We just can't kill Dracula enough. After last year's utterly outstanding adventure, Dawn of Sorrow, you'd be right to wonder how Konami could top its soul-stealing action. How about controlling two characters at once and summoning demons to do your bidding? That might work.

Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin will take a stab at outdoing one of 2005's best games when it arrives on November 15. You'll be able to switch between vampire hunter Jonathan Morris and magic-wielding Charlotte Orlean at any point, using their abilities in tandem to stop two (undoubtedly sexy) vampire sisters from resurrecting Dracula and his menagerie of 100-plus rotting zombie-monsters. We're assuming the computer handles whichever character you're not controlling, as both appear on the screen at the same time (based on the few released screenshots).

Above: Beating back Drac will look a lot cleaner on the small screen. Promise.

Ruin drops Morris and Orlean in a World War II setting, taking place somewhere around the same time as the Sega Genesis classic, Castlevania: Bloodlines. Chances are the story will be totally secondary and won't affect the proven, addicting gameplay of the past four handheld Castlevaniagames.

April 24, 2006