Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow (commonly abbreviated as AoS), released in Japan as Castlevania: Akatsuki no Minuet (キャッスルヴァニア ～暁月の円舞曲～? lit. "Castlevania: Minuet of Dawn") is a side-scrolling platforming video game developed and published by Konami for the Game Boy Advance. It is the third and final installment of the Castlevania series on the system and was released in North America on May 6th, 2003, and in Japan on May 8th, 2003.
Producer Koji Igarashi, who had led the production teams for previous Castlevania titles, led Aria of Sorrow's development as well. Michiru Yamane also returned to compose the music for the game alongside Takashi Yoshida and Soshiro Hokkai. Director Junichi Murakami was new to the Castlevania series.
The game closely follows the franchise's gameplay and features established in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.
Plot[]
The game takes place in the year 2035 and stars Soma Cruz, a high school exchange student in Japan. While visiting the Hakuba Shrine with his friend Mina Hakuba, Soma is transported into Castlevania along with her. There he meets Genya Arikado, who defeats a group of attacking enemies and explains Soma's ability to absorb monsters' souls. Genya also tells Soma to go to the Master's Chamber quickly, so Mina doesn't die an excruciatingly painful death.
Aria of Sorrow has several possible endings, depending on the course taken by the player.