The '''Castlevania''' games are a series of video games produced by Konami. This is one of the company’s most successful and long-running franchises, spanning several different consoles from Nintendo consoles to the Playstation. The first game, Castlevania, released in 1986 for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
'''Castlevania''' is a series of video games produced by Konami. This is one of the company’s most successful and long-running franchises, spanning several different consoles from Nintendo consoles to the Playstation. The first game, Castlevania, released in 1986 for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
The Castlevania games tell the tale of a familial clan of vampire hunters and their quest to rid the world of Count Dracula, with heavy ties to Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Each game chronicles a different member of the Belmont family and their quest to defeat the creatures of the night. The gameplay across the games is split into three different genres; Classic Castlevania, which functions as a side-scroller; Metroidvania, which provides a large singular map and focuses on exploration and back-tracking; and 3D Castlevania, which adapts the Metroidvania style into a 3D plane.
The Castlevania games tell the tale of a familial clan of vampire hunters and their quest to rid the world of Count Dracula, with heavy ties to Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Each game chronicles a different member of the Belmont family and their quest to defeat the creatures of the night. The gameplay across the games is split into three different genres; Classic Castlevania, which functions as a side-scroller; Metroidvania, which provides a large singular map and focuses on exploration and back-tracking; and 3D Castlevania, which adapts the Metroidvania style into a 3D plane.
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There are also several other Clans of vampire hunters in the series who assist in the destruction of Count Dracula. Such as the Morris Clan, which functions as the successor to the Belmonts and inherits their Vampire Killer whip, during the nearly two centuries that the Belmont Clan had disappeared. There are also the Belnades, Renard, Lecarde, and Kischine Clan, which have been seen assisting the Belmont Clan in some of their most important battles.
There are also several other Clans of vampire hunters in the series who assist in the destruction of Count Dracula. Such as the Morris Clan, which functions as the successor to the Belmonts and inherits their Vampire Killer whip, during the nearly two centuries that the Belmont Clan had disappeared. There are also the Belnades, Renard, Lecarde, and Kischine Clan, which have been seen assisting the Belmont Clan in some of their most important battles.
==Terms==
==General Information==
*'''Chaos:''' Chaos is the primordial entity, once formless matter that existed before the creation of the universe, which was formed as the opposition to God’s order and law. Chaos exists in a realm known as the Chaotic Realm, which is visibly a parallel universe to the main one in which the games take place. When Mathias Cronqvist rejected God and became the Dark Lord, his powers became rooted in the Chaotic Realm, so that he would continue to live on so long as Chaos existed, along with the hatred within the hearts of mankind. Chaos was also the entity that chose Soma Cruz to be the reincarnation of Count Dracula and made him the Dark Lord, after Dracula was killed once and for all in 1999. When Soma Cruz enters the Chaotic Realm, Chaos takes on a physical form for their battle. Chaos is responsible for many things that Dracula and Soma are capable of doing.
**'''Power of Dominance:''' An ability that is given to the Dark Lords chosen by Chaos; notably Count Dracula, and his reincarnation Soma Cruz. This is a special power that allows for the user to extract and absorb the souls of those they defeat; absorbing their souls then allows them to perfectly mimic the abilities of the monster whose soul was absorbed. This is an ability that Chaos can give and take away from those it considers the Dark Lord.
'''Cosmology:''' '''Multiverse''' ([[Castlevania Timeline|The Castlevania games contain parallel universes]]
*'''[[Vampire Killer]]:''' The Vampire Killer whip was originally created as the Whip of Alchemy by an alchemist named Rinaldo Gandolfi. When his daughter was turned into a vampire by a demon lord known as Walter Bernhard, Rinaldo created the Whip of Alchemy as a way to confront Walter and get revenge. Unfortunately, the Whip of Alchemy was far too weak to defeat Walter in Rinaldo’s hands, and so he decided to give the whip to a young knight named Leon Belmont in hopes that he could bring the whip’s latent power out. Eventually, the Whip of Alchemy was infused with the vampiric soul of Leon’s betrothed, Sara Trantoul, and transformed into the powerful Vampire Killer whip; a whip that is specifically made for destroying the creatures of the night. It has gone through drastic design changes, from a simple leather whip, to chain whip with a flail and a cross-shaped handle; the former being considered the “canon” design, and being the one that was adapted into the Super Smash Bros. series. The Vampire Killer whip not only acts as a powerful weapon against demons, but can also act as a seal against them to keep their magic suppressed. Furthermore, it contains a realm within it that is accessed through the Lecarde Clan, that hosts the whip's memories and can summon apparitions of its previous wielders. If the Vampire Killer is wielded by someone it does not view as worthy of it, it will slowly drain the life force from them until they perish.
