Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin [DS]

If you want great 2D gaming, Castlevania is the series you come to. Following up on last year's excellent Dawn of Sorrow comes a new entry, Portrait of Ruin. With two characters and a surprising multiplayer component, it easily stands on the lofty perch built by its predecessors.

Portrait of Ruin's story doesn't feature a Belmont in the starring role, nor Dracula as the main enemy. Instead, whip-wielding Jonathan and his childhood friend/magician Charlotte enter Dracula's Castle to find a new vampire menace -- Brauner. The heroes are a bit whiny, as writers try to inject a little too much humor in the dark, gothic mythology of the series. This is really neither here nor there, as the game still entails exploring a vast map and slaying thousands of monsters.

Jonathan and Charlotte work in tandem. Play as one or the other, taking advantage of their unique strengths. Jonathan brandishes a variety of weapons from daggers to whips to spears; while Charlotte has books she opens to reveal dangerous accoutrements. Jonathan collects sub-weapons that resemble the souls from recent Castlevania titles; while Charlotte has slightly more traditional magical spells. They share some equipment, but much of it is character-exclusive.

When not in use, the other character can rest in the virtual offscreen green room, or can fight alongside you as controlled by AI. You can enlist their help in special attacks, and get them to lend a hand in puzzles. One cool scene has you both standing on motorcycles headed toward a brick wall; switch control to get them to duck out of dangers. We found ourselves using Jonathan a bit more, due to his more traditional nature that follows in Alucard's footsteps. Whatever your preference, this is just one more way Konami injects variety into a game already full of special weapons, equipment, and the like.

You'll see a lot of familiar enemies in Portrait of Ruin, though the new ones are pretty striking -- such as the giant jellyfish, the green sniper creatures, and an invisible man. Some monsters respond better to one character over the other -- Zacchino will offer a rose to Charlotte, but will attack Jonathan mercilessly.

Boss battles have upped the ante on difficulty, which is a good thing. You'll need to do plenty of leveling up and finding the right weapon combination to come out successful. That's fine, because grinding is never more fun than in a Castlevania game, and Portrait's sub-quests entice you to backtrack even more. However, it is worth noting that the main game is a little shorter than what we're used to.

The castle itself is yet another masterpiece. New to this game are painting which you can jump into; they have entire levels hidden inside them -- including pyramids, towns, and a crazy upside down and sideways stage. This separation doesn't break up exploration as much as you'd think, thankfully. It does cause an enigma, however, where after an hour of play, your completion rate will already be over 100%. Dracula's abode doesn't seem to have the same amount of hidden items as it has in the past, though -- either that, or we're not as good at finding them as we used to be. On the positive side, though, the map is well balanced, and you're unlikely to get totally lost. This, of course, makes it super-addictive to play.

One of the best things about Portrait of Ruin's gameplay is what it doesn't include from the last game -- mainly, gimmicky touchscreen functionality. While you can navigate menus with a touch, you no longer have to keep the stylus in your mouth during boss fights, or have to worry about clearing onscreen obstacles by sweeping the screen. This is just good old-fashioned Castlevania the way it was meant to be played. Since the franchise represent some of the best 2D action/adventure games in history, that's very good news.

With two protagonists, having co-op play seems natural -- even though the series isn't known for multiplayer. Portrait of Ruin allows you to conquer special stages with a friend, either via wireless play or Nintendo Wi-Fi. Online is flawless, save for the ineptitude of noobs you may be roped in with if you don't take advantage of friend codes. You can also work through these stages solo, going for top time. Getting to put your items up for sale virtually is another nice touch.

Look up "video game" in the dictionary, and Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin should be pictured on the page. It's an addictive experience that gives you plenty of freedom to explore, and a lot of options on how to play. The two-character dynamic works extremely well and only benefits the title. Without the obligation to use the DS's special features, it's free to just be a kick-butt 2D action/platformer. Some may be a little bummed at its dedication to old principles and practices of the franchise, but it'll be a fleeting thought as they storm ahead to battle the next huge boss or leap into the next painting. Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin is a work of video game art.