When the 1980s came to an end, the Castlevania Trilogy was already etched into my mind as classic.
It was the archetype of both the action and horror genres, and a masterpiece in side-scrolling gaming.
Roughly at the turn of the decade came the 16-bit era. I had no idea that it could actually get better.
In 1991, Castlevania made its transition to the new Super Nintendo.
But this wasn't just Castlevania IV.
Oh no,
This was Super Castlevania IV, and well worthy of that title.
The graphics and sound just blew my fucking balls off.
The haunting and chilling atmosphere of the old games was now like a walk through the park with the care bears.
This time, I was really getting scared.
At the time, this must have been the greatest opening to any video game yet.
The fog keeps rolling in until it envelops the shattered gravestone,
and almost seems to be creeping into the room itself.
[♪ Dracula's Theme - Super Castlevania IV ♪]
And then, of course, we have the game.
[♪ Theme of Simon Belmont - Super Castlevania IV ♪]
Oh, yeah, this is where it's at.
The graphics give a supreme demonstration of what the Super Nintendo could do.
There's not two levels that look alike, and the attention to detail is exquisite.
The first time I played, I didn't even notice that skull in the background.
If you look close enough, you can see bats flying out.
There's a stage where the background spins, giving you a three-dimensional effect.
Then, there's the room that rotates two dimensionally, and you have to hang on your whip.
It gives you a feeling of disorientation that I hadn't felt yet in a game.
But the best advantage, the most important thing that they improved here, was the control.
The choppy stiffness of the earlier games, gone.
Now, it's fluent and perfect. You can whip straight up, down, or in any direction.
That's eight directions you can whip.
If you hold down the button and fuck about with the D-Pad, you can do all kinds of tricks.
It doesn't have much of purpose, but it's pretty cool.
Being able to whip any way you want makes it easier to attack enemies while you're in midair.
Not to mention, when you jump, you have more ability to control where you land.
You can even move while crouching.
The control is perfect, and that's the key word here. Control. You feel like you're in control.
It's almost like Simon Belmont can do anything, even moonwalk.
[♪ Michael Jackson "Beat it" 16 bit version while moonwalking ♪]
It's as if you are Simon Belmont, and fully immersed in the game.
That means that the difficulty isn't all about stiff controls and cheap deaths.
But this time in genuine, fair challenge. . .For the most part.
As far as the story goes, it's more or less a remake of the first game.
Some fans might have been a little disappointed that there's no other playable characters,
and it goes back to the linear style.
But that's how I like it best. Straightforward and simple.
The replay value is high for me, and I'd pop this fucker in any day.
In its final stages, it plays the music from all three of the NES games.
It's like nostalgic memories of a Nintendo game within another Nintendo game
[♪ The remake of "Bloody Tears" from Castlevania II ♪]
That's it. The perfect Castlevania game.
But what will come next?
We had a sequel, a prequel, and a remake. Which direction could the series go after this?
At this point, my expectations were soaring in the heavens.
And I couldn't wait for Castlevania V
This is where the disappointment began,
and forever kept rolling downhill like a ball of dog dukey down a muddy slope.
I opened up the pages of Nintendo Power and there it was.
Castlevania Dracula X
I said it out loud to myself.
Castlevania Dracula X......
I wondered why not just call it Castlevania V?
Well that's what I thought back then, but if only I knew the original Japanese title
Devil's Castle Dracula X: Rondo of Blood
Just rolls right off your tongue.
The original version on the PC Engine would be unknown in North America for years to come,
until it was eventually released on the PSP.
The Super Nintendo version is often seen as a butchered port, but I think it's a decent addition to the series.
[♪ Bloodlines SNES version - Castlevania Dracula X ♪]
In this game, you take control of a new Belmont, named Richter. He's not quite as skilled with the whip.
Once again, you're restricted to only whipping in a horizontal manner.
A major downfall from the previous game.
*Player Miss*
Throwing special items on the stairs, once again, it's a little tricky because you have to use the D-Pad.
Unlike the last game, which conveniently used the R button.
This time, you're back to the NES control of using Up plus the attack button
However, you do have a backflip, which can come in handy, sometimes.
But for the most part you're ill-equipped to deal with the unfair challenges.
The distances you're expected to jump are stretched so far,
That the only way to make them is if you jump from the absolute edge,
as close as you can possibly get, without falling off.
The frustration in this game is back, full fuckin' force.
Every level is an endurance, and you'll be begging for a porkchop all the time.
The final battle with Dracula is impossible.
IM.....FUCKING POSSIBLE!
Is it bad enough Dracula turns into a devil wearing a speedo.
But on top of that, you have to hop across platforms?
