yeaaaaahhh Super Nintendo time

it's pretty interesting that this game is a retelling of the first Castlevania and I'm not sure why they went this route since the first game still holds up surprising well outside of that NES jank (technically this is the third retelling of the first game but we don't talk about the first two attempts)

gameplay is amazing, and that has to do with the fact that Simon Belmont actually took the time to make himself some cool lighter armor that lets him move around more freely and that is a godsend in my opinion. other people will argue that "but muh stiffness!!!" and to that I say that while I do respect your opinion and that you have the right to prefer whatever way you want your Belmonts to control, I will also say that your opinion is very poopy and stinky. I'm not afraid to admit that having the ability to swing the Vampire Killer in eight different directions is quite overpowered, as fun it is to do so. I tried to minimize my use of it to just the straight forward attack a good portion of the time, but god it is so tempting to just swing the whip in different directions when the urge comes! I'm sorry I can't help it it's way too fun even if it does make things easier than it should! I was barely doing it during the earlier stages but man I just wanted to do some funny whip stuff! besides as far as I know they went back to the old stiff movement and singular directional whip after this game so let me enjoy it while I can! oh yeah the last two or three levels are kinda annoying just want to bring that up, not with enemy placement just some annoying platforming segments (who could have guessed).

these graphics man, they're pretty nice, also I do love me my Mode 7 as well. my only gripe though is that it could be maybe a little more colorful, the colors can be a bit dark at times and there could certainly be some more eye-popping color choices, that's just me though. also this might be a hot take right here, but out of all the Castlevanias I played so far, this one probably has the weakest soundtrack. yeah I know this game is trying to be atmosphere and moody and it does do a great job at that, but I don't know this style of music for Castlevania isn't really my cup of tea.

that said, I get it though. I get why people like the music because while I was playing, I had a similar moment to what I had near the end of Simon's Quest. after defeating the second-to-last boss, I walked through this hallway as torches lit up and this track began playing. it wasn't intense or menacing like the other times before Dracula, it was foreboding, sinister, and even melancholic. going up those stairs had a different emotion compared to the other times. in the others it was like "alright time to kick Dracula's ass!" but here it felt more like "oh god I'm really fighting Dracula....". the best part is that the track continues playing while you fight him, so the whole somberness and uncertainty remains during your battle, and the difficulty helps contribute to that. then near the end, everything changes. that track fades away, taking it's place a very familiar upbeat one instead. all of a sudden, the tables turn and you're given the confidence to finally finish off this guy in triumphant glory! I love it when games successfully manage to build atmosphere like that, so much so that they get me typing for an entire paragraph.

so um yeah I enjoy the game, a second playthrough someday is not off the table. it'd been pretty cool if it had different pathway and characters like Dracula's Curse, but it's fine though. I think the perfect Classicvania game for me would be having the ambitiousness and upbeat music like Dracula's Curse, while retaining the fluid movement and high quality graphics like this one. put those together and we have a great idea in our hands.

why is the IV in the title though this is a retelling not a sequel, Konami back at it again with false advertising