As it was in Castlevania: Dracula X, Rondo has to it split paths that determine who you're able to save and which ending you get. Four such stages are secret (alternate) stages that you can unlock by performing specific tasks within the normal route. Considering that both normal and alternate stages have to them, alternate routes, things can get confusing, so follow along as best you can. The game opens with a prologue that'll see you undergo a short squabble with Death before you move on to the normal stages.

Stage 0: Prologue

                                                 

 

As Richter rides along on his horse-pulled wagon toward Dracula's castle as a storm rages on, Death swoops in from above. His goal is to only intimidate the young Belmont--a short battle will ensue before in which Death will unleashe green skull-head-shaped blasts as sort of a warning. The rain and fierce winds will be a big distraction, too, as you'll be pushed backwards in your attempts to jump up and whip him. After you make contact a few times, Death will say a few more words before laughing and flying off, but Richter will continue onward.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Richter vs Death

Boss(es)

End Boss: None

Lesser Enemies

There are no minor enemies in the prologue.

Stage 1: Town Ruins

                                                 

 

You start at the town limits and battle a couple of ape skeletons. You'll make your way into the very familiar town, Aljiba, as seen in Simon's Quest (though, its design is more reminsicent of the Town of Jova); you'll be attacked by more ape skeletons and a blade soldier. Most of them break through the windows. You can break through the leftmost wall of the town's exit to get to an alternate stage, but you'll first have to face an alternate boss. If you continue on regularly, you'll reach the town's outer limits, where you'll battle two huge rock monsters while fending off bats. The boss can be seen flying through the background of the next area, waiting for your arrival.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Divine Bloodlines
Boss Lead-In: Road to the Enemy
Boss Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

End Boss: The Wyvern
Alternate Boss:
Water Dragon

Lesser Enemies

Ape Skeleton | Blade Skeleton | Ectoplasm | Stone Rose | Bat | Giant Rock Fighter

Stage 2: Main Hall

                                                 

 

You'll start outside in familiar fashion to how all of the other games begin. After battling ravens, skeletons and an axe knight, a trip over a drawbridge will bring you into those familiar halls. Zombies and floating eyes litter the halls. In the next part of the hall, a behemoth breaks through the wall and gives chase. Falling in a hole while he's chasing you will lead you to an alternate area. If you outrun the bull, and avoid all the zombies, he'll crash into the wall of the next room. You must then go downward into the basement to battle the fishmen. If you found a key while the bull was chasing you, you can save Maria here. You'll emerge in the final hall and exit into a battleground, where you'll face the boss.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Vampire Killer
Boss Lead-In: Road to the Enemy
Boss Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

End Boss: Werewolf
Alternate Boss:
Bone Golem

Lesser Enemies

Black Crow | Skeleton | Axe Knight | Zombie | Floating Eye | Behemoth | Bat | Fishman

Stage 2': Lake Bridge

                                                 

 

If you took the alternate path in Stage 1, you'll wind up here. You'll go over a series of long bridges guarded by blade skeletons, bone pillars, ravens and spiders. If you cross all of the bridges without falling into a pit or slipping through a collapsible part of the stage, you'll be back on the regular path. If you fall off the third in the series of bridges, you'll battle an Armor Lord and move on to face a boss whose defeat keeps you on the alternate path. The Ferryman lurks somewhere underneath the second bridge. If you can drop through the right pit and find him, a long fishmen-infested trip will take you directly to the alternate Stage 3, without having to face a boss.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Cross Fear
Boss Lead-In: Road to the Enemy
Boss Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

End Boss: Werewolf
Alternate Boss:
Bone Golem

Lesser Enemies

Black Crow | Bone Pillar | Blade Soldier | Fishman | Spider | Gargoyle | Armor Lord

Stage 3: The Chapel

                                                 

 

The first hall of this stage is guarded by spear guards and bone pillars. The next area features a long room that has skeletons swinging from the ceiling. Continuing on, you'll climb a giant staircase that has flea men sliding down its banister. You'll then come across rotating platforms with Medusa Heads trying to knock you onto them. Falling into a pit eventually leads to the same place the regular path leads. A Paranthropus guards the exit. The next room has giant candles and is guarded by ghosts, spear guards and a giant flea man, who will steal your sub-weapon if you run into him. Chances are that you'll have an axe here; if you can sneak by the flea man, you can access a lift to an alternate stage, using the axe. The boss lies ahead.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Bloody Tears
Boss Lead-In: Road to the Enemy
Boss Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