'''Number of Series:''' 3 series (The main games, the Lord of Shadows games, the Netflix series)
*'''Dominus:''' This is a powerful glyph created by Barlowe of the Order of Ecclesia, which is viewed as the ultimate weapon against Dracula’s evil during a time when the Vampire Killer and the Belmont Clan were absent. This glyph is so powerful that it had to be segmented into three parts; and Dominus itself can only be fully utilized when all three parts are used simultaneously. However, it was soon revealed that the glyph was actually created through using Dracula’s own remains, and thus Dracula can take control of anyone who tries to use Dominus against him. However, a woman named Shanoa is able to use the power of Dominus against Dracula without the handicap of him taking control of her, and she was able to use it to destroy him.
'''Number of Games:''' Over 30
==Power of the Verse==
'''Number of Episodes:'''
The verse has incredibly powerful characters reaching '''Universe level''' and '''FTL''' speeds, mainly due to Dracula’s source of power as the Chaotic Realm. It becomes even more powerful with Castlevania Judgement’s introduction of the Time Reaper, who increases the entire verse's power to '''Complex Universe level''', as he was going to erase the entire timeline. This verse also has quite a good few hax, including [[Power Nullification]], [[Soul Manipulation]], [[Life Manipulation]], [[Time Manipulation]], etc.
==Canon==
'''Status:''' '''Ongoing'''
Although an official timeline has been officially revealed, it is quite outdated with new releases and contradictions. There is a mass of confusion surrounding what can be considered "canon," and what should not be.
First off, the "canon" in Castlevania is incredibly expansive. Although there is one main timeline, things that do not align with that timeline are not necessarily non-canon or don't exist. As shown through "non-canon" characters like Cornell appearing in Castlevania Judgement, the Castlevania series exists in a multiverse, and games perceived a non-canon simply exist in an alternate timeline of events.
'''Sales:''' [https://www.vgchartz.com/game/226273/castlevania/ Around 21,629,100 units as of July 1st, 2018]
''If you click '''Expand''', you will see a collection of explanations on why the timeline is laid out the way that it is, and why it includes events people will generally dismiss as non-canonical:''
'''Reception:''' Castlevania is a very popular video game series all around, being a commonly used example of the old day "Horror Games" before survival horror games were made, along with this it has a Netflix series that was very well received, gaining four seasons and its newer Netflix series ''Castlevania: Nocturne'' getting its second season.
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==List of Misconceptions==
===Remakes/Remasters===
==="Gaiden" means "Non-Canon" or "Alternate Timeline"===
The canonicity of remakes and remasters are a large part of the confusion in the Castlevania canon, as many people are confused whether to consider the original game or the remake/remaster the main event. However, as directly stated by the director of the series, Koji Igarashi, in regards to Castlevania Chronicles (the remake of Castlevania,) he said:
This stems from the belief that when Iga or a producer calls a Castlevania game a "Gaiden" it is therefore non-canon or an alternate timeline and can be dismissed. This, however, is not the case.
[https://www.nihongomaster.com/japanese/dictionary/word/77037/gaiden-外伝-がいでん The term "Gaiden" merely just means a side story, spin-off, or a separate tale]. The term "Gaiden" does not determine the canonicity of a work, it just lets you know if the game is a spin-off/side-story or if it's a main story. Take, for instance, the ''Kingdom Hearts'' series. ''Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories'' would be considered a gaiden, as it's a side-story and spin-off title that isn't a mainline numbered title, however, it is in all manners canon and important to play to understand ''Kingdom Hearts II''.
''Translation: Regarding the Famicom version and the X68000 version, the X68000 version is an arrangement based on the Famicom version. The arrangement of a game is the kind of thing where you add a lot of different things as needed, so honestly speaking, it think they both should be considered legitimate. In conclusion, I think they should be considered as the same scenario of fighting to defeat Dracula, just with a different middle part. The Super Famicom version is different as well... If you simply must have a clear answer, the Famicom version must be given deference.''"
The same can be applied to ''Castlevania'' itself, Castlevania Symphony of the Night is a gaiden game. Yet it is very obviously canon and pretty important to play to understand more of Alucard's backstory. The idea of a Gaiden game for the Castlevania series itself would be any game not dealing with one of Dracula's main 100-year-resurrections, which in this case, even Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest is in a way a gaiden, despite being completely canon.
This should apply to all remakes and remasters of the series. Each one is considered to be the same scenario, and thus either one can be considered in place of one another, and not one is more canon than the other; “both should be legitimate.”
This is all to say that Gaiden does not at all mean "non-canon" or "alternate timeline" and should never be treated as such, the term itself has nothing to do with the canonicity of a product.
