"And here be your winner, dawgs..."

"And yo--here's the thug who be acceptin' the award and keepin' it real, my main man Alucard."

         "I've come to put an end to this."

          "Yes, please do!"

"Always remember: The only thing necessary for white guys to rap is for embarrassed black guys to do nothing."

"Right as always, my young master. If only we had some of those in this series. I'm sure it's right around the corner.

Anyway: The floor is yours yet again, Lord Al."

"Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse is where I got my real start as the estranged and forgotten son of Count Dracula. I will always remember it.

Its greatest strength, over Symphony of the Night and even current-themed titles, is that its basic formula is (or was) wholly the series' own, with no Metroid influence to be seen. That is, Dracula's Curse takes Castlevania's blueprint and expands upon it in a way that seems almost mystical. If we look at the game from a development standpoint, we can see that its creative forces succeeded in the implementation of several key gameplay elements: Its mechanics are easy to learn but difficult to master; the varied enemy types do well their jobs, and they're placed in areas where they accentuate the surrounding dangers; the action is fast and furious, always moving along at a consistent speed no matter the character currently selected; the stages are more interactive than you may realize; the paths are many; and the bosses are challenging and anything but generic. Everything comes together to provide the player with the most memorable (or "classic," for lack of a more complex term) of experiences--a feeling you can never shake.

More than anything, Dracula's Curse is known for its replayability. With three possible allies and multiple paths to the castle, it's a game you'll want to play over and over again just to see what you can find this time. 'How can I work my way around this stage's many obstacles with this ally rather than the other?' That's 'fun.' That's great gameplay. And it wouldn't have been possible had the basic formula failed them. So to Dracula's Curse I say, 'We will meet again ... and again.' Thank you all for this honor."

"And that, ladies and gentleman, ends the first half of the Mr. P Castlevania Awards.

Now we're going to do something special: We're going to list for you the top series titles according to the opinion of the site author. You may already have a good idea about which titles will make the list, but which ones take precedent over the others? More importantly, which will be declared the status of 'top three,' wherein they'll earn the distinction of placement via gold, silver and bronze? That's for you to find out. So click the link below and prepare to be angered, overjoyed or just downright offended. Me? I'm going to take a short nap."