Castlevania Anniversary Collection (2019) [PC]

“I saw the Count lying within the box upon the earth, some of which the rude falling from the cart had scattered over him. He was deathly pale, just like a waxen image, and the red eyes glared with the horrible vindictive look which I knew so well.”
-Bram Stoker

 “The following is a contributor post by the Teal Time Mage.”

Out of all the videogame characters one can think of, Count Dracula is one of the very few that needs no introduction. Films, comics, short stories, and even videogames have utilized the iconic image that is the Vampire King. Although Bram Stoker’s novella was not the first fictional foray into the nosferatu sub-genre (Irish author Sheridan Le Fanu previously pioneered the idea with Carmilla), it remains one of the most influential works in pop-culture that launched vampires into the collective unconscious. How is it then that the famous Count permeated himself within the videogame world? To answer that question, we need to travel back over 30 years in time to re-discover one of the greatest sagas in gaming: Castlevania!

Konami launched Castlevania as a sort of homage to the Universal Classic Monster films of the 20’s and 30’s. An overall simple concept, you enter Dracula’s Castle in Transylvania, defeat a legion of monsters including mummies, werewolves, and even Frankenstein’s monster to ascend the dreaded keep and face off against the Prince of the Night. This formula is repeated throughout many games and across numerous systems ranging from the original Nintendo to the PlayStation 3. Yet, I think the repetition is part of its charm.

Unlike other videogame series at the time, Castlevania did not revolve around just one protagonist but an entire family’s worth throughout the ages. Enter the Belmont Clan: a highly trained and specially equipped family of vampire hunters utilizing a holy whip (appropriately named “The Vampire Killer”) to fight back against the creatures of the night. Equal parts Van Helsing and Arnold Schwarzenegger, this cadre of monster hunters protect the world from Drac and his undead army.

I find it quite endearing that after several years in obscurity, Castlevania is making its triumphant return to the mainstream video gaming audience; this has been facilitated by the recent release of Adi Shankar’s Netflix series and the release of Bloodstained by Koji Igarashi (the mind behind Castlevania: Symphony of the Night) which I and many other like-minded gamers backed on Kickstarter, serving as a true successor to the franchise.

In embracing the modern popularity, I recommend playing through the original games in the Castlevania library to get the full enjoyment out of the numerous homages to the legendary Konami series. Therefore, I was overjoyed when they announced Castlevania Anniversary Collection for the PC; I purchased my copy from Steam and boy, did I have fun revisiting all of my favorite games from the series.

Starting from the very first iteration in the series, I ran the gaming gauntlet through the original Nintendo trilogy, the Game Boy spinoffs, and the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis exclusives. But the question remains: are these games as good today as they were back then? Let me grab a bag of P.B. Crisps and a 6 pack of Kool-Aid Bursts and we can dive right into it.

Visuals: 9/10

The pixelated sprites are still timeless in this anniversary collection; from Simon walking up to to the gates of Castle Dracula to Trevor standing firm amidst the rubble of a ruined altar, Castlevania demonstrates why it’s one of the greatest franchises ever made. Before the days of FMV cutscenes and motion capture, videogames had to rely on the simple sprite animations to tell the story, and every game in this library does that and more. Watching the opening introduction of Castlevania 3: Dracula’s Curse and seeing the film-roll presentation, you almost feel as if you’re watching a horror movie play out on your Nintendo!

The monster designs are gorgeously grotesque, featuring a lot of Universal Classics: Frankenstein, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Mummy, and last but not least Count Dracula! The Medusa Boss fight from Super Castlevania 4 for the Super Nintendo was one of my personal favorites for how lush and eye-catching the details were on the snake animation working in tandem with the humanoid upper torso.

Likewise, the stage designs get more elaborate and intricate with each subsequent game; Bloodlines for the Sega Genesis had a really fun level in Greece where you use the water’s reflection below your character in order to navigate through the first section of the level. The final stage set in England was particularly surreal in that the middle section of the stage was off-sync, forcing you to use your wits and timing when traversing the hazardous environment. The overall tone of horror, isolation, and scaling danger makes for an enjoyable play style that veterans and newcomers alike will enjoy.

