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      Screens: Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow

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Text Box:   Castlevania: Aria of  Sorrow(GBA)   The second game of the Castlevania Double Pack is very entertaining, but also suffers from a few flaws that prevent it from being a sheer classic. Aria of Sorrow (AoS) focuses on Soma Cruz in the year 2035. Unknown to him, he inherited some dark powers after Dracula's death. Now, he has been brought to Dracula's Castle (which is sealed inside the solar eclipse) and his dark powers are awakening. This game relies on a soul system, where every enemy has a unique soul. If you obtain it, you can use it’s power. There are four kinds- Bullet souls, which are activated by pressing up and B (usually projectile attacks), Guardian souls (activated by pressing R), Enchant souls (passive abilities) and Ability souls (usually gained after beating bosses, these are special abilities such as High Jump and Double Jump). Unfortunately, unlike in Dawn of Sorrow (on Nintendo DS) where there was a huge variety across all the soul classes, nearly every soul in AoS is Bullet type, and of those, most are useless. This makes the whole thing feel pretty hollow. Another thing is the game feels pretty short when compared to the colossal Harmony of Dissonance (HoD). Fortunately, it makes up for this with some excellent level design. The game contains lots of really well-designed sections, a great blend of combat and exploration, and some really challenging bosses that- gasp!- require skill to defeat! Easily the best boss is when Soma is forced to fight Julius Belmont. Not only is it an excellent fight that tests your skill, it's also a great piece of storytelling. Unfortunately, as good as the game is, it also suffers from the curse of hindsight. While HoD is a pretty unique experience when compared to all the other GBA/DS games, AoS ends up feeling like a poor man's version of Dawn of Sorrow. Sure, it may have been one of the best Castlevanias ever upon release (according to some reviewers), but when comparing it to it's sequel, which featured more variation in the souls, the brilliant soul/weapon fusion system, and arguably superior level design and storytelling, AoS feels shallow and bare-bones by comparison. That may sound pretty negative, but it's also a bit misleading. At the end of the day, AoS is a very enjoyable game in it's own right, and Castlevania fans (or anyone who enjoys a good platformer) will find a lot to like.     By Mr_M new_coast_2003@hotmail.com    

 
Text Box:   Graphics: A- In a word - beautiful.   Sound: A- The score is more memorable than HoD’s score, and the sound effects are typically high quality.   Gameplay: B+ The levels and bosses are fantastic, but the soul system feels unbalanced and the game feels a bit too short.   Overall: B+ It may be short, but you’ll enjoy it while it lasts.
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