I hope this flopped and they didn't make any other entries, that'd be worth a laugh! I havent had any playing this. This mf Simon with his perfectly chiseled chin and wealthiest caveman in the cave rizz can't whip worth a damn. Is he asexual? Why does he think he's him? Call it y = b^x the way shit went off the rails so fast, what a difficulty curve folks. You have to be there to see it. There's not really a specific enemy to make fun of so I won't focus on that aspect. Except Dracula on steroids but those were different times, the basement dweller community has foregiven Dracula.

Let's breakdown how the game plays. There are no input cancels obviously this ain't no Tekken, once you jump you are vulnerable for around 1 second and to approximately 33 threats, you can only walk and slightly crouch, not to mention (I'll mention) the whip having more screentime where it doesnt hit once you press the destroy foes button. So basically you're dead on arrival. Also, sometimes you get hit by a projectile thats been destroyed or a mf who already vaporized. Shit that should only happen in Mexico and I don't wager Simon is having his pilgrimage there.

I've warmed up, but huh no physical activity to follow because I need to say good things about this decent game. The night is dark and the path is.. not always clear, especially stage 17 with those gears but it all looks great. Dracula looks like his breath smells of garlic which makes me worry about his health being a vampire and all, but I won't judge him if he stepped out the hospital just to whoop my ass he's just that guy. Not gonna lie I had to use save states between every hit because I didn't trust myself enough and I was playing the game on break I wanted to finish it today at least (as in friday 22nd march, I'm actually reviewing it on the day I finish a game which I usually never do and condone! But we do this ig)

Konami really did make great games back in the day. One of their flagship titles, Castlevania was a landmark in atmosphere, difficulty, and theming for the early NES. I'll never forget the patterns for getting through this game, the strategies I found on my own through trial and error, or the simple yet iconic soundtrack.

I think later titles perfected what this laid the groundwork for (Castlevania 3 and Super Castlevania 4 for instance) but this initial title is still worth going back to to this day, which is impressive compared to the first Mega Man title, which it felt like was the series which competed most with Castlevania back in this time, along with Ninja Gaiden.

I am happy we have games like Bloodstained Curse of the Moon 1 and 2 to hold the torch for this iconic style of vampiric retro delight, and while I dig the Metroidvania adventure titles a tad more, I respect this style immensely and it should not go unnoticed.

Felizmente nunca me senti mal por preferir conseguir jogar a enfrentar grandes desafios, porque foi graças ao R35S, que chegou com a versão com easy mode do FAMICON, que pude zerar Castlevania – no modo normal eu não conseguia passar do primeiro boss... imagina do resto... esse jogo é spam de monstro toda hora...

É divertido! Bem curtinho mesmo, com visuais incríveis pra época e uma trilha sonora muito legal. Os controles... deixam a desejar, e é bastante frustrante usar um personagem com movimentos tão limitados. Gostaria muito que fosse jogável (pra mim) sem precisar apelar pra um modo meio que ridiculamente fácil. Mas deu pra conhecer, foi show de bola! Ou melhor: show de cabeça rolando? (Queria fazer uma piadinha aqui, mas não sei se funcionou.)

Fui creciendo con el fps, rts, action-adventure, el plataformas, el fighting game. Con el control cada vez mas milimétrico, con la hitbox cada vez mas ajustada, con la combinación de mecánicas y botones cada vez mas compleja. El contexto en esos géneros viejos y otros nuevos por igual se han ido ajustando para un mayor estimulo por reflejo, que las cosas se hagan como tan rápido uno puede pensar. Volver atrás se hace duro pero necesario. Ya es imposible obviar la sensación de injusticia que cierne en mi cuando ese boss/enemigo actúa bajo patrones que mi personaje limitado tendrá que prever ya unos segundos antes o triunfar por el vil azar de la "suerte"/RNG. Me siento como si pasara de ver una figura hexagonal a un simple cuadrado, falto de opciones y de lados. No obstante, todavía hay ocasiones en donde menos, es mas. Por ahora para mi, acá no es una de esas ocasiones.

PD: espero que el pibe que en su época se haya pasado esto en la NES tuviera una buena vida.
PD2: el mejor OST del juego es el del primer nivel, el resto soso como el solo.

Castlevania is a game I can appreciate but it's one I struggle to love.

Like many NES games, Castlevania is a short experience and can be beaten in less than half an hour. Seemingly to counteract this, the game is incredibly challenging and demands to be played dozens of times to master. Every level has been carefully curated so that EVERYTHING, from the smallest enemies to the most modest of jumps, poses a massive threat. The combination of Simon Belmont's sluggish, stiff movement (an intentional design choice, forcing the player to attack and jump with absolute precision) and the devilish enemy attack patterns make this game feel overly difficult at times but I appreciate just how well crafted every level feels. Absolutely everything feels intentional, not a pixel feels out of place.

As much as I appreciate how tight the gameplay feels, I had to rely on save states to get past some of the trickier sections. Some of the bosses, for example, are nigh impossible if you didn't happen to pick up and keep the right weapon from the preceding level. Without the modern convenience of save states, I'd probably have given up playing halfway through.

Ultimately the best thing about Castlevania is the atmosphere. It's genuinely impressive how much gothic ambience the game has, considering the technical limitations of the NES. The game uses the limited available palette wonderfully to bring the enemies and levels to life, it's surprisingly gorgeous at times. The soundtrack also helps tremendously. It's one of the NES' best. Each track imbues it's corresponding level with a slightly different vibe from adventurous to spooky.

On a final note, I was first exposed to the Castlevania series by YouTuber James Rolfe and I have to parrot one of his takes. This first game was so evocative of old, gothic horror that it very much reminds me of old Hammer horror movies. I can't help but feel it's a shame (though true to the original Japanese intention I suppose) that Castlevania projects are now always tied to an anime aesthetic.

Ce jeu est davantage qu'un simple  classique, il est culte. Cela dit il n'est pas parfait. Mais sa force résidait justement dans sa capacité à nous faire passer outre ses côtés déplaisants. Grâce à une histoire simple mais prenante. Un visuel percutant et de qualité. Une mise en scène succinte et soignée. Des musiques inoubliables. Un bon mélange action/plateforme. Du challenge. Et une ambiance générale orientée vers le romantisme noire. Tout cela, dans la limite des systèmes de l'époque, allait faire d'un seul jeu la définition de tout un univers, le socle solide d'une saga aux multiples réussites (sans compter les innombrables émules d'hier et d'aujourd'hui). Le plaisir d'y jouer est encore au rendez-vous plus de 35 ans après ma première partie. Ite missa est.