Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse is a 1989 platform game created and published by Konami for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It was released on December 22, 1989, in Japan, September 19, 1990, in North America, and in May 1992 in PAL regions by Konami's Palcom publishing label.
Although it is the third numbered game in the Castlevania series, Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse takes place before the events of the original Castlevania (1986), several centuries earlier. The game's main character is Trevor Belmont, an ancestor of Simon Belmont, who must defeat the forces of Dracula. The game removes the role-playing and action-adventure features from Castlevania II: Simon's Quest and returns to the action-platforming style of the original Castlevania. It also adds new ideas, such as different paths through levels and the ability to play as multiple characters.
Castlevania III received positive reviews from critics. Many praised the game for bringing back the best elements of the Castlevania series, and several highlighted its music as a strong point. The game has been re-released on the Virtual Console for the Wii, Nintendo 3DS, and Wii U. It was later included in the Castlevania Anniversary Collection for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One. The story from Dracula's Curse continues in the games Castlevania: Curse of Darkness (2005) and Castlevania: Belmont's Curse (2026).
Gameplay
Castlevania III stops using the action-adventure and role-playing features from Castlevania II: Simon's Quest and returns to the platform game style of the original Castlevania. However, unlike the first Castlevania, Castlevania III allows players to make choices that change the game's path. The main character, Trevor, can be helped by one of three possible companions. After finishing the first level and at other points in the game, players are given two options to choose from. These choices can lead to different endings based on the decisions made.
The game has two main paths through its sixteen stages, which are called blocks and divided into sections. The second stage is optional and lets players collect one of the three partner characters. The main path begins partway through the third stage. Each route includes nine stages (ten if the player completes the optional second stage). The upper path takes players across a lake to a bridge, leading them into Dracula's castle through the front gate. The lower path guides players through tunnels and caves, requiring them to climb a cliff below the castle. The lower route also has a short side path at stage 6. Both paths eventually meet in the castle's main hall.
Plot
The game takes place in the year 1476, during a time when Count Dracula is attacking Europe with a group of monsters. The Belmont family, known for hunting vampires, was once forced to leave Wallachia. They are now called upon to stop Dracula. Trevor Belmont, the leader of the Belmonts, is joined by three new characters: Sypha Belnades, a young sorceress who uses strong magic spells but has weak physical strength; Grant Danasty, a pirate who can climb walls and change direction while jumping; and Alucard, Dracula’s son, a dhampir who can shoot fireballs and turn into a bat. Trevor can only have one companion at a time. If he chooses to bring another character, he must leave his current companion behind. The ending of the game changes depending on which companion Trevor has with him or if he travels alone.
Development and release
The Japanese version of the game, called Akumajō Densetsu, has several differences besides its title. It includes a special VRC6 chip created with help from the game's audio programmer, Hidenori Maezawa. This chip added two more pulse wave channels and one saw wave channel to the system's original five sound channels. Most of the music uses these channels to create sounds similar to a string section played on a musical instrument. Western versions of the NES could not support external sound chips, so the North American release used Nintendo's Memory Management Controller 5 (MMC5) instead. The game's music was adjusted by Yoshinori Sasaki to fit the NES's standard five channels. A soundtrack album called Akumajō Dracula Famicom Best included the original music from the Famicom version of the game.
In the Japanese version, the character Grant throws daggers as his main attack instead of using a stabbing dagger. Some enemies in the Japanese version deal less damage, and their images were changed for Western releases. Some enemy designs that showed nudity were censored, and religious symbols were made less obvious. The Japanese version also has slightly different backgrounds in many levels and includes special effects not found in the North American or European versions.
The North American and PAL versions of the game have hidden features that can be unlocked by entering specific names. For example, entering "HELP ME" gives the player 10 lives at the start, allows the player to choose any of the three spirit partners at the beginning, and unlocks a second, harder quest. These features are not available in the Japanese version.
The game was first released in Japan on December 22, 1989, in North America on September 19, 1990, and in Europe on May 1992. A version for Windows was released on November 16, 2002. The artwork on the North American packaging was painted by Tom Dubois, who said he was inspired by the work of animator Ray Harryhausen.
The game was later released on the Wii Virtual Console in PAL regions on October 31, 2008, in North America on January 12, 2009, and in Japan on April 21, 2009. It was also released on the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console in PAL regions on April 17, 2014, and in North America on June 24, 2014. The Wii U Virtual Console version was released in Japan on April 16, 2014, in North America on June 26, 2014, and in PAL regions on September 4, 2014.
In 2019, the game was released again as part of the Castlevania Anniversary Collection for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One. The Famicom version was made available to Western players for the first time as a bonus update to this collection one month later.
Reception
The Japanese game magazine Famitsu praised the game for returning to the format of the first game, introducing new allies, and improving the sound. Two reviewers noted that its main problem was its very high difficulty. In 1997, Electronic Gaming Monthly ranked it as the 57th best console video game of all time, noting the many playable characters, different paths to choose from, and excellent graphics and music. Nintendo Power listed it as the ninth best Nintendo Entertainment System video game, praising its improvements over earlier games in the series. Game Informer’s Tim Turi said it was a return to quality after Castlevania II. He mentioned characters like Alucard (whom he called iconic) and Grant (whom he praised for his ability to cling to walls). GamesRadar ranked it the eighth best NES game ever made. The staff said it returned to Castlevania’s roots after Castlevania II but "took the series to new heights." GameZone ranked it as the third best Castlevania title. The staff preferred Castlevania III most because it felt most like the original game; they believed its price on the Virtual Console was worth it.
In a later review, Allgame editor Christopher Michael Baker highly praised the game, calling it "the greatest Castlevania game for the NES" and "possibly the greatest Castlevania game on any system."
IGN placed Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse fifth on their list of the Top 100 NES Games.
Former Castlevania producer and developer Koji Igarashi named Castlevania III as his favorite game in the series, citing the sound and setting as reasons. Shutaro Iida, a programmer for later Castlevania games and director of Castlevania: Harmony of Despair, also called it his favorite, noting the special sound chip in the Japanese version as the reason.
In other media
An animated movie based on Dracula's Curse was planned starting in 2007. Writer Warren Ellis, Frederator Studios, and artist James Jean were involved in the project. In August 2015, film producer Adi Shankar announced that the project had changed to an animated mini-series and was now being made. The series was named Castlevania. The first season, which had 4 episodes, premiered on Netflix on July 7, 2017. After its release, the series was renewed for a second season with 8 episodes, which began on October 26, 2018. A third season with 10 episodes was released on March 5, 2020. The final season, also with 10 episodes, was released on May 13, 2021.