In our last exciting mailbag, news of the fabulous new Castlevania game was brought to the forefront. But what? It is not the next-generation title we had hoped for, but rather a sequel for Nintendo's tiny behemoth? What will come of this?

You know, Konami hasn't quite been clear about whether White Night Concerto is actually just a scaled down version of the previously announced PS2 game. I think that if these reports turn out false, any reservation I might have against Konami would instantly dissolve. It's more the idea that a fabulous new next gen CV game has been ripped away from our loving hands is what bothers me, and replaced by something I'll have to squint at.

My emotions have been decidedly mixed regarding the new Castlevania appearing on the Gameboy Advance. At first I didn't really care what platform it would appear on, because a new CV game is an exciting thing, no matter what. After all, this was the title that was promised, in the interview included in Chronicles, to be "astonishing." I don't think I've been as eager to see a title in the series as I have been about this one, and that despite knowing absolutely nothing about it. So when I saw the news all I could do was titter like a little school girl.

Now that I've had a chance to think about it, I guess I'm a little disappointed. Quite a bit of the excitement surrounding this new game was the promise of a 2D sidescroller appearing on the PS2. I don't think any one here, or most anywhere, will argue with the brilliance of Symphony. How much cooler, then, could a similar game be on the considerably more powerful hardware. Also, another CD-based Castlevania carried with it the natural conclusion of another block rockin' CD-quality soundtrack. So much for that. The PCM in the GBA is pretty good, but it's still a PCM.

On the bright side, I have no doubt that this will be an astonishing game. The wizards at Konami have already had a go at making a Castlevania game on the plucky, little handheld, so I'm sure by now they have a very good understanding of how to exploit its strengths and downplay its weaknesses. CotM is amazing considering it was a launch title. Just imagine what they've learned from the experience.

Personally, I don't seem to mind actually playing my GBA as much as many people do. A good light source is really not that hard to find, and I don't find myself straining my neck or smashing up my fingers like some folks seem to. Then again, I'm a pretty small person. Still I'd rather play it on the big screen if given the choice. I think that's kind of a no-brainer. So how about the GBA-TV option? Well I just got one, and I'm a little regretful to report that it's not all it's cracked up to be. Control and sound-wise it seems to be great, but the graphic translation really leaves something to be desired. Things appear fuzzy on the screen at 70% size, at full screen there's also some distortion, making words a little hard to read. My guess is that this is due to the fact that the GBA has a high-res LCD screen and a standard television screen is junk by comparison. It's not bad for a novelty, but I think it'd be a pretty disappointing way to play through such a graphic-intensive masterpiece as this game.

Finally what of the game itself? I'm quite intrigued already. Based on what little information has been released, perhaps the story will explore more of what happened to Sypha and Trevor (aka RALPH) following Dracula's Curse. The possibility of a magic-using Belmont is also rife with possibilities. I noticed, when browsing one day through the Dungeon here, that the third Gameboy title that we know as "Castlevania: Legends" was originally called "Dark Night Prelude." This makes me wonder if perhaps "White Night Concerto" is somehow related, and will shed some more light on the origins of the Belmont clan. And what's the deal with this new title? Supposedly the US release will be called "Harmony of Dissonance?" What's up with that? White Night Concerto sounds grand and elegant, whereas this other label strikes me as rather clunky and meaningless. Maybe it's just me.

So there's the good, and there's the bad. At the end of the day though, I'm pretty confident that it will be a marvelous game, even if it's not what we'd originally hoped for.

Christopher Lundgren

While the announcement of White Night Concerto/Harmony of Dissonance certainly excited the libido of the Castlevania community - I mean, ANY new Castlevania game is a good thing - the fact that it's another GBA game makes me feel a bit empty. We haven't seen a really good console Castlevania game in nearly five years. While I love my Gameboy Advance and all, it's still basically a 16-bit title. Where's my PS2 version with lots of pretty colors and cool music?

And I prefer the "White Night Concerto" title, "Harmony of Dissonance" is kinda cool. I think the oxymoronic moniker is intentional too.

It's good to hear an opinion from someone with the GBA-TV. It seemed quite tasty when I got to try it, but given that it's more expensive than the actual system, I'm a bit wary about it. I can still dream of the day Nintendo releases something that lets you interface it with the Gamecube so you can play GBA on the TV without messing with wiring.

My God! How timely! I just started suffering through Circle Of The Moon yesterday and I've got a boatload of GBA-related complaints already.

