or simply known as , real name Mathias Cronqvist, is a fictional character and the main antagonist of Konami's Castlevania video game series. A vampire and sorcerer, he is the archenemy of the Belmont clan and the final boss of many installments. In the series reboot Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, Dracula is reimagined as an 11th-century holy knight named Gabriel Belmont and serves as the central character of the game and its two sequels. The Lords of Shadow series tells the story of Gabriel's quest to save the world, vampirism and redemption.
The Dracula of Castlevania is based on Bram Stoker's character from the novel of the same name, who was in turn likely named for Vlad III Dracula of Wallachia. The Dracula of the Castlevania series draws inspiration from both, but instead of only preying on victims, this version threatens the whole world and humankind as a dark lord (Demon King in Japanese). Nevertheless, further games explore a sign of humanity in the form of his love towards his wife, who had a child named Alucard with him. Dracula was created by game director Hitoshi Akamatsu, who was fond of horror films when creating the Castlevania franchise. Koji Igarashi further expanded on his character, starting with Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Meanwhile, the reboot by MercurySteam was meant to show the character as more sympathetic in his transformation from a vampire hunter to Dracula.
Critical response to Dracula has been largely positive, establishing him as one of the most iconic video game villains. His portrayal in the Lords of Shadow trilogy received mixed reviews from game journalists, who praised the tragic elements of his story in the first two games, but criticized his characterization as Dracula for being too contrived. Meanwhile, his appearance in the Netflix animated series was received positively for coming across as more human, despite being a villain.
Conception and design Original concept by Konami
The Castlevania franchise heavily references the horror films produced by Universal Pictures and Hammer Film Productions. Creator of the series, Hitoshi Akamatsu, wanted players to feel like they were in a classic horror film. They started with the concept of "we wanted to make a Dracula game" and since the image of a vampire is strongly associated with Dracula, moreso than any other vampire, they believed he was the most suitable adversary for Simon Belmont. Akamatsu then bought various books related to vampires and Dracula and the history of Europe in order to further expand on the original idea. While he personally did not have any particular attachment to vampires, he found their power to revive as many times as possible, despite their weaknesses, was charming.
In the first Castlevania, Dracula's decapitation foreshadows his revival in the sequel. When the body parts scatter in every direction, this was also meant to show that Dracula will come back. The second monstrous form the player fight was meant to be an "incarnation of the curse of man", and not Dracula himself. That is why when Simon defeats him, he gets cursed. Akamatsu also explained the rotating gears in Dracula's castle only turn so long as Dracula is alive. That is why only the clock tower collapses in Castlevania'''s ending, but the rest of the castle remains standing, which Akamatsu said hinted towards a sequel. This also references cliffhangers from horror films.
Koji Igarashi became one of the most common producers behind Castlevania following the sequel Symphony of the Night. Dracula's son, Alucard, was chosen as the protagonist for the installment, not only because of his relationship with Dracula, but also because of the new designs provided. Their last fight in the game places special emphasis on humanity, highlighted through Alucard's dialogue, where he reminds Dracula of his wife, Lisa. Dracula's recurring presence in all the Castlevania games led to the decision to introduce his reincarnation, Soma Cruz, in Aria of Sorrow. This character development marked a significant shift in the character's direction.
Alternative portrayals
For the Lords of Shadow series, in which Dracula is playable, his design was influenced by his voice actor Robert Carlyle. Producer Dave Cox said that thanks to Carlyle's input, Gabriel's design was changed more. Cox used Tony Soprano from the television drama The Sopranos as an example in regards to Dracula's characterization. By Lords of Shadow 2, Dracula starts questioning his actions. Hideo Kojima's input included advising Cox's team to redesign some of the lead character, Gabriel, who he felt needed a "more heroic face". Originally, Gabriel's design resembled a classic barbarian, before Kojima then advised the staff to refine him into a character that was more relatable for the player. Cox mentioned that the voice acting provided by Robert Carlyle helped humanize Gabriel's character.
For Lords of Shadow Mirror of Fate, Alucard's human form, Trevor Belmont, was created in a parallel with Gabriel. MercurySteam had more freedom with this game, resulting in connections between the Belmont and Dracula. Despite being Dracula's child, Alucard was designed with the idea of being his opposite, fighting on the side of good. The staff wanted Trevor to stand out and not look identical to Gabriel. The themes of fate and parallels between the bloodlines involving Alucard and Dracula was inspired by Christopher Nolan's movie, Memento (2000). The powers Alucard has access in the Lords of Shadow reboot were loosely based on Symphony of the Night. The wolf transformation in particular was used to assist Dracula in latter parts from the third game.
