Rainbow Chara X
Impossible to gauge!
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(Originally uploaded on February 6th, 2016 - the original was not put up on the blogs)
Would you look at that, it's a game I actually like and own! Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow is the third of the Gameboy Advance Castlevanias... which doesn't really matter given how none of them are directly connected to each other.
Aria is the best of the GBA Trio and a fine Metroidvania in its own right, with Metroidvania being a term for a kind of game that utilizes Metroid-like exploration and map design with RPG elements. The trend was born with Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, renowned as one of the best games of all time. (I thought it was great, anyway)
Aria and its DS sequel Dawn of Sorrow have some unique gameplay features that, in my opinion, are hella rad. I would definitely recommend this as an entry game into the series due to it being just right in terms of difficulty. (Circle of the Moon is punishing and while Harmony of Dissonance can be difficult at times, proper manipulation of its physics can break the game with a simple well-aimed poke. That bad.)
I'll admit. Going from a relatively easy to LP game like Pokemon to a straight-up action RPG like Aria of Sorrow is going to take some getting used to. Then again, this game is much shorter and bearable than something like Snakewood (which, in hindsight, was a hell of a first LP - it still remains like that even today!) so that's good. Let's slam jam.
Chapter #1 - Black Sun
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Spoiler:
[Current audio in-game: Name Entry]
I'll start this off by saying that Aria of Sorrow is actually one of my least favorites when it comes to soundtracks in the Castlevania series. It's not bad by any stretch of the imagination, because the soundtrack is still good at giving the appropriate atmosphere. However, there's only a handful of tracks in the game that I really like... so you got me.
Oh yes, I should probably explain. The Belmonts are a clan of vampire hunters that wield a holy whip called the Vampire Killer. They are one of the constants in the Castlevania mythos along with Dracula and his castle.
They're primarily the main playable characters in the Classic Castlevanias (aka. stage-to-stage platformers with no RPG elements) with the biggest exception being John Morris and Eric Lecarde in Castlevania: Bloodlines. Aria of Sorrow plays around with these two concepts, but saying any more would probably spoil the game.
Naming the file "Belmont" does nothing, though. I put it in because I felt uncreative, but in the process I wound up becoming the exposition fairy. How about that.
[Current audio in-game: Prologue]
"The year is 2035. Japan. Crowds of spectators are gathering around in anticipation of the first full solar eclipse of the twenty-first century. My name is Soma Cruz, and I am a high school exchange student studying abroad in Japan."
I should mention that Aria does something interesting with the setting: It takes place in the goddamn future. Other games in the franchise take place in the far past, like in the 1500s and the 1700s. This game is also the most "animesque" of the series, given how we're starting off with a foreign exchange student that's bound to have special magic powers.
The solar eclipse thing is real, by the way - NASA is predicting it'll happen in 2035 and apparently the game creators got their idea from this.
Narration: "I live near the Hakuba shrine, an ancient shrine with strong ties to Japanese mythology.Mina Hakuba, the only daughter of the shrine's caretaker, is both my classmate and my only childhood friend."
... The only way I can make sense of this is if Soma met Mina in the past and went to Japan because of her or something. I mean, they're both 18.
"The pitch black sun is holding chaotic darkness together, trying to rouse a sleeping soul as if looking for its missing other half..."
Soma is oddly poetic with his descriptions sometimes. Then again, he's about that age to be making really flowery prose.
[A bat flies into the moon, with the shadow of a castle fading in and out]
... Oh. This is gonna be one of those days, isn't it.
[Current audio in-game: Sacred Cave]
Well then. We're inside a European castle in the middle of Japan. Can't get any better, can it?
Take a look at that character art. Shame that the next few games don't have the same artist, because Soma (and friends) look absolutely fabulous.
Wow, what an ass.
At least Soma has the sense to ask questions, unlike some other white-haired teenagers I could name.
I can't really blame Soma for being intimidated by a man in black with a no-nonsense attitude, especially given how we're in unfamiliar territory.
what
HOW?!
Well, the situation has certainly escalated to say the least.
Soma reacts like any normal person would in this situation, as bizarre as it may be.
MINA YOU'RE NOT HELPING
I like this guy already.
[Current audio in-game: Confrontation]
HOT DAMN ARIKADO IS BADASS
Also, uh... we turned around for one second and suddenly monsters surround us without warning? Man, good thing this guy was around otherwise we would have been brown bread for sure.
Oh come on. You can't even take out this one, Aluc--I mean, Arikado?
Soma, you cheeseball.
[A red sphere flies out of the skeleton's body and Soma absorbs it. He lets out an agonized yell]
Soma just beat up a skeleton in Dracula's Castle in the middle of an eclipse and absorbed the skeleton's soul.
What a start, huh?
[Current audio in-game: A Premonition]
An extremely interesting power to have for sure. This is the main gameplay feature of the Sorrow duology, but I'll explain more after this cutscene.
