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Castlevania Advance Collection finally revives classic Game Boy Advance games

Jess Reyes
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After weeks of rumors, the Castlevania Advance Collection will launch for the Nintendo Switch later today. Like its name suggests, it includes the three original games released on the Game Boy Advance: Castlevania: Circle of the Moon, Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance, and Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow. It also features Castlevania: Dracula X, an SNES title based on Castlevania: Rondo of Blood.

Circle of the Moon marked the iconic Castlevania series‘ debut on the Game Boy Advance in 2001. Harmony of Dissonance followed in 2002 and Aria of Sorrow in 2003. The three titles were popular enough that they rereleased on the Wii U in 2014. However, the Castlevania Advance Collection will be the first time they come to newer consoles.

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M2, a studio that already worked with Konami in the past on its Castlevania Anniversary Collection, is handling the new GBA collection. This includes implementing the newly announced rewind, quick save, and button-mapping options to improve gameplay for new players. Regional versions of the games, along with a gallery of never-before-seen artwork, also sweeten the deal.

Castlevania is one of the most iconic platformers from the early 2000s. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night especially stuck in gamers’ minds with its mix of platforming and RPG elements. It even inspired part of the term “Metroidvania” — a type of platformer adventure game. It’s a different protagonist most of the time, though the vampire-filled, supernatural setting stays the same. Count Dracula haunts the world, whether he happens to be up and about in that particular game or just affecting it through history. 

Castlevania leaks sprang weeks before the official announcement at the recent Nintendo Direct. According to its ESRB Rating, Castlevania Advance Collection will also come to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC in the future. Konami just hasn’t announced it yet.

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