Rondo of Blood is often acclaimed as one of the best Castlevania games in the classic series and one of the most beloved titles in the franchise. I don't disagree with this statement, although my personal favorite is Castlevania III. But I'm not here to talk about that today.
The game was originally released in Japan as "Akumajō Dracula X: Chi no Rondo" for the PC Engine and remained exclusive for many years before being internationally released in an enhanced version for the PSP, becoming a coveted title for fans worldwide. Unfortunately, the PC Engine never gained much acceptance outside of Japan. However, despite being excited to write about its historical significance in the gaming world and its incredible library, I won't dwell too much on those details, so let's get straight to the point.
The game starts with one of the things I love most about the PC Engine, which is the pixel art cutscenes. These scenes are simply sensational and can be seen in various productions in the console's library. And since we're talking about art, even with clear limitations compared to its market competitors of the time, such as our beloved Mega Drive and the all-powerful Super Nintendo, the game is aesthetically beautiful. The graphics showcase a wealth of details, especially in characters and backgrounds, and the animations are surprisingly fluid. This is thanks to Konami's excellent work and, of course, the introduction of the CD-ROM, which not only allows detailed graphics due to the vast amount of available space but also, for the first time, enables the Castlevania series to achieve high-quality audio through the Red Book audio format—something unthinkable in cartridges until then. Akira Souji was responsible for the composition and recruited three musicians: Keizo Nakamura, Tomoko Sano, and Mikio Saito. The result of this collaboration was a superb soundtrack. Many of these songs are rearrangements of previous games, but they also introduced original compositions that undoubtedly brought a unique identity to the game.
The story is not very complex at all, something that is to be expected. It all starts with the return of Dracula, which is triggered by the sacrifice of a young girl. The scene then cuts to a village that is suddenly the target of supernatural forces, such as skeletons, strange creatures and chaos ensues. And that's where our protagonist Richter Belmont comes into the picture. And the shit is widespread, it's a whip everywhere. Richter's mission is to rescue four maidens who were kidnapped by the villain, including Annette, his fiancée.
In addition to its remarkable achievements such as a phenomenal soundtrack and well-crafted graphics, the game also stands out for significant changes in its gameplay. I think one of the most notable is that the traditional whip upgrade mechanic has been removed. Something very welcome in my opinion, as collecting upgrades throughout the scenario was quite tedious. Another innovation is the addition of the Item Crash, which is a powerful special attack from a sub-weapon, usually at the cost of a large number of hearts.
The level design throughout most of the game is very well-planned. The placement of enemies and elements on the screen is not arbitrary, providing a balanced mix of challenges and a smooth progression. But make no mistake, the game is not easy; there are some quite challenging moments, but nothing that makes the experience frustrating. That is unless you decide to play as Maria, who becomes a playable character later on. And what can I say? She is extremely powerful. She has a double jump, dash, the ability to dodge some projectiles due to her smaller size compared to Richter, can attack with a shadow clone, and has an arsenal of little creatures like birds, kittens, turtles, a little dragon, and more. I even wonder how someone managed to kidnap her; the responsible party should take Dracula's place as the final boss of the game. She's basically the easy mode of the game if what you're looking for is to steamroll everyone and finish as quickly as possible. And I don't think I need to talk about Richter, right? Whip everywhere. Plus, he's the standard game experience.
Rondo of Blood also receives a lot of influence from Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse; a branching path system has been implemented, along with various secrets and unique bosses for each of these optional paths. If you aim for the best ending, you'll need to explore each of these alternative routes, in addition to rescuing the four maidens, of course. Therefore, exploration is paramount. Another valuable addition to the gameplay is the ability to select stages at any time, allowing the player to replay the stages with different characters.
Ah, and I couldn't fail to mention that the battles against most bosses are epic; some can be quite challenging, requiring strategy and quick reflexes. By the way, a really cool addition was the "Desperation Attack" from the bosses when they are defeated. I remember when I first played Rondo, I thought it was sensational.
But as not everything is perfect, one of the things that irritated me the most is the extremely short invincibility period when hit. Another downside is that the sub-weapons don't have a dedicated button and instead reuse the "Up + Attack" button combination, which can be quite inconvenient, especially when used on stairs. I must admit, I also missed the initially more fluid physics we had in Super Castlevania IV. There's less control of the character in the air. However, this doesn't bother much during gameplay, as, as mentioned earlier, the elements in the environment were distributed fairly, considering these limitations. Obviously, nothing I mentioned above ruins the overall experience of the game; they are just some personal observations.
In summary, Rondo of Blood is a sensational game. From its release in Japan to its global availability, the game has captured the hearts of Castlevania fans, and it's not hard to understand why. It features multiple paths to follow, intelligent level design, unique bosses, and different characters to play. The graphics, despite the console limitations, are spectacular, making good use of CD-ROM capabilities to deliver rich details in characters and environments, along with its soundtrack. And despite having some minor flaws, they are nothing more than small nuances, especially when considering the positive aspects and the overall quality of the game.
