Castlevania: Circle Of The Moon for Game Boy Advance (GBA)

Pros: DSS Cards, animations, sound, pace
Cons: Story, relatively easy, Not Bright Enough for owners of Classic GBAs

Over the past year or so I've been trying to catch up on all the games I've missed out on. There are tons of games that make certain genres fun even if you normally aren't interested in them. Case in point, I've never really been a big fan of ...

Pros: Tons to find and explore, replay value through the roof
Cons: You'll go blind if you play without night-vision goggles

Ever since the glory days of 8-bit gaming, decent gamers like us have seen good old Count Dracula rise up from his grave time and time again, only so we could lay him to rest time and time again. I'm sure that part of this phenomenon lies in the fact...

Pros: Some creative boss encounters, nice sound effects
Cons: little innovation, DSS Card System is pointless, Graphics much too dark

Yessiree, I have heard the endless praises of Konami's Circle of the Moon on Epinions and from well known and respected publications. And yes I have heard this game being regarded as the best thing all year, which, though admittedly a matter of opinion,...

Pros: Fun, deep, addictive, great battle system, a great RPG/Action game
Cons: Dark graphics, easy to get lost in the castle, steep difficulty

Ever since I completed Metroid Fusion my Gameboy Advance has been out of commission. Dormant. Unused. Gathering dust. I’ve been too lazy to buy Golden Sun: The Lost Age and Final Fantasy Tactics so my GBA use has just been halted. ...

Pros: Great sound, gameplay, action and fun.
Cons: Dark screens can it difficult to see what is going on.

I bought Castlevania: Circle of the Moon (CoTM) the week that the Game Boy Advance came out way back in June, as I really enjoy side scrolling games, and had read that this was a “must buy” game. So, I when I got home, I ripped the package open,...

Pros: Really nice gameplay.
Cons: It's too damn dark, especially considering the GBA's lighting inadequacies.

Along with Street Fighter and Final Fantasy, when the discussions of the longest, most succesful video game franchises have to include the Castlevania series.

I am not able to comment on the series' earlier incarnations, as I haven't played...

Pros: Outstanding balanced Castlevania gameplay, good translation, great sound and RPG elements.
Cons: The dark graphics can indeed be difficult to see on the GBA's reflective screen.

Castlevania... no matter who you are, even if you don't really play video games that much, you've played an incarnation of Konami’s Castlevania series at some point or another.

My story begins long ago with the first official...

Pros: Good challenge, lots of replay, great control
Cons: Black-on-black graphics, no Belmonts, secret controller motion

Given the raves you hear about this game from other people, you would have thought that this game would have been the toast of E3 2001. Oddly enough, though, Konami only set up one booth, well off to the side, with the game set up. I still wonder to...

Pros: The game may be old and it still plays very well.
Cons: Konami still could have put more games in the GBA cart.

CASTLEVANIA (October, 2004) There are a lot of things I hate about Nintendo! Sure, I love video games and all and everything about them but Nintendo really upset me when they re-released only a hand full of their old 8-bit NES games to ...

Pros: Boss battle great, solid gameplay.
Cons: Parts of the game difficult to figure out without a walkthrough.

Quick Facts: Castlevania, Circle of the Moon. Action/Adventure game, published by Konami - released in June of 2001. Rated Teen, about $20 at the time of this writing. 1 Player. NOTE: The review gives important details/tips to winning this ...

Pros: Extremely addictive, engaging background music, well-done overall
Cons: Graphics too dark for GBA screen, high difficulty

Ahh, Castlevania. A more venerable video game series there never was. (OK, Mario, I guess, but what has he done for you lately, I ask you.) Granted, Simon Belmont may no longer be the one wielding the whip, and there were a couple of blunders on the...

Pros: Excellent graphics, sound and music baby, gameplay, DSS is nice!
Cons: Without a backlight the game is pitch-friggin-black.

Official Name: Castlevania: Circle of the Moon Developer: Konami Publisher: Konam ...

Pros: it's a classic game
Cons: it's hard has heck

I got Castlevania when I notice it at game stop for about 15 dollars I decided since this was probably the only game in the 2nd wave of classic NES titles worth owning, or haven’t been ported a million times over in the past couple of years. ...

Pros: Visuals, Sound, Gameplay
Cons: Sooner or later, the game is over

Every system debut has one or two games that really stands out from the rest of the bunch. It's the game that people will wait and talk about for month’s cause they know that without a shadow of a doubt, the game will succeed. And for the GBA's case,...

