The Dracula X Chronicles

[DAT IDIOT!]

CASTLEVANIA : THE DRACULA X CHRONICLES

 

DEVELOPER: KONAMI

PUBLISHER: KONAMI

PLAYERS: 1

PLATFORM: PLAYSTATION PORTABLE

RELEASE DATE: OCTOBER 23, 2007 (USA)

 

 

For those among us who have played and loved Castlevania, you will be delighted to know that Konami is bringing one of its hallmark franchise on to the PSP. The Dracula X Chronicles will contain the enhanced remakes of the Castlevania episode Rondo Of Blood and one of the most remarkable games in videogame history Symphony Of The Night.

 

1UP PREVIEW

 

Everyone who enjoys classic video games should be giddy about Konami's upcoming Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles for PSP. It marks the long-awaited arrival of one of the series' finest chapters in the U.S. -- its October 23 release date falls 14 years after the original game's arrival on Japan's PC Engine Duo console, very nearly to the day -- and promises to be far more than a simple re-release.

Certainly a stand-alone copy of Dracula X: Rondo of Blood would spark plenty of interest based on the game's reputation alone. But since simple shovelware is verboten on PSP, we're getting a deluxe package that also includes a 3D remake of the game and an enhanced port of its sequel, PlayStation classic Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.

 

We spent a few hours of hands-on time with the remake's first two stages back when the collection was first announced, but now we've had a chance to appreciate the full package.

 

Our experience with the early portions of the game hold true for subsequent levels. Yes, levels; unlike modern Castlevania titles, Dracula X is divided into individual stages -- ostensibly seven, but actually quite a few more than that. Straddling the divide between the series' old-school roots and its modern exploration-based style, Dracula X's levels are packed with secrets. Not just simple secrets like meat hidden in the walls, either, but four full, hidden levels, a few unspoken objectives, and alternate routes through most levels.

 

The remake is closely patterned after its source material: Level layouts are translated directly from 2D bitmaps into polygons, monsters appear in the same places and exhibit the same behavior, and all the secrets remain the same. Well, most secrets; the remake takes a few liberties to change things up to keep the handful of gamers who went to the trouble and expense of importing the PCE version on their toes. (You can read more about these changes on page two, or skip it to avoid being spoiled.)

 

The most important question, of course, is how well the remake plays. The move to 3D -- even if it's a strictly visual upgrade -- isn't always kind to 2D games, and Dracula X is renowned for its crisp controls. Fortunately, Dracula X's new rendition feels pleasantly similar to its source material. The overall pacing is slightly slower, and Richter is a bit more responsive than he used to be. This makes the game slightly easier in certain places, although it's definitely no cakewalk.

 

The front-end interface is carried over faithfully as well -- like the original, you're limited to three save slots. Your progress is recorded automatically as you advance through the stages, with each new discovery and every conquest counting toward your total percentage. You can still buy hints for fighting bosses, and you may freely return to completed levels to hunt for unexplored routes and unchallenged bosses. It's also possible to visit the music player to listen to collected music or to reassign different musical selections to specific stages. The remake's music has been thoroughly remixed, but if you prefer the original arrangements you can use those -- once you find them.

 

Yes, plenty of new things have been sprinkled throughout the remake to encourage replayability and feed the obsessive-compulsive habits of fans. Fortunately things have been toned down a bit from Portrait of Ruin's extraordinary list of OCD-driven optional tasks; for the most part, Chronicles' additions consist of collectible music tracks hidden in random candles throughout the game.

 

You'll also have to unlock the two original games before you can play them. For the most part, these ports are almost entirely unchanged from their original incarnations. Almost.

 

So what's new? We don't want to spoil everything, but if you want Dracula X Chronicles to be a complete fresh experience (as much as two decade-old games can be fresh) you'll probably want to stop reading now.

 

Dracula X: Rondo of Blood

 

The original PC Engine Duo game has changed the least of anything in the collection. It's a faithful port of the original, with the only new addition we noticed being the subtitles over the cinematics. (Happily, the original German-language opening remains in German.)

