Metroidvania exploration era

This is Castlevania's exploration era, the run of games that helped name a whole genre. Symphony of the Night (1997) broke from the series' older, level-based design and turned Dracula's castle into one huge interconnected map to explore, full of hidden rooms, new abilities, and backtracking, the template later shorthanded as Metroidvania. The handheld entries that followed, from Aria of Sorrow to Order of Ecclesia, refined that formula into some of the most beloved games in the series.

It is a games-only era, built around Gothic horror, ornate pixel art, and the steady pleasure of watching a sealed castle slowly open up as your character grows stronger.

The Metroidvania exploration era franchise spans 8 games in the CrossBinge catalog.

Part of Castlevania.