Castlevania Advance Collection Reviews

If you don't have actual nostalgia for this era of Castlevania, then you might find Aria of Sorrow is the only one that truly holds up well. Don't get me wrong: Circle of the Moon and Harmony of Dissonance aren't bad, but they're undercooked by comparison and they feel like the earlier drafts of the same idea that they are. But if you were playing these games at the time they came out they're well preserved here.

Great collection. Some performance issues when you tab out at times, but otherwise this is the definitive way to play the classic GBA Castlevania ARPGs. I personally recommend to play them in order. Play however you want to, don't be afraid to look up stuff, and have fun. GLHF

This review is not to say that these games are bad, or even that the emulation is bad. M2's emulation is rock solid, as always. However, this collection is... lacking. For one, there's the glaring PC only issue where it always launches in Windowed mode and you have to hit Alt+Enter to switch to Fullscreen, there is no in-game menu option for it and it cannot be done with a controller. I haven't attempted to try to run it on Steam Deck because I'm worried that will be a headache to deal with. I wish I had purchased this on Switch for that reason alone, or maybe even gone the full distance and hunted down the original GBA cartridges. There is also no way to close the game with controller but this is a little bit less of an issue. Secondly, if you've noticed, Konami's Castlevania collections have a running bit of adding one extra game that doesn't fit with the rest of the "theme" of the collection. The Castlevania Anniversary collection has Kid Dracula (originally only on Famicom), the DS Collection has Haunted Castle, the original arcade version along with a full blown remake of it. Those are both very worthwhile additions that make those collections much more special. Here the "extra game" is Castlevania Dracula X, the Super Nintendo version of Rondo of Blood. It's a fine enough game, but it feels so much like "we forgot to add this to the previous collection so we're throwing it in here". With a bit of forethought, they could have put all the Game Boy and Game Boy Advance games into one collection and then had Kid Dracula on Game Boy added as the extra game in this collection, which is currently nowhere to be found and often considered to be much better than the Famicom game. Anyway, if you want to play these games, this collection is an alright way to do it, but the PC port feels like an afterthought and it really doesn't have anything special added to it compared to other Castlevania collections.

This is PEAK Castlevania. The first Castlevania metroidvania I played was Circle of the Moon and it continues to be my all time favourite Castlevania if not favorite game of all time. Harmony of Dissonance is the only one I didn’t fully enjoy due to constant backtracking. Aria of Sorrow could have been sold alone in this bundle and it would still be worth the price point for the amount of time I put into it grinding souls. 11/10

it is actually absurd how good aria has held up it is still one of the best metroidvania games ever

