Dracula's Castle

A fortress entered via two distinct routes that merge within its main hall.

Dracula's Castle is the final destination in Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse. The upper route leads players across a lake and main bridge to enter through the front gate, while the lower route goes through tunnels and caverns up a cliff face below the castle. Both paths converge in the main hall.

Quick Facts

Typical location: Lake, Main Bridge, Front Gate, Tunnels, Caverns, Cliff Face, Main Hall

Reader's Guide

There are two main routes through sixteen stages. The upper route takes players across a lake to the main bridge and front gate. The lower route goes through tunnels and caverns leading up a cliff face below the castle, featuring one short branching section at stage 6. Each route contains nine stages (ten if the optional second stage is taken).

Origins and Early Evolution

Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse was released on December 22, 1989, in Japan, September 19, 1990, in North America, and May 1992 in PAL regions. It is a prequel to the original Castlevania (1986), set a few centuries before its events.

The Metroidvania Revolution

The game features branching level paths where the player chooses between two routes after completing the first level and at several other points. There are two main routes through sixteen stages, with each route containing nine stages (ten if the optional second stage is taken). The lower route includes a short branching section of its own at stage 6.

Technological Transitions and Reboots

The Japanese version uses a specialized VRC6 coprocessor chip that added two extra pulse wave channels and a saw wave channel. Western versions replaced this with Nintendo's Memory Management Controller 5 (MMC5), requiring the music to be changed by Yoshinori Sasaki to comply with the NES's standard five channels.

Enduring Legacy and Media Expansion

The game has been re-released on the Virtual Console for the Wii, Nintendo 3DS, and Wii U. It was included in the Castlevania Anniversary Collection for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One on May 16, 2019. The storyline is continued in Castlevania: Curse of Darkness (2005) and the upcoming Castlevania: Belmont's Curse (2026). It was adapted into the first two seasons of the animated 2017 Castlevania television series.