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With the next versus I thought to change it up and go cross platform.
Dracula X (PC Engine) Vs Super Castlevania IV (SNES) which game is better?

This for me this is the most difficult battle yet to decide as I absolutely love both games.
But the winner in my opinion is Dracula X (PC Engine).

Oh and why was Dracula X on the SNES so rubbish, such a missed opportunity.


_____________________________________________________

Checkout the previous versus battles I've done so far:

Magical Chase Vs Cotton
https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=15530.0 (https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=15530.0)

Super Star Soldier Vs Final Soldier
https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=15568.0 (https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=15568.0)

Gate of Thunder Vs Winds/Lords of thunder
https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=15639.0 (https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=15639.0)

Ys Book I & II (TGCD) Vs Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES)
https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=15766.0 (https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=15766.0)

Gate of Thunder Vs Winds/Lords of Thunder
https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=15639.0 (https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=15639.0)

Dracula X becuase as I have finished both recently, and I only see myself going back to X for another play through. 


As I write that I find myself not believing that, I'm sure I'll replay both, often enough.

But X is on le Obey and one must Obey.

Dracula X.  Duh.  :mrgreen:

Is this poll for real?  Not counting XX which shouldn't exist.... IV is the worst of the 16-bit series by far....

if this isn't going to be like a 40+:0 for pce drac x :lol:

Quote from: SuperDeadite on 11/13/2013, 10:03 AMIs this poll for real?  Not counting XX which shouldn't exist.... IV is the worst of the 16-bit series by far....

IV is truly an amazing game, an absolute stone cold classic, for me it was a close battle between IV and PCE Drac X.

SNES Drac XX is a poor game.

I doubt anyone on here would claim Castlevania 4 to be better than Rondo. 

As much hate as it seems to get though, CV4 does a bunch of things really right!  I thought the soundtrack was really good for a snes game and I liked the look of it.  Yeah, it doesn't have CD audio but it still sounds good.  That being said, gameplay wise it feels the least like Castlevania of all the games in the series before Symphony of the Night.  The 8 way whip makes traversing the world incredibly easy when compared to the NES games.  It almost doesn't matter what subweapon you have when you can just attack at odd angles.

Quote from: seieienbu on 11/13/2013, 11:12 AMI doubt anyone on here would claim Castlevania 4 to be better than Rondo. 

As much hate as it seems to get though, CV4 does a bunch of things really right!  I thought the soundtrack was really good for a snes game and I liked the look of it.  Yeah, it doesn't have CD audio but it still sounds good.  That being said, gameplay wise it feels the least like Castlevania of all the games in the series before Symphony of the Night.  The 8 way whip makes traversing the world incredibly easy when compared to the NES games.  It almost doesn't matter what subweapon you have when you can just attack at odd angles. 

Exactly.  Everyone has the right to their childhood memories, but the very poor stage design of IV puts it a distant 3rd behind PCE and MD games imo.  Axe Knights that have no possible way of hitting me is nothing but a waste of time.

Quote from: SuperDeadite on 11/13/2013, 11:35 AM

Quote from: seieienbu on 11/13/2013, 11:12 AMI doubt anyone on here would claim Castlevania 4 to be better than Rondo. 

As much hate as it seems to get though, CV4 does a bunch of things really right!  I thought the soundtrack was really good for a snes game and I liked the look of it.  Yeah, it doesn't have CD audio but it still sounds good.  That being said, gameplay wise it feels the least like Castlevania of all the games in the series before Symphony of the Night.  The 8 way whip makes traversing the world incredibly easy when compared to the NES games.  It almost doesn't matter what subweapon you have when you can just attack at odd angles. 

Exactly.  Everyone has the right to their childhood memories, but the very poor stage design of IV puts it a distant 3rd behind PCE and MD games imo.  Axe Knights that have no possible way of hitting me is nothing but a waste of time.

Wrong! Bloodlines/ Vampire Killer is the distant third.

