Castlevania: Curse of Darkness (PS2) - Reviews | Playstation 2

Castlevania: Curse of Darkness is an Action RPG game developed by Konami and published by Konami in 2005 for the Playstation 2.

Castlevania: Curse of Darkness

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Rating: 9.6 (6 votes)

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Castlevania: Curse of Darkness Reviews

Overall 9.6 Graphics 8 Sound 9 Addictive 9 Story 9 Depth 10 Difficulty 5

Castlevania meets Pokemon at last baileyface544
Gotta forge em all

Castlevania: Curse of Darkness is the second Castlevania game to appear on the PS2, following Lament of Innocence. It's a sequel to Castlevania 3 on the NES, of all things, and takes place 3 years after Trevor Belmont gave Dracula a thorough whipping. Still, Dracula's curse ravages the land, spreading disease, famine, violence, trench coats, and bad poetry.

The game follows Hector, who is not a Belmont. Hector is a former Pokémon master, and former BFF of Dracula. However, sometime during the war against Dracula, Hector betrayed him after constantly nagging him to stop slaughtering people did no good. After he helped bring down the fall of Dracula, he abandoned his dark powers that allowed him to forge new Pokémon (or "Devils" as the game keeps stubbornly calling them), and decided to have a normal life. He even got engaged to an allegedly beautiful women! However, this is a Castlevania game, so I'm sure you can guess how that turned out.

Curse of Darkness is a full 3D game, but manages to capture the essence of the Metrovania style of game play in a way that I feel no other 3D Castlevania has IMHO. Hector, not being a member of the Belmont "clan" does not have access to fetishistic whip that is a staple of the series. However, he does bring a host of weaponry with him. Including several different types of swords, axes, spears, hatchets, and a group of "special weapons" including everything from baseball bats to Gatling guns. He also has the devil forging ability, which allows him to create various types of creatures to aid him in battle, or to allow him to get pass certain terrain challenges. So yeah, he's well prepared. The devil forging ability is actually how you progress in the game. Hector must unlock his former powers bit by bit, which allows to create new types of Pokémon that will have abilities (or HMs if you prefer) you need to progress, or access hidden goodies. One can glide a short distance while carrying you, one can break through walls, one can even stop time temporarily. The impediments are mostly logical, and the solutions generally make sense (as far as super powered Creatures go). Some don't have the ability you need right away however, and must be evolved through battle (see, I don't make this Pokémon joke lightly) before they'll learn the ability needed. You can carry 6 with you, but only have one out at a time. I mean come on. You can even swap them mid battle. They do operate on an AI, but have abilities you can activate manually. Now, unlike Pokémon (except for maybe Eevee) each type can be evolved in multiple different ways, depending on which type of weapon Hector uses for some reason. And the weapons all have different combos and play styles. This lends the game a great deal of variety in combat, allowing you to try out different play styles till you find the one that is right for you. Or, if you're like me, you can keep switching it up to keep it interesting. It does have an rpg element to it, but doesn't punish you much for changing your style up. The storyline is one of the best in the series I think, and the entire ambiance fits what you would expect from a game about Dracula. Despite the serious tone of the game though, it includes several splashes of humor that are all the sweeter when contrasted against the games generally darker tone. Enough of my ramblings though, lets get to the breakdown.

Graphics

While there is nothing spectacular on this front, the graphics are fairly strong. Level design and character design is smooth, and dodge and attacks are animated pretty naturally. The different areas are pleasing, and many of the monsters look pretty cool. A lot of the areas, especially in the castle, could have used a bit more texturing however. I say especially the castle because you run into the issue some of the areas looking the same. This creates a problem of navigation. I was running in circles at one point, and didn't realize it till I started playing closer attention to the map. This is a strong symptom of bad level design Still, this isn't a problem you find very commonly throughout the game, and most areas are designed with a good bit of variety.

Sound

What can I say? It sounds like a Castlevania game. If you like gothic tunes played out on a piano, then the soundtrack has a lot to offer you. That's not entirely fair though. The soundtrack does a lot to set the tone of game play, and I can't think of any songs that weren't enjoyable to listen to, and didn't fit the ambiance of the area well. Voice acting is pretty decent, if a bit wonky at times. St. Germain in particular is a joy to listen to (love those smooth English accents). All the voice acting is pretty good though, the weakest being Hector himself unfortunately. All in all, this game has a soundtrack and voice acting that does not disappoint in the least, and does not get old.

Addictiveness

This game has a lot that will keep you playing. Combat is immersive , ambiance is nice and dark, and you have tons of things to collect and upgrade (which I'll cover in the depth section). It has a story that will hook you in, and enough versatility in combat and hidden bonuses to keep you entertained and exploring for hours on end. And trust me, you'll have plenty to explore. Also, plenty of different Poke mans and various ways to upgrade them. Most of this will be covered in other sections, but don't worry, this game has plenty to keep you playing. And plenty to offer in subsequent playthroughs, including a mode where you play as Trevor Belmont himself, equipped with whip and all.

