Castlevania Legends
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| Castlevania Legends | |
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| Developer(s) | KCE Nagoya |
| Publisher(s) | Konami |
| Series | Castlevania (Non-Cannon) |
| Platform(s) | Game Boy |
| Release date |  November 27, 1997 March 11, 1998 |
| Genre(s) | Action adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: K-A (Kids to Adults) |
| Media | 2-megabit cartridge |
Castlevania Legends is the third and final Castlevania title released for the original Game Boy. It was released in Japan on November 27, 1997 and in North America on March 11, 1998. Its original Japanese title is Akumajō Dracula Dark Night Prelude (悪魔城ドラキュラ 漆黒たる前奏曲 Akumajō Dorakyura Dāku Naito Pureryūdo?, lit. "Demon Castle Dracula: Dark Night Prelude"). The Japanese release featured a battery backup which allowed the player to save his or her progress while the US version uses passwords to save game progress. The game features the original platforming gameplay seen in the earlier releases, and some consider it the last to feature it, if included among the console releases.
This Castlevania was removed from the series main timeline along with Circle of the Moon, Legacy of Darkness, and Castlevania 64. As of 2006, this is the only one of those 4 titles to not be re-inserted into the series canon.[1]. This is also the only Castlevania game released for Game Boy that did not receive any kind of re-release.
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[edit] Storyline
In 1450, the Dark Lord, Dracula, reached the height of his power, having undertaken a dark transmigration from his human body which gave him the power to rule over all that was evil. He began to send out armies of the undead to conquer the nations of the world one by one.
However, in the province of Transylvania in Dracula's own homeland of Romania, there lived a girl named Sonia Belmont. From her earliest days, Sonia had been gifted with unusual supernatural powers, including the ability to see spiritual beings unnoticed by most. She was always taught that her powers must be used for good, and she was trained by her grandfather to fight with an heirloom whip.
At the age of 17, Sonia set out to find her true purpose. She met the enigmatic Alucard, the prodigal son of Dracula, who was just beginning his own campaign against his father's madness. The two remained with one another for some time, and it is suggested that they fell in love. However, Sonia learned of the full extent of Dracula's evil from Alucard when he told her of his plan to fight his father, and after a time she left him to find her own way to the Dark Lord's castle.
Once Sonia arrived at the castle, she battled through an array of challenges until she reached the castle's throne room. Here she met Alucard, and the two were equally astonished to see each other. Alucard did not want Sonia to be involved in the battle against his father because he feared for her life, and because he felt it was his own duty to deal with the transgressions of his bloodline. However, Sonia's determination to fight on was ferocious, and Alucard could tell that she would not back down. So to assure himself, he challenged her to a battle. Once she had pushed him to his limit, he conceded that her power was greater than he had known, and bid her a final farewell. He then entered what may have been the first of his long periods of sleep.
Sonia went on to fight and defeat Dracula. As his monsterous dragon-like form began to burn away, he warned her that victory was not so simple, and that as long as there was evil in the world, he would continue to rise again and again. Sonia countered by stating that as long as the Belmont bloodline existed, Dracula would rise only to be defeated again.
Not long after, Sonia gave birth to her child. Sonia's sound defeat of Dracula created great fear amongst the people of Wallachia and Transylvania, and though they had been spared slavery and death, they chose to exile the Belmonts. The Belmonts left behind some of their kin to watch in secret for Dracula's return, and they would continue to answer the calling of their bloodline.
[edit] Gameplay
Because this game uses the same engine employed in Castlevania: The Adventure and Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge, Sonia controls almost exactly like Christopher Belmont, including her ability to shoot fireballs from the whip when at full power, and the ability to climb up and down ropes rather than using stairs. The game has two difficulty levels, Normal and Light. In Light Mode, Sonia's whip is always at full power. In Normal Mode, she must collect crystals to power the whip up through three different levels.
The game has five normal stages, which consist of the Graveyard, Castle Halls, Clocktower, Castle Keep, and Inner Den. There is an additional bonus stage, the Dungeons, which is hidden in the game. Bosses of the stages include the Creatures Bat, Death Dragon, Grim Reaper, Alucard, and Dracula.
The first of Sonia's powers is known as Burning Mode. Once per level and life, Sonia can enter Burning Mode to become completely invincible until a gauge at the bottom of the screen runs out. Sonia can also unlock powerful Soul Weapon abilities by defeating boss creatures. Soul Weapons consume hearts and are chosen from a menu by pressing the Select button during normal play. Sonia's Soul Weapons are as follows:
- Wind: Grants the ability to temporarily stop the movement of all enemies except bosses.
- Ice: Completely restores Sonia's life gauge.
- Flame: Unleashes a powerful burst of energy that harms all enemies on screen. Does not affect bosses.
- Saint: Sends a wave of energy slicing through the air in front of Sonia.
- Magic: Completely destroys an enemy on screen, except for bosses.
Sonia cannot use the trademark sub-weapons of the Belmont family and their allies, but she can find all of the classic items hidden in various out-of-the-way locations in the game. The items Sonia can find include the Dagger, Cross, Holy Water, Axe, and Pocket Watch. If she finds them all, the game's full ending is revealed.
[edit] Music
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Most of the music of Castlevania Legends was newly composed. However, the first stage notably has a modified version of Bloody Tears as its background music, and the final battle's background music begins with a note from Vampire Killer.
Unlike the two previous Game Boy Castlevania games, the music in Castlevania Legends is not presented with any stereo effects but instead plays in mono.
[edit] References
- ^ Castlevania: The Timeline (2006).
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