Okay dude, we get it. We don't need to be told over and over, boss man.
"But death will most certainly find those who stay here too long."
Poor Soma just wanted to go on a date with his obvious girlfriend. Too bad he got cockblocked by the forces of darkness.
Alright, now that I've got control of Soma, I should show off some of the mechanics in the game.
Soma is probably one of the most interesting Metroidvania protagonists in the franchise.
He has the ability to absorb monster souls! They come in four flavors:
Monster souls are randomly dropped whenever you kill an enemy, and there are some monsters that have very low drop rates. However, there's also plot-related souls and ones that are hanging out in the open for you to take, so don't worry about getting stuck.
The equipment screen is more of your standard fare, but I have serious questions for Soma's equipment.
First, this 18 year old high school student going to see the eclipse with his girlfriend had a pocket knife with him. I can't be the only person that sees anything wrong with this.
Secondly, casual clothes?
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Yeah, let's just go with that.
[Current audio in-game: Castle Corridor]
Anyway, enough messing around. Let's get this party started.
Castle Corridor is probably one of my favorite tracks in the game, and how appropriate that it's the first level theme you hear.
Name: Zombie
HP: 18
EXP: 1
Strength: Darkness
Weakness: Holy, Weapons
Drops: Cloth Tunic (common), Baselard (rare)
Description: "A rotting corpse animated by magic."
Soul effect (
Soma's Thoughts: "I'm not scared of zombies!"
Oh no, zombies! Bah, they're no real threat though. Just smack them twice and they'll go down in a snap.
Each new enemy I come across will get a short summary of their stats and what their Soul does if you manage to get it. The Zombie soul reverses the effects of Poison - in this game, Poison reduces all of your stats by a considerable amount but doesn't actually deplete your HP. Since I can only really name one enemy where the zombie soul would be useful, it's just a novelty if I get it.
The zombies don't just fall over and die, they explode into guts and a shower of blood. It's tipped off with one of the coolest splatter noises I've heard too. (god I must sound sadistic)
Showing off the Winged Skeleton soul. It's actually pretty good since it hits twice if you get it in the right spot.
That and it's stronger than our suspicious crummy knife.
Ah yes, the mysterious candles. See, in the entire Castlevania series, you can break candles and get either hearts (which in this game restore MP) or money if your MP is full.
I have no idea how you get such things from candles or why we would possibly need money in a place like this, but it's that old Castlevania magic.
Name: Bat
HP: 1
EXP: 1
Strength: Nothing
Weakness: Weapons
Drops: Nothing
Description: "A bloodsucking bat that lurks in the castle."
Soul effect (
Soma's Thoughts: "I've never liked bats."
Bats are the weakest enemy in the entire series and only serve to annoy you. The soul is just as impressive, because it's a small sound wave that surrounds Soma's body and that's about it. You'd get it once and forget it even existed.
Hey, an actual weapon! Good thing these are just lying around everywhere for me to take.
Name: Merman
HP: 20
EXP: 2
Strength: Ice
Weakness: Weapons, Fire, Curse (It makes enemies move slower)
Drops: Nothing
Description: "Lives close to the shore and attacks anything that comes near it."
Soul effect (
Soma's Thoughts:"Fish-men are real? Just what is going on in this castle?"
Mermen, like zombies, spawn infinitely. They're just as dangerous, meaning you could walk past them without a second thought. Their soul, on the other hand, is pretty good as it gives Soma an early-game elemental attack.
Plus, it looks hilarious due to how it looks like Soma is spitting out giant loogies.
... I'll take it!
Anyway, see that bronze-like statue with a soul inside it? It's free of charge.
Many of these souls in statues reference monsters from other games in the series, but let me tell you about backdashing.
See, you can cancel out your jumping attack animation if you land and do another attack instantly. Backdashing also cancels out the attack animation, which translates into mega damage if you get the rhythm down.
I've seen TASes of this game where they could annihilate a boss in short order just by using a sword and the attack cancelling thing. It's both crazy and dynamic-looking.
What's all this about? The Virgin Mary holding some sort of orange fire...
Believe it or not, these are our save rooms for the game. Save rooms in the Castlevania series are the most reliable way to restore all of your health and magic, as there aren't usually enough consumable items to go around. They're a godsend (cough) even when I have savestates to back me up.
Just a heads-up. If you see doors and hallways like these, you're going to transition into an entirely new area.
[Current audio in-game: Underground Reservoir]
Have a peek of this place before it's time to actually make progress in here.
Name: Tiny Devil
HP: 20
EXP: 8
Strength: Darkness
Weakness: Holy
Drops: Mind Up (rare)
Description: "This demon is quite terrifying, despite its small size."
Soul effect (
Soma's Thoughts:"Aww, this little guy looks cu- oh crap, did he just shoot something at me?"
The Tiny Devil is pretty annoying to hit due to how it zooms across the map, even more so if you don't have an overhead weapon like you probably will for most of the game. Thankfully, they're rather squishy and the soul they have is neat. It shoots three crescent blades, which could be useful for the early game as you won't really have good overhead weapons at this point.
