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I said whip it, whip it good.
October 28, 2007 | 11:05 PM PSTby: Matt Furtado
AMN's Review Policy: Our reviews are written for you. Our goal is to write honest, to-the-point reviews that don't waste your time. This is why we've split our reviews into four sections: What the Game's About, What's Hot, What's Not and Final Word, so that you can easily find the information you want from our reviews.
What the Game's About
Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles is a remake of Rondo of Blood. Sadly, the title never saw a release in America, but it was released in Japan, where it was widely accepted. It is 1792, and Dracula has been reincarnated by the Dark Priest Shaft. Dracula, his power regained, attacks a small village where Richter Belmont, heir to the Belmont clan, happens to live. After attacking the village, Dracula summons his minions to kidnap Richter's girlfriend, Annette, and the young Maria Renard. With the famous Belmont whip in hand, it's time to head out and save the day. Night has fallen and the hunt is about to begin.
What's Hot
Castlevania has always been about enjoying a solid gameplay experience and this title is no different. Players will take control of Richter Belmont through a total of nine stages where you will encounter tons of enemies and of course the boss battle at the end of the stage. Earlier on in the game you'll battle simple enemies such as bats or your basic everyday walking skeleton. As the game gets increasingly more difficult (which it does very quickly), you'll fight bone throwing enemies, imps, and a variety of powerful minions. To take out these enemies you'll have to use your trusty whip, or doves when playing as Maria, plus a secondary weapon. The secondary weapons will vary from axes, crucifixes, musical notes, and a whole lot of others. Outside of using these weapons for standard attacks, you can also summon special abilities which will vary with each weapon. When using Holy Water for example, the special attack will cause it to rain across the stage and inflict damage on every enemy or boss. These are nice additions because the game is among the most difficult games out there.
Each stage offers unique and difficult challenges as the game progresses. Each stage will have alternate routes that you can travel through and this will allow you to discover some hidden items such as musical scores and other hidden treasures scattered throughout the game. The level design is basic for the most part, but this lets players pick up the title at any given time and not get lost in the madness of a complex level.
The first thing that people will notice is the unique graphical style. Instead of using the traditional 2D animated sprites, which is common among Castlevania titles, the developers instead went with a 2D-3D mix. The 3D graphics give the title an interesting look and style. Although they don't stress the PSP's power, the graphics are sharp on the screen and are highly detailed. Outside of the few cut-scenes, you won't see the game in a full 3D view, which is a good thing in this case.
Outside of Richter Belmont, players will also be able to use Maria Renard. At the start of the game she isn't playable, because she is being held captive by Dracula. You can find her very early in the game but she is nicely hidden. The best part of playing as Maria is her unique attack style. Instead of using weapons, Maria uses animals. Her basic attack is a dove and then her secondary weapons will range from turtles, cats, and musical notes. She is also much faster than Richter is and makes some stages much easier.
In case the remastered version of Rondo of Blood isn't enough for you, there are two secret games hidden within. The first is the original Rondo of Blood and then the all-time classic Castlevania title, Symphony of the Night. Symphony of the Night alone is worth purchasing this game.
What's Not
One thing that may turn off some more casual gamers is the game's very high difficulty. This is one the most hardcore Castlevania titles on the market, and the difficulty will beat down the non-committed players. Be warned that you will die a lot when playing this game. There is nothing wrong with a challenging game but for some this game may push you to your limits.
Outside of the high difficulty, the game's checkpoint system is very unforgiving. The checkpoints will vary in each stage, and it is impossible to know when you crossed one without dying. Often you'll gain access into new stages only to find out that neither of them were checkpoints. Without a definitive checkpoint system, the game becomes more tedious when you start dying every few minutes. This isn't a huge flaw, though.
One thing that more recent Castlevania players may notice is the lack of the ability to backslide so you can dodge enemy attacks. This will make battles harder since you can't quickly adjust yourself and get out of danger fast. This will make battles harder and have you think more carefully before running into a close range battle hoping for the best.
In case you plan on picking this title up only for Symphony of the Night, you'll be sad to hear that you must first unlock the title. In order to unlock it, you must complete a very interesting mission. This may disappoint some but at least you get to play through a great title before unlocking a true classic. Also note that the original Rondo of the Blood and Symphony of the Night will not fill the entire PSP screen but will instead be cropped.
Final Word
Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles is a great compilation of some classic Castlevania titles. The remake of Rondo of Blood is extremely well done and will push gamers to their limits with its high difficulty. This title is great for Castlevania veterans and even newcomers who don't mind a good challenge. With a solid remake of Rondo of Blood and Symphony of the Night rolled into one package this is a title that PSP owners should checkout.