Rondo Wins it! I mean just look at the art style and color palette and replay value


(https://www.castlevaniadungeon.net/features/magscans/EGM55p88.jpg)
(https://www.castlevaniadungeon.net/features/magscans/EGM55p89.jpg)

vs
(https://www.castlevaniadungeon.net/features/magscans/atlas/CV4Guide.JPG)
(https://www.castlevaniadungeon.net/features/magscans/atlas/CV4GuideB.JPG)

;)

Whoever picked iv is keeping quiet, maybe its the same guy who wrote this bad article that also thinks iv is better than rondo
http://m.joystiq.com/2008/10/20/top-5-castlevania-games/ (http://m.joystiq.com/2008/10/20/top-5-castlevania-games/)

...I'm honestly surprised that somebody voted CV4.

SNERDs gotta be SNERDs.  It was probably zeta.  :mrgreen:

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 11/13/2013, 11:42 AMWrong! Bloodlines/ Vampire Killer is the distant third.

I like Bloodlines more than CV IV.

Easy choice.

"The Adventure" for OG gameboy slays them both.
Fast paced action and ropes instead of stairs.  ROPES!  Just hanging in midair.  ROPES!

something about a whip shooting fireballs never sat well with me...

Lol, already two that probably have never played drac x or are just plain  retard :P

Is this a joke topic? Dracula X in pretty much almost every category.

I really enjoyed SC4 when I played it in '94 (I was late to the party with not owning a SNES until then). The music is something to enjoy on the SNES along with just the overall atmosphere. So I have a bit more nostalgic moments with it along with Bloodlines.

I never got to play Dracula X for PCE until I got a Duo in 2000. It is definitely an overall better game than SC4 and it would be even more so if I played it around the time it came out.... especially due to the fact I played Symphony of The Night 4 years before it (JP and US versions). The soundtrack has the best of all the classic Castlevania games in redbook audio and very nice vibrant colors. More importantly, it has the best replay value of all the classic games and just the right challenge.

Drac X is better, but I voted for 4 b/c I felt bad for it.

We've had community consensus on this since at least 2005.

Bonus props: putting this poll in the TG16 forum.

Quote from: Xak on 11/13/2013, 06:31 PMIs this a joke topic? Dracula X in pretty much almost every category.

But the most important question is: IS IT OFFICIAL????????????

Dracula X. Not only did it give me a near religious experience, but the post caused a fight with half the regulars here lol :D

Quote from: guest on 11/13/2013, 09:30 PMDracula X. Not only did it give me a near religious experience, but the post caused a fight with half the regulars here lol :D

I fight between friends always brings us closer (( hugs))

Quote from: guest on 11/13/2013, 09:30 PMDracula X. Not only did it give me a near religious experience, but the post caused a fight with half the regulars here lol :D

Wrong. It wasn't your post that caused it, it was the way you choose topic names and your general aftermath behavior that caused it.

I've thought of my next game versus battle, might be quite controversial, good to stir things up on the forum.  :lol:

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 11/14/2013, 01:41 PMI've thought of my next game versus battle, might be quite controversial, good to stir things up on the forum.  :lol:

I tried to see if there'd been a Rondo/SOTN thread and couldn't find one. I'm surprised. I guess it's just not as fun as comparing Rondo to an older, cart-based launch title.

SOTN is definitely in my top3. And oh, the music...

Quote from: jperryss on 11/14/2013, 04:51 PM

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 11/14/2013, 01:41 PMI've thought of my next game versus battle, might be quite controversial, good to stir things up on the forum.  :lol:

I tried to see if there'd been a Rondo/SOTN thread and couldn't find one. I'm surprised. I guess it's just not as fun as comparing Rondo to an older, cart-based launch title.

Hardly.  Rondo was compared to both Symphony o' the Night (https://www.tg-16.com/screenshot_comparisons.htm#Dracula_Symphony_of_the_Night) and Dracula XX (https://www.tg-16.com/screenshot_comparisons.htm#Dracula_X) in the screenshot comparison thread.

Lol can't believe that shit, number is up to 5.
am I in the wrong forum here?

PLEASE PEEPS IF YOU HAVEN'T PLAYED DRAC X , DON'T PARTICIPATE IN THIS POLL :!:

How do you all rank the gba games?

Huge fan of the "metroid-vania" games, with SotN at the very top of any Castlevania game. Even above Rondo. In terms of GBA games I'd say (best to not quite as best):

1) Circle of the Moon
2) Aria of Sorrow
3) Harmony of Dissonance

Yeah, CotM take the top spot. Amazing game and I do not understand the hate it gets. Aria is fantastic as well, but CotM takes top spot for me.