For Lords of Shadow 2, Gabriel had turned into Dracula which was the main focus of the game as it was the first time a mainline Castlevania title made him playabale. This led to new forms of combat not seen before in the franchise, and the player gets stronger in order to make Dracula powerful enough to kill Satan, the reboot's antagonist. The scene where Dracula kills a family member was meant to be harsh: "He's an evil man, who does evil things, but you can identify with him, you can feel sorry for him" according to Cox, who said that this scene was meant to contrast Gabriel with Bela Lugosi's take on Dracula as well as previous incarnations in the Castlevania series. In other scenes when talking to Trevor, Dracula still shows love for his child. Mercury tried to portray him as a real person, which was Robert Carlyle's contribution. Carlyle said, "I don't want to portray him as constantly evil or angry. "He certainly gets angry in the game, but he's determined, soft spoken most of the time. We wanted to portray him as a real character." Other actors were considered for the role of Dracula, but the staff very quickly realized they wanted Carlyle when they started working with him.
When Netflix created an animated series based on the franchise, director Adam Deats wanted to focus on Dracula's humanity by showing his transformation into a villain with the death of his wife, Lisa. "By giving Dracula the human dimension that he really has to have to make the story sustainable, you have to find the human element in him". As a result the staff does not consider this Dracula evil. Warren Ellis' writing was praised by the staff as he has an "instinct for creating that human dimension for a character that makes you want to spend time with them even if what they ultimately do is not something that you're supportive of".
Appearances
Dracula first appeared in 1986's Castlevania, set in the year 1691. Simon Belmont ventures into Dracula's castle to defeat him. The plot of Castlevania was re-used in the games Vampire Killer, Haunted Castle, Super Castlevania IV and Castlevania Chronicles. In the manual of the second game, Castlevania II: Simon's Quest, it is revealed that, in his dying moments at the end of the first game, Dracula placed a curse on Simon, which condemned him to slowly die from his injuries. In 1698, Simon sets out to gather Dracula's scattered body parts and use them to resurrect Dracula in the ruins of his castle, where he defeats him. In Hitoshi Akamatsu's last game, the prequel Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse, Dracula unleashes his army of monsters on Europe in 1476. The people of Wallachia secure the aid of Trevor Belmont, who journeys to Castlevania with the help of Grant Danasty, Sypha Belnades and Dracula's son Alucard, and he becomes the first Belmont to defeat Dracula.
In Castlevania: The Adventure, set in 1576, Christopher Belmont defeats Dracula. In Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge, it is revealed that Dracula escaped and survived until 1591, when he kidnapped Christopher's son Soleil and tried to turn him against his father. Christopher defeats Dracula again and saves his son. Castlevania: Rondo of Blood takes place in 1792 and stars a new Belmont named Richter. This was the first game in the series to use substantial voice acting to further the narrative. Dracula is resurrected by a cult led by a dark priest named Shaft. He proceeds to kidnap several villagers, including Richter's girlfriend Annette and a child named Maria Renard. In the "best" ending of the game, Richter saves all the kidnapped women and defeats Dracula.Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, stars Dracula's son Alucard who enters the castle five years after Richter's victory. Symphony of the Night introduced the character of Lisa, Alucard's mother and Dracula's wife who had been falsely executed on charges of witchcraft centuries prior, leaving Dracula grief stricken. Alucard discovers that Shaft had placed Richter under a dark spell, the plan being that Richter could defeat all other enemies of Dracula. Alucard then defeats Shaft, saves Richter, and faces his resurrected father. They exchange words before Alucard kills him, telling him Lisa'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". Dracula cries out for Lisa's forgiveness as he returns to the abyss.Castlevania: Bloodlines is set in 1917. The protagonists are John Morris and Eric Lecarde. This game introduced Dracula's niece, Elizabeth Bartley, named for Elizabeth Báthory. It was implied that Bartley arranged the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in order to precipitate World War I. She resurrects Dracula, but she and her uncle are defeated by John and Eric. Castlevania (1999) and Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness take place in the mid-19th century. In these games, Dracula's return is accomplished through the unusual method of having him reincarnated as a child named Malus.
Set in 1830, Castlevania: Circle of the Moon explains how Dracula was defeated by vampire hunter Morris Baldwin a decade prior. At the start of the game, Dracula is resurrected by his disciple Camilla. The player assumes the role of Nathan Graves, a student of Morris Baldwin, who once again defeats the newly resurrected Dracula.Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance takes place in 1748. Simon's grandson Juste is the main character. He enters Castlevania to save his childhood friend Lydie Erlanger. Their friend Maxim Kischine resurrected Dracula in order to prove his worth as a vampire hunter and Dracula is defeated by Juste.