Super Castlevania IV
From Castlevania Wiki - Forbidden Library
| Super Castlevania IV | |
|---|---|
| |
| Developer(s) | Konami |
| Publisher(s) | Konami |
| Designer(s) | Masahiro Ueno (director) Souji Taro (Composer) Masanori Adachi (Composer) |
| Released | SNES (JP) October 31, 1991 (NA) December 1991 (EU) November 23, 1992 Virtual Console (JP) December 2, 2006 (NA) December 25, 2006 (EU) December 29, 2006 |
| Genre | Action Platformer |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: E10+ |
| Platform(s) | Super Famicom, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Virtual Console |
| Media | 8-megabit cartridge (Super NES) |
Super Castlevania IV (known as Akumajō Dracula in Japan) is the first of two Castlevania games released on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System console. It is a retelling of the original Castlevania; Simon Belmont's first foray into Dracula's Castle, while featuring new stages (several outside of Castlevania), 16-bit graphics, and a soundtrack with remixes of previous Castlevania scores as well entirely new pieces.
Contents |
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
Keeping in line with the previous console title, Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse, the eleven stages are divided into locales both outside and inside Dracula's Castle. The controls are more flexible in comparison to previous titles; Super Castlevania IV introduces the ability to attack in eight different directions instead of just a single forward attack. Whip brandishing - holding in the attack button in order to fling the whip around to ward off enemy projectiles - made its debut. Simon can change direction in mid-air as well as walk forward while crouching. Platforming is further enhanced with Simon being able to latch his whip onto bat-shaped hooks, enabling him to swing over pits and other traps.
Simon Belmont's arsenal is the same as it was in Castlevania - he is equipped with the Vampire Killer that, with enough hearts, can be upgraded twice into longer and more powerful chain maces. The sub-weapons from Castlevania return: holy water, cross boomerang, knife, stop watch, and axe. Only one sub-weapon can be carried at a time, and each cost a certain amount of hearts. Items such as hearts, money bags, 1-ups, double-and-triple shots, and pot roasts also return.
As a retelling of the original Castlevania, Super Castlevania IV introduces new enemies, stages, and bosses. Unlike Castlevania, which starts Simon right outside the walls of Dracula's Castle, Simon must travel through the countryside and other haunted buildings before reaching the castle itself. New enemies are included, such as possessed portraits and disembodied horse heads, as well as others taken from previous Castlevania titles, such as the Imps from Castlevania III. While some familiar bosses like Frankenstein's Monster and The Mummy return, the roster introduces new boss enemies such as dual ghostly dancing fencers, an undead knight, and the Hydra, as well as later series staples, Slogra and Gaibon.
Graphics
Super Castlevania IV displays effects such as multi-scrolling backgrounds, animated objects in the distance, and very diverse colors and complex shapes in its levels. It carries a darker, more eccentric mood than prior games in the series. Stage 2, for example, features multiple storm clouds that zip by, and later an animated river path in the background and foreground that spills waterfalls. Additionally, Super Castlevania IV was the first Castlevania game to use the Super NES' Mode 7 feature. Its effects can be seen in Stage 4, a level which seems to twist and turn in both 2-D and 3-D throughout. Enemies and objects have many animations, such as the treasure boxes in the Treasury.
Music
Super Castlevania IV's score is known for creating one of the darkest and most foreboding atmospheres in the series, along with accordingly sprinkling the upbeat, catchy tunes Castlevania is renowned for.
The music of the Baroque era, at its zenith in the 18th century, and the Rococo era shortly after, is found throughout the soundtrack. There is the use of techniques called Four Voice Leading (a type of chord movement), pedal melody, where one note repeats under a distinctive motif or "riff" (Bloody Tears), secondary dominants (also a part of chord movement), and non-harmonic tones like suspensions and passing tones.
But the soundtrack has not been praised so much for its apparent tributes to other styles, so much as its incredibly complex nature for such an early game on the respective system. For example, the stage Sunken City begins its theme with a wavering and fading effect with an organ, and then evolves into a near-improvisational jazz-influenced melody.
Regional Variations
The title is Akumajō Dracula in Japan. The logo is different, and resembles the original Akumajō Dracula title screen, from the Famicom Disk System game. Blood also drips below the title's lettering.
For some reason, the font in the game is different. The English version's is bright green, yet the Japanese version has a completely different font, and is also significantly darker.
In the Japanese version, there is a cross on top of the tombstone from the prologue screen. It was removed to avoid religious controversies. Also, the name "Dracura" (a case of Engrish) can be seen written on the tombstone.
As with many games on the Super NES, there were censorship issues. The statues in Stage 6 were originally topless, and the blood in Stage 8 was changed from red to green.
The in-game prologue text for Super Castlevania IV in the North American version is also different from the Japanese prologue screen text, with an extra line claiming that "Once again Simon Belmont is called upon to destroy Dracula", in order to force the game into being a sequel to Simon's Quest, when it wasn't originally one. Note: That while the text still remains in the US version of the game, the game is no longer considered a sequel in the U.S.
Image Gallery
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Trivia
- Some of the enemies' graphics from Super Castlevania IV would eventually be recoloured and ported into Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, the most famous examples being Slogra and Gaibon.
- The Dancing Spectres of stage 6 are named Paula Abghoul and Fred Askare, a parody on Paula Abdul and Fred Astaire.