I'm a huge fan of the Akumajou Dracula series, or Castlevania as it's more commonly recognized
around the world.
I've enjoyed pretty much every one I've played, from the tough as nails in the coffin original
8-bit games, their prettier but equally as challenging 16-bit counter parts, all of the
handheld entries, and yes, even the 3D ones...well, on the N64 and PS2, anyway.
But perhaps the entry in the series that had the biggest impact on me as a gamer is Dracula
X: Nocturne in the Moonlight, or Castlevania Symphony of the Night, as it's known outside
of Japan.
There's been more than enough praise lavished on the game by fans and critics over the years,
so I won't gush over it too much, but its non-linear gameplay, fascinating lore, beautifully
composed soundtrack, gorgeous 2D sprite-based graphics, and campy dialogue all come together
perfectly to form what I and many others consider one of the best games ever made.
So imagine my excitement when Konami published Castlevania: Harmony of Despair for the Xbox
Live Arcade service in late 2010.
It was essentially a love letter to the series that brought together the heroes and villains
from the more recent 2D Castlevanias for a loot-based action game playable online with
up to six players total.
It was an awesome gaming experience that I sunk hundreds of hours into with friends.
While the game itself was pretty short, it was supplemented with a lot of great downloadable
stages and characters, one of the coolest of those being a recreation of the original
NES Castlevania in its entirety.
Harmony of Despair's final two pieces of DLC, however, are ones that baffled myself and
most likely many others in the West, as they were based on a game that never saw a release
outside of Japan—the Famicom classic Getsu Fuuma Den.
I had never heard of Getsu Fuuma Den before, but was instantly captivated by the small
sampling I got through Harmony Despair and desperately wanted to play the actual game
for myself.
For years, I searched and searched but could never find it, even when living in Japan.
But in 2014, I finally got a hold of a copy of the game and it quickly became my favorite
Japan-exlusive title on the Famicom.
The year is 14672 A.D., and the demonic lord Ryuukotsuki has arisen from the underworld
in order to conquer this one, ushering in the first year of the Demon Age.
His invasion is challenged by the three brothers of the Getsu clan, whose members have ruled
this world justly and fairly for generations with the aid of their family's legendary heirloom,
the sacred Hadouken, or “wave sword.”
The battle that takes place ends in tragedy, however, as two of brothers are slain by Ryuukotsuki,
and the Hadouken lost to the demonic horde, divided into three pieces and hidden away
on a distant chain of islands.
With a strong desire for revenge, the youngest and only remaining brother of the Getsu clan,
Fuuma, heads to the island to reclaim his family's precious sword and destroy the monster
known as Ryuukotsuki.
Getsu Fuuma Den was released in 1987 and is primarily a side-scrolling action game much
like the Castlevania series, though it places heavy emphasis on exploration and also features
psuedo-3D, maze-like dungeon sections.
The adventure begins on an overworld map, where you're greeted with the awesome theme
heard in the intro to this video, in my opinion one of the catchiest and most memorable gaming
BGMs of all time.
The game world is comprised of four islands with many paths to take, and along these paths
are gate icons which take you to an action stage.
Each of these requires Fuuma to reach a gate at the end to return to the overworld map,
but along the way he'll have to deal with enemies, platforming, and pitfalls.
The B button performs an overheard sword attack, the A button is used to jump, and pressing
down on the D-pad crouches.
Though the game is visually similar to a Castlevania title from the era, the overall feel of gameplay
is fairly different, as Fuuma is quite a bit more nimble than any of his Belmont counterparts.
Fuuma's jumps are a bit floaty and he can move around mid-air, so platforming is never
a headache.
Graphically, Getsu Fuuma Den is far from the best looking game on the Famicom, but it's
quite impressive within the context of its release and limited cartridge space.
There's virtually no flickering or slowdown, and the unconventional color pallete and unique
designs of the environment give it a look all its own.
Enemy variety is quite impressive and there are some really cool bad guys in the game
that manage to be silly and horrific at the same time.
Spinning demon heads, ogres, a moon that drops from the sky, all means of beasts and creatures.
I particularly like this whip-wielding skeleton that's a not so subtle nod to Konami's popular
vampire-slaying protagonist.
Some sections on the world map even lead to mini battle stages much like those found in
Zelda II.
Fuuma stands out really well against the action stage backgrounds, though his overworld sprite
looks like it would be a better fit in a game like John Elway's Quarterback.
Not everyone you meet in Getsu Fuuma Den is hostile, as there are a lot of NPCs that provide
conversation, hints, and even let Fuuma rest and recuperate health.
