Giant Bat

The Giant Bat is a recurring boss monster from the Castlevania games, and is known as being the first boss monster to appear in the first Castlevania game and has become a symbol of the Castlevania series. In almost all games, he is shown to be composed of more than one bat.

In Aria of Sorrow, he was shown that the Giant Bat is one of three integral parts of Dracula's powers, the other two being a Flame Demon and a Succubus and he takes the form of a giant bat on occasion.

There have been several names and identities for the giant bats that have appeared in various games, including Phantom Bat, Zapf Bat (made out of treasure), Darkwing Bat (specializes in wind), Big Bat (splits in two), Bat Company (multitude of bats that move to form the shape of other things), Twin Bats (two giant bat's in tandem).

Myth Behind the Monster
While it's easy to dismiss the Phantom Bat as a mere creation of the imaginative minds at Konami, there have been a few reports of witnesses seeing Giant Bats in the wild. While no one has ever confirmed the existance of one, it is easy to understand how people might imagine such creatures existing. After all, Vampire Bats have been associated with darkness and evil for centuries. Not to mention that many people are afraid of bats as is.

It is highly unlikely that Phantom Bats exist as a creature of that size would have difficulty flying. See the External Links for more information.

Castlevania
The original Phantom bat. He flys around the room, swooping down on the hero every now and then. He can also release fireballs from its mouth.

Vampire Hunter
Similar to the Phantom Bat in the original Castlevania.

Castlevania: The Adventure
Dracula's second form in Castlevania: The Adventure is a Phantom bat

Castlevania: Simon's Quest (LCD)
They flutter around above and in front of you and are indistinguishable from normal bats until they are right in front of you. Then they will swoop down and attack you when you are on the ground or in the air. They only appear during night, are destroyed in 2 whip hits and are worth 20 points.

Dracula's Curse
The Phantom Bat that appears in Dracula's Curse does not shoot fireballs or swoop and his main attack is simply fluttering around trying to hit you in close quarters. However, when he is struck, he divides into two smaller bats which continue their attacks. When these are struck, they again divide into two small bats. The bat is destroyed when all pieces are destroyed.

Super Castlevania IV
Fought at the end of Dracula's treasury in Super Castlevania IV, the Zapf Bat appears to be made entirely out of gold and jewels. He attacks at first like any other Giant Bat, by flying around and swooping at Simon. Whenever he is hit, gold and jewels fall off his body, and can damage Simon if they hit him. After he takes enough damage, the Zapf Bat splits into several smaller bats, each of which must be individually destroyed as they fly around and constantly drip dangerous gold pieces.

The reason for the name is a mystery, although he may be related to Zapf Dingbats, a type of Wingdings font.

Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge
These are normal enemies in Belmont's Revenge. Like the Giant Bat in Dracula's Curse, the split into two smaller bats when attacked with insufficient power to destory them. These smaller bats are then destroyed in one hit.

Castlevania: Rondo of Blood and Dracula X Chronicles
Like the original, he flies around the room, swooping down on the hero every now and then. He can also release fireballs from his mouth. His form starts out as a company of bats which coalesce into a large bat, and scatter and become unhittable after being struck, only to re-coalesce and swoop down later. He also turns up his swooping prowess a bit and instead of simply swooping down to hit his enemy, he curls himself up into a drill and drills the ground for a while, hurling debris from the ground.

Castlevania Chronicles
Like the original, he flies around the room, swooping down on the hero every now and then. He can also release fireballs from his mouth. His form starts out as a company of bats which coalesce into a large bat, and scatter and become unhittable after being struck, only to re-coalesce and swoop down later.

Dracula X
"Myotia" in the American Manual. A giant bat that breaks into a chain of bats when hit.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Perhaps one of the most sickeningly simple bosses in the entire game. Found in the Inverted Clock Tower, the Darkwing Bat has wings many times the size of his actual body. He will flap his wings to create a gust of wind, sending you flying against the back wall. The bat also tries to smash into Alucard, and occasionally wraps his wings together and charges like a drill. He is very slow to attack, however, and usually dies before using any of these attacks.

Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance
The giant bat in Harmony of Dissonance is basically the same thing as the Phantom Bat from Rondo of Blood.

Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow
The giant bat from Aria of Sorrow has an impressive opening, coalescing from a multitude of bats hanging from the ceiling, but he is squished in Balore's giant hand before he can attack Soma (who can later get his soul).

Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow
The company of bats in Dawn of Sorrow form the shape of a giant bat, but still appear as smaller bats fluttering in formation to make up a larger one. He flutters around, scatters when hit, and has other bat forms. He can also assume other shapes, such as a giant hand. Instead of fireballs, he sends many rings Soma's way.

Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth
The Giant Bat returns as the mid-boss of the first stage. He will flutter around, only stopping to dash across the screen. This is his only attack, but when he is struck three times, he will scatter into smaller bats and reform somewhere else.