Castlevania
This legendary series is considered to be one of the greatest 2D action games of all time and stands proud alongside the likes of The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, Metriod and Final Fantasy as one of the few franchises from the 1980s that has survived and even thrived till this day, continuing to provide high quality gaming experiences. Castlevania games offer platforming, adventuring and plenty of action and RPG elements.
Castlevania games literally have it all: addictive and engaging gameplay, exceptional art direction and design and some truly breath taking music, music that many consider to be the epitome of video game music. For this edition of the Sound Test, we will offer a much larger track selection than usual for the sake of covering as much good Castlevania music as we can.
Notable Composers
- Kinuyo Yamashita
- Michiru Yamane
- Sataro Tojima
The tracks that define Castlevania
In Sound Test #2, we pointed out how there are so many reoccurring themes in The Legend of Zelda series, where certain tracks were used so many times over the years in so many different forms that it is hard to imagine a Zelda game without those tracks. Castlevania has also followed a similar trend over the years.
Let us take a look at Vampire Killer, this was the first track that kick started the original Castlevania game and won hearts of many gamers. Since then this fantastic track traditionally opens up a Castlevania game, being the music that usually plays in the first stage.
Vampire Killer…yea…the track name itself is Castlevania in a nut shell. This is where it all began, truly some stellar music for a game released in 1986.
Over 20 years later the track is still being used. This rock symphony fuelled version is by far one of the superior versions of this classic track.
Another track that has become a staple in Castlevania games is Bloody Tears. It’s got an infectious melody that is quite mellow yet aggressive. It also features some fine piano work and catchy drum beats. Let us take a look at how this one evolved.
Super Castlevania IV was essentially a remake of the original NES Castlevania with superior sprites and better music. This version of Bloody Tears is impressive because it really shows off the impressive sound capabilities of the 16 bit SNES.
This version of Bloody Tears was featured in Symphony of the Night. This is essentially Bloody Tears given a massive dosage of guitars, drums and piano. It sounds like a really good symphonic metal track.
The toughest Belmont of them all
In case you didn’t know, Castlevania is all about a never ending battle between the Belmont family and Dracula. Each game in this long running series features a new era and often a new Belmont who has to fight Dracula and put him away for the next Belmont to deal with. Of course in some games you take control of a character who is not a Belmont (Shanoa, Alucard etc). There is often debate on who the better Belmont is but for now we will let you decide on the basis of their respective theme music.
Leon Belmont is the very first Belmont who waged war against Dracula, a war that his descendants have yet to end. Simon, Trevor and Richter are tough and manly vampire hunters. Leon on the other hand is frail, emotional and a tad bit too androgynous. His theme music is as soft and mellow as his disposition.
Now Richter Belmont was a real hunter who wasn’t a pussy like Leon. His theme music captures his tough hunter persona nicely. The track is filled with 80s style guitar melodies and has some nice symphonic dimensions.
Trevor Belmont is a total bad ass and his hard rock centric theme music does him justice. Plenty of dark and doom impending guitar riffs in this one, giving Trevor an aura menacing and intimidating enough to make Dracula put himself away.
Metriodvania
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night was a major turning point for the series as it introduced a whole new game structure, one that was very similar to what can be found in 2D Metroid games. The change was received with overwhelmingly positive acclaim from both critics and fans, and since then every 2D Castlevania game has continued to follow the mechanics and structure that Symphony of the Night established. The music was fantastic too, as it marked the debut of Michiru Yamane, who has since been the main composer of Castlevania games.
The soundtrack of Symphony of the Night is very energetic to say the least. It’s a nice mix of rock and symphony with the dominance shifting between the two styles constantly. This track here has plenty of stellar guitar and violin work with consistently good drum beats.
There were many tracks like this one in the game that gave the guitars a rest, putting more focus on the beautiful and soothing symphony. It has the element of horror, the feeling that a hand is going to pop out from below and drag you in all of a sudden and then at the climax you feel like you’re soaring through the night sky with a full moon glaring at you.
3D-Vania
Like many old school franchises, Castlevania too made a transition into the world of 3D at many points. The transition wasn’t as remarkable as the one The Legend of Zelda made, nor was it a complete disaster like the one Sonic the Hedgehog made. Instead, 3D Castlevania ended up being solid 3D action adventure games that captured some of the qualities of the 2D games but at the same time there was always something missing. These games featured some top quality music.
The Nintendo 64 Castlevania games were actually really good attempts, much better than the PS2 counterparts. The N64 games have a much darker and horror like soundtrack, featuring a sound that is unlike the more energetic music of Symphony of the Night and other modern Castlevanias. This track here captures the feeling of being in a dark and endless tunnel, with some cool echo effects and dramatic drums.
Say what you want about Curse of Darkness, the Music Guy believes that this is an underrated gem of game (Ed: That boot is looking tempting…). It almost had everything that defines a traditional Metroidvania game. This fast paced symphony track has plenty of energy without the need of rock instruments. The melodies created by the piano and violin are lovely and are joined together seamlessly with synthesizers
Portable-Vania
Ever since the release of Castlevania: Circle of the Moon for the GameBoy Advance, the series has made a migration to handheld consoles with the main platform of choice being Nintendo handhelds (the PSP has not gotten much Castlevania love). These games feature the Metroidvania style of gameplay made famous by Symphony of the Night. Let us hear some music from these portable gems.
This GameBoy Advance launch game is an absolute masterpiece in every sense of the word. A near flawless Castlevania experience that comes very close to the majesty of Symphony of the Night. The game was addictive, immensely deep and featured quality music that was previously unheard on portable video games.
The main theme of Order of Ecclesia, this one actually has a fast and catchy beat with some energetic piano arrangements and synthesizers.
Wrapping it up
With so many Castlevania games released over the past 20+ years, it is impossible to cover the music from each of those games. We missed out on several games and classic tracks but there is only so much we could cover, and we know that even these 15 tracks are not enough to do the Castlevania music justice. We leave you with this mind blowing tribute that captures over 20 years of Castlevania perfectly.
We hope Dracula never dies because he is the only reason why this series has lasted for over 20 years!
long time fan of the series 
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