Konami’s Castlevania series offers a gothic-horror experience that dates back to 1986. From its humble 2D roots on the NES to its releases on the DS and PS2, Castlevania began to write its own story. Going from the Belmont line slaying Dracula, the demon lord’s everlasting revival became a philosophical question of human good and evil.
Rondo of Blood and Symphony of the Night began the trend of turning Dracula’s role into that of a necessary, lawful evil. Summoned by humans who wish for his return, Dracula would return while proclaiming that the world simply wants his existence. All the way through 2036, the battle between man and Dracula continues to wage on for the sake of the world.
10 “Don’t make me embarrass myself further. Allow me self-pity for now.”
In Castlevania: Circle of the Moon, vampire hunters Nathan Baldwin, his son Hugh Baldwin, and successor Nathan Graves enter Dracula’s Castle. After being separated, Nathan explores the castle to find his childhood friend and his master. Upon his encounter with Hugh, though, he notices that he is a darker man than before.
Hugh was envious of Nathan’s succession and inheriting the Hunter’s Whip. Dracula tapped into his darkness and, in doing so, Hugh attempted to kill Nathan. After the battle, Hugh realizes he was consumed by his own envy.
9 “I will not flee as I did before!”
In Castlevania: Curse of Darkness, protagonist Hector has lost his wife. Players unfamiliar with the PS2/Xbox title may recognize Hector in the recent Netflix adaptation. Hector swore revenge on his former friend, Isaac, who was responsible for the death of his love, Rosaly.
Formerly a Devil Forgemaster for the wicked count, Hector fled Dracula’s Castle when he realized what he was doing was wrong. Once Dracula returns to the world, he threateningly confronts Hector. No longer fearing for his life and seeking to avenge his wife, Hector stood firmly against the Lord of Darkness.
8 “Death in the dream world will set your soul wandering for eternity, Demon”
Alucard enters an odd-looking coffin in the Underground Cavern in Symphony of the Night. Here, he is confronted with the memory of his mother’s execution. However, he quickly notices it’s not a true memory when his “mother” bids him take revenge on humanity.
Revealing herself to be a Succubus, the woman attacks Alucard. However, in this dream world, she perishes by Alucard’s hand. Having not died on the mortal plane, Alucard condemns her soul to drift in this purgatory for eternity for her wicked actions.
7 “Humanity Needs You…Needs Your Life!”
In Order of Ecclesia, Shanoa serves as a member of Ecclesia, an organization dedicated to wiping evil creatures from the face of the Earth. When her childhood friend, Albus, takes the Dominus glyph and flees, Shanoa loses her memories. She is then ordered by their master, Barlowe, to retrieve the Dominus glyph and Albus.
Unfortunately, Albus had been possessed by Dracula, fighting Shanoa to the end. When she retrieves Dominus and returns to Barlowe, his face changes into a twisted grin. The music immediately changes to a sinister organ theme as he reveals Ecclesia was meant to revive Dracula.
6 “You are One Selfish Bastard”
Aria of Sorrow’s protagonist, Soma Cruz, enters Dracula’s Castle in the solar eclipse of 2035. Without knowing how or why he got there, he’s tasked by the mysterious Genya Arikado to search Dracula’s Castle in order to escape. Wielding the Power of Dominance, Soma encounters a man named Graham who believes he is Dracula’s reincarnation.
Graham’s demeanor changes to hostility upon seeing Soma in possession of the souls. No longer wanting anything to do with this scheme, Soma offers to return the souls. Graham denies Soma’s request and threatens to kill him. Rather than exchange platitudes over morality, Soma simply calls him out straight to his face.
5 “For God to be good, evil is an absolute necessity in this world. “
Upon the revelation that Soma is Dracula’s reincarnation, he takes matters into his own hands. Not afraid of challenging his fate, he enters the core of Dracula’s Castle, the Chaos Realm, and confronts the essence within. This final bid would either save Soma from his fate or fulfill his role as the next Dark Lord.
Graham had believed he was the Dark Lord because he was born at the exact moment Dracula perished. Arikado challenged the notion that Soma needed to fulfill Dracula’s role. He later explains this notion again in the good ending of Dawn of Sorrow. If a Dark Lord were to appear, it doesn’t have to be Soma as he chose his own path.
4 “I am the morning sun, come to vanquish this horrible night!”
This quote comes from Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest for NES. When dawn rises, this quote plays indicating the safety of the overworld for but a fleeting moment. In Order of Ecclesia, Shanoa quotes this upon entering Dracula’s Castle.
The resurrected Dracula emerged along with his castle. No longer fearing her loss of memory or her path, and for Albus’ sake, she charges headlong into the realm of terrors. It offers one of the best moments of her development as Shanoa casts aside all doubt and risks everything she has left in a final bid to stop Dracula’s terror.
3 “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the world, and loses his own soul?”
As Dracula loses his fight against Alucard in Symphony of the Night, he questions his defeat. Alucard responds that he was doomed to lose the moment he lost his ability to love. Dracula quotes a verse in the Bible, Matthew 16:26.
After losing his wife, Lisa, to the humans who executed her, he sought to damn their entire race. The vampire lord gained enormous power and sought to plunge the world into eternal darkness. But his defeat by his own son made him realize that he truly was a lost soul in the end.
2 “Perhaps the same could be said of all religions.”
As Richter Belmont confronts Dracula in Symphony of the Night, the two exchange platitudes over their respective ideologies. Richter confronts Dracula as the genocidal monster while the latter justifies his existence. Men who seek the darkness beckon Dracula and he returns to guide them.
Richter condemns Dracula’s words. “You steal men’s souls and make them your slaves,” to which Dracula replies that all religions work the same. In the PSP version, he replies, “freedom is always sacrificed to faith, good hunter. Or are you truly here by choice,” asserting that man lets others guide them at the cost of their own free will.
1 “The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.”
At last, when Alucard slays his father and sends him back into the afterlife once more, he watches his home crumble into the ground from afar. Reunited with Richter and Maria, the former laments that Alucard had to fight his own father. Alucard’s retort, which Richter also quotes in the PSP version, echoes one of the world’s virtuous truths.
Alucard had to fight Dracula whether or not Richter would hunt him down once more. He did so to prevent his father’s evil from spreading and, had he not, he would be an accomplice to his father’s wicked acts. This quote not only speaks truth within the Castlevania series but applies just as well to the real world.
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