Arikado makes short work of all the enemies save for one Winged Skeleton.

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Whenever I read this, Soma sounds like Tidus in my head.

Soma stabs the monster.

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Out flies a red orb.

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Which circles around the air for a second and joins Soma’s body.

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Oh? What’s this?

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Okay, so here’s what Aria of Sorrow (from now on being referred to as AoS) did for me that Symphony of the Night (SotN) didn’t; the use of the power-ups. SotN used the typical Castlevania style of secondary weapons being found throughout the castle. This works great for linear Castlevania games like the original, but an Action-RPG Exploration-based platformer like SotN feels hampered by restricting the freedom to choose your own sub weapon whenever you want. I know Alucard did have permanent spells, but I’ve rarely ever been a fan of fighting game inputs for the Playstation control pad. Even using Sabin’s blitzes in FFVI (which I have done successfully, which is more than I can say for SotN or Street Fighter Alpha) leaves my thumb calloused as hell. But I digress. Long story short, the ability to choose your sub-weapons (which are all based on the enemies you kill) at any time really help the player customize a playing style. SotN: 1, AoS: 1

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Oh gee, thanks Arikado! It’s great to know that I was simply born with the power to absorb souls.

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That seems sound enough; I believe I will trust you, Michael Jackson lookalike whom I’ve only just met.

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Should we really trust this sketchy dude alone with our unconscious kinda-sorta girlfriend?

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Arikado: “So yeah! I’m much more experienced than you in navigating these zombie and demon infested hallways, but I’mma leave you to the task of saving this helpless, innocent girl.”

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What a douche.

Well, without any further ado, let’s enter the door to the left and start our journey!