Battle.

Arena.

Aria of Sorrow >>> Circle of the Moon >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Harmony of Dissonance

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/14/2013, 10:38 PMAria of Sorrow >>> Circle of the Moon >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Harmony of Dissonance

Agreed. AoS is damn near on par with Symphony. I do have a soft spot for Circle of the Moon just because the music was mind blowing when it came out. Harmony isn't a bad game but it was a complete nosedive in the music department.

Quote from: jeffhlewis on 11/14/2013, 11:02 PMHarmony isn't a bad game but it was a complete nosedive in the music department.

right, it completely lives up to its name.

Quote from: Sadler on 11/14/2013, 10:14 PMYeah, CotM take the top spot. Amazing game and I do not understand the hate it gets. Aria is fantastic as well, but CotM takes top spot for me.

I picked it up when I picked up my GBA at launch.  I got home and was super excited to play Circle of the moon and was super pissed off about how I couldn't see it well in any light that I had available to me.  Sunlight was a bit too bright and gave a rainbow sheen over the non-lit pixels while every other light source I had was just too dark.  I got to Dracula twice but just gave up against him as his dark sprite on a dark background that moved around rapidly was just too hard to see.  Maybe I'll go back and play the game on emulator or DS at some point.

Damn, im I the only person who likes Dracula xx, I like it a bit better than SCIV, fighting enemies and Bosses is actually fun in Drac xx... in SCIV, not so much. Dracula XX does have few problems with its gameplay though.

Quote from: awack on 11/15/2013, 05:15 AMDamn, im I the only person who likes Dracula xx, I like it a bit better than SCIV, fighting enemies and Bosses is actually fun in Drac xx... in SCIV, not so much. Dracula XX does have few problems with its gameplay though.

It's not that bad. People complain about the graphics but my biggest complaint was the level design. There are some screens that I think "shouldn't there be enemies here"? It's like they never finished it.

Quote from: seieienbu on 11/15/2013, 02:04 AM

Quote from: Sadler on 11/14/2013, 10:14 PMYeah, CotM take the top spot. Amazing game and I do not understand the hate it gets. Aria is fantastic as well, but CotM takes top spot for me.

I picked it up when I picked up my GBA at launch.  I got home and was super excited to play Circle of the moon and was super pissed off about how I couldn't see it well in any light that I had available to me.  Sunlight was a bit too bright and gave a rainbow sheen over the non-lit pixels while every other light source I had was just too dark.  I got to Dracula twice but just gave up against him as his dark sprite on a dark background that moved around rapidly was just too hard to see.  Maybe I'll go back and play the game on emulator or DS at some point.

Ahh, that makes more sense. I played it on a GBA player for the GameCube. That probably skews my opinion.

Quote from: seieienbu on 11/15/2013, 02:04 AM

Quote from: Sadler on 11/14/2013, 10:14 PMYeah, CotM take the top spot. Amazing game and I do not understand the hate it gets. Aria is fantastic as well, but CotM takes top spot for me.

I picked it up when I picked up my GBA at launch.  I got home and was super excited to play Circle of the moon and was super pissed off about how I couldn't see it well in any light that I had available to me.  Sunlight was a bit too bright and gave a rainbow sheen over the non-lit pixels while every other light source I had was just too dark.  I got to Dracula twice but just gave up against him as his dark sprite on a dark background that moved around rapidly was just too hard to see.  Maybe I'll go back and play the game on emulator or DS at some point.

I tried to like the GBA but man that screen. The SP is WAY better. I need to hunt down some Castlevania games.

^ I play the GBA games on my TV. There is so much detail in the backgrounds in Castlevania the first GBA one. Have yet to play the others.

I'm in the boat where I think these two games are really close to 'perfect' castlevania games.  I love the control scheme of Simon in CV4 with the whip ability and directional options.  I think that gameplay and level variations keep it separate from DracX so much that I have respect for each game.

If I made my top 3 Castlevania games it would go-
1a- Rondo
1b Castlevania IV
3 - Castlevania III
Depending on my mood, sometimes while playing Super Castlevania I think to myself- 'Damn this is the finest Castlevania game ever created!'...

I first played CV4 in 1992 when I picked it up for SNES, but never played Rondo until 1997 when I finally acquired it for the Duo.  That 5 year gap had me playing CV4 when I was an impressionable 13 years old and I hit adulthood (a mere 18) when I finally got teh OBEY 'Vania realm.

This might skew my opinion on the games a bit, but I still usually dub Dracula X as the best Castlevania game of all times.  If I had played it when it first came out, who knows how much it would have blown my mind of minds!!

Also, I really do enjoy Bloodlines and would rank it somewhere after the original NES game but slightly better than Symphony.  Somewhere around the X68k/Chronicles and Castlevania Adventure Rebirth games.  :)

</ 2 cents>

I personally love Castlevania Chronicles and Castlevania 2 (2013 retranslated version) the most. As crazy as it sounds.

Any top 5 list without x68000 Akumajou Dracula in it somewhere is garbage

I really do enjoy Castlevania IV, but it's not in the same league as Rondo.

Dracula X > Bloodlines > Castlvania IV >>>>>>>>> Dracula XX (I hate this game.)

Any top all list without dracula x as #1  is garbage

Quote from: Xak on 11/15/2013, 09:57 AM^ I play the GBA games on my TV. There is so much detail in the backgrounds in Castlevania the first GBA one. Have yet to play the others.

I emulated this on a phone with an OLED..OMG THE COLORS!!!! wish the GameCube GBA adapter didn't wash out the color range.

Quote from: jeffhlewis on 11/15/2013, 10:29 AMAny top 5 list without x68000 Akumajou Dracula in it somewhere is garbage

What about a console game list?

Quote from: JoshTurboTrollX-16 on 11/15/2013, 10:08 AMI'm in the boat where I think these two games are really close to 'perfect' castlevania games.  I love the control scheme of Simon in CV4 with the whip ability and directional options.  I think that gameplay and level variations keep it separate from DracX so much that I have respect for each game.

If I made my top 3 Castlevania games it would go-
1a- Rondo
1b Castlevania IV
3 - Castlevania III
Depending on my mood, sometimes while playing Super Castlevania I think to myself- 'Damn this is the finest Castlevania game ever created!'...

I first played CV4 in 1992 when I picked it up for SNES, but never played Rondo until 1997 when I finally acquired it for the Duo.  That 5 year gap had me playing CV4 when I was an impressionable 13 years old and I hit adulthood (a mere 18) when I finally got teh OBEY 'Vania realm.

This might skew my opinion on the games a bit, but I still usually dub Dracula X as the best Castlevania game of all times.  If I had played it when it first came out, who knows how much it would have blown my mind of minds!!

Also, I really do enjoy Bloodlines and would rank it somewhere after the original NES game but slightly better than Symphony.  Somewhere around the X68k/Chronicles and Castlevania Adventure Rebirth games.  :)

</ 2 cents>

Finally! Bravo! I totally agree with everything you said except my top 3 would be different.  :D

Quote from: JoshTurboTrollX-16 on 11/15/2013, 10:08 AMIf I made my top 3 Castlevania games it would go-
1a- Rondo
1b Castlevania IV
3 - Castlevania III

If I made my top 3 Castlevania games it would go-
1a - Rondo
1b - Castlevania IV
3 - SOTN

Quote from: JoshTurboTrollX-16 on 11/15/2013, 10:08 AMI first played CV4 in 1992 when I picked it up for SNES, but never played Rondo until 1997 when I finally acquired it for the Duo.  That 5 year gap had me playing CV4 when I was an impressionable 13 years old and I hit adulthood (a mere 18) when I finally got teh OBEY 'Vania realm.

This might skew my opinion on the games a bit, but I still usually dub Dracula X as the best Castlevania game of all times.  If I had played it when it first came out, who knows how much it would have blown my mind of minds!!

I played both games when they were released  :D

Quote from: jperryss on 11/14/2013, 04:51 PM

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 11/14/2013, 01:41 PMI've thought of my next game versus battle, might be quite controversial, good to stir things up on the forum.  :lol:

I tried to see if there'd been a Rondo/SOTN thread and couldn't find one. I'm surprised. I guess it's just not as fun as comparing Rondo to an older, cart-based launch title.

SOTN is definitely in my top3. And oh, the music...

