Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow - FOR WEB

Centering around the next in Dracula's bloodline, 'DoS' sees Soma Cruz on his quest to banish the dark lord himself by fighting hordes of undead creatures in a ghoulish castle. You start off weak but level up via beating enemies, and there are around twenty weapon types (katanas to pistols) that can be upgraded to your heart's desire. Each weapon type has very distinct characteristics which adds a degree of strategy to your choice.

The real innovation is in the soul capture system which enables Soma to reap the souls of his enemies and use them to his advantage. If you acquire the soul of a monster that hurls fireballs for example, then you too will possess the same power. It's a system that works well and with the right soul combinations you can become unstoppable.

There is an impressive attention to detail within each zone of the castle, such as the snowy Lost Village and the dizzying heights of the Condemned Tower. The graphics are a blend of 2D characters and 3D backgrounds that make the game pleasing to the eye.

What's less inspiring is the almost pointless inclusion of a few touch screen moves - having to draw a specific pattern before a boss character dies. Mess this up and you have to kill it again, and this can be infuriating. The game would have been fine without these touch screen features. 'Dawn of Sorrow' is a fun and lengthy game where levelling up never feels like a chore. The soul capture and weapon upgrade systems will have you playing for hours but the tacked on extra modes and touch screen moves seem like a rush job. [Dave Cook]