Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles

Dracula has been a very popular topic for ages. In movies, video games, and stories, Dracula stands as a quintessential horror figure. He seems to be truly immortal. So it makes sense that Konami’s Dracula series “Castlevania” always turns to the prince of darkness. “Castlevania: The Dracula X chronicles” is a spiced up variant of “Castlevania: Rondo of Blood” which was published in 1993 for the PC Engine—but not in this country. America and Europe were at that time, unfortunately, left out. Today, however, brings hope for any PSP owner. The truth of whether the remake is as successful as the original, we will find in the gloomy walls of the vampire castle.

Dracula lives!

Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles – Review – Test
Once again the prince of darkness has been brought back to life. Through the blood sacrifice of a man, years of peace turn to a time of fear. Now Dracula lives again in his mighty castle “Castlevania”. Vampire killers Richter Belmont and Maria Renard are on their way to put an end to the terror. So much for the story, because it is actually completely irrelevant. In essence, this is all that needs be said: Dracula is evil, he is back, you better care! After a nice intro sequence, the rest of the story is told through short, scarce videos. These are usually shown when you meet a boss opponent.

“Just” a simple remake?

Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles – Review – Test
“Castlevania: Dracula X Chronicles” is a PSP remake of the classic “Rondo of Blood” released in the year 1993. Obviously the graphics back then weren’t so hot and the sound is way better today, but the game itself is identical to the original – the dawn of the action, characters and monsters, granted their techniques have been honed a little. That makes the game sound lame, but since “Rondo of Blood” never appeared in Germany or America, this implementation in any case is justified. Fans can look forward to the completely untouched original, because it has also made for the UMD. If that were not enough, there is also the successor, “Symphony of the Night”. That should bring a smile to your face, but this part is one of the greatest or even as the best in the whole series. However, you have to do something about it and unlock the two retro games first.. For inexplicable reasons, the two extra games are hidden, but with the right information and a little effort they can be found.

Level of difficulty from hell and stalled controls.

Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles – Review – Test
There are so many games that have been played out in just a few hours and were never really necessary. This is annoying because you want to finally experience a challenge! One thing is for sure–“Castlevania: Dracula X Chronicles” will give you one! Maybe too much of one, because it’s really hellishly hard, and it may have you banging your PSP on the wall. There are several reasons why it’s so difficult. First, it is the difficulty in itself, which is manifold. You have to be careful with multiple opponents, like a skull that attacks from below, a skeleton that leaps out, all with fire burning nearby. A gamer must focus and be excruciating careful to make sure his character isn’t killed.

Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles – Review – Test
Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles is hard to beat, and hard on the nerves. How does this happen? Since this is a conversion of a classic from 1993, there are unfortunately some rusty features. One of these is the permeable steps. If you’re not careful when pressing buttons, such as the directional pad up or down, then you’ll fall through them. This can prove fatal in stressful moment, like if you’re surrounded by enemies and want to quickly run up the stairs. If you are in the vicinity of a staircase, and want to dodge a bullet by crouching, then climb the first stair rather than take cover and get injured. There are more of these dusty “anti-features”. If you are by an opponent or other things, such as rotating blades, there may be a return impact. It is particularly awkward when you stand in front of an abyss and a staircase: it’s possible to fall through and into the abyss. The opportunities of using the character’s whip are also very limited. You can’t throw it straight up or down. Also jumping is a bit strange, as this is very cumbersome to equip. The controls aren’t quite up to date with all these shortcomings. This ought to have better suited to today’s standards, because even without those problems, the game is challenging enough.
Game Mechanics and Engineering

Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles – Review – Test

Nothing has changed the game mechanics. You roam through the same levels as in “Rondo of Blood” and in general there is no world-shaking new feature. This means that you always strike down a side view from left to right or sometimes from right to left and your character runs with his whip monster. Here and there one finds a secondary weapon, such as an ax, knives, holy water and the like. At the end of the level you will meet a boss, who puts up a tough fight. Along the way there are occasionally two options a player can choose in the story line. Depending on which path you choose, you can run into other bosses and get to know different parts of the level. This increases the motivation to play through it at least twice.

Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles – Review – Test
While building on the old game mechanics, we have chosen to deal with technology, but for a rethread. The stately textures, backgrounds, sound effects and music tracks are highly detailed levels with amazing 3D effects and rich tunes. The English voice is also heard interesting, but not the best that we have heard on the PSP so far. Since “Rondo of Blood”, much has happened visually, but compared to the graphics of say, “Silent Hill Origins”, Castlevania is not quite as impressive. But don’t worry; it’s definitely in the top tier.

Game Zone Conclusion:
“Castlevania: Dracula X Chronicles” is ipso facto, an interesting implementation since the original title “Rondo of Blood” never appeared in this country. Fans will look forward to this game and want to play the original, which is next to the remake on the UMD. Just as the favorite of many loyal supporters is Castlevania – Symphony of the Night “. However, both “Rondo” and “Dracula X” must first be unlocked, which can be somewhat tedious. However, its got nice new graphics, great music and sound effects. In addition to these new features, “Dracula X Chronicles” offers a lot, like an incredibly challenging difficulty level. The game mechanics, however, were hardly touched, and are similar to “Rondo”. The stairs are still tricky to handle, and can cost a valuable life. This is annoying and unnecessary aggravation, especially considering the already high level of difficulty. The somewhat odd controls don’t make it easier. However, all in all, it is a successful remake of “Rondo of Blood”, which is striking for its retro charm, but brings with it many of its retro weaknesses.