===IGA Statements Quoted by a Fan===
Any statements Iga has made about Judgment that don't come from [https://web.archive.org/web/20080715002840/http://wii.ign.com/articles/888/888661p1.html this IGN interview] or a sourced and reputable article are not usable. This is, of course, referring to the popular statements used when discussing Judgment's Canoncity about a fan asking IGA about the game's Canoncity on Facebook, here are some of them below:
===Order of Shadows===
: ''Fan: You mentioned Legend of Cornell was an alternate continuity. However, Cornell appears in Castlevania Judgment, which I believe is not an alternate continuity. How does that work? is he from a different universe than the other characters? It is not really explained in the game itself so I was hoping you could give some clarification on the issue.''
This point will be using the [https://www.ign.com/articles/2007/08/23/castlevania-order-of-shadows-qa Order of Shadows Q&A conducted by IGN], as reference.
Castlevania: Order of Shadows is a 2007 mobile game, developed and published by Konami, which has almost unanimously been grouped into the "Non-Canon" section by fans of the series. This is likely due to a very vague statement made by the director of the game, Tyrone Rodriguez, where he called the game a "gaiden," aka a side-story. This is not sufficient enough evidence to strip the story from the timeline, and there is in fact several more points to it being canon than not.
: ''IGA: Judgment is a work that surpasses space and time and brings them together.''
* '''Debunking "It's a side story, thus isn't canon"'''
: ''Fan: I get it. So, is the explanation I suggested in the previous reply possibly correct?''
This is basically the only evidence levied against the games canonicity, and simply isn't true. A side-story does not mean it is not canon, in fact its far from it. This simply means that the events of the game are not as major to the timeline as others, which reigns true. This game features a resurrection of Dracula that does not occur during one of his 100 year cycles (much like Harmony of Dissonance or Curse of Darkness,) and thus is considered a side-story. This has nothing to do with canonicity, and is taken out of context as well:
: ''IGA: I don't think it's exactly correct. Judgment is a work born of thinking it would be fun to remove all the hedges and bring characters that appeared throughout the series together. I think that you need to view it as an event from another world which does not consider things like timelines or parallel dimensions at all.''
"''IGN Wireless: What sort of timeframe in relation to other Castlevania titles?''
Now these seem like pretty clear-cut statements until you start to try to find where these come from.
''TR: Officially, Order of Chaos is considered a "gaiden" or side story to the Castlevania canon. However, it takes place roughly in the late 1600s.''"
[https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Talk:Castlevania_Timeline/Archive_1#Rumor They come from both a timeline archive discussion on the Castlevania Wiki back on January 15th, 2012] and [https://castlevaniadungeon.net/forums/index.php?topic=4459.0 from a forum post from the same user as the wiki article].
Here, Tyrone explicitly states that the story is a side-story to the canon, implying that it exists within the canon but funcions as a side-story. This is backed up when he gives the game a chronological timeframe as well.
There is no way to find anything sourced or verifiably proven that this person spoke to Iga. Trying to look up the person didn't get any real results either.
* '''IGA's Involvement'''
Some other issues fall under the inconsistencies within these Iga talks, [https://castlevaniadungeon.net/forums/index.php?topic=4459.0#:~:text=He%20also%20confirmed%20that%20Order%20of%20Shadows%20and%20the%20Arcade%20are%20non%2Dcanon%20because%20they%20were%20intented%20from%20the%20very%20beginning%20to%20be%20such%3A the person claims that Iga confirmed that Order of Shadows and the Arcade are non-canon because they were intended from the very beginning to be such], [https://www.ign.com/articles/2007/08/23/castlevania-order-of-shadows-qa#:~:text=He%20was%20actively%20involved%20with%20ensuring%20the%20game%20was%20consistent%20with%20the%20current%20canon however, an officially sourced interview has the lead game designer of Order of Shadows state that Iga was actively involved with ensuring the game was consistent with the current canon], this would be a weird thing to do if he intended it to be non-canon from the very beginning.
Koji Igarashi, widely known as IGA, is the director of the entire Castlevania series, and is the one who dictates what is canon and what isn't. Something most seem to overlook is that iGA was directly involved with this game:
[https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Talk:Castlevania_Timeline/Archive_1#Rumor:~:text=Yes%2C%20he%20told,26%2C%202012%20(UTC) He also claims that Iga said Super Castlevania IV was an alternate continuity], [https://castlevania.fandom.com/wiki/Count_Dracula_(Vampire_Killer)#cite_ref-2:~:text=IGA%3A%20FC%E7%89%88,be%20given%20deference.%22 when the wiki also notes Iga saying that the games are all legitimate and the same scenario of defeating Dracula], however this quote is also unsourced, they just claim Iga says this with no link or anything.
"''IGN Wireless: How closely are you working with Koji Igarashi for this new title? Was he pretty hands on during the development, or did he just offer some guidance? Did he enjoy the challenge of working on a new platform, or was it outside his expertise?
