CASTLEVANIA: Dracula X Chronicles

Rating Teen Genre adventure Publisher Konami External Links Official Castlevania Website

A little history lesson before we begin. The Dracula X Chronicles is an old anime style video game known as Rondo of Blood. This is important to know for 3 very specific reasons:

1: Rondo of Blood utilized the new CD-Rom technology of the time and introduced the first ever Castlevania title with actual voice acting instead of text, a trend that has continued to this day.

2: Rondo of Blood was the last of the “Stage” style of Castlevania games, before Konami turned to a more Metroid style of level design.

3: Rondo of Blood has never been released in the United States, taking nearly 14 years before finally making it's way to North American gamers.

This was important to note because I think it's important for gamers, especially new gamers, to appreciate the fact that just because a game is old it doesn't mean that the game isn't worth playing. Dracula X proves this point in spades. In Dracula X, Dracula has once again been summoned prematurely into the world, and it is up to Richter Belmont to defeat the Dark Lord once again. As additional encouragement, Dracula has captured four young maidens from Richter's village, one of them Maria Renard, a dear friend of Richter, and Richter's girlfriend Annette. You must fight your way through several stages as you make your way to and through Castlevania and your destined confrontation with Dracula himself.

Original released as a 2D platform game, Dracula X has been recreated with an entirely 3D model base. Every object in the game, from bricks to bosses, is rendered completely in 3D, yet the camera has been frozen in the original 2D position of Rondo of Blood. This creates an amazing visual experience that both captures the classic sense of Castlevania and elevates it to a new level. The soundtrack has also been upgraded with a cleaner, fresher feel and can be unlocked in the sound testing room

Players must get through nine levels before challenging Dracula, and each level has several hidden rooms and new paths leading to alternate levels and bosses. Once you free Maria, you can play each level in the game as either Maria or Richter. Each character has their own unique abilities and weapons, and each can progress easier through certain levels than the other. Once you finish with the main storyline, Dracula X sports a Boss Mode where you can attempt to take on all the bosses in the game one after the other, which can also be played wirelessly with your friends. If that wasn't enough, Dracula X contains two hidden games that can be unlocked by discovering hidden items in the main game: the original Rondo of Blood and the PlayStation hit, Symphony of the Night.

No matter how you whip it Konami has released three terrific games to the PSP in one tiny package. Any owner of a PSP should get this title for their collection, if for no other reason than to have a portable version of Symphony of the Night on hand. Besides, everyone needs to face Dracula at least once in their life.

INFO:
  Classic 2D recreated in stunning 3D
  Original game Rondo of Blood and Symphony of the Night available for play
  Soundtrack of each game made available in the sound room
  Team up with a friend in Boss Rush Mode via Ad hoc mode