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31 Nights of Castlevania: Castlevania: Dracula X

October 10, 2017 colin Articles

Castlevania: Dracula X Screenshot

Castlevania: Dracula X is another red-headed stepchild in the series. It is often unfavorably compared to Rondo of Blood, and to be fair, Dracula X takes a lot from it including characters, music, etc. When the game was announced, fans expected it to be a SNES port of the PC Engine game.

Sadly, we ended up with a flawed, but overall good, Castlevania title. A lot of what made Rondo of Blood great is still in the package, but there’s more than a few cons that bring it down.

Castlevania: Dracula X Screenshot

Castlevania: Dracula X isn’t exactly a port or a remake…

Dracula X stars Richter Belmont (Author’s Note: My personal favorite out of all the Belmonts, to be honest…) once again, as Dracula has risen again and has taken over Transylvania and has kidnapped his girlfriend…blah blah blah. The story is an all too well-traveled road. However, that is just the beginning of the issues.

The game doesn’t have anime-inspired cut scenes and characters are completely cut from the story. Level design, while pretty good in the sense that it focuses on platforming rather than straightforward combat, is very OK. There is also a complete lack of open-ended levels and you cannot play as Maria. Much of this can be chopped up to the SNES’ limitations, though.

Castlevania: Dracula X Screenshot

Worse yet, Richter doesn’t have the same mobility he did in Rondo of Blood making this game rather slow. However, it’s not all bad.

Dracula X takes parts of Rondo of Blood and makes it a whole new experience. There are different levels and bosses and the remixed music sounds fantastic.

Castlevania: Dracula X Screenshot

The SNES doesn’t have the graphics or sound capabilities the PC Engine does, but Dracula X does hold its own against a superior console. Seriously, the fire effects in the first stage are nice to look at. The whip sounds are also, strangely enough, nice to hear. Dracula X might have some of the best sound design in the entire series.

Gameplay is simplistic but still as satisfying as ever. Ritcher’s whip gets the job done, as well as his Item Crash technique. The Item Crash now takes up hearts instead of health and it’s much easier to pull off.

Castlevania: Dracula X turns up the difficulty to 11

Castlevania: Dracula X’s biggest flaw is its monstrous difficulty. Richter’s backflip, which was previously useful in Rondo of Blood, now has a huge emphasis placed on it. Getting hearts from candles almost becomes a chore because some are placed high above Richter’s head. Boss fights also focus on it, which is strange considering how sluggish the game can be.

Count Dracula is also a significantly difficult boss fight, but more so than usual. Instead of one plane to fight on, Richter has to constantly jump all over the place in order to avoid Drac’s attacks. Oh, this game also reintroduces the infamous “knock-back” from the first game.

Castlevania: Dracula X Screenshot

If fans were to rank Dracula X in the whole series, it would probably be head-and-shoulders above the “bad” titles of the series, but fall just short underneath Bloodlines and other 16-bit entries. By all means, not a terrible game, but a very, very generic Castlevania experience.

31 Nights of Castlevania: Super Castlevania IV

October 7, 2017 colin Articles

Super Castlevania IV Screenshot

By the time the 16-bit era rolled around, Castlevania was one of the many franchises making the jump. The first game to take the plunge was Super Castlevania IV.

While it is essentially a big budget remake of the first game, Super Castlevania IV is a game that showcases the best of the best of the SNES. Super Castlevania IV contains graphics and music that utilize the hardware of the new system.

Super Castlevania IV Screenshot

Those features are just the icing on the cake, though.

A cinematic-like intro sets the mood for Super Castlevania IV
Super Castlevania IV marks the first time in the series a full length animated introduction. A lightning strike destroys a gravestone, followed by creeping fog and evil sounding organ music. This is accompanied by a text crawl similar to the one in Dracula’s Curse, but far more sinister and atmospheric. It plays more like a Hammer/Universal studios intro that fits the aesthetics of the Castlevania series.

Players will be taking control of Simon Belmont once more. This time, he is prepared to fight the forces of darkness and end Dracula’s reign once and for all.

