Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance

 Game Boy Advance
  • Publisher: Konami
  • Release Date: Sep 16, 2002
User Score
8.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 114 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 87 out of 114
  2. Mixed: 23 out of 114
  3. Negative: 4 out of 114
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  1. nitorita
    May 22, 2021
    6
    In a word, Harmony of Dissonance is mundane. It's not bad, but it's not great either. Just don't expect too much.

    Like Symphony of the Night, this sequel features a dual map system, albeit not as meaningful as the inverse map. You are essentially given more bosses to fight, most of which are not particularly difficult (especially if you abuse potions). Save points are infrequent, which    In a word, Harmony of Dissonance is mundane. It's not bad, but it's not great either. Just don't expect too much.

    Like Symphony of the Night, this sequel features a dual map system, albeit not as meaningful as the inverse map. You are essentially given more bosses to fight, most of which are not particularly difficult (especially if you abuse potions). Save points are infrequent, which means being forced to play safe so you don't waste time retracing steps. On the plus side, you are provided with a dash ability right from the beginning, which helps quicken the game and offers the player a powerful dodge mechanic.

    The game demands a ridiculous amount of backtracking without providing any indication as to where to go. The insane rarity of the merchant increases the game's overall difficulty, as the game is balanced around you buying potions to survive. The story is practically nonexistent as well, and there are practically no secret rooms to explore, which is disappointing. If you decide to play this game and get stuck, don't hesitate to spoil yourself with a map to get an idea of where to go next, as you will more than likely end up wasting hours revisiting the same areas.

    Overall, not a memorable experience. Go ahead and skip this game as you will not miss out on anything.    … Expand
  2. Matseb2611
    May 23, 2011
    7
    Harmony of Dissonance is a good game, but compared to Aria of Sorrow it easily falls down in my opinion. The strongest points perhaps are the really atmospheric feel, a pretty good and intense story, and very easy control of the character. The game also introduces a system of collecting elemental spellbooks, which combined with the usual subweapons (cross, holy water, etc) give an entirelyHarmony of Dissonance is a good game, but compared to Aria of Sorrow it easily falls down in my opinion. The strongest points perhaps are the really atmospheric feel, a pretty good and intense story, and very easy control of the character. The game also introduces a system of collecting elemental spellbooks, which combined with the usual subweapons (cross, holy water, etc) give an entirely different special attack, depending on what book is equipped, giving a diverse gameplay. Similar system is later used in Castlevania: Lament of Innocence. Also the good ol' flexi-whip from Super Castlevania IV is back. You can hold the attack button and to move the whip in all the directions as opposed to only attacking forwards. The story as I mentioned is fantastic, one of the best in a Castlevania game, because it is mysterious and gets the player gripped. The atmospheric feel of the game certainly adds to that. Now where the game falls down. There are some minor issues, which can be annoying at times but aren't so bad. Those are the low difficulty, a strange glowing aura around the playable character, and also being forced to backtrack through entire stages at some points of the game. However what I disliked the most about Harmony of Dissonance was its soundtrack. Castlevania games usually have fantastic soundtracks, but I felt that this one was a real disappointment. I hardly heard any music in it, it was just a low quality noise, unfortunately. In my opinion slightly better than Circle of the Moon, but is nowhere near as good as Aria of Sorrow.… Expand
  3. SimonB.
    May 15, 2006
    7
    The weak link in the GBA trilogy. If you're a big fan, then pick it up, but if you're a casual gamer I'd recommend AoS or CotM. What is most annoying is the convoluted level structure, ease of every enemy in the game (bosses are jokes) and the quality of sound is noticeably worse than in the other titles. The music reminds me a lot of Shining Force on the Genesis, but not The weak link in the GBA trilogy. If you're a big fan, then pick it up, but if you're a casual gamer I'd recommend AoS or CotM. What is most annoying is the convoluted level structure, ease of every enemy in the game (bosses are jokes) and the quality of sound is noticeably worse than in the other titles. The music reminds me a lot of Shining Force on the Genesis, but not as good. It's still a good game to kill some time with, just don't expect the same good quality of CotM or AoS.… Expand
  4. Flazzard
    May 2, 2018
    10
    Probably the most fun I've had in a 2D game since Castlevania SotN. This game is filled with content and awesome battles, and the skills you get throughout the game give you a ton of options.
    The castle is massive and has surprisingly good designs, something I don't see this game getting credit for as much as it should be.

