Most fans probably wouldn't Circle of the Moon a standout title in the series; while it was a decent attempt to adapt the Metroidvania format to a much smaller medium, the overall design left a fair bit to be desired. Still, it was a strong sellerfor Konami, so a followup (or several) was sure to happen. Harmony of Dissonance was released the following year, and with SotN's Koji Igarashi writing and producing, definitely feels like a more polished game. The game feel is definitely more in line with Symphony of the Night, with a heavier feel to its physics and more polished, deliberate action in general; even the protagonist bears a resemblance to Alucard and leaves behind afterimages as he moves despite being a Belmont. One can also use the L and R buttons to backdash and even forward-dash to quickly evade attacks and close space, so combat in general is much more engaging this time. You only get one main melee weapon (your whip, of course), though it can be equipped with add-ons to give you slightly more damage against certain enemy types, charge attacks to break down certain walls, or add other properties like being able to spin your whip. The castle's overall design is considerably better, with far less drab hallways and vertical corridors, and far fewer cheap hits from blind-jumping offscreen and landing right on an enemy or their projectile. Money and shops return, and there's an odd sidequest where you collect furniture to decorate a room. Magic and subweapons are given interplay in a pretty creative way - subweapons still run off hearts, though when combined with equippable "magic books" they instead utilize your MP meter and take on new properties. For example, equipping the Ice Book with the fist subweapon results in a forward dash with a large ice spike, while a dagger will fire a barrage of homing icicles. All in all, a more polished effort in just about every way, and a game certainly worthy of your attention if you love the Metroidvania format.