Super Castlevania IV Screenshot

Super Castlevania IV plays like a Greatest Hits…plus more!
Once Super Castlevania IV kicks off, it hits the ground running and does not stop going. It very much keeps what made the last three games so incredible. The platforming and combat are completely on point in this game. Controls have been refined, so players won’t have to make any awkward jumps. The whip can now be used to attack enemies below, above and even diagonally, adding more moves to combat. The weapons are still helpful as well, as sometimes the whip may not be enough to beat a boss.

Super Castlevania IV Screenshot

Longtime Castlevania fans can breathe a sigh of relief at the decrease in the challenge, as the game is not unfair. Players will still have to use skills, but it’s no longer a steep curve.

Simon will be traveling to Dracula’s castle through villages, underground caverns, and ruined temples. When he finally steps foot into the castle, our hero will have to fight off all kinds of monsters in the library, the catacombs and the rooftops themselves. Every stage in this game contains an ingenious level design full of creativity and tests for the player.

Super Castlevania IV Screenshot

Boss fights reflect the originality of the levels, in the sense that each of them is a unique fight that requires a different skill from the player. Konami crammed in a few bosses based on Greek mythology as well to add to the innovative enemy types.

Finally, there is the beautifully composed soundtrack. It very much fits the ambiance of the game and feels very much like a horror/adventure film.

Super Castlevania IV’s minor flaw does not come close to ruining the game
Super Castlevania IV has a lot going for it and very little negatives. The cons of the game are almost nitpicky, but there is one that could be a turn-off. For starters, Super Castlevania IV is a very long game. There is over 10 stages, each split up into three sections of varying length and challenge. Even the speed runs of this game are significantly longer than Dracula’s Curse. Which is saying a lot, considering Dracula’s Curse’s overly unfair difficulty.

Super Castlevania IV Screenshot

All in all, Super Castlevania IV is seen by many fans as one of the best “old school” Castlevanias. It’s a damn near perfect experience no Castlevania, or even gamer should pass up. The flawless design of the levels, the sound controls, the faultless graphics that use all the tricks in the SNES and it’s even a blast to play. Super Castlevania IV stands the test of time when compared to many platformers of the day, and is worth every second.

The Lifecast Presents… 31 Nights of Castlevania!

September 30, 2017 colin Articles

The night has just fallen onto Transylvania, as a familiar evil fills the air. A broken down and terrifying castle looks ominous in front of the full moon. It appears Count Dracula has risen again and whoever wields the Vampire Killer whip will have to destroy him. Using their skills and weapons, can they survive the night?

Image courtesy of VG Museum

Their adventure will be filled with perilous traps and horrifying monsters the likes mere mortals are too terrified to see.

This is Castlevania.

Castlevania is a video game franchise which celebrates horror and manages to cram in some of the best gameplay of any action/action-RPG game. The spooky atmosphere, references to classic horror films and mythology and overall quality between games has made Castlevania a series many gamers are fond of.

Everyone has a Halloween tradition…

As the Lifecast’s resident Castlevania fanatic, I always try to play as many of the games as possible during the Halloween season. Whether it’s running through the castle in Symphony of the Night or fighting Dracula for the first time in the original game, I am not picky. I enjoy the series that much.

Image courtesy of VG Museum

I decided to change it up this year for my yearly binge. I decided to share my love for the franchise with the Lifecast.

Welcome to the 31 Nights of Castlevania!

From October 1st to the 31st, there will be a new Castlevania review on the Lifecast’s homepage. It will end with a big 30th anniversary retrospective on the first game in the series, as it is celebrating the big 3-0 here in the ‘states.

Giving Castlevania a proper series retrospective

The entries themselves will be varied enough from the series’ eras. The classic platformers on the NES and SNES, the awkward but decent 3D period and the birth of the Metroidvania genre. There will even be some coverage of spin-offs, rip-offs, and the (surprisingly) critically acclaimed Netflix show.

It will end with a big 30th anniversary retrospective on the first entry, as it is celebrating the big 3-0.

However… what will be the first to kick it off?

Here’s a hint…

Image courtesy of VG Museum.