Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin

by Konami

Product Features

• Encounter over 100 diverse enemies in your adventure to stop Dracula's resurrection
• Summon your partner and execute cooperation attacks to decimate your enemies
• Collect items, weapons and magic as you explore the castle
• Fight with and against your friends in multiple multi-player modes

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000GIXIPK
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches ; 8 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: November 22, 2006
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (43 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,811 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com

Celebrating 20 years of vampire hunting action, the legendary Castlevania series is back with an all-new action packed adventure. Take control of two heroes, Jonathan Morris, a vampire killer and his close friend Charlotte Orlean, a girl with tremendous magical ability. Amidst the chaos of World War II, two mysterious sisters emerge, and design a plan to resurrect Dracula. Join Jonathan and Charlotte as they attempt to thwart the terrible plan to resurrect Dracula.

Fight vicious bosses as you play the character of Jonathan and Charlotte.

Choose which character you want to control on the fly.

Explore the depths of the castle.

Seek out the evil Brauner.

Game Storyline
In Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, players take on the role of Jonathan Morris and Charlotte Orlean. During World War II, many lost souls from the global conflict were left to wander the world in search of salvation. Desperate to escape their terrible plight, they sought to resurrect Dracula's Castle from the rubble of society, assisted by two mysterious vampire sisters. Now Jonathan and Charlotte must work together to confront the two vampire sisters, and ensure that this villainous catastrophe is not unleashed on the world.

Gameplay
Evolving the action-adventure gameplay that has been the series' trademark for 20 years, Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin lets players switch freely between Jonathan and Charlotte as they proceed on their heroic mission, each with their own strengths, abilities and style of play. Players can now utilize powerful combination attacks in which both characters unleash the full extent of their combat abilities to decimate the game's more than 100 different enemies and bosses. In their quest to stop Dracula's resurrection, Jonathan and Charlotte can collect and use different weapons, equipment, and items to increase their overall skill level and acquire new abilities.

As mentioned before, players can switch freely between both characters, a necessary option to win the game. For instance, you need to analyze certain situations and carefully choose to play either Jonathan or Charlotte in order to successfully battle against the vampire army. The two characters can also combine their powers to pull-off powerful combo attacks. Their combined abilities are needed in certain parts of the castle in order to progress through the game.

The game has two different endings. Both endings involve the prevention of Dracula's resurrection, however only one actually involves the defeat of Brauner. Different choices allow for a uniquely diverse gameplay experience.

Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin supports the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection with a limited cooperative play mode feature. There is an online shop mode used through Wi-Fi as well. Players are able to put their items up for sale in a realistic marketplace. And perhaps best of all, when another player buys the item, the selling player gains the money but doesn't lose the item.

Product Description

Castlevania: Portrait Of Ruin brings back the award winning action exploration gameplay that has held fans captive for 2 decades! Take control of two heroes, Jonathan Morris, a vampire killer and his close friend Charlotte Orlean, a girl with tremendous magical ability. Amidst the chaos of World War II, two mysterious sisters emerge working to resurrect Dracula and David and Charlotte are all that stand in their way.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A for effort . . ., December 10, 2006

By 

T. Sparks (Leesville, LA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin (Video Game)

The Castlevania series has undergone its fair share of criticism; i.e., the Metroid-style structure has been done to death, and there simply aren't enough innovations to distinguish the games from each other. The 3D games have been particularly aligned, with poor level structure being the widest complaint.

Portrait of Ruin was Konami's answer to those complaints. While the design of the game has been restructured, the overall execution is somewhat lacking.

For example, the game's protagonists, Jonathan Morris and Charlotte Aulin, must use paintings, much in the style of Super Mario 64, to enter new worlds. Here's where part of the problem lies--there are only five distinct levels (Dracula's Castle, a city overrun with monsters, a dark forest, Egypt, and a twisted circus sideshow.) You can find restructured and more difficult versions of these levels later on in the game, but the overall lack of diversity is disappointing. Instead of offering different versions of the same levels, Konami could have delved into Castlevania's 20-year history to deliver us mountain ranges, or sleepy villages, or haunted docks, or sunken ruins . . . the list goes on, and its rather aggravating to find such a lack of effort in this title.

However, the dual-hero system works well for the game. Sadly, there aren't very many puzzles in which you must rely on your partner--yes, there is a segment in which the two characters ride motorcycles and the player must shift between the two to clear the course--but events like these are few and far between. Most often, the only reason you'll switch to Charlotte is to turn into a frog or an owl, or to cast a specific spell. You'll spend the other 90% of the time as Jonathan.