Audio: 10/10

The music in Castlevania is where the series really shines. While maybe not reaching the level of Super Mario Bros or Legend of Zelda in terms of musical icons, I firmly believe that Castlevania still boasts one of the greatest soundtracks in video gaming history. Credit goes to Japanese composer Kinuyu Yamashita with her hauntingly beautiful soundtrack from the original game, which boasted the memorable ‘Vampire Killer’ theme that would set the paradigm for the rest of the series.

By that same logic, Bloodlines was the first Castlevania game to be scored by the legendary Michiru Yamane who went on to compose such iconic Konami games as Rocket Knight Adventures, the later Suikoden series, and most recently Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night. One can hear the primordial musical stylings of Yamane in Bloodlines; my favorite tracks were ‘Iron-Blue Intention’ and ‘Reincarnated Souls’ which play during Stages 4 and 1 respectively.

It’s no big surprise that Yamashita’s and Yamane’s early work paved the way for the epicness that is the Castlevania: Symphony of the Night soundtrack; the OST would blend Yamane’s love of both classical and heavy metal (the PS1 game is sadly missing from this collection but you can still find it on the PSN). As such, it’s highly recommended for gamers old and new to sample all the earlier entries on this collection which have reverberated throughout the Castlevania series.

Gameplay: 8/10

The traditional side-scrolling level design of Castlevania is in this collection to full effect. Whip attacks are your only saving grace in an otherwise harrowing trek through Dracula’s Castle; you’ll face falling platforms, unending waves of Zombies, and the dreaded flying Medusa heads trying to knock you to your doom. This can be mind-numbingly difficult to the point of rage quit, but makes it all the more worthwhile to overcome.

The tried and true sub-weapons can be utilized for whatever you need in a pinch: crosses can be used for enemies ahead, while axes can be used for aerial enemies. These artifacts are powered by hearts that can be found from whipping candles or defeated enemies. The whip can be upgraded 3 times, but as is the case with Bloodlines and the Gameboy games, you can reach a higher level of whip busting that is completely broken but at the cost of losing should you ever suffer a hit of damage.

The boss fights in this game are both frustrating and satisfying at the same time in that it takes a lot of trial and error to get the timing and patterns down pat, but you feel such a level of accomplishment felling mummies, Frankenstein’s monster, and even Death himself. Dracula is by far the most epic boss fight in this series, as he goes from routine bloodsucker to giant demon juggernaut without any break in between.

The most enduring charm about the Castlevania series is that it changes very little in-between a lot of the games. Sure, it switches to the occasional Action-RPG for Simon’s Quest, but the whip-brandishing mechanics, sub-weapons, and side-scrolling are universal across all the entries in this collection, giving you not only familiarity with your playthroughs but also customization for whatever type of system you want to try out, ranging from the original Nintendo to the Gameboy, and even the Sega Genesis and SNES.

Accessibility: 7/10

The real issues with Castlevania Anniversary Collection lie in the slow mechanics. While some enjoy the original’s control scheme of timing your whip attacks properly for effectiveness, others have found it slow and cumbersome with maneuvering; this is especially true with ascending staircases as you have to direct the controls in a diagonal motion, otherwise you could drop off the ledge for an instant “Game Over”. This may come as an overwhelming burden to new players just coming into the fold but fortunately, Super Castlevania 4 does polish the classic formula with tighter controls, more fluid whipping mechanics, and even the ability to “whip sling” (how a whip can effectively function as a nunchuck is anyone’s guess). The Super Nintendo entry gives newcomers a more enjoyable first foray in vampire hunting.

Speaking of slow and clunky mechanics, you’ll probably find no better (or worse) example of sluggish controls than The Castlevania Adventure for the Gameboy. Even veterans of the series will find this game needlessly tedious as Christopher Belmont saunters like molasses through the darkened corridors whose only means of advancing is by climbing a rope (apparently Drac slashed the budget for stairs to be put in this time around). The second portable entry in the collection, Belmont’s Revenge fixes a lot of the problems of its predecessor by speeding up the walking animation, keeping the whip upgrades past 1 point of damage, and even adding a “slide” mechanic for descending down the ropes. Most interestingly of all, the portable sequel offers players a chance to choose where they wish to play through from a selection of 4 different castles, giving you the freedom of exploration akin to that of the Mega Man series. These changes make Belmont’s Revenge the superior of the Gameboy games in the Castlevania Anniversary, and worth a playthrough that is short and sweet.

