to get peace for his dead wife and end the life of her murderer.

In style, Curse of Darkness feels like a hybrid of Castlevania 64 and Lament of Innocence. It's told from a behind-the-back perspective, like in the former title, but it has stage construction more in line with Lament of Innocence. It does, however, blend in more of the open world style and RPG mechanics indicative of the MetroidvaniaAt the intersection of Metroid and Castlevania lies the exploration platformer genre, the game style with heroes wandering expansive worlds, looking for items to expand their quest, known as Metroidvania. genre (that was missing from Lament). These were all needed improvements for the game, but in a way (as was a criticism of Lament) it feels like Curse of Darkness was trying to serve many different masters, again, without really nailing any one style.

This was actually a criticism of the game. Reviewers at the time did say the game was fun to play, but it lacked a cohesive vision that made it feel like a proper Castlevania game. It raised a fair question: how do you update the formula for the 3d era and still keep it feeling like a Castlevania game. (And, in fairness to Curse of Darkness, we're not sure the series has ever properly answered that question.)

Upon its release, this game did under perform. It sold an estimated 115,000 units during its lifespan, falling not only below Lament of Innocence but also the last underperforming game in the IGA run, Harmony of Dissonance. It's failure put a nail in whatever 3D ambitions IGA might have had, sending the series back to the drawing board and leaving it settled into a 2D groove effectively right up to the point where the series was taken away from IGA and handed to other overseers (eventually culminating in the Lords of ShadowThe first full reboot of the franchise, the Lords of Shadow series introduced a new hero, Gabriel Belmont, and reimagined villains all in league with a new antagonist, Satan. sub-series).

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