Pros: Nice gameplay elements
Cons: Dark graphics make it hard to see

To TOYS’R’US (Not politically correct without the backwards R, damn) went Sephiroth and his evil minions to check out the new GAME BOY ADVANCE. As Sephiroth stared at the tiny screen that had for previewing, which was playing MARIO ADVANCE, he began to...

Pros: It's another CastleVania game. One of the coolest game series of all time.
Cons: Maybe too addictive. Can be hard on the eyes with the original Gameboy Advance.

CASTLEVANIA: Circle Of The Moon (Konami, June 13, 2001) One of the premiere launch games for the Gameboy Advance is this awesome action/RRG based on the long running CastleVania series. CastleVania Circle of the Moon returns back to it's 2D ...

Pros: Tried and true Castlevania fun, hours of play.
Cons: Too dark for the GBA screen, low on depth.

I forget where I heard it, but some horror producer said, "It's not what you see, but what you don't see that scares the hell out of you." Well, After 15 hours of Castlevania: COTM, consider me terrified.

COTM is a good game. It just has one...

Pros: Addictive and rewarding gameplay, excellent combo card system, challenging
Cons: Sometimes unforgiving, almost too tough, poor clarity due to GBA screen,

The Castlevania series has certainly come on leaps and bounds over the years. Anyone remember the first NES games would recall the addictive but very challenging gameplay. Indeed while the Mario games at the time were fun and relatively easy to...

Pros: Worthy 'sequel' to Symphony of the Night; this is the reason you bought a GBA.
Cons: Dark; at times too challenging.

Before I begin I'd just like to say that I loved the PSX game Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, and you can imagine my joy when it was announced that a sequel of sorts was being made for the Gameboy Advance. And after buying this with my GBA, I can...

Pros: Great gameplay. Special ability card system. Multiple game modes.
Cons: Hard to see, though that's more the GBA's fault than the games.

The first game I purchased with my Gameboy Advance was Castlevania: Circle of the Moon. I'm not sure what the Circle of the Moon part actually means; maybe I'm missing something, but no matter. Castlevania: CotM is an excellent buy for any GBA owner....

Pros: great game, metroid and castlvania fans will apreciate
Cons: screen..to..dark..can't..see

When I heard that the game boy advance was coming out, I wasn’t to excited. I figure I would wait for a little bit to see if the games where any better. It wasn’t until I heard that they had a castlevania symphony of the night clone was I ever truly...

Pros: Great graphics and music, great gameplay, true to the series
Cons: Dismally dark scenes are hard to see on the GBA

The Castlevania series of video games has achieved great fame and virtually all long-time gamers would not hesitate to call it a classic. The Game Boy Advance title follows the tried and true Castlevania recipe, and it comes out as one of the best games...

Pros: "RPG elements" greatly simplified from those in the Playstation version; challenging without being frustrating
Cons: Dark backgrounds and the GBA screen are a poor combination.

I've been playing games for a long time. In particular, I've been a fan of the Castlevania series for many years, and Castlevania: Circle of the Moon is everything I hoped it would be, and then some. It was a major factor in my decision to purchase a...

Pros: Graphics, Sound, Music
Cons: Graphics are hard to see

Castlevainia: Circle of the Moon is a landmark in excellent portable gaming because of its sheer size, gameplay, graphics, and sound. But to say it in more simple terms, this game is G-R-E-A-T.

Gameplay and Storyline- The gameplay of CCOTM...

Pros: Amazing gameplay, sound, graphics, replay, etc! Too many to list!
Cons: Dark graphics and below-average character animations.

After playing through many Castlevania games (the multi-character Castlevania III and the 3D Castlevania 64, to name a few), I took an extreme likely toward Castlevania: SotN. This game was a 2D-gamers dream. It took a different approach to the basic...

Pros: Perfect Music. Decent Graphics. Good Story.Automap feature. Controls. DSS system.
Cons: overly Dark graphics. Hard to see. Sound effects could be a touch better.

Never fall in love with a vampire, or his games. Circle of The Moon is easy to fall in love with. It's deep, it's engaging, it's LONG and it's entertaining in spades. But it also has it's fair share of frustration inducing problems....

Pros: Beautiful colors, haunting soundtrack, flawless control, many hours of challenging gameplay.
Cons: Character animation could be smoother, not a lot of innovation in character abilities.

