Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow

Publisher: Konami

Platform: DS

Category: Action / Adventure

Rating Info

Release Date: 30/09/2005

Member Rating:

Number of Players: 1

Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow Description

Even if their vampire hunting franchise has now appeared on PS2, you can always count on Konami to grace a Nintendo console with a new Castlevania game. Follow up to the GBA's Aria of Sorrow, Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow once again follows the exploits of the somewhat androgynous Soma Cruz. It's a few years since Aria of Sorrow and our purple-clad hero is called upon to fight his way to the heart of a castle which is some sort of ghoulish homage to Dracula's own dread fortress. The sprawling, maze-like citadel is populated with all manner of chimaeric beasts and other enemies, and it's up to Soma to explore and battle through, be it with axe, whip, or whatever other satisfying weapon takes his fancy. If you enjoyed Aria of Sorrow, be prepared for more of the same, but this sequel makes full use of the DS's capabilities with vastly improved graphics and a powerful, anthemic musical score. Most DS games aim to exploit the more unique abilities of the DS and Dawn of Sorrow is no exception. You're required to trace occult symbols on the touch screen to gain entrance to various doors throughout the game. Defeat of enemies is rewarded with their 'souls', the collection of which will grant Soma new skills and attacks. As your collection of souls grows, you can trade them with friends using the DS's effortless wireless capabilities. And it's souls that you'll need if you are to progress in this game. Soma Cruz may be barely more than a schoolboy, but his powers increase dramatically as he collects souls and fuses them as necessary to acquire impressive new abilities. He'll need a broad range of powers if he is to stop the plot - it turns out that the castle-like nature of the enemy HQ is all part of a wider plan to resurrect the vanquished Dracula to terrorise the earth once again. Dawn of Sorrow, like Aria, is directed by Koji Igarashi, and continues the pleasing resurgence of the Castlevania franchise, with or without a certain Simon Belmont.

Screenshots

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Write a review of Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow

Reviewed by:	Date: 16/02/2007	Rating:
This is the first castlevania game I've played, having heard many great things about the series, I wanted to see for myself how good this game is. The first thing that struck me was just how hard this game is. It doesn't pull its punches, and if you die, there are no continues, so make sure to save when you can! This is a refreshing change from a lot of games these days which are too easy. This is a throwback to a time where games were tough to beat, and required effort on the part of the player to complete the game. Having said that, it isn't so hard that you can't enjoy it. Its set at a level that casual players may not enjoy, but will challenge the more hardcore gamer. Dawn of Sorrow has a surprising amount of depth. For example, each enemy you kill can potentially "give" you there soul, which in turn can enable a new attack or ability. Considering there are about 100 different enemies, that leads to a lot of different stlyes of play! Especially when you take into consideration the different weapons you can wield, from hand to hand gloves which are quick, to the slow and powerful axe and different types of gun. Each attack animation is beautifully executed. The graphics overall are very nice for 2D, and I doubt that the GBA would be able to handle the graphics as well as the DS can. Overall the presentation is very good, with the sound playing a small but well done role. The music changes for each area you go to, and so it doesn't get old. Plus the music is actually pretty good, giving a sense of urgency or danger where required. The sound effects also do their job well, though they can sound a bit tinny through the speakers. The game isn't perfect however. The DS touch screen feature feels very tacked on, and you have to draw a pattern after you've defeated a boss, which leads to scrabbling for the DS stick, and trying to draw the pattern quick and accurately enough to kill the boss. Fail, and the boss gets around 25% of their health back. Considering how tough some of the bosses are, it can be very frustrating when you fail, and consequently die, because you couldn't draw the symbol properly. Also, the game is pretty short, its about 12-14 hours long. I guess that isn't bad for a handheld game, but when your paying ?25-30, you want to have more value for money. But the time spent playing castlevania is very enjoyable. There is something infinately great about killing some of the monsters in the game, especially the zombies who fall apart graphically on screen. Plus the game is extremely rewarding, giving you fantastic abilities for killing the tough bosses which make you want to play on. Certainly worth a rent, probably worth buying.

Reviewed by:	Date: 11/12/2006	Rating:
This game has a loyal fanbase and most iterations of it receive high praise in any review article. However, for the casual gamer just picking this up for the first time, you may be left wondering what all the fuss is about. Its pretty much a standard 2D side scrolling adventure. Its benefits are in its depth of game and its great use of the aforementioned 2D graphics. If you can be bothered to put the time into this game, or indeed if you are a 2D fan, then the title may reward you, but for others, it brings nothing new to the DS and would sit equally at home on the GBA. Rent first to avoid disappontment !

Features

Defeat foes with the "Magic Seal" system using the touch screen

Exchange souls with other players via the DS wireless connection

Incredible musical score, next-gen graphics & stunning special effects

From the creative team behind Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow

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