The Dominus Collection features four different games. The three main games of the collection were released between 2005 and 2008. The games are Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow, Portrait of Ruin, and Order of Ecclesia. The fourth game in the collection, Haunted Castle Reimagined, is a redesigned version of the first Castlevania game.
Castlevania Dominus Collection is out now on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam.
The majority of these titles come from the DS era and come with a new variety of quality-of-life options introduced to provide players with the best experience available with the restrictions in place with the DS original duel screen setup.
Players will be able to change between a variety of display layouts easily, focusing however much on the top or bottom screen the player wants it to.
Those playing on the Switch version will also benefit from touchscreen controls, which is a nice touch for those who played the originals with their stylus in hand while mapping where they have been.
One feature that is always hit or miss, depending on the player, is the implementation of a rewind mode. Allowing players to quickly rewind, erasing any silly mistake or death that might have come to pass. Again, these kinds of quality-of-life options usually see similar commentary or critique about how they affect gameplay and difficulty.
Dawn of Sorrow
Castlevania Dawn of Sorrows is the oldest out of the Dominus Collection, the title coming out on Aug. 25, 2005. Dawn of Sorrows is a direct sequel to Castlevania Aria of Sorrow, which was included in the Castlevania Advance Collection which released back in 2021.
Castlevania Dawn of Sorrow, Konami
Dawn of Sorrow follows Soma Cruz, the main protagonist of the game and possible reincarnation of Dracula.
Portrait of Ruin
The second in the collection Castlevania Portrait of Ruin was originally released on Dec. 5, 2006. The game takes place in 1944 Europe, during World War II. Castlevania Portrait of Ruin was important for its inclusion because of its multiplayer mode, and it is one of the first handheld installments to have English voice acting.
Castlevania Portrait of Ruin, Konami
Castlevania Portrait of Ruin follows not the Belmont family but the Morris and Aulin family. The player has the choice between Jonathan Morris and Charlotte Aulin.
Order of Ecclesia
The final DS game to be included in the collection is Castlevania Order of Ecclesia. Order of Ecclesia also acts as a namesake for the collection. The main protagonist of the entry, named Shanoa, acts as a vessel of the magical glyph power capable of defeating Dracula named “Dominus.”
Castlevania Order of Ecclesia, Konami
Order of Ecclesia was released on Oct. 21, 2008. The game transpires in the early 1800s when the Belmont Clan looked all but extinguished. Other organizations began looking into countermeasures for if the dark lord was ever to return.
At this time, the only confirmation we have for a physical release comes from Limited Run Games, who handled the physical release of the past two collections.
Castlevania Dominus Collection, Limited Run Games
With the release of the Dominus Collection, the Nintendo Switch has 15 different Castlevania titles for you to experience, in addition to the crossovers the series has done with Dead Cells and Dead by Daylight. Do you plan to pick up the Dominus Collection or are you working your way through one of the other titles in the series?
