Castlevania Dominus Collection Released as an Early Halloween Treat

If the arrival of Pumpkin Spice didn’t get you all the way, let me be the first to tell you that Halloween season has officially begun. While cinnamon and nutmeg are usually the only harbingers of the season’s greatest success, another terrifying apocalypse is joining the party in 2024. Castlevania Dominus Collection, a collection of Castlevania titles originally released on the Nintendo DS, is now available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Steam, and Xbox Series X|S. The past tense is intentional, as the collection released on August 27, simultaneously with its reveal trailer.

The three main games included in this collection are:

• Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow, the sequel to Aria of Sorrow;
• A distant cousin to Castlevania: Bloodlines, its sequel, Castlevania: Portraits of Ruin;
• And Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia has no direct relation to any other Castlevania title.

All three titles are well-received by fans, and it’s hard to say which one is better than the other, making them strong game choices. The fourth, less significant game in this collection is Haunted Castle Revisited, a remaster of the first Castlevania arcade title. However, the game is also playable in its original form.

The collection includes a number of additional options for playing the games, including a useful quick save option and a more powerful rewind function. The most obvious use is rewinding when you die to a boss, but it can also be helpful when dropped items disappear or you take a wrong turn in Dracula’s Labyrinth Castle. The three main titles in the collection originally came out on the Nintendo DS, so they each use two screens. Dominus Collection offers several options for how you can display the different screens while playing. It also allows you to generally use controller input instead of touchscreen controls.

It wouldn’t be a Castlevania collection without an art gallery and music player. The Dominus Collection offers the option to create playlists with your music, while the art gallery showcases official art and “never-before-seen concept art,” providing a fun look into the process that went into creating the game’s beloved characters.

Dawn of Sorrow and Portrait of Ruin are related to other games in the Castlevania series, but can easily be played alone. Those interested in the older games can find them as part of Castlevania collections. Aria of Sorrow is included in the Castlevania Advance Collection, and Bloodlines is included in the Castlevania Anniversary Collection. You don’t have to wait until you buy the Dominus Collection to play the older titles if you really don’t want to, but they can make for a fun marathon ahead of the big Halloween.