On a practical note: The screen, though bigger than the Game Boy Color's screen, still is worthless unless you have a really bright light source right above or behind your head. I had to go to my bedroom and get in bed to play the thing just so I could put my reading lamp right beside my head for a light source. I don't know how to install a backlight (and wouldn't really want to try--I suck with complicated machines) and I don't like magnifiers or those worthless worm lights, so I'm stuck with it. It wouldn't be so bad if KCEK hadn't made the game so dark to begin with. The controls are only fair, and a lot of that is due to the GBA's really soft buttons. And the graphics... well, I don't understand what all the fuss was about. Yes, some of the animations are nice--on the bosses. Yes, the spell effects are good. Yes, the backgrounds are lovely. But most of the enemies--and the main character--have an embarrassingly low number of animation frames. I don't play games for graphics, so I don't care that much, but when your (tiny and featureless) main character's dash animation only has about two or three frames, it's depressing. I hope the GBA can do better than that. On a positive note, it has the usual excellent soundtrack, and the GBA has an amazingly good sound setup for a handheld.

I don't consider it too uncomfortable to hold--it's better by far than the cramp-inducing likes of the GBC, or, worse yet, the Neo Geo Pocket Color, which was so tiny and had such tiny controls that I couldn't get anywhere with any game more complicated than Pac-Man, and which had all the lighting problems of the Nintendo handhelds. On the other hand, the GBA still gave me a stiff neck and a massive backache. The GBA was probably designed with kids in mind, or for trips, so it's not really an ideal machine for heavy gaming. On the other hand, it's bound to be the last bastion of 2D, because game developers have already decided that 2D games don't sell on big consoles (look at the way Konami dumped Chronicles--the local Babbage's got a grand total of four copies, period, and none of the other local game stores got any at all, and Konami doesn't even trouble to mention it on their webpage. As far as they're concerned, if you do a search for Castlevania, it means Circle Of The Moon. Period.)

So, I think it's a moot point. Should 2D Castlevanias be reserved only for the GBA? No. But I don't think we'll see them anywhere else for the forseeable future. The one advantage handholds have is a lower price point. I don't feel bad about shelling out for a GBA, given all the good 2D games that are coming (provided I can come up with a better light source). I don't think I would have shelled out $200 or $300 just to play one game, no matter what console it appeared on.

Scott Miller

Ah, finally some dissedence about the GBA! Woo hoo!

There's quite a bit of good perspective in this letter - especially about price point. I still haven't shelled out the $300 for the PS2 (though I've already beaten the two games I wanted to play on it) but I have little reservation in plunking down $70 for a GBA. I still think the games are too expensive, but that'll change once the system sells enough (which'll probably be when the new Pokemon game comes out.)

First, I have to say, I can't believe no one mentioned the choir on the title screen of Circle of the Moon.  That was the first castlevania game I'd owned/played since Simon's Quest, and that music chilled my blood. It set the scene beautifully. It was also pretty cool hearing music of that quality coming from my GBA. And speaking of which...

  The next Castlevania game is returning to the GBA. The White Concerto, or whatever it's called. I CAN'T WAIT!!  Circle of the Moon is the best game I've bought for my Game Boy Advance, better than Mario Kart, better than anything.  It had the atmosphere, the difficulty, and it was just so addictive. I couldn't stop, waiting to see what was around the next corner... But I'm going off subject.

I dont' have any problems with Castlevania coming to handheld, not after Circle of the Moon.  I have no worries about the games depth, length, or graphics, the handheld can handle it. (That was an awful pun, I know.)  For comfort, it isn't completely ideal.  Staring down for hours can cause neck pain, and everyone complained about the game being too dark. These sort of excuses annoy me, if the game's too dark, get a light!!  They sell 'em for 10 bucks, is that so hard?  Sorry. I just feel that the darkness of Circle of the Moon helped to make the game, giving atmosphere, etc. So I'm glad to see the next installment on the GBA. Hey, you can take it anywhere.  What's not good about that?

Now, understand. I'm not against Castlevania hitting major consoles. I'd love to see a GameCube disc with the familiar logo on there, but I do have my reservations. Going back to an earlier topic, games on major consoles often seem to require being 3D.  I dont' know why, it seems that the game developers think it'll be a waste if the game isn't 3D.  Now, I never played either Castlevania on the 64, but I heard they weren't completely up to par. I think, why not make the game 2D on a major console?  (Obviously, SOTN is exempt from that remark.)  With all the room and processing power, the ultimate game could be created.  We could have beautifully orchestrated music on the discs, with blinding graphics and very fast gameplay. All the characters could be voice acted. The game could be huge in size!!  Or at least, make the levels and characters 3D, on a 2D plain, like Smash Brothers. 