There is another one not related to the user who spoke to Iga, [https://www.reddit.com/r/castlevania/comments/zsyqvq/circle_of_the_moon_canon_questions/ but a user on reddit who claimed that a magazine claimed that] ''Castlevania: Circle of the Moon'' was stated to be in a [https://imgur.com/ChsTtFa "different time axis"]. Attempting to get it translated got no wording that said anything like that, [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jH72xk7VkYJm0Yt10S4vWe58bxVh78Uj/view?usp=sharing with it not even mentioning anything about canon, timeline, time axis, or any other wording of the sort in a machine-translated attempt]. Do note however that this is a machine translation so it could potentially be that it is there, but until a reputable and verifiable translator can confirm or deny this translation, the jury is out with it and it will not be used for the canoncity of ''Circle of the Moon''.
''TR: We met with IGA pretty early on in the development process, he gave his blessing, but also reminded us that the game had to be fun and keep with the spirit of the Castlevania series. This needs no interpretation and reaffirmed our believe that the game had to be designed to embrace the mobile platform. IGA took a look at the design, story and script, giving his input and comments as necessary. He was actively involved with ensuring the game was consistent with the current canon. His attention to detail and knowledge of the series is obviously unrivaled. It's really great to have a living, breathing encyclopedia, even if he's in Roppongi Hills most of the time.''"
Thus all of these quotes are [https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hearsay merely hearsay] until shown or proven otherwise.
===Remakes/Remasters Being Non-Canon===
This comes from an Iga quote that says:
Here, Tyrone not only directly confirms IGA's involvement with making sure the game was as faithful to the Castlevania series as possible, but also worked on the story scrips and was actively involved with ensuring the game fit into canon. This alone should prove that the game is a part of the main timeline.
: ''Translation: Regarding the Famicom version and the X68000 version, the X68000 version is an arrangement based on the Famicom version. The arrangement of a game is the kind of thing where you add a lot of different things as needed, so honestly speaking, it think they both should be considered legitimate. In conclusion, I think they should be considered as the same scenario of fighting to defeat Dracula, just with a different middle part. The Super Famicom version is different as well... If you simply must have a clear answer, the Famicom version must be given deference."''
As Tyrone stated, the events of Order of Shadows takes place during the late 1600s, which slot in extremely nicely. Simon Belmont's adventures take place in late-1600 leading into early 1700, with his Christopher being his great-grandfather as confirmed by the [https://web.archive.org/web/20120210205046/http://www.konami.com/games/castlevania/castlevania-adventure-rebirth.php official Castlevania ReBirth website]. Christopher's son, Soleil, would thus be Simon's grandfather, leaving the gap of who Simon's father (and Soleil's son) is.
Now the quote itself doesn't state remakes or remasters are non-canon despite what people believe. It's moreso a quote of Iga stating that all of them are the same scenario, just with differences. However, an interesting point is that Iga says the NES version should be given "deference", as in to defer to the NES version.
Christopher - Late 1500s, early 1600s
Of course, though, this has the same issue as the Judgment quotes, everyone claims Iga said this, but there is no source of him saying this. In fact, in ''Castlevania Chronicles'', there's a reward interview you receive from Iga himself where he talks about the game, [https://youtu.be/fZWbKQxeCJU?t=3573 Iga pretty much explains how the game came to be and never says anything about the game not being canon or to defer to the original]<ref>Castlevania Chronicles</ref>, if anything he treats this as just an updated version of the original. [https://youtu.be/fZWbKQxeCJU?t=3620 Interestingly to note too, the original he's talking about is not Castlevania on NES but instead, he's talking about the computer version of Castlevania]<ref>Castlevania Chronicles</ref>, though it borrows a lot of elements from Castlevania NES.
Soleil - Early to Mid 1600s
Overall due to the quote itself having no source, it is unusable. The way we will treat remakes, remasters, or ports here however is that they are all equally canon unless stated otherwise. Most of these tell the same story with the only real differences being extra background information added, such as Haunted Castle having it be Dracula [https://youtu.be/yKQt_aM5hCY?t=12 stole Simon's wife], though the same overall story still applies even here. [https://youtu.be/fZWbKQxeCJU?t=3668 Iga himself has already expressed that the original Castlevania's story is pretty simple]<ref>Castlevania Chronicles</ref> and Simon having a wife does not affect anything in the overall narrative. Super Castlevania IV notes that Simon is a vampire, though this was due to a novel writer making him a vampire in their novel. The novel was originally supposed to be an adaptation of Super Castlevania IV but was then dropped and made its own thing. Super Castlevania IV itself is still canon, but the subplot of Simon being a vampire is not. [https://thecodex.wiki/images/b/bb/Castlevania_Anniversary_Collection_Bonus_Book_Timeline.png The most recent timeline even acknowledges it as canon]<ref>Castlevania Anniversary Collection Bonus Book Pages 29-30</ref>.
