Castlevania: Curse of Darkness
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| Castlevania: Curse of Darkness | ||||||||||||
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 "So be it. I must descend into darkness and reclaim that accursed power once more... Heed my words. I will hunt you down like the beast you are. I will have my revenge!"
— Hector | ||||||||||||
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Castlevania: Curse of Darkness is a 2005 action role-playing game developed and published by Konami. It is the fourth 3D Castlevania title, following Castlevania: Lament of Innocence (2003), and was released for PlayStation 2 and Xbox in all regions except Japan, where the game was only available on PlayStation 2.
Curse of Darkness received mixed to positive reviews, with praise for its combat system, music, content, and replay value, while criticism fell towards its story, characters, repetitive level design, and gameplay.
Gameplay
A 3D game like Lament of Innocence before it, Curse of Darkness is said to differ from its predecessor in a number of ways, including a more complex, action/adventure style of gameplay, much like Symphony of the Night and Aria of Sorrow. As Hector is not a member of the Belmont clan, he will not be limited to the traditional "Vampire Killer" whip and will have the ability (much like Alucard and Soma Cruz) to equip a variety of different weapons. However, there is an extra gameplay mode after finishing the game that allows players to play as Trevor Belmont, equipped with the "Vampire Killer" and the classic sub-weapons (knife, holy water, axe, etc.).
Departing from the central hub level layout of Lament of Innocence, wherein the player chooses from a number of distinct stages all accessible from a central hallway, Curse of Darkness is said to be a more complete game world, with a complete castle map as in Symphony of the Night. However, the game still uses the same map engine as Lament of Innocence, rather than the square-based grid of 2-D Castlevanias. Furthermore, a noticeable difference in level design is that much of the game does NOT take place in Dracula's castle, but rather exploring forests, mountains and villages in Europe. The player will be also aided by Innocent Devils (creatures developed by Hector himself), through the Devil Forgery skill, in order to defeat enemies and solve puzzles within the game.
Why It Rocks
- The game features a more complex, action/adventure style of gameplay, much like Symphony of the Night and Aria of Sorrow. The game can be best described as a 3D version of the two Metroidvania games.
- The protagonist can equip a variety of different weapons ranging from swords (both one handed and two handed), spears, axes, etc.
- Detailed graphics.
- Awesome soundtrack.
- Hack and slash gameplay similar to that of Dynasty Warriors.
- Raise and evolve creatures called "Innocent Devils", which help the protagonist in combat and to solve puzzles.
- Curse of Darkness features a more complete and open game world, unlike the hub mechanic than its predecessor.
- Many craftable items and equipment, which can only be created by gathering the necessary materials.
- An extra gameplay mode after finishing the game that allows players to play as Trevor Belmont, equipped with the "Vampire Killer".
- Many secrets and unlockables.
- Exciting and varied boss battles.
- Up to 40-60 hours of gameplay.
Reception
The game was generally well received, generating mid to high review scores. Common praises often go to the game's battle system, the Innocent Devil system and musical score.