LordTheNightKnight

User Score
8.0

Presentation - 7.0
Gameplay - 7.5
Value - 7.5

If you've played one Castlevania game in this style, you've still played a pretty good game. It's just this one seemed to have the idea of polish, but don't really add anything new. While it feels satisfying, it just doesn't reach any further than that.

The story is servicable, but I won't go into details to avoid spoilers.

Presentation:

The sound is great technically, and shows the DS can do a lot with sound mixing. But aside from a few tunes, the music follows the same idea. Aside from the village, nothing really stood out for me.

Graphics benefitted from this idea the most. The castle doesn't look as artistically pretty as Symphony of the Night, but it does come pretty close, and many of the sprites are even more detailed.

So with an average score and a well above average graphics, the presentation is solid, if safe. 7

Gameplay:

It's basically the same gameplay as Aria of Sorrow, with a few tweaks. Different souls can be aquired, you get the power to switch between two equiment sets later on, and weapons can be powered up by using souls.

Where the gamplay stands out is the balance. Even if you have favorite equipment and souls to use, nothing is so much more powerful than the others. There will be times you swap a weapon for one more appropriate.

So even though I wasn't that impressed by the gameplay, I still find it does its job. 7.5

Value:

It's a good game, but if you can't get it for more than $30, there might be other options. 7.5

Overall:

Again, still a good game. I would recomment the Castelvania Double Pack over this, but it's still a good game if you want another Symphony of the Night variant, or if you have a DS and haven't tried one berore. 8