    To put it bluntly, this game is nothing short of a masterpiece. 10/10
  5. tiberiotavareze
    Jan 9, 2021
    7
    My rate for this game: 7.5


    ..............................................
  6. systemjimmy
    Apr 3, 2013
    0
    Very unoriginal, easy and remarkably boring. The worst entry of the GBA era.
    Get Circle of the Moon and Aria of Sorrow instead, they are a lot better than this pile of junk.
  7. ShayT.
    Apr 14, 2007
    10
    Don't listen to the critics: this game has a great, well designed castle and a whole lot of fun hours to spend. It's not too easy (play Pokemon if you want something maddingly easy) and it's got so much fun packed into it I dare say it is a must own for a GBA owners.
  8. Ricardo96
    Apr 12, 2017
    2
    Después de haber finalizado la castlevania aria of sorrow que intento jugar este juego, Los dolores de cabeza eran constantes, este juego me causaba unas tremendas migrañas,
  9. Ak290
    Oct 26, 2021
    0
    Comparing to any other Castlevania game this one deserves 0/10 for sure. Painful graphics, painful music, painful combat, simply garbage!
  10. RaphaelLouisR.
    Jul 25, 2003
    9
    very nice game and good graphics great gameplay and it really does have some cool magic but its not that many.Castlevania:Circle of the Moon was a little better.
  11. TakN.
    May 12, 2003
    10
    I think this game is worth to buy because I dont like to play castlevania game, but when I played it I can't just quit playing this awesome game.
  12. JeffS.
    Jan 17, 2005
    10
    Simply a great game. I've been a die hard fan of the Castlevania series since I was a child. It all started for me, when I played Simons Quest. I fell in love from that point on. I'm thankful to own all the GBA Castlevanias. I look forward to Aria of Sorrow 2 for DS in Fall 2005. As I'm sure many other fans do as well!
  13. frederik1478
    Feb 10, 2022
    6
    For me this is a portable castlevania symphony of the night ,sadly it has some of the worst backtracking in metroidvania game I have seen but it's still enjoyable, it worth playing once
  14. AlucardWarrior
    Feb 2, 2022
    7
    Después de jugar Circle of the moon me quede con un sabor agridulce con este juego, claramente se mejoraron algunos aspectos del juego anterior pero echaron a perder algunas cosas que ya estaban bien implementadas, save points en lugares nefastos y si quieres pasar el juego al 100 vas a tener que adivinar donde esta alguna parte de Dracula y mucho menos que este en tus narices, la músicaDespués de jugar Circle of the moon me quede con un sabor agridulce con este juego, claramente se mejoraron algunos aspectos del juego anterior pero echaron a perder algunas cosas que ya estaban bien implementadas, save points en lugares nefastos y si quieres pasar el juego al 100 vas a tener que adivinar donde esta alguna parte de Dracula y mucho menos que este en tus narices, la música del juego podría decir que es de las mas dediles de la saga solo chapel of dissonance me gusto. es un gran juego pero que da un paso atras a la saga, evidentemente querían hacer un sinphony of the night pero mal ejecutado por las limitantes de la GBA.… Expand
  15. Moony545
    Nov 8, 2018
    7
    Castlevania - Harmony of Dissonance, клон SotN, как ее многие нарекают. В начале думал, что игра надоест, но нет, было прикольно бегать по замку, рубить нечисть и искать всякие секретки, реликты для правильной концовки, апгрейды, я даже мебельную комнату обставил полностью. Также порадовало то что тут имеется кнут, без этого "фирменного" оружия, кастла не воспринимается мной как кастла.Castlevania - Harmony of Dissonance, клон SotN, как ее многие нарекают. В начале думал, что игра надоест, но нет, было прикольно бегать по замку, рубить нечисть и искать всякие секретки, реликты для правильной концовки, апгрейды, я даже мебельную комнату обставил полностью. Также порадовало то что тут имеется кнут, без этого "фирменного" оружия, кастла не воспринимается мной как кастла. Игра понравилась, как по геймплею, так и по визуальному стилю, а вот музыка там какая-то невзрачная.… Expand
  16. hector_bcn98
    Nov 10, 2022
    8
    Soy yo o reutiliza muchísimos assets y diseños de escenarios de Symphony of the Night?
  17. ylnylmn
    Sep 5, 2021
    8
    Good game. It looks like SOTN. But not as good as SOTN of course. Graphics, music and gameplay are good. The variety of items is great. The way he uses abilities is fun. But the level design is bad. There's a lot of backtracking. Shortcuts are limited. And the game is so easy it could possibly be the easiest CV game. Bosses are very easy. It is impossible for you to die because it is aGood game. It looks like SOTN. But not as good as SOTN of course. Graphics, music and gameplay are good. The variety of items is great. The way he uses abilities is fun. But the level design is bad. There's a lot of backtracking. Shortcuts are limited. And the game is so easy it could possibly be the easiest CV game. Bosses are very easy. It is impossible for you to die because it is a potion. Enemies are also very easy. I think it's a better game than Circle of the Moon. Its gameplay is faster and not as unnecessarily difficult as COTM.… Expand
  18. JAG7
    Jul 25, 2022
    4
