10 Best Castlevania Games

Yes, it might be just a *tad* cliche to find Symphony of the Night at the top of the list, but it's a cliche for good reason. Symphony of the Night is arguably the apex of the Metroidvania genre, with a one of the densest castle maps to explore and a huge variety of weapons to find.

Symphony of the Night was a bit of a break both in the franchise and for gaming generally. It was quite a stark contrast to many of the PlayStation's other releases, being 2D and harking back to SNES-era graphics.

Likewise, the non-linear exploration reintroduced here felt quite unique compared to other franchise entries at the time. Combined with excellent music, level design, enemy variety, plenty of secrets to uncover and deeply satisfying combat, Symphony of the Night is the one to play if you're getting into Castlevania for the first time.

You might be surprised to learn that it actually didn't do too well upon release in the West (especially in the US). Symphony of the Night didn't receive too much press over in the United States, becoming more of a sleeper hit as critical praise and good old-fashioned word of mouth advertising spread its success to other soon-to-be Castlevania fans.