Castlevania Legends
Game by Konami
Review by The Avardancer
Size: 4 megabits
Save: Password, symbol-based, four characters
Released: 1997
Works with: Any version of Gameboy

Opening Snide Remarks: After the lackluster other Castlevania games on
Gameboy this one shows up and claims to be actually part of the real series.
Then it claims to be the pre-quel to the Castlevania series. That's cool;
but it's also a little suspicous.

Gameplay: Hmm. This plays well, and it plays just a little like "Symphony of
the Night". You must search for Mystical items, and weapons to beat evil
bosses. You also need hearts for using your magic items; and you must avoid
TONS of enemies that are always placed at akward angles. There's also a
story and some drama with Alucard and Dracula. (Did I ruin anything? I hope
not...) I think that Alucard likes Sonia Belmont. Oh, wait. This is the
FIRST Castlevania game to have a FEMALE heroine! There's also a mode that
lets you play with fully-powered up weapons all the time! This is a definate
plus; because the game is pretty hard; and some of the bosses are near
impossible. I think that compared to some games, Sonia walks a bit slow; but
the game is still pretty fun.

Graphics: The graphics are great; the animation is good. Though some of it
is a little questionable; when ever you activate "Burning Power" Sonia sticks
her chest out and leans back. (It's hard to describe.) The Supur Gameboy
Border sucks. It does. The Color Pallettes stink too. This game doesn't make
good use of the Super Gameboy at all. Oh, well. It's easy to see on the
Gameboy Pocket and the Gameboy Original. I'm a little surprised that the
religious elements in the graphics are intact. The last battle takes place
in a church. (Huh?) Actually, the graphics litterally drip with Gothic Noir
and a little bit of Roman Catholic. Maybe, that means that Sonia was a
Catholic Schoolgirl and Catholic Schoolgirls rule. The graphics also include
some various nice close-up shots of the main character. The game has a fairly
good frame rate and a nice bit of detail.

Sound: The whip sounds okay. The sounds can become annoying sometimes. The
game really doesn't have much in the way of basic sounds. A few sounds seem
out of place for the on-screen actions.

Music: Ditto. Some of the music is classic Castlevania tunes that some
people may recognize; but some of it is annoying.

Play Control: It's a little touchy at times; but it works. I do however
seem to set off my spirit power weapons at the wrong times; because of
the delicate control.

Final Analysis: Do you like Castlevania? This is the best one on Gameboy.
It's a worthy purchase. I liked it and I own it. The game is pretty fun.
Fans of the series may like it.

Score
Gameplay: ****
Graphics: *****
Sound: ***
Music: ****
Play Control: ****
Total:20 out of 25

Final Score 80%

Currently Known Codes
Here's your password: Enter Meat, Candle, Candle, Meat.
This takes you to the last level and gives you all the items
and soul weapons on the Light Mode difficulty.