Every Castlevania Game Ranked, According to Critics | CBR – CBR – Comic Book Resources

Castlevania is one of gaming's most iconic franchises. Here's what critics have said about the series' main home console installments.

Castlevaniais one of Konami most enduring video game franchises, following the Belmont Clan as different generations battle Dracula and his minions for the fate of humanity. Launched in 1986, the series has spawned numerous sequels and spinoffs on virtually every major home and handheld consoles before its eventual reboot with the Lords of Shadow trilogy in 2010.

Here is a comprehensive ranking of all the series' main home console installments before the reboot, withrankings based on an aggregate of critical scores. Note that1989's Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse is not included, as itdoes not have enough scores from major publications available to receive an aggregate.

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The lowest-ranked installment in the main franchise is 1987's Castlevania II: Simon's Quest, released for the Famicom in Japan before its eventual worldwide release on the NES. A direct sequel to the original game, Simon's Quest had the eponymous Belmont discover his wounds from his previous fight with Draculahaven'thealed andaresteadily worsening. To lift the curse, Simonmustrecover parts of Dracula's corpse to resurrect him and kill him all over again.

A significant departure from the original game, Simon's Quest features non-linear level progression, an RPG experience system, equippable items and a day/night cycle. While its increased scope and depth, along with improved graphics and audio, were praised, critics have cited its obtuse, vague puzzles and constant backtracking as elements that detract from its overall experience,

The last home console installment in the main series before the reboot, 2005's Curse of Darkness was released for the PlayStation 2 and original Xbox. A direct sequel to Dracula's Curse, the 2005 title follows Hector, a Devil Forgemaster who helped create Dracula's monstrous armies before deserting his vampiric master. As Dracula's influence continues to devastate the Transylvanian countryside after his death at the hands of Trevor Belmont, Hector ventures back into the castle to hunt down his old friend Isaac after learning he was responsible for the death of Hector's fiancee.

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Critics praised Curse of Darkness' expanded, refined combat gameplay in comparison to its 3D immediate predecessor Lament of Innocence. However,some regarded the overall experience as repetitive and monotonous, with the art and level design coming off as uninspired and lacking the haunting atmosphere associated with the franchise.

The game that started it allwas helmed by Hitoshi Akamatsu as a clear love letter to classic horror cinema, with a particular emphasis on the Hammer Horror filmsstarring Christopher Lee as Dracula. Set in 1691, Simon Belmont ventures into Dracula's castle to slay the vampire and save Transylvania from his tyranny and army of ravenous monsters.

One of the first major games released for the NES, retrospective reviews have since praised the game's scope and technical achievements early in the NES era while criticizing its steep learning curve and high difficulty as aspects of the game that have not aged well in the 30 years since its debut.

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Castlevania's first foray into 3D gameplay was in 1999 on the Nintendo 64 in an eponymous title meant to signal a new beginning for the franchise, though it's colloquially referred to as "Castlevania 64." Following Reinhardt Schneider and Carrie Fernandez as they set out to destroy Dracula in the 19th century, an enhanced edition of the game,Legacy of Darkness, includes a prequel with the man-beast Cornellventuring into the castle to rescue his sister Ada eight years beforeReinhardt and Carrie's adventures.

While contemporary reviews laud the franchise's transition into 3D, more modern assessments cite dated graphics, an awkward combat system and clumsy camera perspectives among the game's shortcomings. While generally regarded as an improvement by fans, Legacy of Darkness actually scored lower at 63.8, with reviewers noting that it isn't a significant step-up from its predecessor and failsas a standalone title. Longtime franchise producer Koji Igarashi would distance himself from the two N64 games, omitting them from his official series canon.

One of the most acclaimed Castlevania games didn't see a full release in North America until14 yearsafteritreleased for the Turbo Grafx-16 in Japan. A significantly modified port of Rondo of Blood would be released three years later for theSNES in North America as Dracula X and in Europe as Vampire's Kiss. Set in 1792, the game followed Richter Belmont as he set out to rescue several women kidnapped by Dracula, including his beloved Annette.

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Rondo of Blood was included with the Dracula X Chronicles on the PlayStation Portable in 2007 andreceived aWii Virtual Console port the following year. The game was widely praised for its art and level design, soundtrack, the inclusion of secret playable character Maria Renard and branching levels with secret exits. It's also been recognized as one of the series' more difficult games. Dracula X/Vampire's Kissare generally consideredinferior to the original, scoring 71.Critics notemost ofRondo of Blood's innovationswere removed for theSNES' hardware.

Determined to improve upon the 3D gameplay from the N64 titles, 2003's Lament of Innocence marked the franchise's debut on the PlayStation 2 and served as a soft reinventionof the series. Introducing the first vampire-hunting Belmont, Leon, in 1094, the crusader returns home to discover his fiancee, Sara, has been kidnapped by the vampire lord Walter Bernhardt. As Leon enters Walter's castle, the game reveals the tragic origins ofthe Belmont family's grudge against Dracula and the legendary Vampire Killer whip.

Lament of Innocence'sgameplay and combat system was generally regarded as an overall improvement to Legacy of Darkness, receiving comparisons toCapcom's Devil May Cry franchise. Critics also praised its haunting level design and tone, though they note that, despite theatmosphere, the game itself wasrather repetitive and lacked depth.

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As Castlevania made the transition to the 16-bit era on the Super Nintendo, thedevelopersrevisitedSimon's initial battle against Dracula. 1991's Super Castlevania IV was designed to take full advantage of theSNES' hardware, including its Mode 7 graphics and improved sound design.

Lauded as one of the best titles in the entire franchise, a distinction that has held upin modern reviews, critics praised the level design and heightened horror-tinged tone of the game. They especially enjoyed the improved controls,particularly for Simon's use of the whip, which was seen asa welcome leap forward.

Initially envisioned as a side story to the franchise while Rondo of Blood continued the main series' overarching story, Bloodlines -- released in Europe as The New Generation due to local censorship standards -- became a well-regarded game in its own right. Released in 1993 for the Sega Genesis/MegaDrive, Bloodlines revealed World War I had been orchestrated by the vampiric Elizabeth Bartley to resurrect her uncle Dracula, with John Morris and Eric LeCarde setting out to stop her.

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Hailed as one of the best Genesis titles, Bloodlines was praised for its level design, two radically different playable characters and haunting atmosphere. However, some regarded it as astep down from Super Castlevania IV. In any case, its overall scoremakes it the second highest-ranked Castlevania game in the main series.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest video games of all time,1997'sSymphony of the Nighttops the list.The original PlayStation title takes place four years after the events of Rondo of Blood, with Richter disappearing after the mysteriousreemergenceof Dracula's castle despite the vampire's apparent death at his hands. In his absence, Dracula's dhampir son Alucard awakens from his lengthy slumber to investigate the castle for himself.

With its non-linear level design, emphasis on exploration, effectively moody atmosphere and score, and RPG-oriented gameplay, Symphony of Night was universally acclaimed fordeparting from the franchise's established formulaand chart a new direction for the series. Re-released for every subsequent Sony console,plus ports on the Xbox 360, Sega Saturn and mobile devices, Symphony of Night continues to thrill gamers over 20 yearsafter its initial release.

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Every Castlevania Game Ranked, According to Critics | CBR - CBR - Comic Book Resources

Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero