If you've been following our 25th anniversary coverage for the past few days here on IGN's Nintendo channels, you've seen us first go back to the franchise's beginnings by Revisiting Castlevania on the NES. We then moved into the modern era with Revisiting Castlevania on the DS. And today, to wrap up our look back on Konami's vampire-hunting brand we're presenting The Best of Nintendo's Castlevania.
These are the top picks -- the absolute essentials that you've got to experience to consider yourself a true Belmont fan. So read on, take our recommendations and scrape some cash together to make a couple of purchases from this list. It's the right thing to do for Simon's birthday.
Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse
Released September 1, 1990
Why It Made the List
All three of the series-starting titles that kicked off the Castlevania series on the NES deserve your time and attention, but if you've only got time and attention enough for one then go straight to the trilogy's 8-bit conclusion. Playing Castlevania III again today takes you right back to the franchise's beginnings to appreciate how the Belmonts first looked, controlled and fought against Dracula in Nintendo's first console era -- but this third installment also succeeds on more than just nostalgia with its multiple playable characters, branching paths and brutal difficulty that make it worth much more than just five bucks. You can download it through the Wii Virtual Console for that amount right now, and you should. Immediately.
Super Castlevania IV
Released December 1991
Why It Made the List
When Nintendo made the leap to the upgraded graphics of 16-bit technology, Castlevania was right there to help make the transition happen. Super Castlevania IV was a bigger, bolder vision of the 'Vania world that served as one of the early showpiece titles for the SNES -- and it innovated in gameplay as well as graphics, by introducing multi-directional whip attacks for our vampire-hunting hero. This one's on sale through the Wii Virtual Console as well, and you can make it your own for just eight bucks. Or, if you'd rather win a copy for free, that can be arranged as well.
Castlevania X: Rondo of Blood
Released October 1993
Why It Made the List
The legendary lost game of the series, Rondo of Blood originally didn't come to a Nintendo system in the States -- or any system for that matter. It stayed in Japan, unlocalized and untranslated for our audience, while America had to make due with a watered-down pseudo-port called Dracula X. The Wii's Virtual Console righted the injustice of the '90s just last year, though, finally giving us this game in America, in its original form, for a Nintendo platform. So it totally counts now. And you should totally buy it, for just nine bucks.
Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow
Released May 2003
Why It Made the List
After an ugly era through the late '90s when Konami first tried to transition Castlevania into 3D on the N64, traditional 2D 'Vania had a huge resurgence on the Game Boy Advance. The GBA launch title Circle of the Moon and its follow-up Harmony of Dissonance paved the way for one of the series' best portable adventures ever, Aria of Sorrow. Though Game Boy Advance games are not as easily available now as classics from other systems, it'd be worth your while to scour some local game shop bargain bins and track down this title -- its introduction of Soma Cruz, futuristic setting and innovative soul-capturing system helped make it one of the best Nintendo Castlevania titles ever.
Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia
Released October 2008
Why It Made the List
Finally, though Dawn of Sorrow and Portrait of Ruin are both excellent as well, forcing us to pick just one of Castlevania's modern DS sequels means we have to highlight the most recent. Order of Ecclesia is the current culmination of the combination of the Castlevania franchise and Nintendo's hardware platforms, a dark and difficult journey across the 17th century Transylvania countryside as a uniquely non-Belmont female fighter. It's coming up on its own three-year anniversary of release, but that's not so long ago that you shouldn't still be able to find it in stores. Fire up that DS one more time and join the Order. We command it.
And there you have it, Castlevania fans. Our top 5 picks for the best of the best among Nintendo's options for enjoying the series. You'll have to venture to other company's hardware to seek out some big hits like Symphony of the Night, but overall it's easy to be a very well-versed Castlevania aficionado by just owning a Wii and DS.
Now get crackin'! It's your duty as an honorary member of the Belmont family to spend your day today stalking Dracula with murderous intent. And feel free to make your own suggestions for other 'Vania options in the Comments below while you're lacing up your leather boots and spraying on your bat repellent -- we've just presented our picks, but we want to know yours too.
Happy Birthday, Simon!
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