I thought of doing a versus battle of Rondo Vs SOTN but decided on IV instead.
I've now thought of the next three versus battles I want to do, I might do Rondo Vs SOTN after that.
 :D

OMHFUG?!?!? already 6 wrong dudes in here  :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:

I honestly can't decide. Both are truly great classic 'vania games. They both have excellent strengths and I am happy to replay either one.

Super Castlevania IV is the best Castlevania game ever made, so it wins.  The better whip was a fantastic idea, and it's a real tragedy that they never brought it back in full.  SCIV also has outstanding graphics too (sure it has slowdown, but it shows the SNES's power.  RoB looks great, but can't do SNES effects.), great music (some of the series' best!), and a lot of levels, all very well-designed, too.  It's also got a hard mode you unlock after beating the game.

Rondo of Blood is an amazing game that I also really like, though.  I don't like playing as Richter much, since he's back to the annoying NES-style whip controls, but Maria is great.  The game is quite a bit shorter than SCIV for a single playthrough, but does have some replay value if you want to find the alternate stages, though it doesn't have a harder difficulty setting, unless you consider Richter as hard mode and Maria as easy mode, but that kind of "hard mode" is an annoying way to do it I think.  The game is a really good game, but it's not quite as good as Super Castlevania IV.  Both games are far, far better than Bloodlines, for sure, though.  Or Dracula XX (SNES).

Quote from: A Black Falcon on 11/16/2013, 02:50 AMSuper Castlevania IV is the best Castlevania game ever made, so it wins.  The better whip was a fantastic idea, and it's a real tragedy that they never brought it back in full.  SCIV also has outstanding graphics too (sure it has slowdown, but it shows the SNES's power.  RoB looks great, but can't do SNES effects.), great music (some of the series' best!), and a lot of levels, all very well-designed, too.  It's also got a hard mode you unlock after beating the game.

Rondo of Blood is an amazing game that I also really like, though.  I don't like playing as Richter much, since he's back to the annoying NES-style whip controls, but Maria is great.  The game is quite a bit shorter than SCIV for a single playthrough, but does have some replay value if you want to find the alternate stages, though it doesn't have a harder difficulty setting, unless you consider Richter as hard mode and Maria as easy mode, but that kind of "hard mode" is an annoying way to do it I think.  The game is a really good game, but it's not quite as good as Super Castlevania IV.  Both games are far, far better than Bloodlines, for sure, though.  Or Dracula XX (SNES).

UBEROLF!!

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/16/2013, 03:10 AM

Quote from: A Black Falcon on 11/16/2013, 02:50 AMSuper Castlevania IV is the best Castlevania game ever made, so it wins.  The better whip was a fantastic idea, and it's a real tragedy that they never brought it back in full.  SCIV also has outstanding graphics too (sure it has slowdown, but it shows the SNES's power.  RoB looks great, but can't do SNES effects.), great music (some of the series' best!), and a lot of levels, all very well-designed, too.  It's also got a hard mode you unlock after beating the game.

Rondo of Blood is an amazing game that I also really like, though.  I don't like playing as Richter much, since he's back to the annoying NES-style whip controls, but Maria is great.  The game is quite a bit shorter than SCIV for a single playthrough, but does have some replay value if you want to find the alternate stages, though it doesn't have a harder difficulty setting, unless you consider Richter as hard mode and Maria as easy mode, but that kind of "hard mode" is an annoying way to do it I think.  The game is a really good game, but it's not quite as good as Super Castlevania IV.  Both games are far, far better than Bloodlines, for sure, though.  Or Dracula XX (SNES).

UBEROLF!!

+1

Quote from: A Black Falcon on 11/16/2013, 02:50 AMBoth games are far, far better than Bloodlines, for sure, though.  Or Dracula XX (SNES).

truth  :D

Bloodlines is awesome.

Quote from: JKM on 11/16/2013, 01:32 PMBloodlines is awesome.

But it's not on SNES. :roll:

I love Bloodlines as well.  As for the Dracula X SC IV debate there's things I like about Super Castlevania IV that I wish made it to the Dracula X.  Like others mentioned I was kinda bummed that Dracula X didn't have the diagonal whip.  It really added to the control and game play.  My main reason for loving Dracula X the most is the re-playability.   There are so many secrets to find in the game.   The music is amazing, and the extra special moves are awesome.  SC IV is an awesome game and one of my favorites on the SNES, but compared to Dracula X I get way more enjoyment out of Dracula X.