Growing up with a GBA, the Castlevania games were always some of my favourite playthroughs to go through. When I wasn't in the mood for a platformer or something lighter in tone, these games brought an experience that I could not find anywhere else. This was also my first entry into the Metroidvania style of games with it becoming one of my favourite subgenres even now. The first game we have is Circle of the Moon. A launch title for the GBA, this game is by no means perfect. The drop rates for this game are quite low and there is no shop for you to stock up on potions, if you are needing some additional assistance. The game also has the DSS system, a rather unique card system which allows the player to mix-and-match cards to further Nathan's game play. However, again, you need these cards to drop which can be a bit of a hassle with the low drop rate. The game's visuals can be a bit on the darker side, but this would effect the game on original hardware more than this release of the game. But this is my personal favourite on the collection. The darker visuals really brings me to the castle, and while some of the areas can look very similar, I never find myself lost in my surroundings. The bosses, while simple, I find compelling and challenging enough for the time. Above everything, though, is the music. Every last track breaths life into the areas you are exploring. Not once did I struggle to recall where I was, or was frustrated exploring, because of the music. One of the most memorable soundtracks on the GBA, and in the series as a whole. While Circle of the Moon may not have aged the best for many people, it's an experience I always love playing through again-and-again. Harmony of Dissonance is the rather dull entry in an otherwise amazing package. Every time I think I'm being to harsh on it, I play it again and am reminded it truly is that bland. It's a game with little-to-no originality. I struggle to identify with the characters at all. The game, as a reaction to Circle of the Moon, is very bright. Juste even has a blue highlight around his character which makes him pop, at all times. The game's visuals, in general, aren't muted and feel right in your face. The music, while nothing bad, is a severe downgrade in terms of quality. In addition, it feels much crunchier than Circle of the Moon, at times. The game play is what you may come to expect, but just feels lacking. The game now has a spellbook system, replacing DSS. Depending on what book you have equipped, once finding them it changes the properties of your subweapons. While not bad, I found myself only really exploring the options for two of the subweapons since, as a whole, they were superior to the others. This made the system feel much more limiting than it should have been. In addition, the movement just feels off in the game. Juste doesn't feel too good to control and makes you wish for some of the weigh Nathan had in the previous game. But the biggest issue, I have, with the game is that it's a rehash of Symphony of the Night. Whenever you play it, you are constantly reminded what the game is being based off of, and reminding you it's just not the same. Even for it being on the GBA and taking that into account, it just feels so very hollow. To go backwards, yet making the new game on the GBA so very dull just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Overall, Harmony of Dissonance isn't necessarily a bad game. But it's one which makes you look at the other two, asking why you're settling for an overall mediocre experience. Circle of the Moon is, in my opinion, the best game of the package. However, Aria of Sorrow is, overall, the better game if I was being honest. The visuals are more muted now, returning to that Castlevania aesthetic that I do love, though some still do pop out. The character models specifically stand out as each one makes the character's personality sing aside from the writing. Whether it be Soma's jacket or Hammer's militaristic outfit, each outfit suits the character they are made for perfectly. The music, as well, is a step up from Harmony of Dissonance. I think more of the tracks are rather toned down, the whole soundtrack fits perfectly with the overall experience. The game play is what makes this game shine, especially coming from Harmony of Dissonance. The souls collected from Soma's enemies, three separate that all work to complete Soma, is what makes this game absolutely stand out. The flow of gameplay, the castle layout, there is never a point when you will be lost exploring or wondering what to do next. I did find myself finding the difficulty on the easier side, wondering if the shop should have been tweaked for it's prices or changing what weapons you can get at what time, but this did not deter my joy of playing this game. [spoiler]The only real criticism of the game is if you are wanting to receive the true ending. You need three specific souls and to have them equipped during one of the bosses in the game. While there are hints, I still think it can be a bit frustrating since the hints obviously don't spell out the specific souls you need to have equipped. With that said, I don't think it's necessarily the hardest to figure out and doesn't bring the experience down one but[/spoiler] I did not play Dracula X for this review as I bought this for the three games mentioned. However, I see it as a bonus game which comes included in a package that is already well worth the price. Harmony of Dissonance might be a game you play once and never come back to, but Circle of the Moon and Aria of Sorrow are two experiences I always find myself coming back to. Playing them again, I was reminded how lucky I was to have these games and play them again-and-again. These games certainly hit a huge nostalgic bone for me, but I truly believe this package stands out on it's own. Anyone can pick this up and be able to play two of the best Castlevania games that have been created...with two games tacked on the side.

Advance Collection is 100% worth buying on sale for Aria of Sorrow alone. I personally really like Circle of the Moon, and I respect Harmony of Dissonance, but they won't be everyones cup of tea. Dracula X is a neat addition too, but you should definitely play Rondo of Blood instead if you've not played that version of the game already. This is a really nicely put together collection with rebinds, save states, achievements, handy new UI notifications and rewind options. There's plenty of options available, and the games can be modded (which you might want to do for a reshade). If you're interested, it's worth the plunge.

Although I have not played Circle of the Moon, and do not care for Dracula X, I will say that the collection itself is worth it for Aria of Sorrow alone. Harmony of Dissonance was an alright experience. I am glad i played it, but it is not exactly peak Castlevania. Aria of Sorrow however was an incredible experience. It feels a lot like Symphony of the Night, and I personally cannot say which I think is better. This collection is worth it for Aria alone, but Harmony is a great addition, and I hope that Circle of the Moon is a fun enough experience for anyone looking to try out Castlevania.

Circle of the moon is one of the greatest games of all time. its made even better by all rewind and save options that are offered on steam.

My thoughts on 3 of the games as someone who has never played a Castlevania game before and has no nostalgia for the series Aria of Sorrow: easily the best one and the only one that made this collection worth it for me, beautifully designed with amazing music, boss difficulty is all over the place with most of them being too easy. Harmony of Dissonance: found it way too boring and padded, nothing in the game could be considered remotely a challenge in anyway, the only thing the dual castle design achieved is made me sigh in despair that i had to rediscover the whole castle again, story was also pretty weak Circle of the Moon: Really good story, really shit gameplay, controls are shockingly terrible, so many of the bosses feel like an absolute chore, Abramelech and the Dragon Zombies are two of the worst fights I've ever experienced, visually the game is characteristically beautiful, but in terms of gameplay it was a frustrating mess