Simon - Late 1600s, early 1700s
===''Iga Only Allows Stuff He Works on To Be Canon''===
There is a weirdly believed idea in the fandom that Iga only considers works he worked on canon, [https://www.ign.com/articles/2007/08/23/castlevania-order-of-shadows-qa#:~:text=He%20was%20actively%20involved%20with%20ensuring%20the%20game%20was%20consistent%20with%20the%20current%20canon however, an officially sourced interview has the lead game designer of Order of Shadows state that Iga was actively involved with ensuring the game was consistent with the current canon], along with this Iga did not work on a lot of Castlevania games considered canon, such as the NES trilogy and the Gameboy games. [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1473337/ In fact, he has only made 12 Castlevania games], out of the 30 Castlevania games in total, and most of them from the older console eras are still a part of the canon. Thus Iga does not only allow stuff he works on to be canon.
Desmond, confirmed to take place in the late 1600s, would slot in perfectly there, as the son of Soleil and father of Simon. This is even further supported by Rohan Krause, who [https://youtu.be/Gv6eTpW5m9s?t=257 claimed that Desmond's father wielded the Vampire Killer whip], which Soleil had passed down to him at the end of Belmont's Revenge.
===Iga is a Producer of ''Castlevania: Circle of the Moon''===
A Nintendo Power magazine [https://drive.google.com/file/d/10ZxEiUkOwHHqEiT58TkKlGMj3NffgF4W/view?usp=sharing calls Iga the producer of Circle of the Moon], with Iga talking like he worked on the game in that interview. [https://youtu.be/mHz4ITyIb2M?t=104 However Iga can be found nowhere in the credits of the game]. Making this Nintendo Power issue questionable as to if they were talking to Iga or if the game was mixed up. Though we have direct in-game proof that Iga was not a producer of Circle of the Moon.
All of this evidence; from lines taken out of context, to IGA directly helping the game fit into canon, to the game actually slotting into the timeline perfectly, confirms that Order of Shadows is absolutely a part of the main timeline which should not be excluded.
===''Dracula's Third Form is not actually him but a powerful demon he revived to gain more power''===
</div>
The "third form of Dracula" in ''Dracula's Curse'' [https://twitter.com/VGMuseum1/status/1419863414776680486 was suggested in the Japanese version to actually be Dracula reviving a powerful demon in order to gain more power instead of an actual transformation]. [https://x.com/Arc_Hound/status/1420105764476276741 However this has been proven false by official design documents that show all three forms are all Dracula]<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210331082141/https://www.ebay.com/itm/303940046858?ViewItem=&item=303940046858&autorefresh=true Web Archive link of the documents]</ref>, [https://x.com/Arc_Hound/status/1655649429934727203 along with ''悪魔城伝説 完全攻略テクニックブック/Akumajou Densetsu Kanzen Kouryaku Technique Book'' allegedly saying "At last, the showdown with Count Dracula, but he doesn't die when defeated, rather he shows his true nature. The third phase is his true form."], [https://x.com/Arc_Hound/status/1655650754911252480 with the Japanese Wikipedia being the source of the idea that Dracula's third phase is not Dracua at all].
===Main Timeline===
==Terms==
*'''Castlevania: Lament of Innocence''' (1094 A.D.)
*'''[[Chaos (Castlevania)|Chaos]]:''' Chaos is the primordial entity, once formless matter that existed before the creation of the universe, which was formed as the opposition to God’s order and law. Chaos exists in a realm known as the Chaotic Realm, which is visibly a parallel universe to the main one in which the games take place. When Mathias Cronqvist rejected God and became the Dark Lord, his powers became rooted in the Chaotic Realm, so that he would continue to live on so long as Chaos existed, along with the hatred within the hearts of mankind. Chaos was also the entity that chose Soma Cruz to be the reincarnation of Count Dracula and made him the Dark Lord, after Dracula was killed once and for all in 1999. When Soma Cruz enters the Chaotic Realm, Chaos takes on a physical form for their battle. Chaos is responsible for many things that Dracula and Soma are capable of doing.
**'''Power of Dominance:''' An ability that is given to the Dark Lords chosen by Chaos; notably Count Dracula, and his reincarnation Soma Cruz. This is a special power that allows for the user to extract and absorb the souls of those they defeat; absorbing their souls then allows them to perfectly mimic the abilities of the monster whose soul was absorbed. This is an ability that Chaos can give and take away from those it considers the Dark Lord.
*'''Castlevania: Curse of Darkness''' (1479 A.D.)
*'''Castlevania: The Adventure''' | '''Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth''' (1576 A.D.)
*'''Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance''' (1748 A.D.)
*'''Castlevania: Rondo of Blood''' | '''Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles''' (1792 A.D.)
*'''Castlevania: Symphony of the Night''' (1797 A.D.)