Finally, 2D Castlevania returns to Nintendo, and what a magnificent return it is. In a somewhat-sequel to Symphony of the Night for the Playstation, you once again take on the role of a whip wielding vampire hunter out to destroy Dracula.

...

Pros: Excellent in every respect
Cons: None

Dracula returns, with the strength of a sorcerer, the English wit of a prince, and the come-back power of Dr. Wily. Seriously, when you have a recurring villain, they live up to the word and recur. But what would Castlevania be without ol' Drac?
...

Pros: Great replay value, great graphics and sound, deep gameplay.
Cons: While not Konami's fault, the game is harder to see than other GBA games.

Before anyone had ever heard of "survival horror" Konami's Castlevania games were scaring gamers back in the 80s on the NES. Castelvania II's (semi-)non-linear gameplay was always a favorite of mine, so I was extremely pleased when Konami released...

Pros: Excellant graphics, buffo sound, vampires, whips.
Cons: Hmm.... makes poor salad seasoning.

You know, if I were Dracula, I think that I would take up a new career. I mean, he's terrible at this taking over the world thing. At first, it was just the Belmonts, so you could be like, "Well, he just kinda goes dumb when a Belmont is around, like...

Pros: Awesome gameplay, stunning sound and visuals.
Cons: As a single player experience only, it may have limited replay value...

I was lucky enough to play this game a while back at a local import shop, and I thought giving you my impressions might help your decision. I really enjoy the Castlevania series (except for the ill-fated N64 game), so this game was on my list as a...

Pros: Nice graphics, great Castlevania gameplay, dark atmosphere and good story.
Cons: Too dark to see sometimes

I just recently bought this game because everyone was saying that it was real good. I then knew why everyone liked it, this game is really fun! There aren't any boring moments, and it is really challenging. Now the review.

Graphics: 6/10 ...

Pros: Great graphics, balanced difficulty, haunting music, hours of gameplay
Cons: Haven't found any yet

When I heard that Konami was bringing Castlevania to the GBA, I immediately cringed. "What's he smokin?" You ask.
Well, if you've played the sadly disappointing and horribly executed installments on the N64, then you'll
understand what I mean....

Pros: Great gameplay, new options like whip enhancements, and armor.
Cons: Very dark. Don't expect to play unless you are under a nice light.

I just picked up Castlevania: Circle of the Moon for Gameboy Advanced and have logged in 6 hours straight of playing this game. It truly takes advantage of the GBA platform including better sound (no more midi sounds like in previous GB versions) and...

Pros: A lot of fun, even if you have no clue how to play
Cons: The ill-lit corridors are really ill-lit.

It'sbeautifully simple. You are locked in Dracula's castle, and your only real objective is to kick Dracula's butt (and save your Master, but, really, who cares?). So basically, you wander around his castle for hours, trying to find a way to get...

Pros: gameplay, secrets, bosses, cards
Cons: no multi-player, hard to get around(huge map)

I was excited to hear that Konami was re-releasing one of my favorite childhood games, Castlevania, ...

Pros: Good RPG elements, good depth (DSS), and great graphics and sound.
Cons: Lackluster story and infrequent items. The graphics are detailed but dark.

When I bought my GBA, I had a pretty good choice of games. Their's Mario Advance, but I already had Mario 2 and they're the same thing. F-Zero is a classic but it just wasn't what I wanted. Castlevania: Circle of the Moon, I had heard, was a great...

Pros: Eight hours of awesome gameplay, nice graphics, responsive controls.
Cons: Screen gets a bit too dark at times.

Konami’s classic vampire-hunting adventure series has been a favorite since the days of the NES, when the series got its start. The series has yet to venture into the realm of 3D, but that’s okay; each incarnation of the series has given us 2D...

Pros: One man, one whip...and a vampire that needs the hurt put on him again.
Cons: Darker than a moonless night...

The moon rises over a mist engulfed castle...Dracula, Evil Lord of the Undead, rises again!!

Fortunately there's always a vampire hunter when you need one. This time around the honor falls upon Nathan Graves, the prodigy hunter given the...

Pros: Comparable to Playstation 2D Castlevania game, Very responsive controls
Cons: Very dark, requires a very good source of light in order to see

The return of Konami's classic 2D franchise is comparable to the Playstation Castlevania game "Symphony of the Night". It has very responsive controls which allow for quick paced gameplay. The game is unbelievable and is the best game for those who miss...

Pros: Incredible Gameplay packed in a small package
Cons: The Graphics are so dark.