Name: Skeleton
HP: 20
EXP: 3
Strength: Darkness
Weakness: Holy
Drops: Nothing
Description: "A magically animated human skeleton."
Soul effect (
Soma's Thoughts:* Resists urge to sing Spooky Scary Skeletons *
Look at this dapper fellow. The Skeleton is one of the most common enemies in the entire series and have the most variations, rivaled only by the Armor enemies. They can throw either a nondescript bone or they could pop off their head and throw it at you. If you hit their head while it's in mid air, it has an audible conk sound effect and flies off at mach speed. It's hilarious.
The soul is simple but effective due the bone going up in an arc. It could be nice if you don't have an alternative to get rid of airborne enemies.
Luck is another curious stat in these games. It helps calculate Soul and item drops, but it doesn't really matter how much you raise your Luck. As it turns out, maximum Luck (99) only leads to a piddly 2.97 percentage increase. (Or something like that)
Maxed out luck barely increases the drop rate. That's just bad.
I'll use other stat boosting equipment, thank you.
Name: Killer Fish
HP: 25
EXP: 10
Strength: Ice
Weakness: Fire
Drops: Tasty Meat (rare)
Description: "A large man-eating fish. Rumored to be quite tasty."
Soul effect (
Soma's Thoughts: "Hey, this actually looks pretty good to eat... I just need a barbecue."
Killer Fish are deceptively annoying. The only way you could hit them now is by jumping in and out of the water and they're not much of a threat.
The soul is funny though. If you use it out of water, a tiny Killer Fish appears but goes pbblt and spontaneously combusts.
Remind me to come back here when I have Double Jump. I'm serious, I forgot this existed on some prior playthroughs of the game.
How is there a plate of cooked meat in here? Did someone drop it down here? I'm curious as to how it's not soggy...
Oh well, mine!
If you press Select, you can bring up the map. This shows the entire castle, not just the area you're in. That 2.9% at the top right is how much we've uncovered, which means we've got a ton of exploring to do.
Oh, and I got the Skeleton soul on my way back.
This entire hallway just has Skeletons. See what I mean by common?
Name: Axe Armor
HP: 60
EXP: 10
Strength: Nothing
Weakness: Electricity, Stone
Drops: Leather Plate (common)
Description: "An armored soldier that wields an axe."
Soul effect (
Soma's Thoughts:"... Who's inside the armor?"
Axe Armors are bodybuilding maniacs compared to the monsters before this room. They can throw axes that shoot forward and come back in boomerang fashion, as bizarre as that sounds.
They're pretty bulky and the axes hurt quite a bit, so you better be careful.
Oh, and this happens when you kill them. Metal.
If you see a door like this, it's a boss. The design varies throughout the other games, but there should usually be a save room nearby to prepare yourself.
Name: Skull Archer
HP: 42
EXP: 5
Strength: Darkness
Weakness: Holy
Drops: Nothing
Description: "A skeleton archer."
Soul effect (
Soma's Thoughts:"I've always feared the day of having to fight archers. Let alone skeleton archers."
Skull Archers are as simple as their name implies. That said, don't attack them with close-quarter weapons. I'm talking from experience.
If you use its soul intelligently, it could be useful. Then again, it fires too slowly to be of any real use even if you jam Up+B.
Anyway, let's go through the boss door.
[Current audio in-game: A Formidable Foe Appears]
(Backdash in action)
Name: Creaking Skull
HP: 240
EXP: 110
Strength: Darkness
Weakness: Holy
Drops: N/A
Description: "A giant corpse whose body collapsed under its own weight."
Soul effect (
Soma's Thoughts: "How does this thing exist?!"
Say hello to Creaking Skull, the first boss in the game. It's not hard to dodge his attacks because he leaves himself wide open, but he hits hard. He hits for 58 damage. To compare, Axe Armor only does 17 or so.
Funnily enough, despite being the first boss you fight, Creaking Skull's soul is one of the most useful in the game. It's a Guardian soul that summons a giant skeleton arm out of your back that works in tandem with your own attacks. It's pretty great, but it's a random chance if Creaking Skull drops it.
I don't think it's a spoiler to say that he reappears later on as a regular enemy, right? Because that's definitely something that happens.
He can shoot fire out of his mouth somehow, which hits just as hard as the giant bone club that could crush a normal person. Soma is not a normal person.
Leveling up is not usually accompanied by this blinding flash of light, but it's still cool.
[Creaking Skull's body falls apart and a glowing orb materializes out of thin air]
That orb is a Castlevania tradition that appears every time you kill a boss. It heals you back to full, which is especially nice if you're in the middle of a dangerous area and haven't saved yet.
Little touches like the map in front of the Save Room are great. It sort of guides you into there without being told anything.
Anyway, that's enough Castlevania for one night. See you next time for the next chapter!