Dance of Illusions (also occasionally known as Illusionary Dance or Third Struggle) is a music theme composed by Tomoko Sano (Sanoppi) which is most commonly associated with Dracula battles. It is considered to be the main battle theme for Dracula, or at the very least similar characters. It was first played in the final battle against Dracula in Castlevania: Rondo of Blood. The theme is composed of various organ music (and in some cases, either symphonic or actual vocalizations) and percussion beats in a rhythm indicating a march. The version from Castlevania: Judgment features electric guitar beats and is slightly extended to also include bars from Black Night.
Two versions of this track were reused in Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls: the Judgment version was used during the fight against Dark King Soma in Chapter 4, 6, and 9 and the magic embodiment of Dracula in Chapter 7 and the Arcade version is used during the fight against Dracula in his first form in Chapter 10.
Appearances[]
| Song Data: Dance of Illusions | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | Track No. / Name (Japanese Name) | Game / Soundtrack | Composer | Usage | Notes / Links | ||||
|
14. Dance of Illusions (幻想的舞曲) [alt] |
Castlevania: Rondo of Blood / Akumajō Dracula X |
Sanoppi | Dracula boss battle | Links: YouTube | ||||
|
Illusionary Dance | Castlevania: Dracula X | Dracula | Links: YouTube | |||||
|
10. Dance of Illusions | / Perfect Selection Dracula Battle II |
Konami Kukeiha Club (composer) Naoto Shibata (arranger) |
Notes: Rock/metal version Links: YouTube | |||||
|
3. Dance of Illusions (幻想的舞曲) [alt] |
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night / Castlevania: Symphony of the Night Original Soundtrack |
Sanoppi (composer) Michiru Yamane (arranger) |
Prologue: Dracula battle with Richter | Links: YouTube | ||||
|
29. Dance of Illusions -The Third Struggle- (幻想的舞曲) [alt] |
Castlevania (N64) / Castlevania: The Original Game Soundtrack |
Sanoppi (composer) Masahiko Kimura, Motoaki Furukawa, Mariko Egawa (arrangers) |
Dracula boss battle | Links: YouTube | ||||
|
16. Dance of Illusions (幻想的舞曲) [alt] |
Castlevania: Circle of the Moon / Castlevania: Circle of the Moon and Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance Original Soundtrack |
Sanoppi (composer) Sotaro Tojima, Hiroshi Mitsuoka (arrangers) |
Dracula boss battle (First form) | Links: YouTube | ||||
|
27. Dance of Illusions (幻想的舞曲) [alt] |
Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow / Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow & Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow Original Soundtrack |
Sanoppi (composer) Masahiko Kimura (arranger) |
Julius Mode: Final battle | Links: YouTube | ||||
|
21. Dance of Illusions (幻想的舞曲) [alt] |
Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles / Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles Original Soundtrack |
Sanoppi (composer) Akihiro Honda (arranger) |
Dracula boss battle | Links: YouTube | ||||
|
6. Dance of Illusions (幻想的舞曲) [alt] |
Castlevania Judgment / Castlevania Judgment Original Soundtrack |
Sanoppi (composer) Yasushi Asada (arranger) |
Dracula's Theme ; plays during a fight with or against Dracula | Links: YouTube | ||||
|
19 (Disc 17). Illusionary Dance Music (幻想的舞曲) [alt] |
Castlevania: The Arcade / Akumajō Dracula Best Music Collections BOX |
Sanoppi (composer) Masayuki Maruyama, Goh Fujiwara (arrangers) |
Dracula boss battle (first form) | Links: YouTube | ||||
|
16. Dance of Illusions (幻想的舞曲) [alt] |
Castlevania: Harmony of Despair / Castlevania: Harmony of Despair Original Soundtrack |
Sanoppi (composer) Akihiro Honda (arranger) |
Stage 6 boss theme - final form | Notes: The arrangement used in this game is from The Dracula X Chronicles. Links: YouTube | ||||
|
11. Dance of Illusions | / Akumajō Dracula Tribute Vol. 1 |
Konami Kukeiha Club (composer) Mitsuhiro Kaneda (arranger) |
Links: YouTube | |||||
|
37. Dance of Illusions ~LAST BOSS#1~ ~Continue Battle (First Half)~ | Pachislot Akumajō Dracula III / Pachislot Akumajō Dracula III Original Soundtrack |
Notes: Recycled directly from Castlevania: The Arcade Links: YouTube | ||||||
|
Dance of Illusions | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate / Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Original Soundtrack |
Notes: Taken directly from Castlevania Judgment. Links: YouTube | ||||||
Trivia[]
- The opening portion of the Dracula X Chronicles version of the song features a similar sound effect to the beginning portion of the version of Mantis' Hymn used in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.
Other usages[]
- Evolution Skateboarding - When fighting the Dracula-based vampire.