Konami just did not put a whole lot of confidence in the Sega Genesis when it came to Castlevania. Sure, they released the wonderful Castlevania Bloodlines in North America but that was it. That was the only game following the adventures of the Belmonts and others attempting to take down Dracula to be released on a Sega console. The retro gaming community being as amazing as it is, is not standing by and letting that stand any longer. There are currently two Castlevania game ports currently in development, if only there was one for the Sega Dreamcast.
Castlevania Rondo of Blood
This entry was one of the most sought-after releases of the 16-Bit era, especially if limiting that to Castlevania games. It was never released outside of Japan and there it was only available on the PC Engine Super CD-ROM 2 format. For whatever reason, NEC/TTI could not get this released in North America. Imagine if this was available at launch of the Turbo Duo console.
There was a remake for the Super Nintendo in 1995, Castlevania: Dracula X and then that was remade for the PlayStation Portable in 2005 in Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles. This marked the second and final Castlevania on the 16-Bit Super Nintendo.
This port to Sega Genesis is going for a very close to the PC Engine version port. That is not a bad thing. So far, this port is looking phenomenal and very close to the PC Engine original, even though there is a slight drop in colors on the screen.
Mega Castlevania IV
The retelling of the first Castlevania game that was released on Super Nintendo as Super Castlevania IV is getting ported to the Sega Geneiss. Comparing the two side by side shows a lack of colors rearing its ugly head on the Sega Genesis. Obvsiously.
Check out Mega Castlevania IV without a side-by-side comparison and it looks like a slightly darker, grittier, game with the colors not looking all that bad.
One to look forward to if you are a fan of Castlevania and want something in the vein of the original – straight action, challenging level design, etc.
What entry in the Castlevania series is your favorite? Mine has to be Simon’s Quest as I sucked at the first one, and every other entry actually.