Castlevania Chronicles
From Castlevania Wiki - Forbidden Library
Akumajō Dracula is the name of the 1993 Castlevania game released in Japan on the Sharp X68000 home computer system. Due to the X68000 not being released outside Japan, this game was never released outside of Japan, either.
Castlevania Chronicles is the North American and European PlayStation remake of the X68000 game. Released in 2001, it features an Arrange Mode with rendered cutscenes, improved graphics, and different sprites for Simon Belmont and Dracula. It was released in Japan as Castlevania Chronicle: Akumajō Dracula.
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Story
In the year 1691, Transylvania enjoyed a century of peace thanks to the legendary hero, Christopher Belmont, a vampire hunter who vanquished Count Dracula one hundred years earlier with a holy whip named Vampire Killer. The people of a Transylvanian village were enjoying their fortune with an Easter celebration in honor of Christ's resurrection, but every one hundred years, the power of Christ weakened, and the hearts of men turned black as they yearned for chaos and destruction. During this time, they sought to revive Count Dracula so he may spread chaos and ruination throughout the world. While the Easter celebration carried on with a grand carnival, evil men gathered in a monastery at the edge of the village and conducted a black mass to resurrect Count Dracula.
The men succeeded in bringing their master back in 1691. A bolt of lightning enveloped the monastery where they held the rite, signaling the resurrection of Count Dracula. When the Count returned, his Castle, which had fallen one hundred years prior, reappeared in Transylvania, and his legions of loyal minions reformed.
Simon Belmont, the descendant of Christopher Belmont, knew that as a member of the Belmont Clan and the current wielder of the Vampire Killer whip, it was his duty to bring peace and stability back to Transylvania by destroying Dracula. The Count was said to grow in strength with each resurrection, but Simon pressed on. He took the very same whip Christopher used to kill Dracula one hundred years before and entered the Castle alone. Simon proved himself a mighty vampire hunter by withstanding the monsters and traps of Dracula's Castle, and in the end, destroying Count Dracula himself.
Though Simon prevailed in ridding the world of the scourge of Dracula, he was terribly wounded by Count Dracula in the process.
Gameplay
Since the X68000 version is based of the original Akumajō Dracula game, there are some very familiar parts to those who played the original. However, there are many updates including stages that have been redesigned. Items taken from games released after the original have been added to make for more variety.
The PlayStation remake added even more, such as brand new rendered cutscenes, new character designs by Ayami Kojima, the character designer from Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, a new sprite design for the main character, enhanced music and a difficulty selector. Players can choose to play an "Arranged" version of the game with all of the new features intact, or play the X68000 version as it was originally presented. The X68000 gameplay on the English-speaking versions of the Sony Playstation port of the game, translates the name to "Castlevania".
Castlevania Chronicles plays generally the same as its predecessors, with players going through a series of straightforward stages with a boss at the end of each. Simon Belmont has all of his original sub-weapons along with a laurel that has been added, which can restore an amount of Simon's life. Jumps can be controlled in mid-air, and Simon can whip diagonally and downward while he is aloft.
Regional Variations
- The American and European versions contain an interview with Koji Igarashi (IGA) and a gallery featuring artwork by Ayami Kojima from Chronicles and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. The latter images were already featured in the Sega Saturn version of Symphony. The art of the Succubus is censored, since her chest in the original is topless.
- In Arrange Mode on the US and European versions, the player can save the game at stage 24, the battle with Dracula.
- In Original Mode on the US and European versions, a code must be entered to reach the sound hardware selection screen.
- In the US and European versions, the Japanese voices of the dolls in stage 17 have been completely removed.
Trivia
- In stage 9, Count Orlok from the movie Nosferatu appears in the background, frozen in a block of ice.
- In stage 11, a giant statue of the Greek goddess Athena appears.
- In stage 114 (fifth play through on block 6-3), a cartoon image of Simon will appear smoking a cigarette accompanied by Japanese text in one of the background mirrors. The text translates to "Here's Fake Simon!". [2]
- In stage 21, the last section has a giant painting in the background of a field with mountains. For the original X68000 game, the painting will reflect one of the four seasons, depending what the computer's internal clock date is set at. For Castlevania Chronicles, since the PlayStation doesn't have an internal clock, an "Extra Option" menu can be accessed where the player can set the date. When the game is turned off, however, the date information does not save.