A must have for anyone who wants to play Dawn of Sorrow but never played Aria of Sorrow. One of the better action/RPGs.
Harmony of Dissonance: 4/5
HoD represented everything Castlevania is and what people expected it to be. To those like myself who have never played a Castlevania game it can be summed up thusly: take the game Zelda II but give Link a whip instead of the world’s smallest sword, give it the level design of Metroid, the plot of box office dump “Van Hellsing” and this is what you get.
The story takes place fifty years after the death of Dracula (yep, Dracula) by Belmont patriarch Simon. Presently, resident pretty boy Juste Belmont and friend Maxim are entering a dark and mysterious castle where they believe their kidnapped friend Lydie is being held captive.
The gameplay doesn’t differ much from the typical Castlevania title, you have a whip, you kill monsters, you level up, you fight bigger monsters, but there are some twists. By using one of the five spell books you can enhance the power of the sub-weapons for a total of 36 special attacks. Also the map is fairly large, I don’t want to spoil anything but let’s just say once you start to feel you’ve explored a good area of the castle you have actually covered less than half the total area.
There is also I nice inclusion of replay value with multiple endings, a secret playable character, a bizarre Animal Crossing-esque collect all the furniture side-quest (yep, furniture),and a “boss rush” mode.
Aria of Sorrow: 5/5
If there was one thing I didn’t like about HoD it was that there was nothing that surprised me, it just didn’t seem like the developers were really trying to get me to like the game; AoS, however, definitely goes out of its way to give players a new Castlevania experience.
First off there’s the story, AoS does not star a Belmont descendent, rather you play in the year 2035 as exchange student, and all around mans-man (yeah, coincidentally, white fur coats are REALLY manly) Soma Cruz who has been transported along with best friend Mina Hakuba and a few other mysterious suspects to Dracula’s Castle through the power of a solar eclipse. There he discovers he has the magical ability to absorb demons (an ability he shares with a few of the castle’s other guests) and that one of the guests is the reincarnation of Dracula. This creates a nice mystery effect and has a nice surprise ending to top it off.
The gameplay does not stray to far from Castlevania’s roots on the surface, you still kill monsters in a 2D action/RPG style, but you will immediately become aware of some huge and welcome changes. First off, you can equip many different types of weapons including: knifes, swords, lances, axes, hammers, spears, a pistol, and even a whip sword (yet, ironically there is no whip). Also the sub-weapons have been replaced with new Pokemon-esque Spirit system. Rarely, when defeating an enemy, you’ll receive that enemy’s soul which can be equipped. These souls will allow you to use special attacks, moves, and boost your abilities. Since virtually every monster has a collectible soul, you can spend allot of time collecting new souls, and since every soul has it’s own distinct power you won’t mind all that repetition.
Speaking of replay, this game also includes much of the value from the last game: multiple endings, boss rush, a secret character, but, thankfully, no home decorating side-quests.
The Bottom Line:
If you’re a Nintendo fan, you’ve probably already played Metroid and Zelda II and you won’t find anything too different about these games. I say this as a warning because often you’ll try a new series and are rewarded with gameplay you haven’t yet experienced, but I could never shake the feeling of deja-vu. This isn’t so much a bad thing, Metroid and Zelda both rock, just adjust your expectations a little.
Anyway if you’ve been eyeing the ultra-hyped Dawn of Sorrow for the DS you owe it to yourself to pick up Aria of Sorrow beforehand and the inclusion of Harmony of Dissonance only sweetens a good deal, not to belittle that game either. Fans of 2D action/RPG games will not be disappointed with these GBA classics.
Note: If my score seems low, that’s only because I cap the scores of compilations, remakes, and double-packs. Read my Gamespot blog for specifics.