• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Castlevania Advance Collection listed on PlayAsia (Switch)

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
Excited The Cw GIF
 

lachesis

Member
US rating:


from that ESRB text...

A handful of small female demons/monsters are depicted topless. The word “bastard” appears in the dialogue.

Oh no, not the word "bastard", for fucks sake - how dare they! Topless female demon? I'm not even going in there for gender identification... but we'll SEE how small they are on my gigantic 65" screen! ;)

... Seriously though, I'm actually getting intrigued what 4 classic games are going to be in. Igavania are my favorite games.. although TBH, I don't remember any "story" in that game at all & I played them all! I know the Curse of the Moon was like two dudes (rivals) going in for their master and one got corrupted, and also Arria of Sorrow had Soma trying to save his (waifu) gf, and Alucard in disguise and some buff dude that everyone seemed to know the backstory which I have no idea if I'm the one who missed out or whatnot. :)

Depending on the price, I may grab it...as I sold off all my GBA/DS ones long time ago. :( Hoping it would be something much lower than regular prices. $29 or under would be a no brainer for me, depending on what 4 games are there.
 
It's out on the PS4 now in the UK at £15.99 so the same price as the other PS4 Castlevania Collections. I may as well add it to my £5.00 upgrade to Death Stranding.


Count Dracula is once more back from the dead...

Join the fight against Evil in the Castlevania Advance Collection, a compilation of timeless action-exploration masterpieces!

In addition to the three legendary Castlevania games that were first released in the early 2000s, this collection also includes Castlevania: Vampire's Kiss and some never-before-seen sketches and artwork from the games!

All four games are enhanced with newly added modern features such as Rewind, Save/Load and Replay, making this the best way possible to experience these classics or discover them for the first time! This collection also boasts a handy Encyclopedia, a Music Player with all soundtracks and you can even change the ROM Region to play all games in different versions.

FEATURED GAMES
Castlevania: Circle of the Moon - The story follows Nathan Graves, a vampire hunter apprentice who enters Dracula's Castle along with his Master in order to prevent the dreaded return of the Count. Combine action and attribute cards to create over 80 unique spell effects, ranging from fire whips to ice blizzards, with the 'Dual Set-up System'.

Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance - Play as Juste Belmont, the grandson of legendary Vampire Hunter Simon Belmont! This title introduced a lot of new features to the franchise, such as 'Boss Rush' mode and the 'Spell Fusion' system that lets players combine Sub-Weapons with Spell Books to cast devastating spells.

Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow - Soma Cruz, a young high school exchange student in Japan, is somehow involved in the eternal cycle of reincarnation of the Dark Lord himself. What role does Soma play in all of this? Will he be able to return to his own world? Aria of Sorrow also introduced a brand new attack system called 'Tactical Souls', that lets Soma Cruz capture the souls of slain monsters to acquire their abilities. (100+ abilities in total!) Aria of Sorrow also has a ton of New Game+ content.

Castlevania: Rondo of Blood/Vampire's Kiss - Castlevania: Vampire's Kiss is a reimagination of the cult action game Castlevania: Rondo of Blood and has been acclaimed as one of the most challenging Castlevania titles ever created. The Dark Lord Count Dracula rises again from the dead to revive the forces of darkness and to annihilate this corrupted world and create a new one. You are Richter Belmont, heir of the Belmont family, and you set out for Dracula's Castle to defeat its evil master. Fight your way through Dracula's Castle and defeat the toughest enemies with the new special attack 'Item Crash'!

BRAND NEW FEATURES FOR AN IMPROVED EXPERIENCE!
Gallery - Browse through scans of the original package designs and discover incredible artwork never shown to the public before.
ROM Region Selection - You can choose between the Japanese, American, and European versions for each game.
Encyclopedia - Learn more about all three games thanks to their dedicated encyclopedia. Detailed information on enemies, the 'DSS' system, the 'Tactical Soul' system and the 'Spell Fusion' system will help you truly master each game's unique combat system!
Music Player - Listen to any of four complete soundtracks any time you want. You can even create your own playlists!

NEW 'QUALITY OF LIFE' FEATURES
Save/Load - You can now quickly save and reload at any point in the game. Even right before that deadly attack from Dracula himself.
Rewind - You can now rewind the state of the game for a few seconds for a second chance. It is almost like being resurrected...
Replay - You can record and replay your runs. This is great for creating new tactics, speed runs and streaming.
 

Orta

Banned
Cool. Thought it was Switch only.

Just to reconfirm, the glorious Wii version isn't in this, no?
 

Dr. Suchong

Member
This goes nice with the two other Castlevania collections on PS4.
Yeah I chose the PS4 version for that reason (having the other collections on my PS4) Originally I was going for Switch but like Sailors to the lure of the Sirens, I could not resist the addition of Trophies 😅
 

BlackTron

Member
This was a no-brainer to buy on Switch because extra hardware power won't help these games and as GBA titles it just makes sense to have the portable option as well.

I don't usually buy old stuff like this at full price but I did it literally as soon as the product page went live after the direct lol.

No complaints with the collection. Nice extras like soundtrack. I was annoyed though that you can't map the rear shoulder buttons. The pause button is permanently parked on ZL. I would have preferred ZL/ZR for gameplay...especially because HoD has you basically spamming the shoulder buttons constantly.

So, if you care about controller ergonomics, you might wanna just emulate them yourself after all....again :)
 

Saber

Gold Member
Coof stuff, quite happy they end up being true. Loved to play the heck out of Harmony.

Just want to see how it fairs. If its everything ok with the collection I will totally pick this one.
 

Spukc

always chasing the next thrill
Man, Aria of Sorrow was my jam even wrote a review

Store trailer didn't give any info in regards to visual options anyone know?
Pixel perfect mode

no kanye west shades view.
go for it M2 is behind it.. definitive version imo. It even as popups for monster drops etc pick ups etc.
 

22•22

NO PAIN TRANCE CONTINUE
Pixel perfect mode

no kanye west shades view.
go for it M2 is behind it.. definitive version imo. It even as popups for monster drops etc pick ups etc.

So tempted mate Pixel perfect and how about screen size customization as in does it look good anyway
 
Last edited:

Spukc

always chasing the next thrill
So tempted mate Pixel perfect and how about screen size customization as in does it look good anyway
Yup i am a pixel snob.
I use stuff like the MiSTer fpga box and the framemeister.
This looks fine.. you also have borders if you are some savage cavemen

it also supports scan.. i am sure DF will do an in-depth review on it.. this is not shit in anyway

The QoL improvements are worth it
 
Last edited:

Saber

Gold Member
I'm seeing some videos and theres some annoying pop us everytime someone kills a monster, is this a thing that can be disable?
 

lachesis

Member
I'm definitely getting it! $19.99 is a decent price...although I did mention I'll get it at $29.99 or less (and which is) - now I'm thinking holding out for a sale later on.
I know, I'm cheap. ;)

Interestingly, I played every single GBA/DS/3DS Igavanias and finished 100% and all - but I have no recollection of Harmony of Dissonance at all.
Then again, when I play SOTN, it seems like I'm playing a game that I've never played before.
Probably feel the same about most other Igavanias.. that I have so much fun, but I don't remember anything afterwards other than having fun & exploring.
.. or I'm just being senile due to old age...

Kinda wish they'd included some DS ones too - although I'd say it would take a lot of effort to convert them....
 
DoS is a fantastic game, muted by the fact that it has a few gimmicks around the edges and fails to surpass its fresher, simpler, and more pure predecessor AoS. Just a very slightly flawed game next to its perfect predecessor. I enjoyed my time with it but never went back since I finished it on my OG grey fat DS...when I think of using it I remember this game lol. I liked playing Soma again and the graphics update. It also felt like a gameplay luxury to always have the map open. But AoS the game I kept coming back to every few years.

The PS4 version of SotN has certain sound effects like items go through the controller. There is no way to change it. I was on the brink of getting this game when I saw it on sale but did my research and held back. I proceeded to finally resign myself and have PS3 under the TV whose one job is to play this damn PS1 disc. It's unfuriating that I can't buy this game on Switch like A HUNDRED YEARS AGO. That goes for every GBA/DS Castlevania game. Madness.
DoS, aside from the touch seals and the soul grinding, was a bit better than AoS, as it had better weapon balance.
 

Fake

Member
DoS, aside from the touch seals and the soul grinding, was a bit better than AoS, as it had better weapon balance.

And the touch is a DS thing, so they probably replace just like Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance was reworked.
 

ManaByte

Gold Member
I really forgot how terrible a conversion Dracula X was. It seriously almost feels like a Tiger LCD port of Rondo. Richter's sprite is bigger than I remember it being on the SNES though, so there's that. And I think it does benefit a bit from the increased color palleted the SNES had, but it just feels like a sampler of the greatest traditional Castlevania ever made.

I do like having it included for completion's sake, but it's like a turd sitting there next to the three amazing GBA games.

Worth it. I love that all the instruction manuals for all regions are scanned in even. $5 a game. All OSTs in the music player too. Fantastic

When you see the M2 logo on boot you know it'll be good.
 
Last edited:
Circle of the Moon was not good in my opinion. I stan Castlevania games but never played the GBA ones and that was a 2pack of ass. Cards fucking blew. On to Harmony today!
 

Punished Miku

Gold Member
How so? I haven't played it for a while, but I just remember it being Symphony lite.

It wasn't until Aria of Sorrow that the handheld games really found something special, IMO, but I thought Harmony and Circle of the Moon were solid entries.
Agreed. Aria is easily the best. Then the DS ones are on a different level.

The early GBA games are the weakest entries, but still nice to own on easily available systems.
 

Gifmaker

Member
Just a quick question on the side, because I'm pretty out of the loop: there's no way to play Symphony of the Night on the Switch, right?
I've been curious about that one for years, but I am not really a Sony guy and it seems that they're kinda stingy with rereleasing that game on many platforms for some reason. But maybe I missed something?
 

Spukc

always chasing the next thrill
Just a quick question on the side, because I'm pretty out of the loop: there's no way to play Symphony of the Night on the Switch, right?
I've been curious about that one for years, but I am not really a Sony guy and it seems that they're kinda stingy with rereleasing that game on many platforms for some reason. But maybe I missed something?
it's on PSP ps3 ps4 ps5 vita xbox 360 xbox one x etc
you will have to mod your switch to play sotn for now. and to do that you will need a early launch model


it's also on the IOS store and android store!
 
Last edited:

Marsmars

Neophyte
I still have Castlevania doublepack and a GBA micro and tried to replay them lately but my eyes are like "LOL, no chance!" Be good to play these on a big screen.
Yo, if you still have that and don’t like it anymore, I’ll take it off your hands. Big screens are not my preferred.
 
Top Bottom