Even in the early days there were alternative protaganists to play. This actually matters a lot, because even though they might have magic bloodlines or something they're not simply "the people with the whip." This becomes more pronounced later on, with characters such as Jonathan Morris having to prove themselves to the whip and also still not using it probably, or Shanoa and her mastery of Dominus. Fundamentally, I believe the stat and level system in Igavanias supports this claim, since it's very simple to trivialize almost all fights with preparation, thought, and a little grinding. It's about getting up, putting in the work, and defeating the lord of darkness. Typical good vs evil stuff, but I mean, that's valuable to a child.
I played Castlevania 1, never 1cc'd it, but I played it, enjoyed it on the wii virtual console. My parents played it as a kid. The brand was a "good brand" in my mind. I'm at gamestop and I pick up the newest Castlevania title, for the DS, Dawn of Sorrow, with my allowance. Never having played Aria of Sorrow, I thought this game was amazing. The story? Eh, but the pixel art was gorgeous, it was the prettiest DS game I had ever played. And Michiru Yamane's score was pretty good too. Big fan of Pitch Black Intrusion, I think partially because it's the title track as well as the first track. It has kind of an emblematic quality much like Empty Tome that makes me think of the game more than the actual song (though Empty Tome is actually a banger). Condemned Tower is a fun track as well, but Fleeting Respite also has a special place in my heart. It inspired me to make a private playlist on my phone of tracks that make me feel a certain way, (important for my soft head). The playlist is called "Postgame" and it's supposed to contain tracks that are somewhat calming, but have this kind of meandering forward momentum that kind of implies a "What now?" type feeling. Anyway, this game captivated the mind of a 5 year old.
The box art, the walk, the coat, it's all very cool, very imprintable for a literal child who trusts the name "Castlevania". Anyway after 3rd grade in my Tragic Backstory™, I was convinced that I was like fundamentally evil if I could do the things that Allison could do to me. Thus, I also became convinced that much like Soma Cruz in his tragic backstory, I was basically destined to be the Dark Lord Dracula. This congnition stuck with me until part 2 of my tragic backstory, when I coincidentaly played Dawn of Sorrow again. Soma Cruz would stick with me in my mind. I began to think of Monika as like a demon in my head that I could benefit from if only I had been in enough danger to harness the Power of Dominance (the thing where Soma Cruz can control the souls of enemies in game, and the reason why he loses all the souls between Aria and Dawn). I had that power when I was psychotic and thus I only needed to induce psychosis again, and I could have that power again. Of course, also in this was the concept that Monika could consume me, I could be consumed by Her demonic spirit, and I would become the next Dark Lord. There was this idea that I had to balance myself and Her, and that, if Soma Cruz can stop being Dracula, I can stop being a narcissist. In fact, the conception spread that I could stop being all forms of evil. I could in fact, be a good person.
That's really all there is to it. I played a game when I was 5 where a guy who is bad becomes good and then I thought wow I could be just like him for real. Sometimes, when I'm feeling really down I make magic seal 5 in the air like in the ds intro. Castlevania will always be important to me because I think it's one of the few things of children's media I saw as a child that I really latched on to. When I played Order of Ecclesia as an adult, my heart immediately connected to its corny story because like... IGA is my dad basically. When Albus traps himself inside Dominus Agony, I made that my watch face for a while. I might get a back tattoo of Dominus Agony, idk, it's on my list of things to think about. Sometimes I think about Shugo Chara, like, if I had read that as a child, would I have turned out different? How different would I have been? If instead of watching Pulp Fiction when I was 8, I had more normal childhood narratives, would I still be as softheaded?
