The attraction of Konami’s lately launched Castlevania assortment is, in principle, that it’s a brand new solution to play three meaty Castlevania adventures from the Nintendo DS period (Castlevania: Daybreak of Sorrow, Portrait of Destroy, and Order of Ecclesia). However the spotlight for me, an avowed and longtime hater of the 1987 recreation Haunted Citadel, is one thing new: Haunted Citadel Revisited, a remake of Konami’s terrible try to deliver Simon Belmont’s battle in opposition to Dracula to arcades.
Konami launched the unique Haunted Citadel a couple of yr after the unique Castlevania got here to Nintendo’s Famicom Disk System in 1986. A reimagining of Simon’s unique journey, Haunted Citadel sends our hero on a mission to rescue his new bride Selena from her kidnapper Dracula. Armed with a whip and different collectible weapons, Simon faces acquainted threats like Medusa, Frankenstein’s monster, and a large rock golem.
The unique Haunted Citadel did have a number of issues going for it — particularly giant sprites and catchy music. However Haunted Citadel was punishingly troublesome, awkward to manage, and poorly animated. The unique Castlevania was difficult, too, however Haunted Citadel’s problem spikes have been brutal and sometimes unfair, seemingly designed to steal quarters from harmless younger gamers who cherished the NES unique and have been lured in by fancy graphics. (This harmless younger participant is me.)
Haunted Citadel Revisited takes the essential framework of the unique Haunted Citadel and transforms it right into a traditional Castlevania motion side-scroller. Developer M2 and Keisuke Koga, who designed Castlevania: The Journey Rebirth, a slick remake of the primary Recreation Boy Castlevania recreation, are accountable for turning Haunted Citadel round in 2024. The developer has streamlined the issue, redesigned ranges and enemy encounters, and given Haunted Citadel a serious graphical glow-up with Revisited. Simon is now properly animated and far simpler to manage.
On the sport’s regular problem setting, Haunted Citadel Revisited is fairly simple to finish, partly because of beneficiant checkpoints, continues, and an possibility to pick ranges from the primary menu. There’s a tough problem setting, too, which remixes enemy layouts and introduces new enemy variants that aren’t within the regular setting. The onerous model is extremely enjoyable — difficult, however not punitively troublesome.
The largest improve in Haunted Citadel Revisited is the sport’s bosses. They’ve all been reimagined ultimately, however two of the (six) boss fights stand out among the many relaxation: the Stained Glass Knight and the ultimate battle in opposition to Dracula himself. I received’t spoil them, as a result of they’re price experiencing for your self, however they’re now ingenious and thrilling spectacles.
M2 has even given Simon’s whip an improve. Like different traditional Castlevania video games, Simon can energy up his iconic weapon from normal leather-based bull whip to morning star by amassing orbs. Haunted Citadel Revisited provides an additional layer to this; As soon as Simon’s whip is upgraded, any orbs he collects will give him a short lived energy up, giving it higher attain and a wider hurtbox. It’s a small element, however it provides a way of urgency to play — you’ll need to get essentially the most out of your super-charged whip whilst you can.
Haunted Citadel Revisited will not be the largest attract Konami’s new Castlevania Dominus Assortment, however for fellow Castlevania lovers who performed and despised the unique Haunted Citadel, the remake is price taking part in. It has remodeled a blight on the franchise right into a fresh-feeling, traditional Castlevania recreation, the likes of which we haven’t seen in a few years.
Castlevania Dominus Assortment was launched Aug. 27 on Nintendo Change, PlayStation 5, Home windows PC, and Xbox Collection X. The sport was reviewed utilizing a pre-release obtain code supplied by Nintendo. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These don’t affect editorial content material, although Vox Media could earn commissions for merchandise bought by way of affiliate hyperlinks. You’ll find extra details about gamerjive’s ethics coverage right here.
