Gaibon, bloody zombie.

A detailed walkthrough for Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, guiding you through Gaibon's castle area, including enemy strategies, item locations, and secret rooms.

After proceeding through the red loading doors, you will enter a new area of the castle. On the left side of this room are platforms you'll need to jump on to progress. You will encounter more skeletons; the one on the ground is the same type that previously gave you a short sword. The other, a red skeleton called a blood skeleton, jumps back and forth and throws bones. These enemies reappear after being defeated. At the end of this path is a table with a glass globe behind spikes. Activating a platform button above will lower the spikes, allowing you to break the globe and obtain a Hide Cuirass, which grants +2 defense.

In the next room to the left, a spike blocks your path, forcing you to navigate upward and to the right. You'll face more blood skeletons. The room on the right is a save room. After saving, proceed upward to the left, passing an inaccessible elevator. The next enemy is a knight who throws axes at your head or legs. You can duck to avoid head-level axes, but they return. You can also attack axes with your weapon. After the knight, you'll find two more skeletons. Instead of proceeding through the next room, drop down using the platforms by pressing down on the d-pad and 'X'. You will find a table with a glass globe; breaking it yields a Leather Shield, which is recommended for its advantages. Return to the previous room and go through the door on the left.

This next room requires you to platform jump upwards. There are two secret rooms: one behind the far-left breakable wall contains a Heart Max Up (+5 max heart capacity). The second secret room is directly below the middle platform. To access it, attack diagonally by holding down and left (or right) on the d-pad while attacking. Descend to break a glass for a Life Max Up potion (+5 max health). Return up and hit the candle on the middle platform to obtain the Knife sub-weapon (use UP + Square/Circle). The Knife is a useful sub-weapon.

Ascend the room by carefully jumping between platforms. In the next room, a skeleton throws bones, and a glass on a table contains a Resist Thunder item. Continue up the vertical room.

In the next room, a Spittle Bone enemy circles a platform above, spitting poison that can inflict the poison status. You can defeat it by attacking from a safe distance. Ahead is a box between two sets of spikes. Activate the button platforms on both sides to lower the spikes. Push the box onto the marked spot, then jump over it and activate the switch again to access the platform where the Spittle Bone was. Continue upwards and through the door on the right. This path is a dead-end containing a Cloth Cape (+1 defense). Return to the room with the box and spikes, being mindful that enemies respawn. Advance left, jumping on platforms and defeating knights.

The next room is a massive vertical area. Fall down and climb back up. The save room is parallel to the door you entered. After saving, climb the tower. At the top, you'll see a door on the right and a candle above a platform in the middle. This candle contains the Ax sub-weapon. The room on the right leads to a boss fight. Both the Ax and Knife sub-weapons are valuable.