Castlevania Legends

Castlevania Legends

North American box art
Developer(s) Konami Computer Entertainment Nagoya
Publisher(s) Konami
Director(s) Kouki Yamashita
Designer(s) Tsukasa Hiyoshi
Programmer(s) Yoshiteru Yamaguchi
Artist(s) Kazunobu Uchida
Composer(s) Kaoru Okada
Youichi Iwata
Series Castlevania
Platform(s) Game Boy
Release date(s)
  • JP November 27, 1997
  • NA March 11, 1998
  • EU 1998
Genre(s) Platforming
Mode(s) Single-player
Rating(s)

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?, officially translated Devil's Castle Dracula: Dark Night Prelude).[1]

The videogame has enhancements for the Super Game Boy.

Contents

Gameplay

A player starts with three lives, after which the game is over, but a player may continue from the beginning of the last stage they were in.[2] There is also a Hit score showing how many enemies have been defeated in each stage.[2] Striking candles will often cause items to appear.[2] The game does not make use of any sub-weapons, unlike most other Castlevania titles, and relies heavily on the use of magic, which is another unique feature.[3] The magic system used relies on five "Soul Weapons", including Flame, Ice, Saint, Wind, and Magic.[3] Hearts are used as currency to acquire weapons.[3] Sonia can also enter a "Burning Mode", where she becomes invincible, moves faster, and has more powerful attacks, though this power can only be used once per life or level.[3]

Plot

The story begins in Transylvania in the year 1450. In the game (although not the series's overall canon), Sonia Belmont is the first Belmont to confront Dracula.[2][3] She also meets Alucard who seeks revenge against his father Dracula.[3][4] After Dracula's defeat, he swears to Sonia that as long as there is evil in the world, he will be resurrected, and in response she swears her family will always defeat him.[3] The game was also the first game in the series timeline until Castlevania: Lament of Innocence.[3]

Characters

Sonia Belmont (ソニア・ベルモンド Sonia Berumondo?)
Sonia Belmont is the protagonist of Castlevania Legends. At the age of seventeen she lived in a remote part of Transylvania.[5] She was born with special abilities that allowed her to sense the presence of physical and spiritual beings, and was taught how to use a whip by her grandfather.[6] It is not explicitly stated whether the whip she uses is Vampire Killer or not.
Within the castle, she encounters Alucard, the half-vampire son of Dracula. She had met him some time before and it can be inferred from their dialog that the two had formed a romantic relationship.[7] Alucard was intent on dissuading Sonia from her goal, planning to stop his father alone. When Sonia would not yield, he challenged her to a battle to test her abilities. After she defeated him, Alucard was confident that Sonia could overcome Dracula and he went into a self-imposed sleep. Sonia defeated Dracula, and spared Europe from his evil influence for a time. Sometime after Dracula's defeat, Sonia bore a child who "would carry on the fate and tragedy of the Belmont family, and the bloodline of dark ways."[8] The child would grow up to fight Dracula again and become a hero.[9]
Sonia was one of the confirmed leads in the Dreamcast game Castlevania: Resurrection, up until that game's cancellation.[10]

Dracula (ドラキュラ Dorakyura?)
Main article: Dracula (Castlevania)

Alucard (アルカード Arukādo?)
Main article: Alucard (Castlevania)

Reception

IGN called the game one of the Game Boy's cult classics despite the portable systems limitations.[3] Gamespy called the music "disappointing", as the previous two Game Boy Castlevania games were highly praised for their music.[11]

Longtime Castlevania producer Koji Igarashi removed the game from the series time line because it conflicted with the plot line of the main games.[12] He has stated that "Legends remains something of an embarrassment for the series. If only that development team had the guidance of the original team of the series."[13]

References

  1. ^ Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.. Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles. (Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.). (23 October 2007) "Japanese: 悪魔城の城主、邪心の神、ドラキュラ伯爵の復活であった。 Konami translation by Ken Ogasawara: Dracula, lord of darkness, master of the devil's castle, walks among us."
  2. ^ a b c d Castlevania Legends Instruction Booklet. Konami. 1989. p. 16. DMG-ADNE-USA. 
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Mark Bozon (2007-01-18). "Castlevania: The Retrospective". IGN. http://gameboy.ign.com/articles/756/756724p6.html. Retrieved 2008-07-13. 
  4. ^ "Castlevania Legends (1998)". GameSpy. 2000-01-01. http://castlevaniadungeon.net/Games/cvl.html. Retrieved 2008-07-13. 
  5. ^ From Manual: However, at about the same time a baby girl possessing special powers was born to a family living in a remote area of the country. (1998) Konami: Castlevania Legends. Konami, 1. [1]
  6. ^ From Manual: She was taught how to handle a whip by her grandfather and learned at an early age of her ability to sense the presence of beings physical and spiritual that cannot be seen by ordinary humans. (1998) Konami: Castlevania Legends. Konami, 11. [2]
  7. ^ Alucard: Do not trouble yourself about it, Sonia. Now, I must sleep. I fear we shall not meet again. Farewell, my beloved, my beautiful vampire hunter. KCE Nagoya. Castlevania Legends. Konami. Game Boy (in English). 1998-3-11.
  8. ^ Epilogue: After some time, the young girl of our legend became a mother, whose child would carry on the fate and tragedy of the Belmont family, and the bloodline of dark ways. KCE Nagoya. Castlevania Legends. Konami. Game Boy (in English). 1998-3-11. [3] [4]
  9. ^ Epilogue: And yet this child, once content in the arms of its mother, will also rise to fight courageously against the Prince of Darkness, who will return once again. This child who, one day, will be praised by all the people as a hero...... KCE Nagoya. Castlevania Legends. Konami. Game Boy (in English). 1998-03-11. [5] [6]
  10. ^ "Castlevania Resurrection." IGN.com. 2007. IGN Entertainment Inc. 21 June 2007. <http://dreamcast.ign.com/objects/012/012004.html> [7] [8]
  11. ^ "The Music of Castlevania Legends". GameSpy. 2000-01-01. http://castlevaniadungeon.net/Media/cvl.html. Retrieved 2008-07-13. 
  12. ^ Kurt Kalata (2006-07-26). "Tales from the Crypt: Castlevania's 20th Anniversary Blow-out". 1UP.com. http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=4&cId=3152109. Retrieved 2008-07-13. 
  13. ^ Nintendo Power, August 2008

External links

Main series
Spin-off games
Characters
Staff
Music
  • List of media
  • Book:Castlevania series
  • Book:Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow