Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse (1990)

Castlevania III is a return to the form of the first game after the ambitious-but-flawed departure of Simon's Quest, though this entry makes many improvements and additions to the format, trying several new mechanics and structure that are surprising for a game of its time. For instance, for the most part, the game is still essentially "linear" in its level design with 2D side-scrolling that has you progressing through each level in one direction without the side paths or back-tracking found in Simon's Quest's more metroidvania design. However, after most of the levels, you have a choice of paths to take, leading you to a different level for your next adventure toward the showdown with Dracula. These levels also differ quite noticeably, offering a variable experience on later playthroughs rather than the lazy re-skins you might otherwise expect.

Further and perhaps most strikingly, the game features multiple characters you can take with you and transform into with the push of a button, opening up an entirely new move set and style with each. You can even choose whether or not to take different companions with you, allowing you a bit of choice in how you approach the game going forward. The rest of the game's components are up to par for this point in the series, if not taken to another level with great electronic music and simple-but-striking visuals that are evocative but never detract from the game's gothic themes.

My complaints with the game are less about its innovations and more that the absurd challenge of these early entries in the series is just a bit too much for me. I've been playing through some of the collections on Steam and when it comes to entries like this, I'm approaching more with curiosity than because I expect the game to especially be my thing. Even as someone who can be a little try-hard with many genres, playing these games straight-up without shamelessly abusing save states is just way too much for me. I was able to struggle through much of the first game without save states, but this title I found especially punishing, with just about every source of damage knocking off a large chunk of your life bar. Embarrassingly, I didn't even know about the character switch mechanic until a good way into the game, so perhaps I could've used the tools at my disposal better, but I found much of the game extremely punishing. I've heard this is arguably the hardest game in the series and that seems quite plausible from where I'm at so far. The first game I could play through much of without too much trouble and I loved it. But this one turns the punishing factor up quite a bit and somehow has even more irritating stair segments than the first two games. It's kind of shocking how long it took them to figure out how to do stairs!

Nevertheless, I'm playing this out of interest in how these early games formed the foundation of such a long-running game franchise (and other genres) and there was definitely a lot intriguing about it in that regard. Without having to deal too much with the ridiculous difficulty, I was able to appreciate the neat things the game was doing to iterate on previous titles, by delivering more of what the series has established to this point, while introducing innovations that would be quite rare in games for some time. I'm a little conflicted in how to rate this game since it delivered on the "interesting" aspect I was coming for, but if I'd played the game as intended, it'd have to be a 1-star I just gave up on after a few levels (though, in fairness, I might've actually improved if I'd pushed myself and gotten more used to it). So I decided to go with somewhere in the middle.

Preliminary: Welp, time to play the original version of this game I so love in this series I so love. I got distracted with that darn OSRS boss, I seriously need to only do that Weds and Fris it always tenses me up and isn't fun, but I get some time to play Castlevania now! Right away, I'm already used to the controls since I know the first Castlevania so well. Compared to its contemporary Turbografx platformers and whatnot, it is a bit lacking in being able to do multiple actions quickly in a row, but it's still the tight NES controls I expect and the Castlevania hook that I know. Like I always say, I love getting the maximum whip and learning the precise distance it can go. So far it's all the exact same enemies I already know from the first one, and the NES Look cannot compare to its contemporary Turbografx games, I hope this chronology project doesn't downgrade this as one of my all-time favorites. No matter what I think I will love the usual Castlevania gameplay and the multiple characters factor, here goes nothing!

Day 1

Like I said, a bit clunky in doing multiple actions right in a row. And can't believe it's still the same stair mechanic and enemies and Look as the first Castlevania released in 1986 (well not exactly the same Look but still). And honestly it feels like I walk really slowly, which is sad to think that since I love the first Castlevania so much. As always I love that you can hit away projectiles and, well, basically all the things I like about the first game indeed since it's the same engine it seems. I'm thinking I will play this the same way I played it last time: simply blind except to use a map to know where a Holy Water is or how to cheese a boss if ends up being too difficult and have to restart the area and plan on the special weapon that will cheese it etc.

Oh god not the dropping spikes that one hit kill you like in the first game. Ah! Why did I pick this path lol. The first boss, though, I did entirely intuitively. No need for a guide or map so far, nice. Nor savestates. Tho I now savestated as soon as I saw those spikes. They bring back bad memories lol.

I'm really enjoying playing as Sypha, but I think I missed out on Grant. Woops.

Beautiful between level screens, of course. Love maps etc. Now that I am used to 90s-vibe platformers tho some of the frustrating mechanics like the wildly changing paths of the flying enemies and little things like awkwardly placed candles that you have to do an odd jump attack to hit got to me a bit. Oh and the annoying enemies at top of stairs tho luckily Sypha's magic helped with that a bit (and the usual special weapons but still). Oh.. and also where it can't tell when you wanna go up or down the stairs rather than use a spec weapon or crouch, they even took advantage of this in the level design of 5-0C smh. I still absolutely love these early Castlevanias, and I always get this intense fervor to play through them in one session, but yea just noticing that stuff more now as I approach 1990.

Sypha's Lightning magic almost feels like cheating! But it was invaluable for frustrating parts and enemies above stairs etc. It's funny that the guide I referenced out of curiosity for boss strategies didn't do any of the techniques I used, largely abusing Sypha's magic is what I did :-p They mostly encouraged the usual Holy Water spamming (which I also used for the Frankenstein enemy). It was nice to switch between Sypha and Trevor throughout a level, using Trevor for the flame-shooting statue thingies and Sypha for frustrating spots (and just cuz I like his sprite and attack lol, tho it wasn't as generally useful as Trevor's upgraded whip). And as per usual the music was motivating and inspirational and epic haha.

I like the purple in the background here. And overall the Look had that classic first Castlevania vibe, but it was really annoying especially in BLK 6 I think and spontaneously throughout the game, where you couldn't tell which platforms were actually in the foreground and able to be utilized. Thank goodness for savestates, but that would have turned me off of the game if I were playing it vanilla.... well, maybe... I get too hooked to Castlevanias so probly not lol. But the point still stands: a good Look should make it clear which platforms can be used and that shouldn't be a mechanic in level design imo.

Ahhh, I'm at the boss of BLK 7 rn. I'm so close to the end already. Argh, I could've played through this whole game tonight if I hadn't used up half my night doing OSRS Nex >.< When will I learn...

Day 2

The reality is, the controls are the same as in 1986, and the way your jump goes in the direction you initially pressed no matter what you do etc, is very antiquated. And many things feel so slow for late 89, like walking up steps to the next screen and switching between characters. But, I still just love the Castlevania formula so it's still beloved despite its datedness.

Dracula's castle had a nice Look, more distinct and refined/advanced than the other areas imo.

Lol what are these greens and hard-to-discern platforms/steps.... I don't like how the Chronology Project is changing my perspective of classic favorite games >.<

I really did not miss the NES sprite flicker/lag nor the inability to spawn enemies in advance during these scrolling up segments. Lol @ the amoutn of sprite flicker/lag in BLK A-01... Why. The gears are cool and of course made me think of the show, but in one segment they brought out some of the worst parts of the game: sprite flicker/lag and unclear-which-platforms-are-foreground etc.

Uff when you accidentally switch out your Holy Water for Dagger >.< RIP. But I got through the fight thanks to the Axe special weapon. Pretty bad collision masks with the character and the final Dracula form projectile. Great ending tune and screens tho

Look: 8.5/10 Honestly, I was quite disappointed with this. I rated it so highly last time, and I do always love the classic first Castlevania Look, but it just seems like some updates were in order. My biggest beef was with the lack of clarity on which platforms can be jumped on etc. And some ugly screens. But also some beautiful ones (for the NES Castlevania Look) and a nostalgic Look regardless.

Sound: 8/10 Many tunes I recognize and love, but again, really wasn't as in love as last time I played this.

Play: 9/10 As always I love the Castlevania gameplay and I love the idea of multiple characters, which they executed very well I especially love Sypha and her magic. However far too many of the antiquated antics of the first Castlevania for late 89 and the Play wasn't as hooking as the first Castlevania (nor were the level designs as addictive imo) to warrant playing through again with a different array of characters etc.

Feel: 9/10 I will always love this series, and I loved this so much the first time, even giving it a 10, but alas. In the context of late 89, this just doesn't pass muster. I like to just think of it as an extension of my beloved first Castlevania, which absolutely shines for its release year of 86 and any year. Cool ideas in this one, cool new characters and the gears and whatnot, but overall disappointing for how much I remembered being impressed by it.

Attachment: 9/10 I mean, I just played through it again. But whether I will ever play through the Second Quest, like I was willing to do and indeed addicted to it with the first Castlevania, is still yet to be seen. They did an excellent job of encouraging it since there are different paths, different characters, etc. And I really wanna play as Alucard next time.

Overall: 8.7/10

Completion: Main Story

Playtime: 2h 30m

I've heard that this was the game to play in castlevania for the NES. I was only lukewarm wit hthe first and never did venture further. Now that I've finally completed Simon's Curse, I'm ready to take on Dracuia's Curse!

There are a lot of cool video effects. This fog operates on multiple layers giving illusion of depth.

Honestly this game looks fantastic. All the backgrounds are very bright and colorful and make intersting use of contrast. It sounds fairly good too. For the most part it just feels like a better looking and sounding version of the first game. There is tons of glitch and slowdown throughout the whole game though.

Also game is hard.

This was a ton of fun to playthrough. Multiple characters, branching paths and a new game plus mode add a ton of replayability. New game plus in particular is absurdly hard, ramping up the damage you take and the amount of annoying enemies. Switching the already annoying medusa heads with the flying skeleton skulls that fly haphazardly and are profoundly more annoying to deal with is mean (but optional). I actually didn't realize new game plus added these new variables. I got up to stage 7 (underground path) and was getting my ass completely stomped into the ground. The auto-scroller stairs leading up to the boss fight is insane. With the ramped up damage you can only take 3 hits before dying and it's pure bullet hell climbing that tower... I almost raged quit. I ended up having to fight the three bosses with only 1 hit... man that was hell and incredibly stressful. Especially with little time left so I couldn't play safe. I looked up later that there was a hidden meat I could have taken.Would have helped significantly.

The hardest fight for me was the skeleton dragon. Not only did I fight this bastard the first time on new game plus (thus he hits harder and enemy placement is more intense) but it's a grueling endurance fight. I didn't find a single meat between part 1 and 2 of the fight and managed killing him with one hit left. It felt pretty malicious to have multiple auto-scroller screens filled to the brim with enemies without rest before part 1 and 2 of the fight...

I only got Sypha and found her to be very lackluster. I only used her to activate a stopwatch and primarily used Trevor. He not only is tankier, but also has greater reach and damage. Seems like a waste to use Sypha beyond as a stopwatch. I realize she has unique spells and while a few are decent, I felt underwhelmed by her. I do wish they had made her more viable. From what I read, the other side characters can be a bit lackluster too. Still a cool concept even if it didn't have the best implementation.

Overall this felt like a very refined experience. Excluding new game plus, it felt a little easier than the first game. By no means a pushover but felt like it had better balance with enemy placements, ect. The final fight against Dracula is tougher than the original game due to the sheer endurance factor. The fight against the Grim Reaper I found to be easier despite having a second phase. Mostly because getting to the Grim Reaper this time around didn't have a bonkers gauntlet and the boss room felt like it was designed better for the encounter. A great sequel.

Dracula's Curse is a solid improvement on the original Castlevania (review). It doesn't redefine the core of that game, but ups the scale, variety, and production value for a more exciting adventure.

Level designs and the big bosses within generally feel more dynamic and complex than the first game. More interesting boss arena layouts and behavior patterns are common. Progression through the game is also a bit more varied, with branching paths to different zones adding replayability.

Individual levels also feel much more thematically unique and varied than those found in the first game. Backgrounds are more colorful and detailed, with nice atmospheric effects like thunderstorms. There are also different types of things to traverse on like swinging pendulums or seesaw-like platforms. They just did it bigger and mostly better here all around.

The most notable gameplay addition is the companion characters, with unique movement and attack options that you can swap to at any time. An optional early level, for example, is re-run in reverse after you unlock the first companion. He's a more mobile character with the ability to climb and grab onto things, and it reveals an extra layer to the level design that I didn't notice at first. Nothing game-changing but pretty neat.

But I have to be honest, as much as I enjoyed the opening hours, the game still ended up being a real pain by the end. Late-game enemies frequently feel too many in number, too damaging, and most annoyingly too able to knock you off platforms. Platforming sections often feel like they demand too much precision for how deliberately stiff your movement feels, and things like climbing stairs still feel pretty frustrating. And some of the bosses felt just obscene in what the game asks of you, a bit too tough for me personally.

Still, there are moments that shine through where all the difficulty feels worth it. Some platforming sections feel genuinely tense and exciting as you barely make it to the end of a crumbling bridge or tower. Some bosses give you just enough room to outsmart them with good positioning. It's a game that constantly hints at a great time, but not enough for me to really love it through all its frustrations.

This game is unlikely to win over anyone who downright hates the original. If you enjoyed that game at all, though, this one is almost sure to impress, and you'll likely enjoy it even more if you can deal with its difficulty.

Look: 9/10 Just like the prior 2, I love the atmosphere, the colors, the backgrounds, etc. Nothing stellar about the enemy designs, but I did like the different characters on this one, namely Sypha. Plus, the attack graphics seemed improved.

Sound: -/10 Played muted. Will definitely replay in the future with sound on.

Play: 9.5/10 Its nice to have played enough castlevanias now to discover most the secrets myself, just using a guide for maps of blocks as needed or to make sure I don’t miss a Sacred Water when needed heh. It’s also nice to already be acquainted with the controls from the first one, since this seemed to be exactly the same engine/mechanics. I love that you keep each character’s sub-weapons even as you change back and forth, so I could preserve the ideal ones ha. (And experiment with different sub-weapon challenges/limitations in the future). I guess, even just playing these first 3 Castlevanias in a row, I’ve gotten to the point where I’d just crack up sometimes when I’d fall straight down from a steps misstep lol. But anyway, I loved playing as Sypha in particular, loved the concept and execution of the Doppelganger boss, and had a blast playing this game. I thought I might get tired of the Castlevania vibe and gameplay by this point, but if anything, playing them all in a row made this game doable, not as insanely difficult as many people deem it, and frankly fun again. There were a couple moments I started feeling like all these Castlevanias in a row was getting repetitive, but it didn’t last long, and the game proved to be fun all the way through. EDIT: Had to bump this down to a 9.5 cuz was not as in love with the gameplay's datedness on my second playthrough.

Feel: 9.5/10 Love the multiple characters aspect, and I feel they executed that very well. The switching is seamless and easy, the changes in gameplay from the switches are simple but fun. I kept being reminded of Abe’s Odyssey: I didn’t realize how rooted in early platformers Abe’s Odyssey was. (For instance, the blocks/rooms being labeled, the high difficulty but ability to respawn, and lol, the sudden drops to your death when you mess up a stair mechanic or something. The straight drop down reminded me so much of Abe’s Odyssey, though sadly no splat at the end lol). Speaking of the stair mechanic, like… how you gonna have the same stair mechanic as the first one. Indeed, the entire engine seems exactly the same. Even though I loved the feel and gameplay of Simon’s Quest, the first Castlevania was so fun and short that Dracula’s Curse felt like a warranted extension of that gameplay--plus with the addition of extra characters and multiple routes (without getting too complicated or too many options, not a fan of that, and nervous as my chronological order gets more and more modern cuz most newer games have those complications and so far, I'm still averse to that), and how well they executed those new features, this is an easy 10. Oh, and the ending credits were really cute. EDIT: Also had to bump this down. Still love this game.

Attachment: 9/10 Now this is how you ensure replayability: different characters to accompany you, different endings based on those. Basically, entirely different experiences (indeed, sometimes even different routes). I absolutely love that and had to fight with myself not to start trying different challenges, limitations, and setups out of curiosity. I will be replaying this time and time again.

What an absolutely spectacular game. I takes the formula established in the original Castlevania - strategic platform design, gothic atmosphere, tough difficulty - and turns everything up to eleven.

Aesthetics are top notch, with the church windows and swinging pendulums being high points. The soundtrack is incredible and more even than the first two entries in the trilogy. The challenge in the last two levels really ups the ante for the series, but with level design that feels more elaborated than Castlevania I (this is especially apparent in the boss battles, which are not as cheap).

With a very generous checkpoint system, I never became frustrated and was able to play through the game without abusing save states.The two added elements - branching paths and optional characters - also gives this game an exploratory feel and GENUINE replay value.

I can't actually think of any complaints. By todays standards some design decisions are archaic (being OHKO'd by spikes, stiff movement), but I absolutely detest the idea of comparing a historical game with contemporary titles. This game came out in 1989 and is still an incredible experience, anything less than a 5/5 would be unfair in my opinion.

I'm fairly new to "Classicvanias" at all. After spending my teenagehood being frustrated in never going as far as the first stage in most NES games (which I didn't grew up with, but was always interested in experiencing), I got addicted in Mega Man when I got 19, and so classic Castlevania came just naturally... And I'm enjoying them even more than the metroid-like ones.

After going through the MASTERPIECE that was Rondo of Blood, I got CV 1 and 3 on my 3DS and played both of them... with savestates. The games were good and nice looking, but were SO HARD to beat and going through the stages... Specially Dracula's Curse, with the western version having it's difficult levels amplified in some unfair ways...

So, here I was at my 21's, one month before the release of the Castlevania Anniversary Collection, after one week of beating the hideous Castlevania The Adventure for the DMG... I said to myself: I'm gonna beat Akumajou Densetsu, savestateless. The better, original, with perfectly balanced difficulty and superior soundtrack japanese version of Dracula's Curse... And I just beat it.

I've gone along the Alucard route, as in my previous broken playthrough I went for Sypha, and I loved every single bit of this adventure. This may be now my very favourite NES/Famicom game ever, with beautiful sound, colourful graphics, hard-as-hell difficulty without being unfair to the player and, hell, there are so many stages and paths you can take in this game!

The classic Castlevania formula is extremely addicting to me, them being cleary puzzle platformers that make the player go through it's hazards by it's own merit and growing experience. It made me want to ragequit in the three stages prior to Dracula? Yes, it did... specially on Death... but my patience was very, very very paid off. I've grown more and more attached to NES games as their challenges have redefined the gamer I am and the one I want to be. If you have any means of getting this game, please GET IT, and try to dump the ROM file so it can be patched with a translation/graphic overhaul patch. Played this through Retroarch on my modded PS Vita. Worth Every Second.

Despite Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse being the third game in the Castlevania series to be released on the NES, it was the second game in the series that I played through. Having played and enjoyed the original game, I immediately jumped into its sequel, Castlevania II: Simon's Quest. However, I found it was a very different game from the one that came before it. No longer an action-platformer, Simon's Quest is better described as an adventure game with RPG elements. From the small amount that I played (and from taking a look at the game's Wikipedia page), it was clear that this game would help to establish many of the core features of the MetroidVania style, such as non-linear worlds, collecting items to progress, and back-tracking.

Unfortunately, I did not find myself enjoying this change. Instead, I found myself without any idea of what I was supposed to be doing. It didn't help that I discovered (through my reading) that the NPCs in the game who give you hints may or may not be lying to you. Furthermore, I found the game's visuals to be a significant step down when compared to its predecessor; the environments and player/enemy sprites seemed bland and uninteresting. Disappointed, I moved on to Dracula's Curse, hoping it would provide me with a better experience.

THE GOOD

• Dracula's Curse looks fantastic. As in the original, each environment is colorful and detailed, and the areas are unique enough that they never feel repetitive. The throwback to the first level of the original game (the castle foyer) was a pleasant surprise. I was also impressed by some of the visual effects.
• The multiple paths and allied characters helped add significant replay value. Each path presented different pros/cons to taking it, as did each one of the allies that could join you on your quest. I felt both of these features actually gave me a reason to replay the game more than once.
• Good variety of platforming obstacles (such as swinging pendulums, crumbling floors, and scrolling levels). Each area presented the player with a new challenge, which helped keep things feeling fresh. Boss fights were also varied and fun.
• Difficulty curve felt smooth.
• Great 8-bit tracks.

THE BAD

• The controls in Dracula's Curse are still a bit wonky. While jumping did not feel as bad as it did in the original (maybe I just got used to it), traversing stairs was still a major pain for me. I found the majority of the stair encounters to be extremely frustrating due to feeling like I had a lack of options when trying to climb up/down or when trying to fight on the steps.
• I felt I had little reason to use the allied characters that join you on your quest. Although I liked the idea of being able to control multiple characters, I felt their strengths never quite overcame their weaknesses. Especially after becoming so comfortable using the main hero, I never felt the desire to use the others; for the most part, they were only holding me back.
• I found the dialogue text presented in the game to be hilariously bad. While not a major negative (and likely due to a translation issue), it was a bit jarring to read.

THE UGLY

The rainbow coloured font was an interesting choice.

OVERALL

I'd give Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse a 6.5/10. Dracula's Curse made a number of improvements compared to the original. The graphics looks great (for a game of its age), the platforming is fun, and there is some decent replay value. However, the biggest thing holding Dracula's Curse back from a higher rating is its dated control scheme. Still, it was an enjoyable experience, and is the game I would most recommend to those wanting to try one of the NES titles of the series, as this is by far the best of the bunch.

History:

While I have plenty of history with Castlevania, I missed out on the NES generation, this one included.

Expectations:

For better or worse, I'm really excited about this one. The first game was a blast and this one's supposed to be even better, never mind that Alucard makes his debut here. I hope it's as good as I hope it is.

Day 1:

So... This is a hard game. First things first though, it looks and sounds incredible. I mean it's basically identical to Castlevania, same engine and all, but they managed to make it look closer to Castlevania IV than anything else. That said, the same issues that were in Castlevania are still in this game, particularly iffy jump mechanics and the ever annoying accidentally picking up a new sub-weapon replacing your old one. But anyway, this game is hard!

I'm a little on the fence about the branching paths. I guess they're fine, but I never know if I'm taking the wrong path or not. It doesn't look like I'll be doing any backtracking, so there probably isn't a wrong path, but still. I do like how the levels themselves offer branching routes, like the melting blocks in Stage 4. I may have to do some reading to have any success with this one, it's definitely much more daunting than than the first one. Unfortunately, it'll have to wait until tomorrow.

Day 2:

Took a different route and got a little further this time, picking up Syfa along the way. I had to look up her name because I knew it sounded familiar, and sure enough you fight zombie versions of her, Grant and Trevor in Symphony of the Night, the only Castlevania game I can actually beat! The game is still relentless, and I wasn't able to get past the next stage's boss before getting game over.

Still, I continue to be impressed with this game visually. The ship level in particular was able to create a completely different environment from earlier stages.

Day 3:

So since this was my last night of play I decided to deviate a bit from my usual route and go try to pick up Grant. The clock tower stage was really impressive visually and mechanically compared to the first game, but ultimately I was unable to reach to the top.

After a couple resets I was able to again recruit Syfa and progress through most of the ship stage, where I once again hit a stopping point.

Conclusion:

I don't know that I'll ever be able to beat a proper Castlevania game, by which I mean anything that came out before Symphony of the Night. Even still, I had a ton of fun working my way through what I could of this one, and equally enjoyed noting all of its improvements over the original. The gameplay's as tight as ever and even though this game uses the same engine as the first, it manages to do new and amazing things with it.

While I initially had mixed feelings towards the branching paths, I came to appreciate them. The never detracted from the game, and it gave me reason to reset and explore different routes. Additionally, having multiple character to switch between was a nice touch. I was only able to spend a bit of time with Syfa, but she handled notably differently than Trevor, and her magic spells were fun to use in lieu of traditional Castlevania weaponry. All in all it was a great time, and surprisingly reminiscent of Super Castlevania IV.

Liked:

- Great graphics and stage design.
- Good music, though not as memorable as other entries'.
- Familiar, tight gameplay made conquering challenges feel fun and rewarding.
- Branching paths and multiple characters add a good amount of replay value to the game.

Disliked:

- Same issues as Castlevania, including iffy jump mechanics and accidental sub-weapon swapping.
- When the challenges were fair they were great, but occasionally you'd experience some really cheap deaths.

Personal Score: