Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse

References

1. ^Akumajō Densetsu, the Japanese release, came out for the Famicom on 22 December 1989.PublisherKonami, Akumajō Densetsu JP history
   How we know

   1989年12月22日

   The quote matches our archived copy.

   Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

   In the claim ledger

2. ^Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse came out for the NES in North America in September 1990; Konami gives the day as 19 September.PublisherKonami, Castlevania III US history · Nintendo, NES Games
   How we know

   Sep 19, 1990

   Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse

   The quote matches our archived copy.

   Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

   In the claim ledger

3. ^The player is Trevor Belmont, Simon Belmont's forefather and, in the North American manual, the last line of defense against Count Dracula's army; the manual sets the game 100 years before Simon's birth. Konami's Japanese story names the hero Ralph C. Belmont, who goes alone to Lord Vlad's manor in 15th-century Europe, several hundred years before Simon.ManualKonami, Castlevania III manual · Konami, Akumajō Densetsu JP historyrevised
   How we know

   The last line of defense is you, Trevor Belmont — the forefather of Simon … The time is 100 years before Simon Belmont's birth. … Dracula has assembled a mighty army of evil

   ラルフ・C・ベルモンドは、たったひとりでヴラド公の屋敷へと向かう。シモン・ベルモンドの時代をさかのぼること数百年 … 15世紀ヨーロッパ

   The quote matches our archived copy.

   Revised after a check by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

   In the claim ledger

4. ^After Simon's Quest mixed platforming with role-playing, Dracula's Curse went back to the first game's linear stages, which Damien McFerran of Nintendo Life reads as Konami listening to players.WebNintendo Life, Castlevania III review · Konami, Akumajō Densetsu JP history
   How we know

   an interesting fusion of platforming action and RPG adventuring, it wasn't what players of the period really wanted … Thankfully, Konami was listening and for its third and final NES Castlevania

   reverts back to the linear level-based formula seen in the original game

   初代『ドラキュラ』と同じく、オーソドックスなステージクリアタイプ

   The quote matches our archived copy.

   Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

   In the claim ledger

5. ^ abLike the first Castlevania, the game is played stage by stage, and at several points the road forks and the player chooses the route; the route decides which partners and enemies Trevor meets. A stage reached by another route can start from its far end. The North American manual counts 17 possible levels.PublisherKonami, Akumajō Densetsu JP history · Konami, Castlevania III manual
   How we know

   初代『ドラキュラ』と同じく、オーソドックスなステージクリアタイプだが、ステージの最後に分岐があり、ルートを自分で指定できる。同じステージでも、入りかたによってはゴール地点から始まる

   throughout your journey where the road forks … will be determined by the path

   17 possible levels of never-ending

   The quote matches our archived copy.

   Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

   In the claim ledger

6. ^Trevor starts alone and can meet three partners, Grant DaNasty, Sypha, and Alucard, which ones depending on the route. He keeps one partner at a time and turns into that partner, and back, with Select.ManualKonami, Castlevania III manual · Nintendo Life, Castlevania III review
   How we know

   At the start of the adventure your only player is Trevor C. Belmont. … will vary, depending on the Paths of Fate you choose. … press the Select Button

   partner spirits: Grant DaNasty, the ferocious Ghost Pirate. Sypha, the

   which Trevor can switch places with at any time — the catch being that you can only have one companion with you at any one time

   The quote matches our archived copy.

   Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

   In the claim ledger

7. ^Each character plays differently. Trevor fights with the whip and items, Sypha uses magic, Grant is a thief who can move along walls, and Alucard, Dracula's son, can fly as a bat, as far as the hearts collected allow; which character the player uses changes how a stage is best played.PublisherKonami, Akumajō Densetsu JP history · Konami, Castlevania III manual
   How we know

   ムチと各種アイテムを使いこなす主人公・ラルフ以外に、魔法の使い手サイファ、壁を伝って移動できる盗賊グラント、そして父親に反感を持つヴラド公の息子アルカード … 使用キャラによって攻略法が変わる

   And Alucard Dracula’s forgotten son.

   can soar like a bat. The more hearts you

   The quote matches our archived copy.

   Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

   In the claim ledger

8. ^The Japanese cartridge carries Konami's VRC6 chip, which Jeremy Parish credits to Hidenori Maezawa; it nearly doubles the sound channels and smooths effects such as the clock tower's moving gears. Parish writes that by some accounts the NES couldn't carry the extra channels, and North America got the music without them.WebJeremy Parish, Maezawa's Greatest Hits
   How we know

   the Japanese version of the game (Akumajou Densetsu) used a special chip to augment its graphics and music: the VRC6, designed by Retronauts' person of the week Hidenori Maezawa … nearly doubling the possible sound channels. By some accounts, this is why we didn't receive the Japanese version

   best seen in the clock tower stage of Akumajou Densetsu -- the gears and pendulums move with impossible smoothness

   The quote matches our archived copy.

   Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

   In the claim ledger

9. ^Jeremy Parish writes that for many players it is the series' quintessential chapter, possibly bettered only by Rondo of Blood, and Koji Igarashi, producer of Symphony of the Night, named it his favorite Castlevania in 2002.WebJeremy Parish, Maezawa's Greatest Hits · GameSpot, Igarashi Q&A
   How we know

   for many it's the quintessential chapter of the series, possibly bested only by Rondo of Blood

   I like Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse the best.

   the producer of Symphony of the Night

   The quote matches our archived copy.

   Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

   In the claim ledger

10. ^Reviewing the 2014 3DS release, Damien McFerran called it one of the finest NES games, praised its control, and found it brutal but never unfair. He wrote that the branching routes add to its replay value, and that the partners added tactical depth.WebNintendo Life, Castlevania III reviewrevised
    How we know

    This is rightly regarded as one of the finest NES titles ever made

    the control feels utterly perfect … Dracula's Curse is at times brutal and unforgiving, but never to the point where it's completely unfair

    add immeasurably to the replay value … they added tactical depth to what was already a fantastic title

    The quote matches our archived copy.

    Revised after a check by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

    In the claim ledger

11. ^Alucard, one of the partners, later starred as the lead of Symphony of the Night.WebNintendo Life, Castlevania III review
    How we know

    Alucard would of course go on to star in … as the lead protagonist, and seeing him make his series debut

    The quote matches our archived copy.

    Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

    In the claim ledger

12. ^ abTrevor's whip strikes only straight ahead, so the player has to time moves and attacks; Super Castlevania IV later let Simon whip in several directions.WebNintendo Life, Castlevania III review
    How we know

    In this third game, you can only whip horizontally, which means you have to time your movements and attacks precisely … which added multi-directional attacks to Simon Belmont's repertoire

    The quote matches our archived copy.

    Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

    In the claim ledger

13. ^Using a subweapon spends hearts, and whipping torches and light fittings turns up more.WebNintendo Life, Castlevania III review · Konami, Castlevania III manualrevised
    How we know

    sub-weapons which, when used, deplete your stock of hearts. As ever, hearts can be replenished by whipping the various torches and light-fittings

    may appear when you knockout/blowout a candle or lantern

    The quote matches our archived copy.

    Revised after a check by a second AI model, 2026-10-22.

    In the claim ledger

14. ^Dracula's Curse prices its subweapons from one table of eleven entries, nine at 1 heart, one at 5, and one at 0; a use compares the heart count with the price, and a thrown one subtracts it in BCD.Codevinheim3/castlevania3-disasm · “Castlevania III - Dracula's Curse (USA)”
    How we know

    lda wNumHearts … cmp $bab6, y … lda $bab6, y … jmp $e753

    In the cartridge (“Castlevania III - Dracula's Curse (USA)”): bank $1D $BAB6-$BAC1, the prices for subweapons 1 to 11 after a 0 for none. We don't reproduce the bytes.

    jsr $8c2f

    lda wNumHearts … and #$0f … sbc $00 … sbc #$06 … sbc #$10 … sta wNumHearts

    Checked against the evidence by its author, an AI model, 2026-10-21.

    Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-21.

    In the claim ledger

15. ^ abcDracula's Curse keeps Castlevania's jump for every character but Grant; the take-off starts the arc at entry 9 of a longer table whose entries from there are Castlevania's 20 rises, 5, 5, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2, 1, 1, 1, 1, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, and 0 px, and the 8 entries before it, 6 then 5 px, carry a fall below the take-off height down to 6 px/frame, where Castlevania falls at 8 px/frame once its table runs out.Codevinheim3/castlevania3-disasm · “Castlevania III - Dracula's Curse (USA)” · “Castlevania (USA) (Rev 1)”revised
    How we know