Story

After the aforementioned betrayal of everyone's favorite bloodsucking wizard, our hero gave up his title of champion to settle down and find himself a wife. Unfortunately his wife soon discovered that she was in fact in a Castlevania game, and dutifully got herself murdered, as all wives must do in this series. This time, she was burned alive under accusations of being a witch. In this game your rival is a man named Isaac, who is another Pokémon master (or "Devil Forge master" if you prefer), and indeed, the only other one in the game. You see, he remained loyal to the evil Team Dracula, and is a bit upset by the fact you switched sides. He then shows up to reveal that it was indeed him who had the accusations pointed towards Hectors wife, and ultimately caused her death in order to let Hector know how upset with him he was. He then taunts Hector to try and seek revenge. However, domestic life has made Hector a bit doughy and slow, so Isaac tells him he must recover his lost Pokémon creating powers, get together a team of six, and eventually battle Isaac for the title of Pokémon champion again. Oh, and for his life. Can't forget that. Along his path to recover his lost dark powers gifted to him by the dark lord himself, he will meet a few people who's true motives are an enigma. People who may be friend, or may be foe. All of this leads up to a reveal that exposes a much larger plot than a mere quest for revenge, and uncovers a scheme beyond what Hector, and even Isaac realized.

For a Castlevania game, the story is very strong. One of the best in the series I think. It starts off very cliché, but really picks up with a lot of twist and turns. While the formula is largely the same on the surface, it goes about it in a new and refreshing way. It has a story that will really grab you, and characters that have actual depth. It does get a bit predictable, but a few moments caught me by surprise. And even when I knew what was coming, it was revealed in an interesting way that made it worth it.

Depth

For starters, this game eschews the hub based gameplay of the game before it, and returns to its sprawling levels, jam packed with tons of hidden areas, and tons of areas to return to when you gain new abilities. All of them interconnected. The game has a lot to explore, and offers a lot of reason to explore. As you return to areas, you'll still find plenty of random encounters that will let you level your Pokémon (I'm not calling them Devils, get over it), and evolve them in new and interesting ways. Also, a lot of materials to make new weapons to use, because Hector prefers to fight right along side his companions. A lot of these weapons are varied and different as well. You can even unlock Death's Scythe as a weapon at a certain point in the game. Who doesn't want that? In addition, you will be able to unlock several different types of Pokémon through the course of the game to battle beside you, each serving a myriad of different functions. Some can heal you, some cast spells, some are brutes, some prefer aerial combat, and some can teach you value of friendship and teamwork. Well, maybe not that last one, but you get the picture. And apart from all the power-ups you can find scattered across the stages, you can also find various chairs to sit in that will give you a description, and later will be featured in a special room. Apparently fighting the forces of darkness gets pretty tiring, and Hector greatly appreciates his moments of relaxation. Even if you opt to just run past all the extras, the main game has a sizable length, and a lot to offer. Curse of darkness sets you in a sprawling world, and makes sure you never get bored in it. And getting tired of Hector? Wish you could whip enemies into submission and fling holy water and axes at them? Beat the game, and you unlock Trevor Belmont himself. Then, you get to run though the entire game again gaining new upgrades, and taking a classic approach to combat. Trevor if fun, and frankly he's pretty awesome. No Pokemon though. It's a wonder they let him past the tall grass....

Difficulty

This is game is fairly easy to pick up. Controls are fluid, and combat is fine tuned for the system. I never had any real technical issues that got in the way of gameplay. Now, while the game offered a pretty decent challenge at first, with the right summon, and the right weapon, the game got laughably easy. Some of the boss fights still presented an interesting challenge, but mostly you just sped though the normal enemies with the right powers. While disappointing, it's common with games that have RPG elements like this. However, if it's sucking the challenge out of the game for you, and you're not having any fun, you can always use something else. Just sayin.

Victory Road

Castlevania: Curse of Darkness is 3D game that manages to capture what made the 2D games fun, while adding in a treasure chest full of new ideas that brought a fresh take to the game. I'd defiantly recommend this game. It's a game that sounds great, and looks great for the most part. A game that will have you going all through the labyrinth of levels, and enjoying every second of it. A game that gives you a ton of choices on how you want to approach combat, and a game that brings a strong story to a series not known for it's story telling. While nothing in this game was quite revolutionary, I couldn't think of a single weak area. An innovative game for the series, and I still think it's easily the best 3D game Castlevania has to offer.

It's very clear that this game desires to be the very best, like no game ever was....

It's ok, the Pokemon puns are over now. Your safe.

Graphics 8 Sound 9 Addictive 9 Story 9 Depth 10 Difficulty 5
Review Rating: 3/5 Submitted: 09-25-14 Review Replies: 3

Castlevania: Curse of Darkness Box Description

Vengeance Runs Deep...
Fueled by revenge for the murder of his true love, the Devil Forgemaster Hector returns to the ruins of Dracula's Castle to punish those he once fought alongside, unaware of the sinister plot that has been orchestrated to lure him home.

Master the dark art of Devil Forgery to summon up Innocent Devils as allies

Level up by destroying the evil creatures of the night

Collect evolution crystals to develop and enhance your innocent devils

Acquire a wide variety of powerful new weapons and abilities

Explore the biggest 3D Castlevania world yet!

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Castlevania: Curse of Darkness (PS2) - Reviews | Playstation 2