I have never played a game as stunning as this title on a handheld platform of any kind. This game has such depth complexity and volume of gameplay that while playing one cannot believe that this is coming from a cart that is three by three inches big....

Pros: good graphics for a handheld, classic 2-d gaming. Castlevania
Cons: Overly Dark

It has been 4 years since the last Castlevania release that was worth playing. Castlevania Symphony of the Night was one of the best Playstation games, and is one of the best Castlevania games overall. Ignore the 3-d releases on other systems, that was...

Pros: Imagination-inflicting intimate intimidation of intrigue.
Cons: if you've got enough light in the room, no complaints. A little dark.

I thought that every CastleVania game held some kind of a memory to my childhood. Especially when I was a child. The original "CastleVania", with the whip, the bosses, and the music...it was way beyond what I'd ever played before.
"CastleVania II:...

Pros: Great Adventure Games, nice graphics for Game boy advance
Cons: Don't play in the dark

The Game Boy Advance version of Castlevania will be very familiar to anyone who's played any title in the series, as the design doesn't stray from the basic formula. You'll beat zombies, spirits, bats, and other ghastly beasts, as well as collect hearts...

Pros: Great Game, Both Novice and Master gamers alike will love it.
Cons: Screen is a little dark, save points are fairly far apart.

This game is great, before this I had never played a game from this series and man was I missing out. Not too long that it gets boring, but not too short either. I was entertained for weeks. I am a gamer who gets frustrated easily, but with this game I...

Pros: Hours of gameplay, challenging enough to be fun, not so much as to be frustrating.
Cons: Need a strong light source to see adequately.

To start with, Castlevania: Circle of the Moon will have you hunching over your GBA for hours on end. Between leveling, searching for equipment and DSS cards, and of course, progressing through the game, it will have you hooked. Story is a bit weak as...

Pros: Great graphics, sound, and very addictive.
Cons: This is when you wish the GBA had its own light.

So how many of these CastleVania games are thre anyway? The GameBoy Advance makes a dark leap into a story told in countless angles. Circle of The Moon makes it's name a good one when they added innovative design, great graphics, good challenge level,...

Pros: An exciting game with stunning graphics, sound, and gameplay.
Cons: The game graphics are too dark.

I'll say this right now. I am a HUGE fan of Nintendo. I have been ever since I was a child. Once the gameboy advance was released, I jumped for joy. My first game was Super Mario Advance, but every magazine I looked at said that Castlevania dominated....

Pros: Great RPG, good for experts or beginners Good Music
Cons: Very Dark, hard to see at times

Like most people out there, I am one of those gamers that likes to try any game at least once before judging it. I've seen and heard about Castlevania games,but I never picked one up and played it.I heard people saying that the game was really good so I...

Pros: Fun, addictive, new upgrades
Cons: could have had a better story

Introduction:
There have been many Castlevania games in the past on systems such as Gameboy, Nintendo, Super Nintendo, and so forth. I have played a bit on some of those systems, but for some reason didn't seem fun to me. After playing this...

Pros: Almost as much fun as Symphony of the Night, back to whipping people to death.
Cons: Dark graphics need a lot of light to play the game

Not a school bus ride through because all the kids w/o GBAs will be bugging you endlessly to play it. It's been awhile since I had to deal with that (a la original Game Boy), but onto the review!

Castlevania COTM is set up in the same way as...

Pros: Very long, challenging, immersive,and fun to play.
Cons: Dark, too difficult at times.

When I first heard about Castlevania: Circle of the Moon, i diden't even bother to give it a chance, seeing that most of the other games in the series were too aggrivatingly difficult. Soon,though, the good reviews just came pouring in all over the...

Pros: 2D gameplay
Cons: Requires light device to play, lacks replay value.

I've been waiting awhile for a game like this to be created. An old school style game created with advanced 32 bit technology.

We have been waiting for such a long time for a new Castlevania game. I do look forward to a 3D Castlevania....

Pros: Long Game comparitively; Replayable a bit
Cons: can't skip animations and people talking(including bosses); points to save card system somewhat unclear

This might be a remake since it seems like Nintendo has a habit of porting NES and SNES games into the GB systems now in days. Comparing this game with other GBA games, this game is pretty good since most of the other games seem either shallow or...

Pros: Great balanced platforming/RPG Gameplay, great sound and music, very long.
Cons: VERY DARK!Graphics could've been a bit better for the GBA, but they're not bad

Castlevania: Circle of the Moon in my opinion is a MUST HAVE purchase when you buy your Game Boy Advance. It's a great platforming game that plays very closely to Symphony of the Night for the playstation. You Are stuck in 'one continous' world (In...