The difficulty is also somewhat skewed. Most enemies can be ripped through quickly and easily, but boss battles can be intensely difficult, with bosses often using attacks that can drain as much as 200 hit points. Attention to patterns and a plentiful supply of potions are necessary to win the day, and while its refreshing to have boss battles reminiscent of the old-school 8-bit Castlevanias, players who entered the series with Symphony of the Night are in for a rude awakening.

However, the story is top-notch, and follows roughly thirty years after the events of Castlevania: Bloodlines for the Sega Genesis. The characters are well-written, and the player will become genuinely intrigued by their stories and their pasts.

Sounds, as usual, are one of the highlights for the game. The voice-acting is present, but generally minimal, and the melodies and sound effects continue to be haunting.

Enemy design is also one of the game's highest points. The sprites are well-animated, and, in many portions of the game, comical. For example, the Persephone enemy shuffles back and forth with a vacuum cleaner; if Jonathan gets too close, he'll be sucked backwards and get his bottom lodged in the end of the appliance. Charlotte, conversely, will be momentarily inconvenienced as she struggles to prevent her skirt from being blown up. One boss enemy can also seduce Jonathan with one of her attacks, causing him to attack Charlotte.

In conclusion, Portrait of Ruin is a game that belongs in every Castlevania fan's library. It's just not particularly memorable.

Story: A
Level Design: C
Music: A
Sound Effects: A
Enemy design: A
Character design: A
Difficulty: B
Overall: B+

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More Castlevania on the go? Count me in, December 17, 2006

By 

N. Durham "Big Evil" (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin (Video Game)

It's a safe bet that when Konami creates a Castlevania for a handheld that it's going to be pretty good. Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin is no exception, and while it doesn't do much we haven't seen before in the series, it still manages to pack one heck of a punch. Following up the wonderful Dawn of Sorrow, Portrait of Ruin puts you in the shoes of Jonathan and Charlotte; a whip and magic wielding duo that you play as together throughout the game. This new dynamic adds some spice to the tried but true side scrolling gameplay, which is rich with a horde of weapons, items, and power-ups to find. And, since this is a Castlevania game, it's only natural that the boss battles are nothing short of fantastic and the best parts of the game. The graphics look sharp with superb animation and effects that really show off what the DS is capable of with 2-D graphics. The music and sound is superb as well, and the game offers some decent touch screen capabilities that are more substancial than the ones found in Dawn of Sorrow. If there's any cons to Portrait of Ruin, it's that the level designs don't have that personality that we've seen in previous Castlevania games like Dawn of Sorrow and the GBA titles, but that's not a huge gripe. All in all, Portrait of Ruin is another superb portable Castlevania game, and yet another must own title for the DS.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It's like Dawn of Sorrow, but with different characters!, December 11, 2006

By 

Dewgunner - See all my reviews

= Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin (Video Game)

Well, I was actually quite pumped up to play this game, so much so that I went and pre-ordered it at EBgames and managed to get some bonus goodies along with the game. But that's another story altogether. Let's make no bones about it, Portrait of Ruin (POR) is a solid entry to the Castlevania franchise that is definitely going to live up to many fans'expectations. It's the same gaming formula that was introduced in the earlier PS2 hit, Symphony of the Night, and was reused in many of the later sequels.

And that is exactly why, while it is a good game, it doesn't succeed in becoming an excellent game. It's the same tried and true offering with minimal changes. There are a lot of reused character sprites, reused music and even reused plot developments (no real surprise there, a descendent of the Legendary Belmont clan and his partner encounter the evil of Dracula once more as his castle once again casts its menacing shadow across the land. Ho hum). Even some of the game's boss fights are reused from previous outings (I won't mention which one in case it ruins the surprise). In short, the game plays a lot like something you may have played before.

However, that is no reason for anyone to dismiss this game out of hand. The new partner system, while not being groundbreakingly innovative, is a good example of clever game design, opening up multiple choices as to how to dispatch the unholy dead. The level designs, though familiar, are wonderfully crafted and gorgeous to a 2D affecionado (or anybody, for that matter). There's solid action and RPG elements to keep any gamer happy for hours on end (I ended up playing more than 6 hours straight on my first day...even through my class lectures).

Ultimately, the game doesn't really offer anything deviously new and doesn't really tread away from the tried and true Castlevania formula. But if you're looking for a good game that is more than worth your buck, then this is surely one of the games you must get, even if you're not a huge Castlevania fan.

If you're already a fan of the series, then this is another good reason to delve into the world of Castlevania again to fight Dracula another day.

Bottom line: great game, and a good buy, but if you've played a lot of the previous incarnations don't expect anything fabulously different.