*'''Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia''' (18?? A.D.)
*'''Castlevania: Bloodlines''' (1917 A.D.)
*'''Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin''' (1944 A.D.)
*'''Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow''' (2035 A.D.)
*'''Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow''' (2036 A.D.)
*'''Castlevania Judgement''' (Time Rift)
===Alternate Timelines===
*'''[[Vampire Killer]]:''' The Vampire Killer whip was originally created as the Whip of Alchemy by an alchemist named Rinaldo Gandolfi. When his daughter was turned into a vampire by a demon lord known as Walter Bernhard, Rinaldo created the Whip of Alchemy as a way to confront Walter and get revenge. Unfortunately, the Whip of Alchemy was far too weak to defeat Walter in Rinaldo’s hands, and so he decided to give the whip to a young knight named Leon Belmont in hopes that he could bring the whip’s latent power out. Eventually, the Whip of Alchemy was infused with the vampiric soul of Leon’s betrothed, Sara Trantoul, and transformed into the powerful Vampire Killer whip; a whip that is specifically made for destroying the creatures of the night. It has gone through drastic design changes, from a simple leather whip, to chain whip with a flail and a cross-shaped handle; the former being considered the “canon” design, and being the one that was adapted into the Super Smash Bros. series. The Vampire Killer whip not only acts as a powerful weapon against demons, but can also act as a seal against them to keep their magic suppressed. Furthermore, it contains a realm within it that is accessed through the Lecarde Clan, that hosts the whip's memories and can summon apparitions of its previous wielders. If the Vampire Killer is wielded by someone it does not view as worthy of it, it will slowly drain the life force from them until they perish.
These are games within the series that are specifically excluded from the official main-series timeline, because they contradict the main timeline of events in some shape or form.
*'''The Legend of Satanic Castle: The Vampire Hunters''' - Book featuring '''[[Sid Belmont]]'''
*'''Dominus:''' This is a powerful glyph created by Barlowe of the Order of Ecclesia, which is viewed as the ultimate weapon against Dracula’s evil during a time when the Vampire Killer and the Belmont Clan were absent. This glyph is so powerful that it had to be segmented into three parts; and Dominus itself can only be fully utilized when all three parts are used simultaneously. However, it was soon revealed that the glyph was actually created through using Dracula’s own remains, and thus Dracula can take control of anyone who tries to use Dominus against him. However, a woman named Shanoa is able to use the power of Dominus against Dracula without the handicap of him taking control of her, and she was able to use it to destroy him.
*'''Castlevania: The Belmont Legacy ''' - Comic featuring an alternate '''Christopher Belmont'''
*'''Haunted Castle''' - Video Game featuring an alternate '''Simon Belmont'''
*'''Super Castlevania IV''' - Video Game featuring an alternate '''Simon Belmont'''
*'''Castlevania: Dracula X''' - Video Game featuring an alternate '''Richter Belmont'''
*'''Castlevania: Circle of the Moon''' - Video Game featuring '''Nathan Graves'''
*'''Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness''' - Video Game featuring '''Cornell'''
*'''Castlevania (N64)''' - Video Game featuring '''Reinhardt Schneider'''
*'''Kid Dracula''' - Video Game featuring '''Kid Dracula'''
*'''Kid Dracula (Game Boy)''' - Video Game featuring '''Kid Dracula'''
*'''Castlevania Legends''' - Video game featuring '''[[Sonia Belmont]]'''
==Non-Canon==
==Canon==
These are pieces of media that are not simply divergences in the main timeline of the series, but actually exist in entirely different continuities altogether. In no way are these pieces of media related to the main series of events or their branching timelines; only really connected in names and motifs.
Although an official timeline has been officially revealed, it is quite outdated with new releases and contradictions. There is a mass of confusion surrounding what can be considered "canon," and what should not be.
*'''Castlevania: Lords of Shadow''' - Video game featuring '''Gabriel Belmont'''
The entirety of the timeline and it's canon has been explained [[Castlevania Timeline|here]].
*'''Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate''' - Video game featuring '''Gabriel Belmont'''
*'''Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2''' - Video game featuring '''Gabriel Belmont'''
*'''Netflix Castlevania''' - Television series
==Calculations==
==Calculations==
*[[User:GiverOfThePeace/Castlevania_Calculations#Golem_Shoots_a_massive_energy_blast|Golem's ultimate attack in Judgment is a massive blast that vaporizes the ground]] (11.22500364512269222 Kilotons of TNT, '''7-C''')
Castlevania is a series of video games produced by Konami. This is one of the company’s most successful and long-running franchises, spanning several different consoles from Nintendo consoles to the Playstation. The first game, Castlevania, released in 1986 for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
The Castlevania games tell the tale of a familial clan of vampire hunters and their quest to rid the world of Count Dracula, with heavy ties to Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Each game chronicles a different member of the Belmont family and their quest to defeat the creatures of the night. The gameplay across the games is split into three different genres; Classic Castlevania, which functions as a side-scroller; Metroidvania, which provides a large singular map and focuses on exploration and back-tracking; and 3D Castlevania, which adapts the Metroidvania style into a 3D plane.
