Glitches and Fun Facts
Saving and Hoarding: Dracula's haunt may be a creature of chaos, but the lord of the manor doesn't necessarily like to throw things away--be they the decaying corpses of his demons or the accoutrements of his castle's many save rooms. That is, the save rooms you visit in the adventure-RPG titles appear to be recurring locations, which Aria of Sorrow makes clear. Go to any of the game's save rooms and observe the background, in the bottom-left of which you'll see Alucard's coffin, which was a staple of the save rooms in Symphony of the Night. The "save" rooms in this case are quite literal--perhaps by design. (Contributed by Danny.)
Harmony in Dissonance: Aria of Sorrow and Harmomy of Dissonance are distant adventures in terms of their respective placement in the timeline, but it's no secret that they were developed essentially in tandem, with Aria being the direct follow-up. References between the games, then, would be anything but random, as is the case of Aria's Dance Hall, in a room that houses two antithetical portraits of Castlevania (and a meeting with Julius)--one with lighter tones and a clear sky, the other darker with bats seen flying its ominous skyline. While this could be interpreted as the castle being viewed in states of sunrise and sunset, it's more likely insight into the haunt's "true nature," which we learned about during Harmony's dual-castle crisis. (Contributed by Danny.)
A Picture of Death: The Dance Hall also features a portrait that predicts what might become of the world were Soma to fail. That is, a room located within its upper portion displays a picture that expresses the essential details of Aria's "Game Over" screen. (Contributed by Danny.)
Back-Dash Boost: The Final Guard soul is useful for floating across lengthy horizontal gaps, but it's not designed to aid your vertical-platforming efforts. However, it actually can be used to gain some height on a jump; you can take advantage of an exploit that extends your verticality--enough so that you can successfully access certain platforms that are supposed to be inaccessible early on (like the one depicted below). You can take advantage of this exploit by activating the Final Guard soul after jumping out of a back-dash; if you time your button-presses correctly, the jump's apex will be extended by a few pixels, and it's possible that you'll be able to access a platform that was previously just out of reach. (Contributed by Danny.)
Skull Zipping: Skeletons, the ever-recurring bony adversaries, are known for their trademarked bone-throwing ability, using which they toss out fragments of their own frame in somewhat-predictable arcs. If given time to showcase this ability, the most reckless of the sort will take it to the next level by plopping off their own skulls and tossing them in much the same manner. Humor them in this demonic game of volleyball and strike the flying cranium with a well-timed sword-slash; any weapon contact will repel the skull, which will comically zip offscreen (this in contrast to normal bones, which fall limply). (Contributed by Amar Youkai.)
Chaos Theory: Things go from chaotic to more when you exploit the unintended secrets of the Floating Garden. Head to the area's leftmost room (which is floating at the top of the castle's left side) and head to its top. From here, activate the Curly, Devil or Manticore soul; the transformation itself will carry Soma straight through the ceiling and into the room's border, where he can travel safely until passing beyond the room's boundaries. Most exit points will take Soma to alternate castle locations, where he'll become stuck, embedded within a structure; our area of interest is the room's immediate top-left exit, which takes him directly to the still-sealed Chaotic Realm portal and before it the Julius Belmont battle. Defeat the Belmont warrior, if you can, then head back to the portal room and in following the Chaotic Realm, where Soma is not yet supposed to be. (Contributed by Amar Youkai.)
Soul Glow: Just let it shine through, yeah, by showing off your overpowering Curly soul. Head to the Chapel and to the room with the large staircase (a Giant Ghost greets you at its top). Head to the level below, where a Skeleton Knight patrols, and hold down the R-trigger to activate your Curly soul, the transformation of which will speed down the stairway until eventually obstructed by the room's right wall. Release Soma's inner glow by releasing the trigger as it passes the gap seen right before the wall; if done correctly, Soma will glow white and continue to do so until being attacked or until again transforming. (Contributed by Amar Youkai.)
Driving Him Up a Wall: One particular room in the castle's Top Floor features the rolling Baels as paired with Gargoyles and Succubuses. The Baels' job is to roll down the room's inclines and use its narrow structure to inflict repeated damage. Get revenge by luring one to the room's bottom and then goading it into chasing you back up by first using the ramp to the left (it's tricky--you have to position Soma on the middle of the ramp and jump when the Bael speeds toward you). If you can get the Bael to bounce up to the room's second level and to the room's right side, it will become lodged in the wall and spazzingly work its way to the ceiling, where it'll become stuck. Do with it as you will. (Discovered by Sadfra and contributed by Amar Youkai.)
The Door Glitch: This can be done at the very first door as encountered in the Castle Corridor--right where the game begins. As you pass through the door, use the back dash (or any means necessary) to back into the passage before the door closes. If you can pull off this tricky feat, Soma will will pushed upward, continually, through the walls of the room's above it until an opening is met, which happens to be placed in the Underground Reservoir. Take a dip and enjoy your early entry into troubled waters. (Contributed by Amar Youkai.)
Jaws: The Revenge: You will somewhere in the Study encounter a seemingly impenetrable obstacle (a demon head that opens its ghastly jaw only when you're facing the opposite direction) and soon discover how to breach it. But if you stick around a bit, you can have some fun with our demon friend and execute an unexplainable glitch. Start by positioning yourself near the demon head while facing away; then jump and toss a grenade (the soul stolen from the Zombie Soldier) when your head overlaps the ceiling, which will cause the grenade to fall backwards. Once it lands near the demon, turn and face it; the demon head will quickly bite down, causing the grenade to quickly shift up and offscreen. (Contributed by Amar Youkai.)
Sticky Situation: Aria of Sorrow's slime glitch reminds us of one of the great joys of experiencing video games: Enemies who become stuck on walls and obstructions and spasm indefinitely. Let Soma dish out such revenge on the annoying slime enemies while he's in direct control of them. Make your way to The Study and to where Soma is positioned in the first screenshot, then jump straight up and at jump's peak toss your slime Bullet Soul. If done correctly, the slime will reverberate between the sloped wall and the small platform, becoming helplessly stuck in the wall. (Contributed by Amar Youkai.)
Hunter's Greed: Sometimes what the developers give you just isn't enough. A hero of legend needs more--more terrain to explore and conquer. Take it beyond the mere 100% castle completion (and the 100.3% castle completion possible thanks to other such glitches) with the help of Dracula's unwitting forces. Namely, head to the Dance Hall and to the room depicted in the first screenshot (green X on the third shot); mount the Catoblepas, standing near its head, until its horns start to overlap the left wall, at which point you should move yourself near the beast's tail. As the Catoblepas starts to redirect away from the wall, start holding left on the control pad. This will result in Soma being displaced within the wall and quickly transported, shot upward directly into the Inner Quarters (purple X on the third shot) for increased castle-completion. Note that there is a chance, if not timed correctly, that Soma will instead wind up in an upper Dance Hall room or at the area's teleport room. (Contributed by Amar Youkai.)