Pros: Great graphics, good control, decent sound
Cons: A little too dark

The GBA version carries on the great tradition that is Castlevania. Fans of the series will surely not be disappointed. This game is even guaranteed to hook new fans.
The first thing that pops up is the great graphics. The game is very easy to...

Pros: It's an entirely new Castlevania! Awesome gameplay, graphics, and sound.
Cons: Dark graphics can be hard to see in non-optimal lighting

This is THE GBA launch title to get! The classic Castlevania gameplay and atmosphere are here in spades, and Konami has taken it upon themselves to enhance the depth of this title with a power-up "DSS" card system that allows you to enhance your...

Pros: Involving gameplay, Innovating New DSS System
Cons: Dark graphics make a lightsource necessary

I bought Castlevania at the Game Boy Advance Launch, and I have been enjoying it ever since. The DSS system is simply fantastic. Never before has something so simple given a game so much depth. By combining two cards, you can use different abilities,...

Pros: Musical effects, Graphics, RPG/Action feature
Cons: Tiny main character, Too dark, needs external light, lack of instant save

This is my first major attempt at a Castlevania game. This series goes back to the NES Castlevania game back in 1987. I bought the game due to it's critical acclaim. This is also an on-going review as it follows my attempts through the game.

...

Pros: Great SOTN followup
Cons: Game length a little short

Konami has another quality game in Caslevainia: COTM. In fact konami has done a such a great job with this game I only hope that other game designers realize that there is still a huge market for games without 3-D graphics and worlds.

Down to...

Pros: great graphics (for handheld), good gameplay
Cons: repetitive after many hours of playing

I have to admit, I never liked the original castlevania games but this game even delighted me. It mixes RPG and adventure into one excellent game!

The story of the game, briefly is this:
you and two others come into draculas castle...

Pros: Fast Gameplay. Good Controls. Not too shabby audio.
Cons: Configuration is confusing. Game is tough!

Okay, so I hopped on the bandwagon and snatched a GBA as fast as I could. The demo in the stores were cool enough but I only saw mario! What sucks is that mario happens to be the "brightest" game out there. So when I walked home with my GBA and 3...

Pros: good graphics, good game play, energetic mom-like characters
Cons: allows the moon to stare at me

Hoo boy! This game really got my torso rumblin'! The graphics are so "neato" that I nearly spilled my V8 doing circles around my living room at warp speed in an excited frenzy! The characters are great too! One of them reminds me of a cross between Joan...

Pros: A new kind of Castlevania that combines RPG elements with adventure.
Cons: Difficult to see the screen because of the dark reflective screen of GBA.

When I first went to the store to get my reserved GBA, I had only a couple of games to choose from. Luckily, Castlevania was one of them. As soon as I ripped open the box of the GBA and Castlevania, my body grew overly excited. I played Castlevania...

Pros: sound=awesome, graphics=awesome, controls=awesome, savefeature=awsome, overal=awesome
Cons: no complaints what-so-ever!!!

ok, when you see the size of the game cart you will think that this game is going to suck because it couldn't possibly hold enough data to satisfy your vampire killing needs (hardcore castlevania gamers) however, you will be greatly surprised! In fact,...

Pros: Graphics,sound,controls, almost everything!
Cons: Exceedingly tough and hard to see sometimes.

Out of all the games for the Gameboy Advanced launch, this game caught my eye. I had never played a single Castlevania game before, but it felt like I had. In the game you play a vampire hunter trapped in Dracula's castle, while Drac holds your dad and...

Pros: There is constantly new ground to be explored.
Cons: Graphics are a bit too dark on the no back-lit screen

The game is very smooth overall. The handling is decent when compared to the past castlevania games where you could never change your direction of jumping once in the air. I was especially pleased that they remedied this problem. The special techniques...

Pros: Great graphics, good translation, good play.
Cons: You can barely seen the game.

I have to admit, when I heard Castlevania coming out for Game Boy Advance; I was excited. The day that the Game Boy Advance came out, I waited about three days, and I went out and bought Castlevania. I was so excited, unwrapping it from the plastic,...

The characters, Nathen and Hugh was a cool idea! And how they made Dracula the last boss, that was also cool!!! The area's were exiting and creative!! I have already bought this game and it is awsome! I hope other people think it's awsome too!