Each Castlevania game is set in the same universe, with only a few notable exceptions (Castlevania Legends, Kid Dracula, the Lords of Shadow series.) Nearly every game’s main character shares a familial connection.
The Belmont Clan takes center stage as the main characters, each being noted as legendary vampire hunters. Every member of the Belmont clan wields the powerful Vampire Killer whip, which was given to the Clan as the Whip of Alchemy, by an alchemist named Rinaldo Gandolfi.
The main recurring rival of the Belmont Clan is Lord Dracula, a powerful immortal vampire who has existed for several hundred years. Having a deep hatred for God and humanity, Dracula curses the land of which he stands, and returns every 100 years after he is killed. Castlevania: Lament of Innocence established that Count Dracula was once a regular human and masterful tactician named Mathias Cronqvist, who was also best friends with the ancestor of the Belmont Clan, Leon Belmont. After the death of Mathias’ wife, he swore vengeance against God and sought out a powerful relic known as the Crimson Stone to become the Dark Lord, Count Dracula.
As the Dark Lord, Dracula has domain over a great many things, including a large castle known fittingly as Castlevania. This castle is directly tied to Dracula’s power, will rise when Dracula himself is resurrected, and will crumble as Dracula is defeated. Both the powers of Castlevania and Count Dracula are sourced in primordial Chaos, and the parallel universe known as the Chaotic Realm, in opposition to God’s order and law. Because of his status as the Dark Lord, Dracula has control over a large number of different evil creatures; ranging from skeletons, zombies, mermen, werewolves, bats, gargoyles, ghosts, Medusa, Frankenstein’s Monster, and Death.
There are also several other Clans of vampire hunters in the series who assist in the destruction of Count Dracula. Such as the Morris Clan, which functions as the successor to the Belmonts and inherits their Vampire Killer whip, during the nearly two centuries that the Belmont Clan had disappeared. There are also the Belnades, Renard, Lecarde, and Kischine Clan, which have been seen assisting the Belmont Clan in some of their most important battles.
Reception: Castlevania is a very popular video game series all around, being a commonly used example of the old day "Horror Games" before survival horror games were made, along with this it has a Netflix series that was very well received, gaining four seasons and its newer Netflix series Castlevania: Nocturne getting its second season.
List of Misconceptions
"Gaiden" means "Non-Canon" or "Alternate Timeline"
This stems from the belief that when Iga or a producer calls a Castlevania game a "Gaiden" it is therefore non-canon or an alternate timeline and can be dismissed. This, however, is not the case.
The term "Gaiden" merely just means a side story, spin-off, or a separate tale. The term "Gaiden" does not determine the canonicity of a work, it just lets you know if the game is a spin-off/side-story or if it's a main story. Take, for instance, the Kingdom Hearts series. Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories would be considered a gaiden, as it's a side-story and spin-off title that isn't a mainline numbered title, however, it is in all manners canon and important to play to understand Kingdom Hearts II.
The same can be applied to Castlevania itself, Castlevania Symphony of the Night is a gaiden game. Yet it is very obviously canon and pretty important to play to understand more of Alucard's backstory. The idea of a Gaiden game for the Castlevania series itself would be any game not dealing with one of Dracula's main 100-year-resurrections, which in this case, even Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest is in a way a gaiden, despite being completely canon.
This is all to say that Gaiden does not at all mean "non-canon" or "alternate timeline" and should never be treated as such, the term itself has nothing to do with the canonicity of a product.
IGA Statements Quoted by a Fan
Any statements Iga has made about Judgment that don't come from this IGN interview or a sourced and reputable article are not usable. This is, of course, referring to the popular statements used when discussing Judgment's Canoncity about a fan asking IGA about the game's Canoncity on Facebook, here are some of them below:
Fan: You mentioned Legend of Cornell was an alternate continuity. However, Cornell appears in Castlevania Judgment, which I believe is not an alternate continuity. How does that work? is he from a different universe than the other characters? It is not really explained in the game itself so I was hoping you could give some clarification on the issue.
IGA: Judgment is a work that surpasses space and time and brings them together.
Fan: I get it. So, is the explanation I suggested in the previous reply possibly correct?
IGA: I don't think it's exactly correct. Judgment is a work born of thinking it would be fun to remove all the hedges and bring characters that appeared throughout the series together. I think that you need to view it as an event from another world which does not consider things like timelines or parallel dimensions at all.
Now these seem like pretty clear-cut statements until you start to try to find where these come from.
