Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

Konami - 1997 - PS1/Sega Saturn/PSP

Symphony of the Night was an important departure in gameplay for the Castlevania series. Games in the series had previously been all 2D platformers, like the ones I was referencing in the Shovel Knight review. While SotN has some platforming elements, I don't think most people would describe it as a platformer. Rather, SotN helped give birth to the term "Metroidvania", which is used to describe gameplay that is exploration focused with a large, non-linear game world, often involves a good amount of backtracking, and revolves around discovering or unlocking upgrades to your character which are then to get to previously inaccessible areas. An example of this are the red doors in Super Metroid. They're introduced early in the game, but the player can only pass through them once they unlock Samus' missile launcher and realize that the missiles will open the red doors. Recently, Konami has put out games in the Castlevania series like Lords of Shadow 1 & 2, which are 3D action games similar to God of War or Devil May Cry. But when I think "Metroidvania", Symphony of the Night comes to mind as an example of one of the best games made in this style.

In addition to including "Metroidvania" style gameplay, SotN also includes RPG elements. Each enemy killed rewards a small amount of experience points. Primary weapons and armor can also be swapped out and upgraded. Some of the weapons and armor have unique bonuses or functions which lets your character configuration be very customizable. There are giant two handed greatswords which swing slowly, but have great range. Then there's one handed rapiers which swing quickly, but have a limited hitbox. Even the armors have unique functions such as restoring HP while walking or increasing the power of the alternate weapons. Speaking of which, the Castlevania staple alt weapons like the axe, holy cross or dagger make a return in SotN, further adding to the combat customization. 

Aside from being a departure in gameplay, SotN was also notable for being the first game in the series where you play as a member of the vampire hunting family Belmont only in the short prologue to the game. For the rest of the game you'll be playing as Alucard, who is actually the half vampire son of Count Dracula himself. Yes, "Alucard" is "Dracula" spelled backward. It's so campy and silly. I love it. You might think with dumb names like this, SotN would be a little self aware and have a bit of a sense of humor. But it kind of doesn't. SotN is actually features some pretty hilariously terrible voice acting and dialogue. The writing and VO work are about the only things in the game that aren't top notch though. The rest of this game is just so solid. 

If you do end up playing this game, I would challenge you to do so without referencing a guide. Discovering one of the castle's many secret rooms for yourself is immensely satisfying. And there are a lot of secrets. A lot. This is kind of a spoiler for those who haven't played the game but if you didn't fight Dracula as the final boss, you didn't really finish the whole game. There's actually a completely different second half of SotN that can be unlocked by finding special secret items in the castle. It's nuts. And finding all of these secrets and unlocks by yourself is just so rewarding. Besides, if you get stuck, you can usually consult the in-game map and figure out where you need to go just by closely examining the layout and flow of the castle. There's so much attention to detail in SotN from the combat and secrets to the enemy design and animations. There are so, so many unique enemy sprites with unique attacks and animations in the game. There are some enemies that appear literally one time in one room and then never again for the rest of the game. The amount of polish on the gameplay in SotN is one of the most impressive things about the game. 

The excellent soundtrack to SotN compliments the game very well. When you discover a new passageway and the track changes to something new you haven't heard before, it adds to the excitement of exploration. Composed by Michiru Yamane, the SotN soundtrack demonstrates Yamane's proficiency in a wide variety of musical styles. There's the jazzy upbeat Wandering of Ghosts, the gothic epic Final Toccata, the classical Wood Carving Partitia, the horrifying Door to the Abyss, the operatic Prayer, and the rockin' electric guitars of The Tragic Prince. The soundtrack is musically kind of all over the place and I love it. It gives each area of the castle a unique feel.

Summary:

If you've never played a Metroidvania game or a Castlevania game for that matter, start with Symphony of the Night. Even though the game is 15+ years old, the excellent gameplay and sprite art style allowed SotN to age very well. I hope Konami will return the Castlevania series back to this style of gameplay rather than the silly God of War clones they're trying to make right now. That's just not what I want from the Castlevania series. I'm not sure why the transition from 2D to 3D wasn't as graceful for the Castlevania series as it was for the Metroid series, but I'd love to see the next Castlevania be a 3D exploration game similar to Metroid Prime. Exploring a 3D castle with the amount of secrets and polish as the one in SotN would be amazing. Actually as long as the next game in the series is a Metroidvania, I think I'd be happy.