 

It's a decent port, although the version we played still seemed a bit rough in places; sound effects were off, music lagged at times and colors looked way less vibrant than we remember. But that's probably no fault of the game's: The PSP screen makes static images look beautiful but doesn't deal so well with tiny 2D objects in motion, especially in areas with high contrast. We're hopeful that video output function on the new PSP Slim will make this a moot point.

 

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

 

The U.S. version of Symphony is a beloved masterpiece of terrible voice acting; realizing this, Konami has totally overhauled the voice acting along with the English script. That's right: "Die, monster! You don't belong in this world!" is no more. Main character Alucard no longer sounds like a petulant middle-aged man whose lines were recorded in a bathroom stall. Maria Renard actually sounds like a young woman!

 

In fact, the game's biggest changes revolve around Maria. As producer Koji Igarashi mentioned to use a few weeks ago, Maria's sprite has been completely redrawn, and she's now an unlockable playable character. Oddly, Maria's old stiff-legged sprites are used throughout the game's story scenes, except in one particular encounter where she stands in as a boss.

 

Maria was previously playable in the terrible Saturn port of the game, but everything from her controls to her animations to her weapons felt off, and poorly-considered. This time around, she's ditched the kung-fu fighting in favor of her repertoire of moves from Rondo of Blood. For her her basic attack, she flings up to three small owls which fly forward and arc upward before returning; her subweapons are grown-up versions of her original Chinese zodiac beasts. These have slightly different effects -- the pheonix, for instance, is no longer a pair of tiny birds that quickly dart up at 45-degree angles but rather a pair of fiery wings that mark the same path but last longer.

 

Her triangle button "item crashes" have changed as well; for instance, the turtle now hovers on screen for several seconds, siphoning energy from every enemy -- then transfers that energy to Maria's life meter when it's done. This is quite handy given her fragility; she can only endure four or five hits before it's game over. Maria is unique in that she can equip two different subweapons at a time, swapping between them with the press of the circle button. Picking up a new subweapon replaces the inactive one rather than the choice currently in action. Interestingly, her "shadow Maria" skill returns as a separate subweapon which can only be activated as an item crash.

 

Her new sprite animations are a huge improvement over the awkward stride she possessed in the Saturn port; her hair and clothes seem more dynamic, and her movements are more natural and fluid. The one oddity is that she appears to have inexplicably stubbly little arms when she runs, but even so it's an all-around improvement.

 

Beyond Maria and the new script, we didn't notice any other significant changes to Symphony. None of the weapons or areas seem to have made the transition from Saturn, which is just as well seeing that they sucked. The game supports bilingual voices for those who like to fuss about "authenticity" and retains the Japanese voice work that was used on PlayStation.

 

Dracula X Chronicles

 

Ultimately, the Rondo remake is where fans will find the most changes. Beyond the new look, sound, feel and distribution of collectible items, the 3D recreation should keep players on their toes. The game's primary secret, the four captive maidens in need of rescue, has been overhauled. While Maria is easy enough to track down -- and she returns as a playable character once rescued -- the others require a bit of new exploration and some clever thinking before you can uncover their hiding places.

 

A few new puzzle elements have been added to the game. Mysterious red skeleton walls and indestructible ice crystals block certain paths and guard collectibles, and the clock tower has a maddening (and optional) timed switch puzzle. Oh, and then there are the new bosses -- one immediately before the final showdown with Dracula, and one that appears right when you thought you had bested a certain enemy.

 

Overall, though, the game remains untouched -- Igarashi's team seems to have good instincts for when not to mess with a successful formula. And with the original version on hand, even purists who fear cold, hard polygons should be satisfied when the game arrives next month.

 

[CarbonCore]

Castlevania on PSP ? YAYAYAYAY

 

Both Down of Sorrow and Portrait of Ruin were terrific on DS. Now all we need is a true 3D Castlevania on PS3 like Lament of Innocence on PS2.

[MarketTantrik]

Castlevanie : SotN on XBLA rocks.

[CarbonCore]

I have SotN on PSP . Brilliant game and worthy of a remake.