Castlevania: Circle of the Moon Areas Continued...
Chapel Tower
his popular area makes its re-appearance in the form of sprawling towers with rose windows that display royal and biblical figures. The higher parts contain corridors exposing the nocturnal sky. Occasionally, the wind from this high area will push sets of large bells around. Making one's way through the shadowy places can be the trickiest thing, due to the pesky Blood Swords and Marionettes. Get ready for a boss fight on a much larger scale than anything before.
This dark area is ornamented with colorful, and awfully large stained glass windows.
The amount of colored glass patterns in this dim Chapel is quite amazing.
There are bell towers in the Chapel's higher areas that display a serene, yet foreboding nightscape.
The Chapel Tower is certainly one of Circle's more visually impressive areas. It may not have the grace and intricacies of a KCET Chapel, but it is quite ominous, and the theme "Fate to Despair" adds to its dark, yet grand representation.
The gargantuan beast known as Adramalech is imprisoned in one of the soaring towers of the Chapel. Perhaps he displeased Carmilla and is being punished for it. Or perhaps his wild tendencies are too dangerous to leave unchecked.
Enemies:
• Flame Armor
• Bloody Sword
• Marionette
• Thunder Armor
• Beast Demon
• Bone Tower
• Were-Panther
• Arch Demon
• Brain Float
• Ghoul
• Gorgon
• Hippogryph
• Succubus
• Thunder Demon
• Were-Jaguar
• Grizzly
• Legion
• Hyena
• Fallen Angel
Boss:
• Adramelech
Music Track:
Underground Gallery
I'm not exactly sure why this place is called a gallery. There aren't any paintings to see here, and only a few statues in the lower rooms. The castle's creatures that prefer cavernous haunts have made their home here. Beware: many can poison Nathan. Hallways are remarkably tight in this section, enhancing the requirement of good reflexes in jumping up crumbling platforms and doging fast monsters.
The Gallery has statues that seem to be carved out of the sickly green hued stone of the very structure.
Some cunning with a conveyor belt will earn you a Heart Max Up.
At times, it is difficult to ascend some towers, due to the Specters and crumbling platforms.
The Underground Gallery is not the most ideal place for a fight. The hallways are very confined and filled with swift and venomous enemies.
This subterranean gallery is the home of the Zombie Dragon twins, putrefying beasts of darkness.
Enemies:
• Killer Bee
• Imp
• Man-Eater
• Specter
• Myconid
• Brain Float
• Evil Hand
• Harpy
• King Moth
• Lizard Man
• Thunder Armor
• Wight
• Poison Armor
• Death Mantis
Boss:
• Dragon Zombie
Music Track:
• Aquarius
Underground Warehouse
As its name implies, the warehouse is for storing large crates and massive amounts of books that hold little known knowledge. Eventually, the series of darkened library and containment rooms give way to earthy floors, signifying the connection to the nearby Catacombs. It may be best to avoid the ultra-powerful Holy Armors for the time being. The room where Nathan encounters Death holds a couple of Caravaggio paintings.
The coloring, banisters, and overall style give this area a picturesque, old-fashioned look.
This underground vault serves as a haunted library as well.
Some places in here resemble a dungeon.
Do you like box puzzles? Yes? Well, you'll love this place. No? Hmm. . . I'm sorry.
Death has a very welcoming, yet disturbing study near the castle's bottom.
Enemies:
• King Moth
• Bone Tower
• Thunder Demon
• Fox Hunter
• Arch Demon
• Thunder Armor
• Poltergeist
• Golem
• Dryad
• Succubus
• Hippogryph
• Grizzly
• Lilith
• Wight
• Holy Armor
• Forest Armor
Boss:
• Death
Music Track:
Underground Waterway
A few sets of gigantic rooms with several problematic sets of switch puzzles that affect the position of mechanical staircases. Grates in the wall allow water to pour out into holding spaces, and multitudes of bricks have been used to construct the sullen architecture. Be sure to try to stay above the pits of water at all times. The room in which Nathan meets Carmilla seems to hearken back to the Atlantis Ruins of Dracula X.
At first, all of the water streaming through these sewers is tainted. Nathan will need an item to disinfect it.
Many of the enemies down here have the ability to freeze Nathan, so take care not to let that happen. If frozen, Nathan is dreadfully helpless, and any damage done to him is amplified quite a bit.
In order to progress through this huge drain, you'll need to use your noggin to figure out some more puzzles. There are levers all about that manage flights of steps. You'll need to flip some on and others off to see which grouping is needed to move ahead. Annoying.
Circle of the Moon isn't near as awe-inspiring in its visuals as the other two GBA Castlevania games, but every now and then, it displays surroundings to feast your eyes upon, such as this room of cascades.
Beware the Ice Demon. He commands true power.
Enemies:
• Frozen Shade
• Heat Shade
• Abiondarg
• Brain Float
• Wind Armor
• Witch
• Evil Hand
• Merman
• Spearfish
• Ice Demon
• Ice Armor
• Lizard Man
• Fishhead
• Siren
Boss:
• Carmilla
Music Track:
Observation Tower
Here is the highest point of the castle. Stygian rooms house nearly all of the castle's toughest creatures, including the incredibly powerful Devil. A lot of stat boosters are crammed into the tower, but Nathan will need to contend with a bevy of very resistant foes if he is to gain them. The place where Nathan fights Hugh looks to have been prepared as a throne room for Dracula.
The overlook is notorious for being the haunt of Devil, who is the sentinel patrolling the suspension bridge leading to the Throne Room.
The foyer before the Throne Room is decorated lavishly. The Observation Tower is without a doubt Circle's most showy area.
There is a theatre in the tower as well, where Nathan can take center stage. It seems that when KCEK wants to, they can be pretty creative, artistically speaking. It makes me wish they put the sort of effort they put into the tower into the other areas, too.
The castle silhouette adds a real nostalgic element to this environment.
The Throne Room. Lightning flashes through the large windows as a fearsome battle takes place.
Enemies:
• Legion
• Dark Armor
• Catoblepas
• Evil Pillar
• Minotaur
• Siren
• Fallen Angel
• Heat Shade
• Frozen Shade
• Dullahan
• Wind Armor
• Alraune
• Demon Lord
• Devil
Boss:
• Hugh Baldwin
Music Track:
Ceremonial Room
A small, vertical room that is full of candles and arcane statues of a powerful, demonic figure. It leads into the spot where Nathan will fight Dracula.
This is the area that is beyond that huge door that is in the very beginning of the game. Past this point is the final confrontation with Lord Dracula.
Boss:
• Dracula
• Dracula
Music Track:
Battle Arena
A labyrinthine structure that is composed of alternating rooms; one, a chamber, either horizontal or vertical, with torches containing hearts, and the other a room where the battles take place. There is a special, elevated seating area in the center of the background for the master of ceremonies, and audience seats crammed in all around. It is totally optional to go here, and it is easily the most challenging area in the whole game.
This area looks a lot like the boss fight room in Symphony's Coliseum. I had no clue until I played this on an emulator, because I couldn't see the background before
Enemies:
• Werewolf
• Were-Jaguar
• Hippogryphs
• Catoblepas
• Wind Demon
• Witch
• Stone Armor
• Devil Tower
• Skeleton
• Skeleton Bomber
• Skeleton Spear
• Electric Skeleton
• Fire Demon
• Bone Tower
• Fox Hunter
• Poison Armor
• Bloody Sword
• Abiondarg
• Legion
• Marionette
• Minotaur
• Succubus
• Arachne
• Evil Pillar
• Demon Lord
• Alraune
• Hyena
• Dark Armor
• White Armor
• Devil