End Boss: Minotaur
Alternate Boss:
Dogether

Lesser Enemies

Spear Guard | Bone Pillar | Skeleton | Bone Golem | Fleaman | Giant Fleaman | Medusa Head | Yellow Medusa Head | Ghost

Stage 3': The Graveyard

                                                 

 

You can get here from either of the Stage 2s--if you battled the Bone Golem on either stage, you'll wind up here. You'll start in a mud-filled area guarded by mud men and bone-throwing skeletons. Some of the tombstones will come alive and attack you. You'll face the 3-eyed skull soon after then travel through more mud. The next rectangular area has grave keepers, skeletons and bone pillars. The top part of this section has spiked-balls on the end of chains. If you break the chains, one of the spiked-balls will fall to the screen below and open up a path to yet another alternate boss. If you don't go that way, you'll travel through more mud and more of the same enemies, winding up back on the original path. Tera is being held captive by the Grave Keepers.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Cemetery
Boss Lead-In: Road to the Enemy
Boss Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

End Boss: Minotaur
Alternate Boss:
Dogether

Lesser Enemies

Mudman | Tombstone | Bat | Three-Eyed Skull | Grave Keeper | Skeledragon | Skeleton | Bone Pillar | Zombie Hands

Stage 4: The Dungeon

                                                 

 

The first section features the cell area guarded by fleamen, bone-throwing skeletons and blood skeletons. Moving up, you'll run into the first skeledragon; then, you'll have to jump over spinning toothpick-like blades while fending off more bone-throwing skeletons. You can go one of two ways here: You can hit a switch guarded by a fleaman and go through an area with plenty of axe knights, crushing spike platforms, and spinning ball-and-chain barricades; or you can continue on and go up a group of stairwells guarded by flea men riding boulders dispatched by a cyclops, blocking your progress upward. Both lead to the same place. The final hall has more axe knights, axe lords, bone pillars and spinning ball and chains. An alternate boss can be found by hitting a bomb hidden in a wall. The regular boss awaits you here, though.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Dreams of Triumph
Boss Lead-In: Road to the Enemy
Boss Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

End Boss: Dullahan
Alternate Boss:
Carmilla and Laura

Lesser Enemies

Fleaman | Blood Skeleton | Skeleton | Floating Eye | Spine | Cyclops Worker | Axe Knight | Bone Pillar | Axe Lord | Skeledragon

Stage 4': Mountain Range

                                                 

 

If you battled Dogether, you'll take this path instead. You'll travel across the marshlands, jumping on moving platforms while trying to avoid frogs and ravens. You'll come to an area that has a waterfall with rafts floating alongside. This is yet another split path to an alternate boss. If you don't take the waterfall ride, you'll cross log bridges guarded by more frogs and skeletons swinging from vines. Hit the frog statues to find Iris' holding chamber. Next is an area that has hawks dropping hunchbacks and skeletons hiding behind trees. The boss is just beyond. If you did ride the raft down, you'll take a long ride down the watery slope (the "Ravine of Death," as a sign refers to it), and you'll have to on the way down battle Bone Halberds on their own personal rafts, jumping off when you near shore. Owls will swoop in and leave you some weapons--if you hit the boxes they're carrying. More platform riding follows after the Ferryman helps you along. Jump on his raft twice: Once for nourishment, the other for a key that opens the door to escape this area. The alternate boss isn't too far off.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Slash
Boss Lead-In: Road to the Enemy
Boss Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

End Boss: Dullahan
Alternate Boss:
Carmilla and Laura

Lesser Enemies

Frog | Fleaman | Bat | Fishman | Skeleton | Black Crow | pear Skeleton | Hawk

Stage 5: Ghost Ship

                                                 

 

You'll start at the bay, battling phantom skulls, flail guards and blade soldiers. Then you'll enter the ship and take on some bone archers. This leads to a room guarded by a spectral sword. When you first enter the ship, though, you can enter a shortcut by pushing a steel barricade after breaking bricks on the other side of a wall. What follows is more bow-and-arrow skeletons, with another room guarded by the spinning picture. Maria can find a hidden room by crawling around near the ship's engine. You'll then head up the ship's deck; it's there you'll have cross the ship while battling flea riders, ball-and-chain knights and bone muskets. If you make it past all the foes, you'll climb the ship's mast for another encounter with Death.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Ghost Ship Painting
Boss Lead-In: Road to the Enemy
Boss Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