Mechanics aside, Castlevania: Simon’s Quest is perhaps the most off-putting of the series. This is due to the sheer amount of searching every nook and cranny in the game relying on pure luck and the oftentimes infuriatingly ambiguous advice from villagers; Konami doubled down on this premise by adding a time limit that switches day to night as well as bringing Simon Belmont closer to death, which triggers the “bad” ending. Indeed, in order to get a perfect playthrough, you would need to study many speedruns and walkthroughs to obtain the “good” ending. For the gamers looking for a unique challenge, Simon’s Quest is for you, but the majority may want to pass on this laborious sequel in favor of other entries in the collection.

Replayability: 8/10

While beating any of the games in this collection is a herculean accomplishment, there is an added bonus in playing them over again. The more traditional replays net you a harder difficulty that picks up with you carrying the same sub-weapons as you had when you beat the game on your first outing. Other titles give you more variety in playable characters. Castlevania 3: Dracula’s Curse, for instance, gives you the option of recruiting 3 additional side characters: Sypha Belnades with her spellcasting, Grant Dynasty with his wily acrobatics, and Alucard with his transforming abilities. This gives the player four possible endings that you can play and replay to your heart’s content, with the ability to swap out characters to meet your style of play.

Castlevania Bloodlines has a similar style of replay in that you can play through the entire game as the tried and true whip character John Morris, and then replay it with Eric Lecarde, who uses the lance with a vastly different play style (the pole vault technique is especially satisfying in that it can help you traverse obstacles and serve as powerful aerial attack against enemies). Newcomers will find the variety in the latter releases quite refreshing compared to the more uniform entries in the collection.

Challenge: 9/10

I can’t emphasize enough that Castlevania is a challenging series. From treacherous platforming and nigh unbeatable bosses to relentless grinding and exploration, this game series will punish you. Back in the ’90s, I’d be so desperate to beat the games that I combed through the pages of Nintendo Power to find the passwords needed to skip to the end.

Thankfully, players for Castlevania Anniversary won’t need to take shortcuts: this collection features an instant save state from which you can reload and quick save at a moment’s notice. This function allows you to undo a quick mistake such as falling into a pit or dying from an enemy boss, making the trials at the very end at least doable for any gamer.

Uniqueness: 10/10

Konami definitely cornered the gaming market on monster horror with its Castlevania series being just as fresh now as it was then. Nowadays, there are plenty of survival horror games as well as the classic monsters, but Castlevania was definitely one of the greatest gaming icons that made such a sub-genre possible. The blending of elaborate stage settings, grotesque monsters, and enchanting music is one formula that videogames have been fascinated with for the last 30 years, and it is for that very reason that any gamer young or old should pick this collection up.

On the bonus side, Castlevania Anniversary Collection comes with the first U.S. release of Kid Dracula, a Mega Man clone where players take on the role of a younger Alucard. In lieu of a physical copy, I was given a digital lore book for the game featuring artwork, chronology, and even an interview with Adi Shankar about the current Netflix series. Bundled together, this makes for an especially enticing collection you can sink your fangs into.

My Personal Grade: 9.5/10

The wonder and awe I felt first playing Castlevania in the late ’80s came rushing back to me with this collection. True, I may not have fond memories of all the entries on this list, but the new save state function helps me traverse an otherwise painstakingly difficult gaming experience, which I am grateful for. There’s plenty of new supplemental material to help pad out the content in this collection that any fan of the series would want to own. Hopefully, with the success of Castlevania Anniversary Collection Konami would perhaps release a second volume with the PlayStation or Gameboy Advance titles from the series’ exhaustive library… but, like Dracula’s resurrection, only time will tell.

Aggregated Score: 9.0

The Teal Time Mage lives at a fixed point in time that is set between 1991 and 1997. Outside of his time vortex of nostalgia, he writes horror short stories, cosplays, and coordinates for various charity groups. Find him on Twitter @ArosElric, on Facebook @ArosElricCosplay, and on Final Fantasy XIV’s Cactuar Server under the name “Aros Erlic”.

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