What the Game's About
Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles is a remake of Rondo of Blood. Sadly, the title never saw a release in America, but it was released in Japan, where it was widely accepted. It is 1792, and Dracula has been reincarnated by the Dark Priest Shaft. Dracula, his power regained, attacks a small village where Richter Belmont, heir to the Belmont clan, happens to live. After attacking the village, Dracula summons his minions to kidnap Richter's girlfriend, Annette, and the young Maria Renard. With the famous Belmont whip in hand, it's time to head out and save the day. Night has fallen and the hunt is about to begin.
What's Hot
Castlevania has always been about enjoying a solid gameplay experience and this title is no different. Players will take control of Richter Belmont through a total of nine stages where you will encounter tons of enemies and of course the boss battle at the end of the stage. Earlier on in the game you'll battle simple enemies such as bats or your basic everyday walking skeleton. As the game gets increasingly more difficult (which it does very quickly), you'll fight bone throwing enemies, imps, and a variety of powerful minions. To take out these enemies you'll have to use your trusty whip, or doves when playing as Maria, plus a secondary weapon. The secondary weapons will vary from axes, crucifixes, musical notes, and a whole lot of others. Outside of using these weapons for standard attacks, you can also summon special abilities which will vary with each weapon. When using Holy Water for example, the special attack will cause it to rain across the stage and inflict damage on every enemy or boss. These are nice additions because the game is among the most difficult games out there.
Each stage offers unique and difficult challenges as the game progresses. Each stage will have alternate routes that you can travel through and this will allow you to discover some hidden items such as musical scores and other hidden treasures scattered throughout the game. The level design is basic for the most part, but this lets players pick up the title at any given time and not get lost in the madness of a complex level.
The first thing that people will notice is the unique graphical style. Instead of using the traditional 2D animated sprites, which is common among Castlevania titles, the developers instead went with a 2D-3D mix. The 3D graphics give the title an interesting look and style. Although they don't stress the PSP's power, the graphics are sharp on the screen and are highly detailed. Outside of the few cut-scenes, you won't see the game in a full 3D view, which is a good thing in this case.
Outside of Richter Belmont, players will also be able to use Maria Renard. At the start of the game she isn't playable, because she is being held captive by Dracula. You can find her very early in the game but she is nicely hidden. The best part of playing as Maria is her unique attack style. Instead of using weapons, Maria uses animals. Her basic attack is a dove and then her secondary weapons will range from turtles, cats, and musical notes. She is also much faster than Richter is and makes some stages much easier.
In case the remastered version of Rondo of Blood isn't enough for you, there are two secret games hidden within. The first is the original Rondo of Blood and then the all-time classic Castlevania title, Symphony of the Night. Symphony of the Night alone is worth purchasing this game.
What's Not
One thing that may turn off some more casual gamers is the game's very high difficulty. This is one the most hardcore Castlevania titles on the market, and the difficulty will beat down the non-committed players. Be warned that you will die a lot when playing this game. There is nothing wrong with a challenging game but for some this game may push you to your limits.
Outside of the high difficulty, the game's checkpoint system is very unforgiving. The checkpoints will vary in each stage, and it is impossible to know when you crossed one without dying. Often you'll gain access into new stages only to find out that neither of them were checkpoints. Without a definitive checkpoint system, the game becomes more tedious when you start dying every few minutes. This isn't a huge flaw, though.
One thing that more recent Castlevania players may notice is the lack of the ability to backslide so you can dodge enemy attacks. This will make battles harder since you can't quickly adjust yourself and get out of danger fast. This will make battles harder and have you think more carefully before running into a close range battle hoping for the best.
In case you plan on picking this title up only for Symphony of the Night, you'll be sad to hear that you must first unlock the title. In order to unlock it, you must complete a very interesting mission. This may disappoint some but at least you get to play through a great title before unlocking a true classic. Also note that the original Rondo of the Blood and Symphony of the Night will not fill the entire PSP screen but will instead be cropped.
Final Word
Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles is a great compilation of some classic Castlevania titles. The remake of Rondo of Blood is extremely well done and will push gamers to their limits with its high difficulty. This title is great for Castlevania veterans and even newcomers who don't mind a good challenge. With a solid remake of Rondo of Blood and Symphony of the Night rolled into one package this is a title that PSP owners should checkout.
November 20, 2009
