by Josh Komon

Created on: September 15, 2009

Castlevania was a popular game in the arcade, as well as on the Nintendo Home Entertainment System. It was popular for a reason. Castlevania is one of the greatest games and game franchises of all times. Even today, great Castlevania games are being created. (And some not so great games.) But it all started with this one.

Simon Belmont and his upgradable whip venture through five levels of monsters and mayhem, in this series starter. Simon could jump, duck, throw stuff, and use his whip. That was it, but that was enough. The whip could be upgraded. It always started as a short leather whip. When a power-up was uncovered, it became a short morning-star. A second upgrade made it a longer version of the morning star. As for thrown items, there was a clock-watch, which stopped time momentarily, holy water (or to some, a Molotov Cocktail), an axe, a dagger, or a boomerang. Each of these was useful in different situations. Only through trial and error were players able to figure out when each one was most valuable.

The first stage was relatively easy, culminating in a battle with a giant bat. This was the level that let anyone play and enjoy this classic game. It was also a tease, as the game got significantly harder after this point.

The second stage involved trickier jumps, more difficult hordes of enemies, and a significantly harder mummy boss.

The third stage was one of the coolest looking and most enjoyable stages. The final boss was Frankenstein, with a monkey looking Igor, as an assistant. Most players were able to complete the game this far.

The fourth stage was incredibly difficult, pitting Simon against some incredibly durable foes, seemingly impossible obstacles, and one of the hardest bosses ever, The Grim Reaper. Even with triple boomerangs, a must at this point of the game, The Grim Reaper required perfect execution, and a bit of luck. When all came together, the few get to move on to the last stage.

Dracula's stage is the most difficult. Dracula himself was nearly impossible to defeat. Ask any twenty people who have played this game. Only five will claim to have beaten this game. Four of them will be lying.

Keep in mind, this was the olden days of video gaming. Memory was small, so games could only be so large. Few games had save capabilities. Without a code, there was no way of maintaining progress. Consequently, to give games replay value, they had to be incredibly difficult. Castlevania accomplished this in the least frustrating way possible.

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