The First Cooperative Castlevania Adventure

Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin broke franchise tradition as the first title to introduce cooperative multiplayer. It also marked the first time a handheld entry featured English voice acting.

This 2006 action game allowed players to tackle the gothic horrors of Dracula’s castle with a friend for the first time. By integrating dual-character gameplay, it forced players to master unique tag-team mechanics rather than playing solo. These bold additions helped modernize the beloved series for the Nintendo DS era. It remains a standout experiment in the long-running franchise.