Character RETROspect

Alucard

This week in Character RETROspect, we’re going to take a look at Alucard, the son of Dracula from the Castlevania series. Anyone remember the Captain N version of Alucard though? No? It’s probably better that way…

Chapter 18: An Act of Patricide

There comes a time in every gamer’s life when they have an opportunity to play a Castlevania game. Sometimes they luck out and play Dracula X: Rondo of Blood on their PC Engine, or maybe they are completely unlucky and have to play Castlevania: The Adventure on their Gameboy. Either way, most of us have played a Castlevania game at some point in our lives.

My first introduction to the character of Alucard came from playing Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse, but it wasn’t until I played Symphony of the Night that Alucard became one of my favorite characters in the entire Castlevania series.

He was agile like a leopard and cunning like a fox; I guess being the son of Dracula has it’s advantages.

– Eric Congdon, Fast Times at Vampire High (totally not legit)

 

Backstory

Adrian Farenheights Tepes is the son of Dracula and a human woman named Lisa. Having exceptional powers, Adrian grew up under the influence of his father and was trained in the dark arts — eventually becoming a part of Dracula’s army. Having a human for a mother gave Adrian a different perspective on things, and after his mother’s death, Adrian made the decision to leave Dracula’s army and he changed his name to Alucard to represent that he stood for the opposite beliefs of his father.

Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse

The year is 1476, and Trevor Belmont is on a mission to take down Dracula. Trevor runs across Alucard, who is surprised by Trevor’s determination and strength in battle. After their battle, Alucard asks Trevor if he will help him in defeating Dracula, and if Trevor accepts Alucard’s offer (you can choose yes, or no), the two face Dracula in battle and defeat him. Alucard’s act of patricide, however, wears heavily on him and he subsequently puts himself into an indefinite slumber.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

The year is now 1797, and due to the lack of anyone from the Belmont clan (Richter has disappeared after defeating Dracula in the previous game in the series, Rondo of Blood) to defend humanity against the threat of a risen Dracula, Alucard awakens from his slumber to find out what is going on.

Alucard, with the help of Maria Renard, discovers that Richter Belmont (who claimed to be the master of the castle) is being controlled by the dark priest, Shaft, who has the intention of rising Dracula from the grave. With his powers, Shaft inverts Castlevania, but Alucard presses on and eventually comes face-to-face with Shaft in battle. Alucard cannot stop Shaft’s efforts of rising Dracula from grave though, and Alucard must fight his father once more.

After their battle, Alucard tells Dracula his mother’s last words: “Do not hate humans. If you cannot live with them, then at least do them no harm. For theirs is already a hard lot.” and that she would love him for all of eternity — which helps to spark a shred of humanity in Dracula’s black heart. After the battle with his father, Alucard considers going back into a slumber, but Maria being the persistent pest that she is, goes after him in an attempt to save his “haunted soul.”

Aria of Sorrow/ Dawn of Sorrow

The events of Aria of Sorrow and Dawn of Sorrow take place in the years of 2035 and 2036 respectively, and only subtle hints are dropped as to the true identity of Genya Arikado being Alucard in disguise.

The Haunted Soul

Alucard will probably always remain one of the greatest characters in the Castlevania series. He is a truly haunted individual that must kill his father on separate occasions to save humanity… it’s a beautiful, yet tragic display of great character storytelling.

To end this RETROspect on a lighter note though, I will leave you with an image of Alucard from Captain N: The Game Master.

Awesome to the MAX!