Anywhere you stand, one hit will knock you off and kill you.
Dracula X was a decent game, but not a worthy successor to the masterpiece, Castlevania IV.
So the search was still on.
Now let me explain something for a minute.
I couldn't afford more than one game system at a time, plus a library of games to support it.
So I passed on Playstation in favor of the next Nintendo console.
I was sure that the same way the Super Nintendo impressed me so much,
the Nintendo 64 would come along and do the same, delivering the next, Best Castlevania.
I was ready to have my balls blown off by awesomeness, once again.
There are two games. One simply titled Castlevania, and the other, Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness.
They were both released the same year and share the same style of gameplay.
Like Mario and Zelda, Castlevania was making a leap to the third dimension.
The graphics are good, for Nintendo 64 standards. But I find them unappealing
because it's the beginning of the 3D age, and they haven't perfected it yet.
It's that awkward period between the old and the new.
Now because both these games are so similar, I'm only going to talk about this one
If I talk about every game, I'll be doing this until next year.
After all, this is the last Castlevania game I played when it was new.
Closing my personal recollection of how I experienced the series.
You get a choice between two characters: Reinhardt and Carrie
Reinhardt uses the whip. The control is awkward.
I don't know what it is, but it just seems like castlevania was made to be in 2D.
I don't know. Just for some reason, Ocarina of Time worked out so much better.
So I'm going with Carrie because at least she has a projectile, giving you a longer range.
But now I'm playing as like a schoolgirl. It doesn't look anything like Castlevania anymore
In this stage, you have to pull levers to open gates.
So when you get to lever, it says: "Operate the mechanism?" "Yes" or "No."
Why does it bother asking me this? Obviously, I want to pull the lever.
What's my other option? To just stare at the fuckin' background?
The enemies are a complete joke. A Frankenstein monster wielding a chainsaw?
What?
Skeletons on motorcycles? And this game takes place in 1852. Was there fuckin' motorcycles back then?
The music sucks. It just sucks. Think it sucks? Listen:
"Gameplay Audio"
It sucks. There is no fuckin' music.
The control is what kills it. You grab on to these steps and when you try to climb up, you just move back and forth.
You want to know what your worst enemy is in this game?
Medusa heads?
No.
Stairs?
No.
Water?
No.
This time, it's the camera itself.
You can never situate the camera at the right angle to see what the hell you're doing. It just points wherever it wants.
(Nerd angrily muttering "no")
(More frustration noises)
(Grunts with jump, then sighs)
(Even MORE Frustration Noises)
Okay, so now I'm at a part where I'm supposed to destroy a cracked wall using two separate items.
So I gotta find these two items and combine them together
so they make some kind of explosive chemical.
One's called a "Mandragora," and the other is "Nitro."
I got the Mandragora first. But now when I try to pick up the Nitro,
It's telling me I can't carry them together because it'll explode.
So, okay. I guess I got to carry them one at a time. No problem, right?
Well, I carried the Mandragora over to this crack wall, and guess what?
I just realized, I have no clue how to put this thing down.
There's no drop or throwaway option. Nothing.
I tried putting it in these garbage chutes on the wall.
But still, no luck. Then, I found these statues that talk to you.
At first, I thought they were just giving you hints, letting you know what to do with the Nitro and Mandragora.
But since I can't seem to place this stuff on the ground,
I figured I have to talk to these statues in order to even use the items at all.
Even though, that makes no sense. That's like talking to a fire hydrant so you can use dynamite to demolish a building.
But anyway, talking to the statues doesn't work either.
Turns out, I was supposed to get the Nitro first.
But now that I'm stuck holding the Mandragora, there's nothing I can do. The game's over.
What a fatal flaw! Just because you missed some object, it won't let you continue.
I don't know what else to do, so the only other thing I can think of is to start the entire game over,
and this time make sure to get the Nitro first.
Well, I did just that. I started all the way back from the beginning,
made it all the way back to the Castle Center.
So, here we are. I got the Nitro first. Now, I'm heading over to the cracked wall again.
OH, SHIT!?! It's explosive!
That means you have to walk really slow and be careful not to touch anything.
You're not even allowed to jump!
Shit!
Oooh!!!
DAMN!!!
And every time it happens, you go back to the save spot.
Oh, My God. This takes forever.
Come on!
Come ON!!!
Ugh, this is so BORING!!!
Well finally, after about a half hour of walking incredibly slow, I made it to the cracked wall.
Well, at least I have the Nitro this time.
Right?
What the fuck?
I still can't use the item? I don't know what I'm supposed to do!
*Jumps*
*BOOOOOOOOMMMM!!!!*
LIFE SUCKS