End Boss: The Grim Reaper

Lesser Enemies

Phantom Skull | Flail Guard | Blade Skeleton | Bone Archer | Spectral Sword | Spinning Picture | Bone Musket | Flea Rider | Mace Knight

Stage 5': Hidden Docks

                                                 

 

The path through the hidden docks allows you to skip over the battle with the Reaper, true, but this treacherous stage has in its place two undesirable boss battles, depending on which path through the stage you take. The long trek starts on a pier where bats clutter the area, making the dangerous platforming hell, while blade soldiers and flail guards attempt to knock you into the watery abyss. Once you travel underground, you'll find presented an upper and lower path, guarded by the likes of axe knights, spear guards, axe lords and floating eyes. The upper path leads to a series of battles with axe knights and armor lords; the low path has more jumping onto moving platforms. The upper path leads to a final chamber where spear guards will stab at you from above while Medusa heads try to knock you onto the flipping platforms. The lower path leads to a watery cavern featuring harpies, skeletons, axe-throwing foes, and the nasty instances of moving platforms based near spike traps; this path exits directly to a boss' chamber.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Redawn
Waterway Track:
Opus 13
Boss Lead-In: Road to the Enemy
Boss Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

Lower Path Boss: Hydra
Upper Path Boss:
L. Vampire

Lesser Enemies

Blade Soldier | Floating Eye | Bat | Flail Guard | Medusa Head | Yellow Medusa Head | Spear Guard | Blood Skeleton | Axe Knight | Axe Lord | Spine | Skeleton | Harpy | Armor Lord

Stage 6: Marble Gallery

                                                 

 

This marble hall, where Shaft has been hiding, is hardly a stage; this small area's only purpose is to serve as your means to power up for the bevy of boss battles that are soon to follow in the next room. Even if your arsenal is lacking at the time, you'll find a few big hearts and five other candles that contain all of the striking mystic weapons. Personally, I'd take the boomerang--make sure to take something strong because you'll need it. The bosses are only a door away.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Road to the Enemy
Shaft Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

End Boss: (1) Phantom Bat, (2) Medusa, (3) The Mummy, (4) Frankenstein, (5) Shaft

Lesser Enemies

There are no minor enemies in the Marble Gallery.

Stage 7: Clock Tower

                                                 

 

Anyone who's played Symphony will immediately recognize this. First you have to cross a very long collapsing bridge being patrolled by multiple mutant bats--some of them with swords in tow. You'll then go through the clock tower area, which is made up of three sections, all containing water skulls, bone-throwing skeletons, harpies and Medusa Heads. As in Symphony, there's a gear you can whip to make a door open; it contains a key to rescue Annette, who unlike in the original is hidden in a chamber beneath the usual location; it can be accessed when the heroes attain the power to shatter a crystal blockade, which protects a release switch. The whole next area requires that you pick the correct paths while going up and down stairways, battling sword lords, wereskeletons and panther skeletons as you do so. Don't mind the wereskeleton that takes the place of your reflection in one of the mirrors. When you take the right route, you'll have to swing over pendulums. The next hall has a series of breakable walls that require certain sub-weapons to break them; the reward, if the puzzle is solved, is merely a stopwatch. You'll then exit to face a boss, which differs depending upon whether or not you rescued Annet.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Moon Fight
Clock Tower Track:
The Den
Boss Lead-In: Road to the Enemy
Boss Track: Tues Dues Mues

Boss(es)

End Boss: L. Vampire or Shaft's Ghost

Lesser Enemies

Mutant Bat | Water Skull | Skeleton | Medusa Head | Yellow Medusa Head | Hawk | Harpy | word Lord | Panther Skeleton | Wereskeleton

Stage 8: Castle Keep

                                                 

 

Much like Stage 6, this is less a stage and more a small collection of screens. You know the drill: You head up the stairway, collect the items in the candles--including a handy sub-weapon--and then head to the throne room to face off against the game's ultimate evil. The secret stairway, as walked upon in the original, has been removed, which is disappointing though it doesn't have any real impact on the action. The real problem is that power-up opportunity is limited, since as you can't respawn candelabras by traveling up and down stairs between screens. Depending upon whether or not you put into motion events that led to the defeat of Shaft's Ghost, the final battle will have s different number of hurdles.

 

                                                 

Music Track(s)

Stage Track: Poison Mind
Boss Track: Dance of Illusion

Boss(es)

End Boss: (1) Dracula, (2) Dracula's Ghost, (3) True Dracula

Lesser Enemies

There are no enemies in the Castle Keep.

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