It’s been a real “Will they, won’t they?” dynamic between Vampire Survivors and Castlevania. It’s the crossover that makes the most sense, but it’s because it makes the most sense that I believed it wouldn’t happen. Time makes fools of us all.
Ode to Castlevania is funny because Vampire Survivors is already an ode to Castlevania. Nowhere is this more evident than with the new weapons that don’t have a lot to do with Castlevania. That’s because all the weapons most associated with the game were already in it originally, from throwing crosses to holy water.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. By default, a Castlevania crossover is going to be the best expansion for the game because I love Castlevania. However, it’s also the best expansion so far for other reasons.
Ode to Castlevania can be summed up as a lot of whips, a lot of music, a lot of Belmonts, and one big map. Unlike the previous two expansions, there is no new Adventure mode here; that one big map is the central focus. And it is big. It’s dominantly Dracula’s castle, filled with bosses and broken into sections via locked doors. It’s not exactly Vampire Survivors metroidvania, but that sounds like it would be a hassle anyway.
The castle is laid out in a more-or-less linear fashion. You kick down the door and march your way up to Dracula’s bedroom to put him back to sleep. Is he actually there? Does Vampire Survivors actually have a vampire in it now? I’m not telling because that would be lame.
Much like the last two crossover expansions, this is still Vampire Survivors, but it’s wearing Castlevania’s clothes. But unlike those games, Castlevania fits Vampire Survivors a lot better. The enemies, all torn from various games in the series, look as though they belong here, and the castle could easily be compiled from various stages already in the game. Unsurprisingly, it isn’t much of a stretch.
The one big level is easily the best that the game has seen. It’s large enough that it’s extremely difficult to make your way through it, from start to finish, in a single round. Instead, after beating specific bosses, a nearby teleporter will be activated that you can transport yourself to from the start. This allows you to essentially continue from close to where you left off without having to wade through everything again.
There are a tonne of bosses torn from the series’ history, and while many of them are just the sort that you keep your distance from while bashing on them, a few have some unique attacks that make them interesting. There are also moments within the castle where things turn into a sidescroller, which can be disorienting but feels appropriate.
If there’s one place that the Castlevania conformity actually hurts the game, it’s with the whips. Most of the Belmonts come packing one, and while they’re all different, most of them kind of suck. They’re often short-range and only attack in specific directions. The whips that were already in the game are far better; it’s just sort of a drag that you can spend time turning yourself into a whip machine for less reward than you’d usually find from holding a whip.
Sonia Belmont has the Sonic Whip, however, which absolutely wrecks house. It’s not all bad, but when you’re shoveling more junk weapons on an already threatening pile of them, it can become difficult to effectively create your desired build. There are other much more useful weapons that were added, fortunately. Although, as I mentioned before, some of them don’t have much to do with Castlevania and feel like they were added because they needed to add something aside from whips and spellbooks.
This is all backed by an extremely impressive list of songs and remixes from the Castlevania series. The composers working with Poncle did a great job with Contra in Operation Guns, and the same is true here with tracks torn from all over the series. There are even some tunes that I wouldn’t have thought to include that are made irresistible through their loving remixes. Easily, one of the best parts of this expansion is the soundtrack.
Overall, It’s a loving tribute from a developer who is a clear fan of the Castlevania series. So much of a fan that there isn’t a Gabriel Belmont in sight, but there is a Sonia. That’s how you really know.
It’s also only $3.99, which is a buck-and-a-half more expensive than something like Operation Guns, but I think the remix soundtrack is worth the value alone. In a world with horse armor, it’s a great value.
As a fan myself, this is easily the most fun I’ve had with the game since diving into the base version. The big map adds a lot more playtime than you might expect, and being able to unleash hell on various foes from the series while a frantic remix of Bloody Tears plays is, as one would expect, rather arousing. The way that Vampire Survivors has matured over the years almost feels like it was preparing to wear the Castlevania dress. And it fits so well. It’s almost like it was made for it.