    3740playerState06_jumpStart_exceptGrant:
    

    lda $9874, y … cmp #$81 … sta wEntityVertSpeed.w, x … inc $05d8, x … cmp #$80 … dec $05d8, x … eor #$ff … lda $9875, y

    3242processTrevorState:
    ⋮
    3249	.dw playerState06_jumpStart_exceptGrant
    3250	.dw playerState08_jumping_exceptGrant
    

    4751processSyphaState:
    ⋮
    4758	.dw playerState06_jumpStart_exceptGrant
    

    918processAlucardState:
    ⋮
    926	.dw playerState06_jumpStart_exceptGrant
    

    4784processGrantState:
    ⋮
    4791	.dw playerState06_jumpStart_grant
    4792	.dw playerState08_jumping_0c_grant
    

    In the cartridge (“Castlevania III - Dracula's Curse (USA)”): bank $1C $9874-$9891: $80, five $FA (−6), five $FB (−5), five $FD, three $FE, four $FF, $00, $FF, four $00, and $81; the disassembly lists these bytes partly as instructions. We don't reproduce the bytes.

    In the cartridge (“Castlevania (USA) (Rev 1)”): Castlevania's table of 20 steps (castlevania/jump-table); Castlevania's 8 px fall past the table (castlevania/table-end-fall). We don't reproduce the bytes.

    Checked against the evidence by its author, an AI model, 2026-10-21.

    Revised after a check by a second AI model, 2026-10-21.

    In the claim ledger

16. ^ abIn Dracula's Curse the take-off shared by every character but Grant (the state tables the disassembly labels Trevor's, Sypha's, and Alucard's all point at it; Grant's has its own) sets the horizontal speed to 1 px/frame toward a held Left or Right, or 0, as in Castlevania.Codevinheim3/castlevania3-disasm · “Castlevania (USA) (Rev 1)”
    How we know

    3740playerState06_jumpStart_exceptGrant:
    ⋮
    3743B28_1622:		lda wJoy1ButtonsPressed			; a5 28
    3744B28_1624:		sta $10			; 85 10
    ⋮
    3753B28_1637:		lda $10			; a5 10
    3754B28_1639:		lsr a			; 4a
    3755B28_163a:		bcs B28_1644 ; b0 08
    ⋮
    3757B28_163c:		lsr a			; 4a
    3758B28_163d:		bcs B28_164f ; b0 10
    ⋮
    3761B28_163f:		lda #$00		; a9 00
    3762B28_1641:		tay				; a8 
    3763B28_1642:		beq B28_1658 ; f0 14
    ⋮
    3768B28_1649:		lda #$01		; a9 01
    ⋮
    

    345@setButtonVars:
    346	lda wTempJoy1ButtonsPressedPass1, x
    347	tay
    ⋮
    355	sty wJoy1ButtonsPressed, x
    

    1826B28_0a91:		ldy wCurrPlayer.w		; ac 4e 05
    ⋮
    1836B28_0a9c:		jsr processAlucardState		; 20 a8 a5
    ⋮
    1840B28_0aa2:		jsr processTrevorState		; 20 7b 93
    ⋮
    1849B28_0ab0:		jsr processSyphaState		; 20 fc 9b
    ⋮
    1853B28_0ab6:		jsr processGrantState		; 20 3b 9c
    

    3242processTrevorState:
    ⋮
    3249	.dw playerState06_jumpStart_exceptGrant
    

    4751processSyphaState:
    ⋮
    4758	.dw playerState06_jumpStart_exceptGrant
    

    918processAlucardState:
    ⋮
    926	.dw playerState06_jumpStart_exceptGrant
    

    4784processGrantState:
    ⋮
    4791	.dw playerState06_jumpStart_grant
    

    In the cartridge (“Castlevania (USA) (Rev 1)”): Castlevania's take-off copying the held Left and Right into Simon's direction (castlevania/jump-start). We don't reproduce the bytes.

    Checked against the evidence by its author, an AI model, 2026-10-25.

    Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-21.

    Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-25.

    In the claim ledger

17. ^ abIn the air, a held Left or Right sets Grant's horizontal speed to 1 px/frame that way and turns him; with neither held the code leaves the speed as it was, so he keeps moving, until a wall stops him.Codevinheim3/castlevania3-disasm
    How we know

    5156playerState06_jumpStart_grant:
    

    5261playerState08_jumping_0c_grant:
    ⋮
    5292; left held
    ⋮
    5309; right held
    ⋮
    5326; nothing above pressed/held
    

    5344; nothing above pressed/held
    

    sta wEntityHorizSpeed.w

    Checked against the evidence by its author, an AI model, 2026-10-21.

    Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-21.

    In the claim ledger

18. ^Grant's jump reads its own table from entry 30, one entry a frame while A is held; once A is up during the rise, or once he falls, the routine moves two entries a frame, so letting go shortens the rise, from 58 px held to the top to 30 px with A up on the first frame, by the table.Codevinheim3/castlevania3-disasm · “Castlevania III - Dracula's Curse (USA)”
    How we know

    lda #$1e … sta $05d8 … lda #$01 … sta wPixelsToWalkToStairs.w

    lda wEntityPhase.w … lda $9d … lda wJoy1ButtonsPressed … and #$80 … inc $9d … lda #$02 … sta wPixelsToWalkToStairs.w

    lda $9e58, y … cmp #$81 … sta wEntityVertSpeed.w … adc wPixelsToWalkToStairs.w … cmp #$39 … sbc wPixelsToWalkToStairs.w … eor #$ff

    In the cartridge (“Castlevania III - Dracula's Curse (USA)”): bank $1C $9E58-$9E91: $80, nineteen $F9 (−7), six $FA, five $FB, five $FC, six $FD, five $FE, five $FF, five $00, and $81. We don't reproduce the bytes.

    Checked against the evidence by its author, an AI model, 2026-10-21.

    Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-21.

    In the claim ledger

19. ^ abDracula's Curse turns a hit into a launch, where Castlevania steps a second table; the character is given 2 px/frame up and 1 px/frame sideways and faces opposite to that push (facing left with +1 speed when $90 is nonzero, else facing right with −1), and the hurt state adds 0.125 px/frame² of gravity each frame up to a 5 px/frame fall.Codevinheim3/castlevania3-disasm · “Castlevania III - Dracula's Curse (USA)” · “Castlevania (USA) (Rev 1)”revised
    How we know

    lda #$26 … sta wPlayerStateDoubled.w … lda #$fe … sta wEntityVertSpeed.w … lda $90 … sta wEntityFacingLeft.w … lda #$01 … lda #$ff … sta wEntityHorizSpeed.w

    lda wPlayerStateDoubled.w … cmp #$26

    In the cartridge (“Castlevania III - Dracula's Curse (USA)”): bank $1C $9892-$98BE: vertical sub-speed + $20, carried into the speed; a falling speed capped at 5.0. We don't reproduce the bytes.

    In the cartridge (“Castlevania (USA) (Rev 1)”): Castlevania's hit, which points the arc at a second table (castlevania-line/knockback). We don't reproduce the bytes.

    Checked against the evidence by its author, an AI model, 2026-10-21.

    Revised after a check by a second AI model, 2026-10-21.

    In the claim ledger

20. ^ abA hit in Dracula's Curse sets $80 to 120, which the player's update counts down once a frame while flickering the character; one branch of the hit handling returns at once while $80, or $AD, is nonzero.Codevinheim3/castlevania3-disasmrevised
    How we know

    lda #$78 … sta $80

    lda $80 … dec $80 … ldy #$80 … lda wGameStateLoopCounter … and #$01 … sty wEntityState.w

    lda $80 … ora $ad … bne B28_012b

    Checked against the evidence by its author, an AI model, 2026-10-21.

    Revised after a check by a second AI model, 2026-10-21.

    In the claim ledger

21. ^Dracula's Curse moves a character on stairs in steps; each step sets the speed to 0.5 px/frame across and 0.5 px/frame up or down the stairs, and the climbing state counts 15 frames before the step ends.Codevinheim3/castlevania3-disasm
    How we know

    4706	lda playerStairsMovementSpeeds.w, y
    4707	sta wEntityHorizSpeed.w
    ⋮
    4713	sta wEntityVertSubSpeed.w
    ⋮
    4720	lda playerStairsPixelsToStep.w
    4721	sta wPixelsToWalkToStairs.w
    ⋮
    4728	.db $0f
    ⋮
    4737.else
    4738	.db $00 $80 $00 $80
    ⋮
    4741	.db $ff $80 $ff $80
    

    4526playerState14_stairClimb:
    

    Checked against the evidence by its author, an AI model, 2026-10-21.

    Checked by a second AI model, 2026-10-21.

    In the claim ledger