As for A Black Falcon saying Dracula X doesn't have SNES effects, I had no idea any game on earth had to have SNES effects to be a good/better game. :-k

Quote from: JKM on 11/16/2013, 01:32 PMBloodlines is awesome.

Some people say this (mostly at Sega-16), and honestly I don't get it at all.  I thought Bloodlines was a badly disappointing game and isn't even REMOTELY close to SCIV or RoB.  Graphics (okay to bland), music (decent but not as good), length (too short, they tried to make up for this by making the game too hard but that only makes it worse!), difficulty level (this is the ONLY Castlevania game with limited continues, and it's a big problem with levels as long as this games' are!), level designs (as with some other Genesis Konami games, the levels are long but there aren't many of them), graphics (more parallax than RoB aside, they aren't as good), production values, controls (one character can diagonal-whip on the ground but not in the air, and the other is the reverse... jerks!  8-way whip is better!))... all are worse in Bloodlines than either of those other games.  It's an okay game, but compared to SCIV or RoB?  It does not come close, and I think it's clear that it didn't have as much time or budget, as usual for Genesis Konami games (Contra: Hard Corps and Rocket Knight Adventures are the big exceptions to that, but most of the rest...).

Quote from: geise on 11/16/2013, 04:45 PMI love Bloodlines as well.  As for the Dracula X SC IV debate there's things I like about Super Castlevania IV that I wish made it to the Dracula X.  Like others mentioned I was kinda bummed that Dracula X didn't have the diagonal whip.  It really added to the control and game play.  My main reason for loving Dracula X the most is the re-playability.   There are so many secrets to find in the game.   The music is amazing, and the extra special moves are awesome.  SC IV is an awesome game and one of my favorites on the SNES, but compared to Dracula X I get way more enjoyment out of Dracula X.

As for A Black Falcon saying Dracula X doesn't have SNES effects, I had no idea any game on earth had to have SNES effects to be a good/better game. :-k

What I mean is that in SCIV I happen to like stuff like the mode 7 backgrounds, the times you latch onto a platform with the whip and the room rotates around you, and stuff... Konami apparently didn't, because even SNES Dracula X(X) doesn't have them, but I thought they were nice things to have.  That's what I meant, mostly, in addition to stuff like transparencies and much more use of parallax scrolling than you find in the Turbo CD game; they pushed the Turbo pretty hard and the game looks great, but RoB DOES have a lot less parallax than the SNES or Genesis games (though otherwise RoB looks a lot better than poor Bloodlines).

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/16/2013, 03:10 AMUBEROLF!!

I have no idea what this means...

Meaning you simply suck at Bloodlines.  Since you can't beat it, it therefore must be "too difficult," hence it's not a good game.  IV is the easiest game in the classic series, hence it's your favorite.  Don't you just love IV's boss fights?  Just standing in front of them and mashing whip until  they die is just fantastic gameplay right?   :-s

I actually didn't like Bloodlines much when it was a new game, or want until much later I gave it another chance and loved it.

Quote from: A Black Falcon on 11/16/2013, 06:43 PM

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/16/2013, 03:10 AMUBEROLF!!

I have no idea what this means...

It means that all of your statements are super ludicrous  :idea:

Quote from: SuperDeadite on 11/16/2013, 07:12 PMMeaning you simply suck at Bloodlines.  Since you can't beat it, it therefore must be "too difficult," hence it's not a good game.  IV is the easiest game in the classic series, hence it's your favorite.  Don't you just love IV's boss fights?  Just standing in front of them and mashing whip until  they die is just fantastic gameplay right?   :-s

I mentioned a lot of things wrong with Bloodlines other than its difficulty level, why do you say it's just about that?  It isn't.

Also, in a game like this, yes, having limited continues IS a problem.  If RoB or SCIV had had limited continues, it would have hurt them as well.  I know some 3rd and 4th gen platformers do have limited continues, including some very good ones (Sonic 1 for the Genesis comes to mind), but Bloodlines' design basically means that you have to keep replaying a level again and again until you can get through it with minimal damage, since the passwords save your lives and continues.  That's not much fun.   And once again, this is the ONLY Castlevania game ever which doesn't have infinite continues.  It was not a good change.

