Castlevania : Legends

Castlevania: Legends is set during Dracula's initial reign of terror in Transylvania. The player controls Sonia Belmont, a young woman who becomes the first member of her family to confront the vampire lord.

Gameplay involves progressing through a series of stages, primarily using a whip that can be upgraded to a third level, which then fires a projectile. Defeated bosses leave behind orbs containing one of five Soul weapons: Wind, Ice, Flame, Saint, or Magic. These are activated with a button combination and consume hearts. The player can switch between collected Soul Powers at any time from a selection screen.

While the stages are not freely explorable, the path through them sometimes offers branching choices. These alternate routes allow players to bypass certain areas or locate items; finding all items leads to the best ending. Sonia also has access to a temporary power-up called Burning Mode, usable once per life per stage, which grants increased speed, attack power, and brief invincibility.