There is no way to find anything sourced or verifiably proven that this person spoke to Iga. Trying to look up the person didn't get any real results either.
Translation: Regarding the Famicom version and the X68000 version, the X68000 version is an arrangement based on the Famicom version. The arrangement of a game is the kind of thing where you add a lot of different things as needed, so honestly speaking, it think they both should be considered legitimate. In conclusion, I think they should be considered as the same scenario of fighting to defeat Dracula, just with a different middle part. The Super Famicom version is different as well... If you simply must have a clear answer, the Famicom version must be given deference."
Now the quote itself doesn't state remakes or remasters are non-canon despite what people believe. It's moreso a quote of Iga stating that all of them are the same scenario, just with differences. However, an interesting point is that Iga says the NES version should be given "deference", as in to defer to the NES version.
Overall due to the quote itself having no source, it is unusable. The way we will treat remakes, remasters, or ports here however is that they are all equally canon unless stated otherwise. Most of these tell the same story with the only real differences being extra background information added, such as Haunted Castle having it be Dracula stole Simon's wife, though the same overall story still applies even here. Iga himself has already expressed that the original Castlevania's story is pretty simple[3] and Simon having a wife does not affect anything in the overall narrative. Super Castlevania IV notes that Simon is a vampire, though this was due to a novel writer making him a vampire in their novel. The novel was originally supposed to be an adaptation of Super Castlevania IV but was then dropped and made its own thing. Super Castlevania IV itself is still canon, but the subplot of Simon being a vampire is not. The most recent timeline even acknowledges it as canon[4].
Chaos: Chaos is the primordial entity, once formless matter that existed before the creation of the universe, which was formed as the opposition to God’s order and law. Chaos exists in a realm known as the Chaotic Realm, which is visibly a parallel universe to the main one in which the games take place. When Mathias Cronqvist rejected God and became the Dark Lord, his powers became rooted in the Chaotic Realm, so that he would continue to live on so long as Chaos existed, along with the hatred within the hearts of mankind. Chaos was also the entity that chose Soma Cruz to be the reincarnation of Count Dracula and made him the Dark Lord, after Dracula was killed once and for all in 1999. When Soma Cruz enters the Chaotic Realm, Chaos takes on a physical form for their battle. Chaos is responsible for many things that Dracula and Soma are capable of doing.
Power of Dominance: An ability that is given to the Dark Lords chosen by Chaos; notably Count Dracula, and his reincarnation Soma Cruz. This is a special power that allows for the user to extract and absorb the souls of those they defeat; absorbing their souls then allows them to perfectly mimic the abilities of the monster whose soul was absorbed. This is an ability that Chaos can give and take away from those it considers the Dark Lord.
Vampire Killer: The Vampire Killer whip was originally created as the Whip of Alchemy by an alchemist named Rinaldo Gandolfi. When his daughter was turned into a vampire by a demon lord known as Walter Bernhard, Rinaldo created the Whip of Alchemy as a way to confront Walter and get revenge. Unfortunately, the Whip of Alchemy was far too weak to defeat Walter in Rinaldo’s hands, and so he decided to give the whip to a young knight named Leon Belmont in hopes that he could bring the whip’s latent power out. Eventually, the Whip of Alchemy was infused with the vampiric soul of Leon’s betrothed, Sara Trantoul, and transformed into the powerful Vampire Killer whip; a whip that is specifically made for destroying the creatures of the night. It has gone through drastic design changes, from a simple leather whip, to chain whip with a flail and a cross-shaped handle; the former being considered the “canon” design, and being the one that was adapted into the Super Smash Bros. series. The Vampire Killer whip not only acts as a powerful weapon against demons, but can also act as a seal against them to keep their magic suppressed. Furthermore, it contains a realm within it that is accessed through the Lecarde Clan, that hosts the whip's memories and can summon apparitions of its previous wielders. If the Vampire Killer is wielded by someone it does not view as worthy of it, it will slowly drain the life force from them until they perish.
Dominus: This is a powerful glyph created by Barlowe of the Order of Ecclesia, which is viewed as the ultimate weapon against Dracula’s evil during a time when the Vampire Killer and the Belmont Clan were absent. This glyph is so powerful that it had to be segmented into three parts; and Dominus itself can only be fully utilized when all three parts are used simultaneously. However, it was soon revealed that the glyph was actually created through using Dracula’s own remains, and thus Dracula can take control of anyone who tries to use Dominus against him. However, a woman named Shanoa is able to use the power of Dominus against Dracula without the handicap of him taking control of her, and she was able to use it to destroy him.
Canon
Although an official timeline has been officially revealed, it is quite outdated with new releases and contradictions. There is a mass of confusion surrounding what can be considered "canon," and what should not be.
The entirety of the timeline and it's canon has been explained here.