    This game sucks! First of all the dungeon system is complicated. Ridiculous backtracking and boring tedious game. Is endlessly boring. You need a key to unlocked doors. Those keys are in unaccessible places. You need essential upgrade items placed in unaccesible places. To complicate more things, there are two castles and you can get stuck in any of them without a way out if you haven’tThis game sucks! First of all the dungeon system is complicated. Ridiculous backtracking and boring tedious game. Is endlessly boring. You need a key to unlocked doors. Those keys are in unaccessible places. You need essential upgrade items placed in unaccesible places. To complicate more things, there are two castles and you can get stuck in any of them without a way out if you haven’t acquired an specific item. I just got fed up. I forced myself to finish it.… Expand
  19. AvianTea
    Jun 29, 2021
    8
    This game is pretty good, it has nice graphics and smooth gameplay. Though the controls took a bit to get used to.
  20. Darkspawn677
    Aug 8, 2022
    10
    Harmony of dissonance is geat but maxime is dante alucard hellsing and bayonetta and juste is vergil Alexander Anderson and jeanne all the belmont should have been able to use holy magic light magic and water magic and the tepes demon magic dark magic and fire magic always put alucard as the main characters you can put the belmont as the main character but only in side stories maxime isHarmony of dissonance is geat but maxime is dante alucard hellsing and bayonetta and juste is vergil Alexander Anderson and jeanne all the belmont should have been able to use holy magic light magic and water magic and the tepes demon magic dark magic and fire magic always put alucard as the main characters you can put the belmont as the main character but only in side stories maxime is somehow related to the tepes… Expand
  21. Minus_Infinity
    Nov 19, 2021
    9
    While I've yet to fully beat this game, I still love it to death. Yes, the game's sound isn't top notch, so what? It's still some solid tunes to jam to while kicking some ass! Graphics in HoD are really nice to look at, plus the locations are varied enough to spice up gameplay even more. The double castle system admittedly is a little... eh. But after a little bit of exploration, theWhile I've yet to fully beat this game, I still love it to death. Yes, the game's sound isn't top notch, so what? It's still some solid tunes to jam to while kicking some ass! Graphics in HoD are really nice to look at, plus the locations are varied enough to spice up gameplay even more. The double castle system admittedly is a little... eh. But after a little bit of exploration, the castle opens up even more, and the system is no longer an issue. This game and SoTN are fun times, you too Aria of Sorrow!… Expand
  22. Jesse17072000
    Dec 11, 2021
    10
    É divertido demais , tem características de um castlevania clássico que era jogar com um belmont e a vampire killer mas ainda os elementos de RPG típicos de symphony of the night , é incrível é um muito bom. Lembrando que ele tem um modo difícil que é acessado com os carácteres corretos pra serem escritos no SAVE.
  23. Gal0_Ninja
    Aug 11, 2023
    8
    Sendo o primeiro Castlevania que finalizo e o segundo que jogo, tive uma boa experiência no início do jogo, executando a clássica fórmula dos Metroidvanias de certa forma funcional e com uma mecânica de combate bem dinâmica, mas ao longo do jogo alguns elementos tornaram o jogo maçante. Apesar da exploração ser funcional, ela se torna um pouco confusa em algumas partes, com o jogadorSendo o primeiro Castlevania que finalizo e o segundo que jogo, tive uma boa experiência no início do jogo, executando a clássica fórmula dos Metroidvanias de certa forma funcional e com uma mecânica de combate bem dinâmica, mas ao longo do jogo alguns elementos tornaram o jogo maçante. Apesar da exploração ser funcional, ela se torna um pouco confusa em algumas partes, com o jogador ficando perdido em alguns momentos do jogo, e o combate, possuindo uma grande variedade de combinações de subArmas e feitiços que se torna divertida descobrir suas combinações, porém elas acabam tornando os combates fáceis até demais. Já os seus gráficos são muito bonitos tendo uma boa variedades de sprites e cenários, já a sua música possuiu uma certa limitação por conta dos gráficos por isso elas podem não ser tão boas como outras músicas de outros jogos da época mas elas são bem feitas.… Expand
  24. VitorMateus
    Mar 3, 2022
    10
    simply one of the best GBA games, good gameplay, good graphics for the gba, Great music, it's finally worth venturing into this huge castle!
  25. Yojimbo2015
    May 11, 2023
    9
    Taking the template laid down by Circle Of The Moon, Harmony Of Dissonance improved every apsect - especially the graphics - and created the Castlevania we now know and love. Second only to the Metroid games in the genre on the Advance.

Awards & Rankings

7
#7 Best Game Boy Advance Game of 2002
7
#7 Most Discussed Game Boy Advance Game of 2002
20
#20 Most Shared Game Boy Advance Game of 2002

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 27 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 27
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 27
  3. Negative: 0 out of 27
  1. Nintendojo
    89
    Valid proof that "coming up short" can still translate into "a hell of a lot of fun."
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  2. GameSpy
    87
    Does a good job of capturing the basic flavor of "SotN's" gameplay. Indeed, almost all of the special moves you can obtain have been lifted directly from Symphony.
    Read full review
  3. Games Radar
    86
    Thankfully, the whole thing is also infinitely better-lit than previous outing Circle of the Moon, which means that playing it without industrial-strength lighting overhead is now an option. [NGC]
    Read full review
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