Game progression is fairly non-linear, and because of that you may find yourself wandering
into areas where monsters are really powerful and hard to take down.
Getsu Fuuma Den utilizes an RPG-like experience system that powers up Fuuma's attack and defense
over the course of the game as he racks up more kills, as indicated by a meter at the
top of the screen.
If a certain action stage is proving too difficult at first, it's usually a good idea to explore
elsewhere and return once you've beefed up Fuuma a little more.
Leveling up is a long and slow process, but by the end of the game, the experience bar
should be maxed out naturally without any need to grind.
Experience isn't the only reward for defeating enemies, either—more often than not, they'll
also leave behind a soul that restores hit points or money that can be spent on items
sold at shops scattered about the world map.
A lot of these are one-time use items, which include life potions, colored orbs that clear
out all enemies on screen, a protective ball of fire that surrounds Fuuma and damages foes,
and a coat that damages enemies but also grants invincibility for a certain amount of time.
Items you can buy that never run out are a charm that reduces damage taken, a shuriken
that travels long distances, powerful unholy explosives, and the rock sword, which is required
to advance through the game as this weapon has the ability to cut through walls that
seem like dead ends in many stages.
Some items are found within action stages, such as potions and one-ups, but there's also
a taiko drum that will likely be most players' first projectile weapon, and a devilish top
which alters the standard jump into a spinning attack that cuts anything it touches and makes
Fuuma immune to damage during its animation.
Pausing during any stage and pressing B or A will cycle through defensive and attack
items, and returning to the game will equip or use whatever items were selected.
You can see what's currently in use via the H.U.D.
at the top right corner.
Other things displayed on the H.U.D.
are total pieces of the Hadouken currently in Fuuma's possession, the number of lives
left, and the amount of ogre masks collected.
Ogre masks basically act as gate passes that allow Fuuma to travel to one of three smaller
islands surrounding the main one by ways of an underground cave.
Two of these are received by defeating a couple of sub-bosses and the last by visiting an
peculiar and finicky resident of the islands over and over again.
It's on the three outlying islands where the pieces of the Hadouken are being kept in heavily
guarded strongholds, and without the Hadouken, Fuuma has no way of defeating Ryuukotsuki,
so finding ogre masks are absolutely necessary in order to complete the game.
Once you arrive on one of the smaller islands, your main priority is finding the stronghold
housing one of the pieces of the Hadouken.
These strongholds are where the aforementioned pseudo-3D exploration segments take place,
shifting the gameplay from the familiar side-scrolling action to a third-person dungeon-crawler.
Located beneath the surface, the corridors of these strongholds are pitch black, and
there's nothing you can really do until you equip a candle, purchased at a store on the
south eastern island.
Once the dungeon is lit up, you'll be able to explore it freely, but not easily, as there
are many dangers lurking around every corner, and its labyrinthine setup can be confusing.
A compass item will help with navigation by showing which direction you're facing, but
getting lost in the mostly identical hallways will occur quite a bit.
Some of the inhabitants of the dungeon are friendly, but most aren't, and battles take
place at fixed intervals.
During combat, Fuuma can move left and right, jump with the A button, and simply pressing
B will execute a sword strike, which can be switched up by holding the D-pad down in a
certain direction while attacking.
These fights can be pretty tough using conventional tactics, but I found that attacking while
jumping is the best strategy, as most enemies will go down with one or two successful strikes
to the head.
Once an enemy is killed, thankfully it won't respawn unless you exit to the overworld.
Once in a while, you'll come across items like potions or orbs, but if you're really
lucky, you''ll discover a heavenly bonus area where you can rack up a lot of cash.
Deep within the walls of each stronghold is a doorway that brings the gameplay back to
the normal side-scrolling perspective.
After disposing of some naginata-wielding guards, you'll be confronted by one of three
bosses in order to reclaim a piece of the Hadouken.
One battle is with a giant cyclops head that hovers around and shoots fire from its mouth,
another is with a flying two-headed dragon beast that's preceded by a fight with three
ninjas, and then there's one with a fearsome skeleton warrior who controls four floating
swords.
These bosses are designed to be quite difficult and test your skills, but mastering the devilish
top jumping attack and spamming it over and over again will pretty much negate any challenge.
Once all three pieces of the Hadouken are back in the hands of their rightful owner,
they come together to reform the legendary blade of the Getsu clan.
Now Fuuma has the means to face Ryuukotsuki, avenge his fallen brothers, and save the world...but
only after he equips the Hadouken via the pause screen, of course.
