Pros: hand drawn, 2D side scroller!
Cons: no complaints here.
The bottom line: You haven't experienced Castlevania until you play this.
No Castlevania to date comes close to the experience you'll have playing this one. There is more depth and feeling than in any previous installment, and the atmosphere is very convincing. For example, it's storming outside and you see a creature(or an eyeball) lurking outside the windows. You may also notice the symbol of the Necronomicon(the book of the dead) is present. This I think adds a level of creepiness, just out of principle. The sound was wonderfully done for its time, the voices a little on the cheesy side though. The soundtrack so good I had to go out a buy it from an import store.

Continuing from the last installment(Bloodlines on the Genesis), you begin the quest fighting the ever famous Dracula. He spends a few moments wallowing in the existence of man before you give him the what for. Afterwards they bring you up to speed on recent events, thus giving you your mission.

This installment is especially unique to the Castlevania series because there is a lot more of an RPG element. You've actually acquired the ability to gain experience therefore you gain levels as you progress through the game. They've given you hit and magic points that increase as you gain levels, as well as with certain equipped items. You've got what's called a heart level. This grants you the ability to throw special weapons, and maintain you in a shapeshifted form. This isn't new to the Castlevania series however. The heart level does increase with the acquisition of heart potions found in abundance throughout the castle. You'll find that you can still break a few walls here and there, but not nearly as much as before.

The status screen provides you with a count bar that keeps track of all rooms entered and number of monsters defeated. There is also stats for strength, constitution, intelligence, and luck. These attributes can be increased based on level and/or item equipped. While running about the castle collecting gold, items, spells, and relics, you may want to periodically check what you've found. You'll find that as you collect relics, they can be turned on or off. Most of them you'll want on(they automatically turn on), because they show you things that you otherwise could not have seen, or been able to do. Spells require you to input button combos, but they're well worth the effort. If you are a fan of fighting games, this won't be a challenge for you. Under the System menu, there is a bit of a hidden secret that you'll have to unlock somewhere along your journey, and you'll see it from the start so you'll know to keep an eye out for it. You probably won't get far without it anyway.

The map screen keeps track of where you've been, and once you have bought the map from an old acquaintance, you'll be able to see where you haven't been. Excluding the hidden areas of course. The map you purchase will help greatly, and you'll want to fill it in as completely as possible, because this contributes to your completion percentage. Save points, which are unique as well, will serve as both a save and a rest area. They will be red on your map once you've located them. You will also encounter teleport rooms(very handy), which you may use to teleport to any other previously visited ones in the castle. These will appear orange on your map after you have found them.

There is a fairly easy level of puzzle solving, with a few tricky spots, but for the most part it is remembering places you couldn't get to and then returning once you have the ability.

You'll encounter few other souls in this game, and for the most part the ones that you do, want you dead. Not too far along, you'll be reunited with a familiar character, and he'll reluctantly help you with a bit of persuasion. This is the man with whom you will deal with regularly, he is the Master Librarian and has items and various other things for sale. You may purchase items, some of which are quest related and can only be bought once, others for advancement. He also offers tactics(for defeating monsters/bosses you may have trouble with), and an enemy list that keeps track of monsters/bosses you have defeated along with their level, HP's, strengths and weaknesses, plus drop items. They include a description which may give you clues at times. An added bonus is the sound test where you can listen to any of the music in the game.

You have been bestowed the ability to shapeshift once you've gained the souls necessary, and once shapeshifted you will consume hearts at a slow but steady pace, therefore limiting you with its use. Shapeshifting will help you get places you previously couldn't as well as help you bypass some more difficult baddies. There are familiars as well who will help you in different ways. The fairy for instance will alert you to secret areas that you haven't discovered yet.

Boss fights can be difficult, but each are rewarded with a life max potion. These do just as the name suggests, your HP's will increase with them. That's not the only time you receive these however, they are scattered all over the castle, some hidden very well. You can walk around with or without your shield raised, provided you have one to help keep the damage received at a minimum.

The best part of the game is the end. There are actually two of them, and it is well worth the effort to obtain the final one. You will be able to tell by checking your completion percentage, you would want it around two hundred or so. If you don't have a strategy guide available you can visit gamefaqs.com to see how this is accomplished. Once completed, you can then play through the game again as a different character, who I won't reveal. This time around it is a little more difficult as you are extremely limited and you cannot equip as single thing beyond what you start with. But you do have a few killer moves that you didn't the first time.

This is one of the consoles' second generation games, but should not be overlooked. It is still available in some stores, as it made Sony's Greatest Hits collection, and for good reason. It sold very well in both the US and Japan. I really loved the artwork, you can tell they put a lot more into this sequel. This game is recommended for everyone. The story is easy to follow as you should already have an idea what vampires are all about. The character development isn't the greatest if you haven't played any of the previous titles, but they give the general idea. The twist is that you are a vampire but you're set out to kill the others, one in particular. The irony of it all. My only disappointment with Konami was the cancellation of another sequel, which was set to be released on the Dreamcast. How depressing.