4/5 ★ – kariyanine's review of Castlevania: Rondo of Blood.

If you thought my wrapping up The Castlevania Anniversary Collection playthrough was the end of Castlevania being featured here you were sorely mistaken. One of the big draws of my getting the TurboGrafx 16 Mini was to play Rondo of Blood. Yes, I know it is available in various incarnations with a translation but I wanted to experience the real deal. I wanted to play the game Castlevania fans in America held up as their fabled unicorn. To note, I’ve played the Americanized version of Rondo on the SNES, Dracula X. It’s an OK game, that has some super unfair gameplay going on. It is nowhere near as good as Super Castlevania IV or Castlevania III in terms of classic Castlevania games but the general consensus on that game is that it is a bastardized version of the game and something of an abomination. Akumajō Dracula X Chi No Rondo is a CD game for the PC Engine and it immediately shows off the power of the CD by having massive sprites, excellent animation, and full voice work in its opening cutscene. And that’s another thing, the game has actual cutscenes. It’s not like we haven’t had cutscenes before this but the level of quality and detail on showcase here is best in class for the time period and the system it is on. Then when the game starts you see impressive spritework, animated backgrounds, and are hit with a sweeping soundtrack that feels perfectly Castlevania. The first battle isn’t super difficult but is memorable for you fighting Death while riding on a horse drawn carriage. As I said, not super difficult but it is very clearly indicating that this isn’t Super Castlevania IV. It is not going to gradually ease you in to the hard stuff, and by facing off against Death, usually one of the end bosses and nearly always a pain, so early, it wants you to know it. The game plays like most classic Castlevania titles, you’ll control a whip wielding Belmont (this time Richter) on a quest to take out Dracula. You’ll fight plenty of iconic monsters and a few new ones. Where Rondo differs a bit though is in its level design. Like, Castlevania III, Rondo has branching paths that can impact how the game plays out. These paths can cause you different players to have different playthroughs and it also introduces the possibility of missing certain content. I didn’t get the “good” ending and only escaped with Richeter because I didn’t realize that certain paths would lead me to rescue certain characters (including one that is unlockable). This does allow for some replay value though provided you want to unlock and see everything. Thankfully, the gameplay is arguably the best of classic styled games. For my money’s worth, Rondo slots in as the fifth best Castlevania. A lot of this though stems from the fact that I just don’t have the history with the game and would rather replay some of the other one’s because they deliver excellent gameplay and nostalgic feelings. Now that I officially own it, maybe one day it will move up the list because it is a beautiful looking and amazing playing game. And if you are a fan of classic Castlevania styled games, Rondo is well worth seeking out, either via the TG16 mini or another of its releases.