  I would love to see more 2D castlevania's on major consoles,  but I don't see this as likely to happen. Ah well, more is the loss. I'd better finish, as I've taken up rather a lot of space.

Scooby

I honestly don't have the enthusiasm for handhelds like I used to when I was younger. Heck, I carried my Gameboy around in high school to play Metroid during Physics class. Now that I'm older, the novelty has worn off. I don't need to be kept occupied during long car rides - I drive myself. There's rarely a time anymore when I'm away from my loving dorm room HQ that I absolutely MUST be playing games.

If it were at all possible, I'd love to talk to the bigwigs of the game companies and see what they really think about 2D games. Obviously, all Castlevania fanatics are going to scream "2D yay!" (as they did in a previous mailbag), but that's a very skewed look at what the general game buying populace think. I remember the British game mags blasted SotN when it came out because it was "old" - thankfully the American ones had their heads screwed on a bit more properly. Except for Next Generation, who gave SotN, along with Final Fantasy Tactics (two of the greatest games for the PSX) a meager four stars. And gave five to drivel like Dino Crisis.

Next Gen had lots of great writers, but their reviewers were on crack.

Coming back from my unwarranted tangent, I'm now racking my brain to figure out if there's any 2D games out for the PS2 now, not counting the scant handful of fighting games. And I'm not coming up with any. *sigh*

I think we can all agree here when I say that Konami is playing it safe with "White Night Concerto". They know that the Castlevania series works extremely well in both the 2d and handheld realm. So its no wonder that we are getting another "Circle of the Moon" type Castlevania. Thats not a bad thing for us gamers (In my opinion).

But on the other hand, could Castlevania's developers be a bit more progressive? Maybe. In my opinion, if Devil May Cry was a rip off of our beloved Castlevania series or insprired by it OR even a type of wake up call to Konami, then I think it should be noted and acted on. That is to say, Konami should take the DMC formula (fixed camera angles, full free roaming character design, and fast action controls) and apply them to a PS2 or Game Cube Castlevania already. Think of the beauty of a Devil May Cry/ Castlevania hybrid. It may be the next step for the series. Or perhaps just another 2D Castlevania for the PS2 or GameCube but in high resolution. Either way would be more progressive. Cos while the GBA is the best thing to happen to the industry in a while, I dont think it has the power to truly advance the Castlevania series to another level. All that being said I do think "Circle of the Moon" was one of the best games of this last year.

  cough!

  alwaysinit

If Castlevania's gonna evolve, that's the route it's gonna have to take.

In a way, though, the appearance of the new game on the GBA is both a blessing and a curse for CV fans. In one corner, we get the satisfaction of playing in pure, unadultered 2D. On the other hand, the series doesn't really evolve, and would eventually grow stagnant. Still, I can't say I'm relaly disappointed by the "more of the same" philosophy, given that I'll buy any Mega Man related product, quality be damned.

I already knew the next installment of Castlevania was going to the GBA. That info was well known when Chronicles came stateside. But that is not what this is about. Does it bother me? Well yes. First i don't have a GBA yet, so i have yet to Circle of the Moon.

I believe Konami is doing this to avoid questions if you do a Castlevania for a next gen console why is it still 2-D. By making it for the GBA Konami doesn't have to answer that question. Currently Konami (as I see it) is worried, Castlevania 64 was a bomb stateside, so they are worried about doing a 3-D Castlevania. People may remember the 64 versions and they may not the game since they feel they may see the same thing.

As for all new attachments and hookups for the GBA, that has yet to be seen. SInce i have no GBA i can't comment on this, but seeing the screenshots, the game looks good for something on a handunit. I still have Gen. 1 Gameboy, D still the Gameboy Castlevania games on it, though it has lost a few lines on the screen.

Despite GBA's lighting problem many Castlevania fans will buy it. Why? We have that urge to pick up the whip and lay the holy smack down on Dracula. What we need to examine where will Castlevania go from here, there are 3 next gen consoles, who will get Dracula is the real question.

