Castlevania games *: The Dracula X Chronicles for PSP is an enhanced remake of Japan's * X: Rondo of Blood, originally released in 1993 for the PC Engine. Players will control one of two characters, Richter Belmont and Maria Renard, while advancing through nine side-scrolling stages filled with monsters. Several levels offer branching paths leading to alternate exits, increasing the total...

The crusade against the vampire Dracula continues, as * debuts on DS with this fast-paced fighting adventure. Serving as a sequel to the GBA's *: Aria of Sorrow (2003), Dawn of Sorrow returns players to the role of Soma Cruz, a noble hero who struggles to resist his accursed call to join the forces of evil. Players can enhance...

Konami's whip-wielding, vampire-killing series makes its PlayStation 2 debut with *: Lament of Innocence. Set in the 11th century, the game traces the origins of the Belmont family through the story of original vampire hunter Leon Belmont. As with * and *: Legacy of Darkness on Nintendo 64, the game eschews the standard 2D format in which the series...

Brave gamers shed new light on the mysterious legends of Dracula in Curse of Darkness, 2005's cross-console chapter in Konami's long-running, horror-themed action series, *. The 3D combat game's story is set soon after the events of the NES' * III: Dracula's Curse, but instead of casting players as another stalwart adventurer from the heroic Belmont line, it puts...

Whenever Dracula rises from the dead, a Belmont is there, ready to invade the ever-changing castle and send Dracula back to the hell that spawned him. In this * adventure, the man who started it all once again returns to the stage. Simon Belmont will have to whip his way through the dark halls of the Lord Vampire's castle,...

Released in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the hugely influential Nintendo Entertainment System console (which first appeared in Japan as the Famicom, in 1984), the "Classic NES Series" of Game Boy Advance cartridges present accurate versions of original NES games, for play on the handheld. In *, you take the role of Simon Belmont to defeat the most terrible...

Celebrating 20 years of vampire hunting, Konami releases 2006's * Double Pack. The cartridge includes updated versions of 2002's *: Harmony of Dissonance and 2003's *: Aria of Sorrow. In Harmony of Dissonance, the RPG adventure begins as Juste Belmont, descendant of Simon Belmont, is informed his friend has been kidnapped. Play as Juste and crack the whip against...

Following two acclaimed GBA releases, the classic side-scrolling combat series returns to the portable platform for more monster slaying and demon hunting. Adding to the clever variety of enemies and tricky castle levels that have helped define the series over the previous 16 years, this adventure allows the hero to collect the "souls" of defeated enemies and take on ...

Konami's long-running vampire series makes its debut on the Game Boy Advance with *: Circle of the Moon. On a moonlit evening of 1830, cultist followers of Dracula prepare a ritual to reawaken their dark lord. Aging vampire hunter Morris Baldwin, accompanied by his son Hugh and apprentice Nathan Graves, storm the Austrian castle but are too late to...

A follow-up to *: Circle of the Moon, *: Harmony of Dissonance casts players in the role of vampire hunter Juste Belmont, a descendent of * III's Trevor Belmont. Players will once again explore a castle, avoiding spikes, and other hazards along the way, while battling gothic monsters. As part of the Belmont lineage, Juste is outfitted with a...

*: Legacy of Darkness is the prequel to 1998's * on Nintendo 64, the first game in Konami's seminal vampire-hunting series to feature 3D graphics. Players guide a mysterious character named Cornell from a third-person viewpoint while advancing through 14 levels in Wallachia, Transylvania. The setting takes place eight years before the events from the first N64 game, and players will revisit many of the same areas in and around Dracula's castle. Lead protagonist Cornell is an unusual * hero due to his ability to transform into a werewolf. The man-beast is forced into action after finding his village engulfed in flames and his sister Ada kidnapped for some diabolical purpose. With a hunger for vengeance and a thirst for blood, Cornell must track his sister's scent and save her from whatever accursed creature may have abducted her. Along the way, players will battle skeletons, vampires, dragons, lizardmen, and other monsters before eventually confronting the legendary Dracula in his castle. Jewels left behind by fallen enemies allow Cornell to transform into a wolf or to replenish stockpiles of holy water, crosses, axes, and knives. Time is once again an important element in the game. Players can acquire moon and sun cards to alter time, allowing them to solve puzzles or to trigger events otherwise unavailable at night or during the day. Before the arrival of Reinhardt Schneider and Carrie Fernandez, Dracula, Lord of Darkness, is just starting to stir. Now the call to his bloodthirsty...