Castlevania Harmony of Dissonance

by Konami

Product Features

• Lead Juste Belmont into the castle on a search for Dracula relics
• RPG elements allow gamers to 'level up' during gameplay
• Battery save feature

Product Details

• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B00006F2ZR
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: September 17, 2002
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #11,030 in Video Games (See Bestsellers in Video Games)

Product Description

Amazon.com E3 Preview

The most noticeable difference between Harmony of Dissonance and last year's successful Castlevania: Circle of the Moon is that in the new game, the castle will be a lot easier to see. Brighter graphics enhanced for the GBA's screen, as well as some new special effects, made this a floor favorite. The new game's story follows a descendant of Simon Belmont named Juste, who's on a quest for Dracula's relics. Konami says it's adding RPG elements that will allow characters to gain experience and level up during the game. And Harmony of Dissonance has one cool feature that, in a perfect world, would come standard on all GBA games: a save-anywhere feature.

Product Description

In Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance, players take the role of Juste Belmont, a descendant of Simon Belmont. It has been nearly fifty years since Simon Belmont rescued the land from the curse of Dracula. Now its Juste Belmonts turn as he must acquire the relics of Dracula left behind from the past in order to unravel the mysterious disappearance of his friend Lydie Erlanger. With a trusty whip at their side, players explore Dracula's castle under the cover of night collecting relics and learning powerful magic spells in their journey to find and rescue Lydie.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Symphony of the night Part II, September 9, 2002

By	Gene Lee (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I haven't been this hooked on a side-scroller since Castlevania-Symphony of the Night for playstation; and that is quite an accomplishment for any game to achieve.

(Note: I've been playing my Japanese imported copy of the game for about a week now, so this review is based on me actually playing the game instead of assuming how great it's "going to be when it comes out.")

The game is very similar to SOTN; much more so than Circle of the Moon. The castles (two of them) you explore are huge, and like the original, there are a vast assortment of items to seek out and equip. The spell system has been slightly changed so that you combine your subweapons with various spellbooks you find. This is much easier than the complicated magic system used in Circle of the Moon.

The graphics have been improved. The animations are more fluid, and the colors are brighter this time so that no additional lighting will be necessary. However, in putting so much of the Gameboy Advance's resources in the graphics, the sound has taken a considerable hit. The music sounds like the 8 bit Gameboy color. A bit disappointing, but it doesn't detract too much from the overall experience. Perhaps the worst aspect of Harmony of Dissonance is all the backtracking that is required for you to complete the game. Save points and warps are much more sparse, so you'll end up spending most of your time hauling yourself all the way across the castle many times.

That said, this game is pure joy to play. You acquire new items, which allow you to explore previously out of reach areas- this feverishly addictive quality keeps you coming back for more and more until you beat Dracula.

Overall, this is the best game that you can currently buy for the gameboy advance (until Zelda is released!). The gameplay is fantastic and unparalleled by anything else offered by any other game company. You need this game!

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars If you liked Circle of The Moon, September 19, 2002

By	Oz Thomas (USA) - See all my reviews

Konami has been bringing us Castlevania games for over a decade now. From the first adventure on the NES, which introduced us to the Belmont legacy to the classic Symphony of the Night on the PSX and amazing Circle of the Moon on the GBA, Castlevania has always been one of the best series around and every game showcased something new and grand - upped the ante if you will. Harmony of Dissonance isn't bad in any way. It simply isn't as good as the classics before it.

Don't get me wrong, Harmony of Dissonance is not a bad game, but it's not without it's flaws. Major flaws. After hours of playing this game, these flaws will become obvious to you as well.

Harmony of Dissonance plays much like Circle of the Moon. You run around a huge maze-like castle, beating enemies with your whip and special items like the holy or the axe. When you beat a boss, typically, you can go onto the next level, you gain some new ability that allows you to progress into the castle, be it a double jump, wall jump, etc.

Harmony of Dissonance takes a good deal from SoTN or CoTM and puts a twist on it. There are different weapons you can get, there is now a code book instead of DSS cards, there is an alternate dungeon. All of this is well and good, but there simply isn't enough new about this game to warrant a purchase Unless you're a die-hard Castlevania fan.

The music flat out [stinks]. Anyone telling you anything else is either lying or tone-deaf. And it's not just that the music is low, NES quality, it's that the compositions are dull, some of them are downright annoying. Gives double meaning to the subtitle Harmony of Dissonance.

The graphics are upgraded from CoTM, and all in all it's an improvement. The characters and enemies are now easy to see and there are some neat graphical and rotation effects with the bosses. Some nice stuff.

But graphics and sound aren't what makes a game. Even though I hate the sound and love the graphics, I won't let that alter my score. I'm grading this game on gameplay. The gameplay is where it's all at. And this is where Harmony of Dissonance is lacking. The castle design in Circle of the Moon is far superior. In Harmony of Dissonance you'll find yourself wandering aroung for hours, partly due to poor maps, sometimes having to walk across half the castle to get to where you want to go. And when walking across the castle takes five minutes each time or more, it gets to be annoying.

Okay, so that part's not that bad. The thing that really degrades the game for me is that it's way too easy. In past Castlevania games, you got to a boss, and he was a challenge blocking your way. You had to memorize complex patterns to show him who's boss. In Harmony of Dissonance, most bosses are insanely easy, follow the simplest of patterns, and take off only a smidgen of health when they hit you. [lame]. I don't like frustrating, but I don't like feeling cheated, either. And well, it's a Castlevania game- IT SHOULDN'T BE EASY!!

All in all, this isn't a bad game. If it was the first Castlevania game, it would be brilliant, but most of the game simply seems to be what the game designers loved about previous Castlevania games. One of the problems with the game is that it's a rehash, and it plays way too similar to old Castlevania games. And it's too easy. Way too easy for a Castlevania game. Next thing you know, we're gonna see an easy Contra game...

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars First Review, October 16, 2002

By	"lasheric" (Afgainstain) - See all my reviews

This is my first review, but since reviews always help me out I wanted to return the favor. First off if this is your first castlevania game for gameboy, dont by it, get the other castlevania title, circle of the moon, than go from there. If you liked COTM and are thinking of buying this, I suggest it.

The graphics are better to start off with, and the normal walking monsters throughout the map are also more of a challange. On the downside, the bosses are much easier and the sound is much worse. You also only have 3 save files, but there is a new quicksave which comes in really handle if you have to stop playing in a hurry.

The magic system has been changed from cards to spellbooks, your spellbooks go off of which subweapon you use. I'm not sure if I like the change, but its livable.

The RPG system is the same and the game is still fun to play. Considering I'm deployed in Afgainstain right now, I have all the time in the world to play games, so I'm happy to have this one. It's worth the money.