The game was originally released in Japan as "Akumajō Dracula X: Chi no Rondo" for the PC Engine and remained exclusive for many years before being internationally released in an enhanced version for the PSP, becoming a coveted title for fans worldwide. Unfortunately, the PC Engine never gained much acceptance outside of Japan. However, despite being excited to write about its historical significance in the gaming world and its incredible library, I won't dwell too much on those details, so let's get straight to the point.
The game starts with one of the things I love most about the PC Engine, which is the pixel art cutscenes. These scenes are simply sensational and can be seen in various productions in the console's library. And since we're talking about art, even with clear limitations compared to its market competitors of the time, such as our beloved Mega Drive and the all-powerful Super Nintendo, the game is aesthetically beautiful. The graphics showcase a wealth of details, especially in characters and backgrounds, and the animations are surprisingly fluid. This is thanks to Konami's excellent work and, of course, the introduction of the CD-ROM, which not only allows detailed graphics due to the vast amount of available space but also, for the first time, enables the Castlevania series to achieve high-quality audio through the Red Book audio format—something unthinkable in cartridges until then. Akira Souji was responsible for the composition and recruited three musicians: Keizo Nakamura, Tomoko Sano, and Mikio Saito. The result of this collaboration was a superb soundtrack. Many of these songs are rearrangements of previous games, but they also introduced original compositions that undoubtedly brought a unique identity to the game.
The story is not very complex at all, something that is to be expected. It all starts with the return of Dracula, which is triggered by the sacrifice of a young girl. The scene then cuts to a village that is suddenly the target of supernatural forces, such as skeletons, strange creatures and chaos ensues. And that's where our protagonist Richter Belmont comes into the picture. And the shit is widespread, it's a whip everywhere. Richter's mission is to rescue four maidens who were kidnapped by the villain, including Annette, his fiancée.
In addition to its remarkable achievements such as a phenomenal soundtrack and well-crafted graphics, the game also stands out for significant changes in its gameplay. I think one of the most notable is that the traditional whip upgrade mechanic has been removed. Something very welcome in my opinion, as collecting upgrades throughout the scenario was quite tedious. Another innovation is the addition of the Item Crash, which is a powerful special attack from a sub-weapon, usually at the cost of a large number of hearts.
The level design throughout most of the game is very well-planned. The placement of enemies and elements on the screen is not arbitrary, providing a balanced mix of challenges and a smooth progression. But make no mistake, the game is not easy; there are some quite challenging moments, but nothing that makes the experience frustrating. That is unless you decide to play as Maria, who becomes a playable character later on. And what can I say? She is extremely powerful. She has a double jump, dash, the ability to dodge some projectiles due to her smaller size compared to Richter, can attack with a shadow clone, and has an arsenal of little creatures like birds, kittens, turtles, a little dragon, and more. I even wonder how someone managed to kidnap her; the responsible party should take Dracula's place as the final boss of the game. She's basically the easy mode of the game if what you're looking for is to steamroll everyone and finish as quickly as possible. And I don't think I need to talk about Richter, right? Whip everywhere. Plus, he's the standard game experience.
Rondo of Blood also receives a lot of influence from Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse; a branching path system has been implemented, along with various secrets and unique bosses for each of these optional paths. If you aim for the best ending, you'll need to explore each of these alternative routes, in addition to rescuing the four maidens, of course. Therefore, exploration is paramount. Another valuable addition to the gameplay is the ability to select stages at any time, allowing the player to replay the stages with different characters.
Ah, and I couldn't fail to mention that the battles against most bosses are epic; some can be quite challenging, requiring strategy and quick reflexes. By the way, a really cool addition was the "Desperation Attack" from the bosses when they are defeated. I remember when I first played Rondo, I thought it was sensational.
But as not everything is perfect, one of the things that irritated me the most is the extremely short invincibility period when hit. Another downside is that the sub-weapons don't have a dedicated button and instead reuse the "Up + Attack" button combination, which can be quite inconvenient, especially when used on stairs. I must admit, I also missed the initially more fluid physics we had in Super Castlevania IV. There's less control of the character in the air. However, this doesn't bother much during gameplay, as, as mentioned earlier, the elements in the environment were distributed fairly, considering these limitations. Obviously, nothing I mentioned above ruins the overall experience of the game; they are just some personal observations.
In summary, Rondo of Blood is a sensational game. From its release in Japan to its global availability, the game has captured the hearts of Castlevania fans, and it's not hard to understand why. It features multiple paths to follow, intelligent level design, unique bosses, and different characters to play. The graphics, despite the console limitations, are spectacular, making good use of CD-ROM capabilities to deliver rich details in characters and environments, along with its soundtrack. And despite having some minor flaws, they are nothing more than small nuances, especially when considering the positive aspects and the overall quality of the game.