No other weapon in Fuuma's possession can rival the awesome power of the Hadouken, which
shoots out multiple telekinetic waves with each strike that obliterate pretty much anything
in their path.
With the holy sword in hand, returning to an area on the main island isolated by water
will cause a bridge to appear, and from there, only a short trek and a long fall stand in
the way of reaching Ryuukotsuki's lair.
The final confrontation of the game takes place in three parts, the first being against
a teleporting, hooded ghoul, the second an armor-clad, knife-throwing warrior who can
deflect the waves of the Hadouken with a small shield, and then finally, the showdown with
the gruesome and grotesque Ryuukotsuki.
The only way to harm the nightmarish creature is to strike a large red orb housed in his
ribcage, and he only has two attack patterns—shooting fireballs from his mouth, and taking swipes
at Fuuma with his massive arms.
In the end, this duel is a bit anti-climactic, as the power of the Hadouken proves too overwhelming
for the dark lord, and he's easily taken down without much trouble.
With Ryuukotsuki dead, the souls of Fuuma's elder brothers can finally rest in peace,
and any trace of the demonic menace is wiped from the face of this world.
Getsu Fuuma Den is a fairly long game for the Famicom.
On my second playthrough, it took me just under three hours to beat, but I already knew
what I was doing from previous experience.
Depending on how well you can navigate the overworld and dungeons, this game could easily
take over five hours to complete.
It's not a really difficult game, but you only have three lives to start with, and once
they're gone, it's game over, though continues are infinite.
There isn't a save feature, but at least there is a password system for times when you run
out of lives or patience and need to take a break from Fuuma's adventure.
This game can be found for relatively cheap online, as carts often sell for under twenty
U.S. dollars.
I got my first copy in an auction for under five dollars, and was lucky in Japan and discovered
a copy with box and manual for 750 yen, or just over six bucks.
A truly complete copy also comes with one of several special cards, something Konami
used to do with their early Famicom releases.
Additionally, this game was made available on the Japanese Wii Virtual Console.
Like I stated earlier, this is my favorite Japan-only Famicom game and is one I wholeheartedly
recommend to fans of the glory days of Konami on the NES—hey what the, that ain't Getsu
Fuuma Den!
Or...is it...?
Well, that's really similar...and that looks the same too.
Whoa, those are too close to be coincidence, right?
What is this, some arcade version of the game?
Arnold: "Come on, don't bullshit me!"
OK, OK, enough playing stupid.
I mentioned this briefly in the PC Engine games video I did a while back, but there's
a game that shares a lot of similar themes and imagery with Getsu Fuuma Den and was released
a year before, and that's Namco's classic arcade game Genpei Toumaden.
It's an action game starring a red-haired Samurai on a quest for vengeance that also
features different gameplay styles...hell, even the titles of both games are kind of
alike.
Comparisons between the two have led some people to question whether or not Getsu Fuuma
Den is a rip-off, and supposedly one of the members of the development team addressed
the controversy in an old issue of Dorimaga and admitted that they were indeed heavily
influenced by Genpei Toumaden.
But whatever the case, the games are different enough that I wouldn't consider Getsu Fuuma
Den a rip-off, and I imagine the developers just really liked Genpei Toumaden.
And as much as I love the Namco classic, I have to say...Getsu Fuuma Den is a better
game.
Sadly, the Getsu Fuuma Den series began and ended with this Famicom debut, but Fuuma and
his nemesis Ryuukotsuki would go on to make appearances in many other Konami IPs.
Aside from Harmony of Despair, one of the wrestlers in Jikkyou Power Pro Wrestling '96:
Max Voltage was based on Fuuma, and he and Ryuukotsuki both made their way into Konami's
Yugioh card game.
In Otomedius Excellent, the arcade and Xbox 360 Gradius spin-off starring mostly cute
and scantily clad women, you know, the best kind of spin-off there is, Getsu Fuuma Den's
protagonist and villain cross gender lines with female make-overs.
But the biggest cameos came in the form of Wai Wai World 1 and 2.
These games bring together some of Konami's greatest characters for awesome action platforming
adventures that were never published outside of Japan.
I would do Import Gaming FTW episodes on both, but I'll bow out since others have already
done great videos on them.
The late, great Jew Wario's coverage on Wai Wai World 1 and Brasel the Gamer's review
on its sequel come to mind, so if you've never seen those, I recommend you check 'em out!
As always, thank you for watching another episode of this series, and until next time,
this is Jimmy Hapa—take care.