Dead Cells’DLC pack, Return to Castlevania, is a loving tribute to the series which, in many ways, inspired the creation of Dead Cells itself. Featuring a plethora of enemies, weapons, and locations borrowed from Konami’s iconic vampire-slaying saga, it’s a pack that will undoubtedly light a warm nostalgic flame inside anyone with even a passing acquaintance with the Castlevania series.
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Beyond the surface-level references, the DLC also features some real deep cuts: some highly specific nods and winks that hint at small but significant moments in some of the biggest games in the series. We’ve gathered eight of these here today: eight references that only a true member of the Belmont clan will catch.
8Shanoa
When moving in or out of one of the new Castlevania-themed biomes in the DLC, you’ll find that a familiar face has taken the place of The Collector. This face belongs to Shanoa, the protagonist of the last real‘Metroidvania’ style gamein the Castlevania series, 2009’s Order of Ecclesia. Unique within that game for her ability to absorb and use magical Glyphs, she makes reference to that ability when you talk to her in Dead Cells.
While some may be disappointed to see such a fierce character in a supporting role, her inclusion at all speaks to her popularity among fans of the series, as none of the other protagonists from the DS or GBA titles made it into Return to Castlevania. Her dialogue, while given a humorous edge, still retains some of Shanoa’s trademark grim determination, even echoing her famous “I am the morning sun, come to vanquish this horrible night!” speech to Dracula prior to their climactic battle in Order of Ecclesia.
7Ghost Dancers
Appearing in one of the possible random ‘lore rooms’ you can encounter in the DLC’s Dracula’s Castle biome, the Ghost Dancers are a callback to a recurring enemy in the series, as well as a secret-finding tradition that began in the very first Castlevania game. In Dead Cells, you can find them spinning together in a room, and choose to sit down and watch them. If you do, you’ll be treated to some lovely music while you take a break from the pressures of monster slaying.
While you can’t fight these particular Ghost Dancers, their design is very similar to the Ghost Dancer enemies that appeared in Super Castlevania IV, Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, and other games besides. The way that you sit down and watch them also harkens back to several cryptic secrets in the series, which could be uncovered by sitting or standing in one place for a set time, like the crowns in the original Castlevania and Dawn of Sorrow. No such secret is revealed when you watch these Dancers, but true fans will stick around for a while just to make sure.
6Horse And Carriage
If you hang a left at the top of the tower section in the Castle’s Outskirts biome, you’ll come across a long corridor with nothing but a crashed horse and carriage in it. While this may initially seem like the setup for some kind of secret, or perhaps a nod to Bloodborne’s Forsaken Cainhurst Castle, it’s actually just a fun reference to the opening stage of Castlevania: Rondo of Blood, one of the most well-regarded games in the ‘classic’ Castlevania style.
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The game kicks off with a bang, with Richter Belmont’s carriage ride through the night interrupted by an impromptu boss fight with Death; a shocking twist, given how Death tends to be a late-game encounter in most games in the series. Return to Castlevania makes a point of painting Richter as a bit of a dumb brute in this incarnation, which may explain how he managed to crash his horse and carriage just outside the castle here.
5Maria And Her Cat
If you’ve played the genre-defining Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, then you’ll recognise Maria Renard as the character who helps you out during the first half of the game, giving you hints that lead you towards uncovering the inverted castle and the true ending. Her history with the series actually goes back further, however, to Rondo of Blood and the Dracula X Chronicles, where she appeared as a playable character who could use various animal companions as sub-weapons.
Both Maria, and her cat Byakko, make an appearance in Return to Castlevania: the former as an NPC you can rescue in the Castle’s Outskirts biome, and the latter as a weapon you can use to battle the forces of darkness. Together, the pair constitute a nice throwback to one of the series’ lesser-known, but highly important, characters.
4Legion
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night took full advantage of the PS1’s beefy (for the time) hardware to present some highly detailed, screen-filling abominations in the boss battle department. Many of these fights were memorable in their own way, but few will forget the first time they laid eyes on Granfaloon, the colossal corpse-ball that dripped its undead components down onto the battlefield for you to face.
The creature went on to become a staple boss encounter in the series, adopting the more fitting title of ‘Legion’, and appearing in Aria of Sorrow, Portrait of Ruin, and Harmony of Dissonance, among others. In Return to Castlevania, you can encounter a (thankfully) dormant version of this classic boss, and interact with it to get a malaise-infused chicken leg. We wouldn’t eat that if we were you.
3Save Room
While earlier entries in the series were defined by their tight, concise natures, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night was a title very much defined by its ludicrous excess. From sound to animation to the sheer quantity of content included, the game was unabashedly stuffed to the brim, and often flamboyant in spirit to boot. This excess extended to the game’s save rooms, which could easily have been simple, mostly-static chambers like in later entries in the series, but here were huge polyhedrons that spun apart and reformed into coffins for Alucard to rest in.
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You can find one of these famous save rooms in Return to Castlevania, where it pulses with a familiar heartbeat rhythm as you approach. You can interact with it to ‘save’ your game, resulting in some humorous dialogue.Symphony of the Night fanswill be happy to know that this save room won’t spirit you off to a Succubus fight, though they’ll undoubtedly be expecting it, given that it’s one of the more memorable tricks played by the game.
2Carmilla’s Mask
This may just be the most niche reference in all of Return to Castlevania. In one of the random lore rooms in the Dracula’s Castle biome, you can find a sinister, operatic mask hanging on the wall. Interact with it, and it will cry blood from the right socket, and you’ll receive the blueprint for the Simon Outfit. This is a direct reference to the game in which this distinctive visage first appears: Castlevania 2: Simon’s Quest.
In that game, which is likely one of the least-played entries in the series due to its mixed reputation with modern audiences, the same mask appeared as the game’s second boss, Carmilla. This would be the first appearance of Carmilla in the series, but she would go on to serve as a boss on multiple occasions, and land herself a starring role in the series’highly successful Netflix adaptationas well.
1Richter Mode
One of the many traditions established by Castlevania: Symphony of the Night that later Metroidvania-style games in the series would adopt was that of the alternate playable character. Once the main game is complete, you can enter a secret code to begin a new game as Richter Belmont and use his unique moveset to navigate the castle in a new way.
This mode also appears in Return to Castlevania, where it can be accessed via a lore roomin Dracula’s Castle. While you sadly can’t attempt an entire run as Richter, his short section is an enjoyable throwback that offers some nice rewards for completing it.
