data/claims/castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history.yamlCastlevania: Symphony of the Night (history and reception)
Konami released Symphony of the Night, as Akumajō Dracula X: Gekka no Yasōkyoku, for the PlayStation in Japan on 20 March 1997. In Japan, a Saturn port followed in 1998. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/release
opening paragraphs1997年3月20日にKONAMIからプレイステーションで発売されたアクションゲームです。【hideのゲーム音楽伝道記】第29回：『悪魔城ドラキュラX 月下の夜想曲』 ― アルカードの戦いを彩る、クラシカルで壮麗な旋律 · opening paragraphs1998年にはセガサターンで移植版が発売されThe column gives the PlayStation release no region; it is a Japanese column about the Japanese release, which it names by the Japanese title.
Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Symphony of the Night was made at Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/studio
Igarashi's answer on Harmony of Dissonance's developmentKonami Computer Entertainment Tokyo, where Symphony of the Night was made.Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Toru Hagihara produced Symphony of the Night and programmed it in its second half. Koji Igarashi wrote its scenario and programmed, and took over as director halfway through development. Michiru Yamane made its music and sound effects. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/staff
first interview (Konami guidebook), opening questionI was producer for the first half of the game, and for the latter half I was both producer and programmer.Symphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · first interview (Konami guidebook), opening questionI acted as director (for the latter half), scenario writer, and programmer.Symphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · first interview (Konami guidebook), opening questionI handled the sound, doing both music and sound effects.TGS 2002: Castlevania Q&A — GameSpot · Igarashi on his background at KonamiI was writing storyboards for the game, and then halfway through development I took over direction for the game as well.The interview is Shmuplations' English translation of the official Konami guidebook's. GameSpot's 2002 introduction calls Igarashi the game's producer, the role he held on later games.
Cited by: Castlevania, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Looking for a new look, the team chose Ayami Kojima as illustrator, searching among artists who hadn't done much work on games. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/kojima
second interview, Igarashi on hiring Ayami KojimaWe decided then to search for an illustrator who hadn’t done much work with gamesSymphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · second interview, Igarashi on hiring Ayami Kojimawe felt that Ayami Kojima’s work had the rich, aesthetic direction we wanted for a new Castlevania.Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
The player is Alucard, Dracula's son, who explores Dracula's castle after Richter Belmont, the hero of Rondo of Blood, has vanished. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/premise
PDF p. 6, Characters, AlucardThe offspring of an unnatural union between Count Dracula and a human womanCastlevania: Symphony of the Night Review — GameSpot · second paragraphYour task is to explore Dracula's castle (rumored to only appear once a century) and find out why Richter Belmont, the hero of the first game (and descendant of the original Castlevania hero, Simon), has mysteriously vanished.Castlevania: Symphony of the Night Review — GameSpot · second paragraphSymphony takes place four years after Dracula X, a PC Engine title in Japan that never saw a US release.The review's "first game" is Dracula X, the PC Engine game, which GameSpot's history calls Dracula X: The Rondo of Blood. The manual's prologue puts Richter's disappearance four years after his victory, and its character notes say five.
Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
The game opens where Rondo of Blood ended, with Richter's fight against Dracula, and GameSpot's history of the series calls it a direct sequel. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/sequel
paragraph beginning "Castlevania: Symphony of the Night literally starts out"Castlevania: Symphony of the Night literally starts out where the Dracula X games left off.The History of Castlevania — GameSpot feature, Symphony of the Night section, page 1 · paragraph beginning "Many of the enemies"Symphony of the Night was indeed a direct sequelCited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Alucard fights mainly with swords, not the Belmonts' whip. Igarashi says that not wanting to reuse the story of a holy whip-wielding Belmont was probably the game's biggest change from the series. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/no-whip
PDF p. 6, Characters, AlucardHis weapon of choice is a sword and he uses a variety of themSymphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · first interview, question on the biggest changeNo whip. (laughs) Not wanting to use the same story with a holy whip-wielding member of the Belmont clan was probably the biggest change.Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Relics hidden around the castle give Alucard new powers, among them turning into a bat, a wolf, or mist, and some rooms can't be entered until he has a particular relic. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/relics
PDF p. 10, RelicsThere are some rooms you cannot enter unless you obtain a particular relicCastlevania: Symphony of the Night (PlayStation, North American manual) · PDF p. 10, RelicsSoul of Bat Enables you to change into a batCastlevania: Symphony of the Night (PlayStation, North American manual) · PDF p. 10, RelicsForm of Mist Enables you to change into mistCastlevania: Symphony of the Night Review — GameSpot · fourth paragraphyou can't visit certain places until you've found the three souls that Alucard can transform into - Wolf, Bat, and MistCited by: Castlevania, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Defeating enemies earns Alucard experience, and each level raises his attributes. He keeps his weapons and items in an inventory screen. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/rpg
