Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance

Between the dark Circle of the Moon and the brilliant Aria of Sorrow stands Harmony of Dissonance — the middle installment of the gondola-like Castlevania trinity on the Game Boy Advance, which took a lesson from its predecessor and set off in the opposite direction.

Where Circle of the Moon was dark and at times hard to read, Harmony is markedly faster, more colorful and more legible. Konami clearly responded to the complaints about visibility on the unlit display and pushed for a richer, more contrasting palette. The hero's movement is nimble, the combat straightforward, and the game's overall pace is among the most dynamic in the series.

The most conspicuous mechanic is the system of two interconnected castles between which you switch. Moving between the two versions of the castle expands the map, opens new paths and gives both the puzzles and the exploration an interesting spatial layer — the best of the metroidvania, where you keep returning and discovering how the individual parts of the world connect.

As part of this "holy trinity" of GBA Castlevanias, Harmony of Dissonance offers everything you'd expect from the genre: the gradual acquisition of abilities, a sprawling tangled castle, and that elusive joy when you finally break through a door that had been teasing you for so long. It's a title fans place without hesitation among the excellent metroidvanias, even though today it's most often remembered in the shadow of its successor.

Anyone who fell in love with Aria of Sorrow and wants another helping of pocket Castlevania will find here a fast, varied and cleverly designed adventure that elegantly rounds out the trinity.

Why play it: A fast, colorful and cleverly designed metroidvania with a system of two interconnected castles — a solid part of the beloved GBA Castlevania trinity.