Cruel Angel's Thesis

Although this echoes what's been said in previous letters, it brings up another point - where will the next Castlevania game, if it goes next-gen? All of us have assumed Playstation 2 - but Konami designs games for all three major platforms. There's nothing to say they won't make something a Gamecube or X-Box exclusive, effectively forcing us fans without one of those systems to shell out more bucks. Oh, what a harsh life we live.
This is a good topic. Let me begin by saying this,... I work at a video game store. And since we've begun to carry the off-brand GBA to GameCube adapters one of the first impressions people have is that it plays Gameboy Advance games thru your Gamecube on your tv. Of course, this is not the case... nor does the object allow the GBA to be used as a controller. Nintendo are fools not to consider a tv hookup for the GBA, no not fools, idiots. If they actually made an adapter to use GameCube to play GBA games not only could it help push Gamecube sales, but it would be seen as a vision of loyalty to Nintendo people who have been begging for a way to play Gameboy Games on a tv since the Super Gameboy faded into obscurity. Obviously I think that this is the way to go.

Castlevania Circle of the Moon would have been a much more interesting game if played on a tv. Rather than using all of these preposturous light attachments to see if anything is actually happening on the screen... our time could have been better spent exploring, leveling up and trying to discover all of the cards and their uses. Circle was not a bad game, but the GBA's dark presentation hardly gives it any credability. Especially since Nintendo will straight up deny that the GBA has a dark picture. They will even go as far as insulting your intelligence by saying things like, "Play in a well lit room.". Have they even played Circle of the Moon the way that they suggest? I seriously doubt it.

And it makes little sense besides which since the original Gameboy, Gamegear, Sega Nomad and possibly even more portable systems all have had a brightness adjustment switch. The one system that comes along and actually needs it, doesn't have it.

I don't so much mind which system a Castlevania game is on provided that I can see the thing. Of course I prefer being able to play them on a tv, because I don't believe that great epic gameplay that lasts for 20 plus hours belongs on a handheld system. Who has the time to seriously play games like Golden Sun on the go? When I play RPGs or action/rpgs I look at the clock when I'm done and over four hours have passed. I do not wish to strain my eyes over a dark screen thats only a few inches wide. That said I'm getting a tv attachment for my Advance like I have with my Sega Nomad. Because everyone knows that Castlevania belongs on the big screen.

I can't stand Nintendo's attitude with the Gameboy Advance, honestly. As far as I'm concerned, the Gameboy Color was a flat-out insult - it barely improved on ANY of the original Gameboy hardware. The Gameboy Advance SHOULD have come out years ago. Yet, since it's the only real thing on the block, it hasn't.

See folks? This is why competition is good.

I have a feeling Nintendo will eventually release some sort of official way to play GBA games on your screen - but not for awhile.

Let me say one thing before I begin my rant. I didn't get to play CotM, nor do I have a GBA (I'm poor). So some of my opinions may be off.

As far as handhelds go, I like them. You can play a game, anywhere. I can play SMB on my GBC anytime, anywhere. However, there's the obvious balance. My first handheld was a Game Gear, and I know how much it sucks to have a handheld too big for a pocket. But of course, they made GBA way too small for comfort. Not to mention that tiny screen, TVs can show fast paced action and still maintain clarity much better than a handheld.

As for putting it on the GBA, I don't think it's a problem. What I don't like is the absence of CV on any of the new systems. The way people react and games are being made, you'd think 2D was imposible for these consoles. It seems like there are those of the mind that since it CAN be done, it MUST be. PSX can handle 3D just as well, if not better than N64, yet SotN was 2D while LoD was 3D. Not only that... which one had a better fan reception?

So I don't have a problem with another CV on a handheld, but I think they should make one for a TV using console. It doens't have to use the Whole of its capacity, or be 3D or anything like that. I've noticed the opposite sometimes works. All that's needed is something worth playing that earns the title CastleVania.

However, I do think a console version would have better music (Sorry, but I didn't offer anything last week, so I'm slipping it in. I think the music should fit the area and mood. But I personally love rock 'n' Roll, like the SotN boss music, but classical (in both CV music and Mozart classical) can be even better to fit the right mood. As far as a band, I don't think there should be any vocals, and I like how the music is anyway, so I find that point...pointless ) sorry, had to put it in.

-Moonen

Good enough. So, for next time....what's your take on Ayami Kojima? You know, the character designer for Symphony of the Night, Chronicles, and White Night Concerto? Do her sexy designs force you to lock your door and force God to kill a few kittens? Or have you had one too many long-haired, full-lipped girly men? Do you prefer this style of "modern goth" or would you rather Konami go back to the Japanese animation look of PC Engine Dracula X, or even *shudder* the comic book feel of the SNES Dracula X? Write in. Please.

-Kurt, who treasures his vision greatly