PDF p. 8, RulesEvery victory gives you experience which yields power and strengthCastlevania: Symphony of the Night Review — GameSpot · third paragraphExperience is gained from killing enemies; attributes are raised whenever Alucard levels-upCastlevania: Symphony of the Night Review — GameSpot · third paragrapheach of which is kept in an RPG-like inventory subscreenCited by: Castlevania, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
A map fills in each room as Alucard enters it, and GameSpot's reviewer found it extremely similar to Super Metroid's. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/map
PDF p. 9, On Screen Display, Map screenThe auto map feature will display the rooms as you explore themCastlevania: Symphony of the Night Review — GameSpot · fourth paragraphExtremely similar to the one in Super Metroid, the map (which can be viewed at any time by pressing the Select button) opens up room by room as you travel through the castle.Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Igarashi says the team set out to overturn players' ideas of Castlevania while still feeling like it. The changes he lists are exploration-based action, which he notes Castlevania II also had; RPG elements, so that anyone who put in the effort could finish it; no one-hit kills; no whip; no Castlevania-style stairs; and a new visual style. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/design-aims
second interview, question on making another entry in the seriesour concept was to make a game that would overturn player’s ideas about Castlevania, yet also feel like a Castlevania game.Symphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · second interview, the list that follows-make the action exploration based (although Castlevania 2 also did this)Symphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · second interview, the list that follows-add RPG elements, so anyone who put in the effort could beat itSymphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · second interview, the list that follows-no more stairs (I mean stairs in the style of the previous Castlevania games)Cited by: Castlevania, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Igarashi says the game's freedom and its exploration were meant to make an action game, usually short, last longer. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/playtime
first interview, question on the game's freedomWe gave the player a lot of freedom because we wanted to lengthen the playtime for an action game, which is usually short.Symphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · second interview, question on early ideasthe decision to make this a more exploratory action game was to extend the short life of normal action games a bitCited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
The game holds a second, inverted castle. Igarashi expected players to beat Richter first and take that for the ending, then find the inverted castle while completing the first castle's map; each castle counts as 100% of the map. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/inverted-castle
first interview, question on the map's maximum percentageIf you uncover the entire castle it’s 100%, and the inverted castle also has 100%Symphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · first interview, question on the map's maximum percentagewe wanted them to defeat Richter onceSymphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · first interview, question on the map's maximum percentagein doing so they’d discover the inverted castle and feel like they’d found something special.The full count is 200.6%, the extra 0.6% from an underground waterway.
Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
GameSpot's history of the series says that after beating Dracula the player can go through a special version of the game as Richter, who can't turn into a bat or "poisonous fog"; EGM's reviewer says Richter is played with a code once the game is completed. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/richter-mode
paragraph beginning "Borrowing ideas from Nintendo's Metroid"if you beat Dracula, you can play through a special version of the game as Richter--though it's rather difficult to navigate through the later levels since Richter doesn't have the ability to turn into a bat or poisonous fog.Electronic Gaming Monthly, issue 100 (November 1997) · Review Crew, Castlevania: SotN (PDF p. 202 of the item's scan)once you complete it all, you can play through again (with a code) as RichterCited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
The Saturn version lets the player be Richter or Maria from the start and adds two areas the PlayStation version lacks, the Cursed Prison and the Underground Garden. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/saturn
The Better Version?the Sega Saturn version of Symphony of the Night lets you play as both Richter and Maria from the beginning. There are also two extra levels--Cursed Prison and Underground Garden--not found in the PlayStation version.Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
GameSpot's review, credited to its staff and dated 20 November 1997, scored the game 8.9 out of 10 and called it "quite possibly the best 2D action side scroller ever". castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/gamespot-score
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}score block8.9Castlevania: Symphony of the Night Review — GameSpot · first paragraphis quite possibly the best 2D action side scroller ever.Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
In Electronic Gaming Monthly's November 1997 Review Crew, one reviewer called it "probably my favorite PlayStation game yet" and the best of the series, with two minor qualms, the first about the voice. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/egm-review
Review Crew, Castlevania: SotN (PDF p. 202 of the item's scan)Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is probably my favorite PlayStation game yet, and easily the best of the Castlevania seriesElectronic Gaming Monthly, issue 100 (November 1997) · Review Crew, Castlevania: SotN (PDF p. 202 of the item's scan)I do have two minor qualms about the game. One, I think the voiceThe issue's OCR keeps only this reviewer's text, unsigned, and none of the scores; the other reviewers' lines and the panel's scores are on the scan.
Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
The same issue ranked Symphony of the Night 12th in Electronic Gaming Monthly's 100 best games of all time, calling it classic Castlevania with a few gameplay elements from Metroid and Castlevania II. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/egm-top-100
Top 100 Games of All Time, no. 1212 Castlevania: Symphony of the NightElectronic Gaming Monthly, issue 100 (November 1997) · Top 100 Games of All Time, no. 12This is classic Castlevania, with a few gameplay elements from Metroid and the NES Castlevania II thrown inElectronic Gaming Monthly, issue 100 (November 1997) · Top 100 Games of All Time, no. 12In Japan, Castlevania: SotN came bundled with an art book and a music CDCited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Igarashi says the comment the team heard most was that the game was too easy, though some players found it too hard, and that it drew many players new to the series, women among them; Furukawa adds that many said they knew nothing of Castlevania and enjoyed it. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/players-response
second interview, question on the fans' responseThe one thing we heard the most was “it’s too easy.”Symphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · second interview, question on the fans' responseThere were also some people who said it was too difficultSymphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · second interview, question on the fans' responseSymphony of the Night has also gained a lot of support from female usersSymphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · second interview, question on the fans' responsewe’ve also successfully broken through to a whole new class of playersSymphony of the Night — 1997 Developer Interview · second interview, question on the fans' response, Furukawa's replyMany people also said “I don’t know anything about Castlevania and this was fun!”Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
GameSpot's history of the series says the first American print run was small, since few expected a 2D game to sell, and that word of mouth then sold it widely. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/us-print-run
final paragraph of the sectionthe initial production run of the game in the US was severely limited due to the fact that no one really thought a two-dimensional game would sell well. Luckily, word of mouth quickly spread, and people bought the game in droves.Cited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
GameSpot's history of the series calls Symphony of the Night widely regarded as the best Castlevania and its music the best in the series. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/legacy
opening paragraphcreated what is widely regarded as the best Castlevania game in the series: Symphony of the Night.The History of Castlevania — GameSpot feature, Symphony of the Night section · paragraph beginning "It seemed rather appropriate"Symphony of the Night's music is the best in the series.Cited by: Castlevania, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
GameSpot's history of the series says the game's freedom to explore recalls Rondo of Blood and Vampire Killer, but that other than the basic layout of some stages it owes more to Nintendo's Metroid than to the Castlevania before it, down to a map like Metroid's. It says the borrowing, if anything, increased the game's replay value tremendously. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/metroid
paragraph beginning "The inspiration for Symphony of the Night's gameplay"it's very similar to Dracula X: The Rondo of Blood and Vampire Killer in that you have much more freedom to explore different areas of the castleThe History of Castlevania — GameSpot feature, Symphony of the Night section, page 1 · paragraph beginning "The inspiration for Symphony of the Night's gameplay"other than the basic structural layout of some stages, Symphony of the Night really owes more to Nintendo's Metroid rather than the previous Castlevania game.The History of Castlevania — GameSpot feature, Symphony of the Night section, page 1 · paragraph beginning "In these areas"Even the map system in Symphony of the Night follows the same basic pattern as the map found in the Metroid seriesThe History of Castlevania — GameSpot feature, Symphony of the Night section · paragraph beginning "Borrowing ideas from Nintendo's Metroid"If anything, it increased Symphony of the Night's replay value tremendouslyCited by: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
When the series came back to Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo, Igarashi wanted a game like Symphony of the Night for the Game Boy Advance, and made Harmony of Dissonance. castlevania-symphony-of-the-night-history/harmony
About: Castlevania harmony of dissonance
InterviewTGS 2002: Castlevania Q&A — GameSpot ·Igarashi on Harmony of Dissonance's developmentI really wanted to create a game that was similar to Symphony of the Night for the Game Boy Advance.TGS 2002: Castlevania Q&A — GameSpot · introductionthe producer of Symphony of the Night and the recently released Harmony of Dissonance for the Game Boy AdvanceCited by: Castlevania, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night