But as I said, there are a lot of problems with Bloodlines beyond just the difficulty level.  It's got a lot of issues -- the graphics aren't as good, it's shorter, the controls aren't as good, etc., etc.  Bloodlines doesn't match up to SCIV or RoB in any category, I don't think.  Those are high bars to match, and it doesn't reach them.  Apart from Contra: Hard Corps and Rocket Knight Adventures, though, that seems to usually be true in Konami Genesis games; the Genesis Tiny Toon Adventures games aren't nearly as good as the SNES ones, the Genesis TMNT games aren't nearly as good (Tournament Fighters especially!), Genesis Sunset Riders is not even close to the SNES game...  but I do think Contra Hard Corps blows away Contra III, so yeah, it's not all bad.

On that note though, it's really too bad that Konami didn't do any run & guns on the TG16/CD... it would have been great to see, and I'm sure the game(s) would have been fantastic.  Even the Genesis got a lot more releases from Konami than the TG16, even if the SNES was their clear favorite that gen.  Of course the Genesis got no Konami shmups while the TG16 got five pretty good ones, but in overall library size they released something like twice as many Genesis games, I think.  And no run & guns on the Turbo. :(

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/16/2013, 09:38 PM

Quote from: A Black Falcon on 11/16/2013, 06:43 PM

Quote from: Jiujitsu on 11/16/2013, 03:10 AMUBEROLF!!

I have no idea what this means...

It means that all of your statements are super ludicrous  :idea:

Saying that both games are fantastic and among the best games in their genre (they are), but SCIV is better is ludicrous?  Yeah, no.

Quote from: A Black Falcon on 11/17/2013, 04:19 AMBut as I said, there are a lot of problems with Bloodlines beyond just the difficulty level.  It's got a lot of issues -- the graphics aren't as good, it's shorter, the controls aren't as good, etc., etc.  Bloodlines doesn't match up to SCIV or RoB in any category, I don't think.  Those are high bars to match, and it doesn't reach them.

+1

IV has tons of enemies that CANNOT HIT YOU.  Unless you actually choose to run into their line of fire, they CANNOT HIT YOU.  Bloodlines isn't perfect, but at least it knows that enemy's should have a purpose besides walking back and forth until you decide to push UP+Whip a few times.  How the hell can you ignore the absolute horrid design of IV and then complain that Bloodlines isn't perfect?  SNERD hypocrisy at it's finest. 

Konami chose to ditch the 8-way whip because it does not work with traditional castlevania stage design.  Hence, the X68000 game uses a 5-way whip giving you amazing precision but still a solid challenge.

For the record, my favorite Castlevania is the X68000 game.

RoB has FAR better boss design than IV, and probably the best in the series. It also nails traditional Castlevania gameplay and has better difficulty. If gameplay trumps all, RoB wins.

But to me, a big part of what makes the Castlevania experience is the atmosphere, and when it comes to this aspect, IV is the peak of the series. It's got a haunting loneliness to it that's downright sophisticated. It's practically a spiritual journey.

RoB, with its bright palette and its bouncy music and its cartoony cutscenes, feels to Castlevania like Parodius feels to R-Type. Don't get me wrong, some parts of it are amazing to look at, but it doesn't hit me in the same place the other games do.

Also, and though I would be totally open to the idea of a female main character, I do think that Castlevania should be a strictly "no bitches" affair. Simon is going after Dracula because Dracula's got to go. Richter, on the other hand, is just trying to get laid.

the atmosphere in RoBs prologue stage 0 alone already beats any other casts on the snes :idea:

I do agree that I think Bloodlines is just a hair too hard. I also think the quality of the sound effects happens to be shit. That said, it is also a well-designed game that does some neat special effects you don't see on many (any?) SNES games, even. Quite frankly, I think that era was Konami at its most creative and experimental. They made their Cvania games on each platform strikingly different, and worked hard to capitalize on the strengths of each system. I can choose a favorite, but I can't easily identify one which is BETTER, because all 3 are great in their own regards.

Although, if you really want to take into account the capabilities of the base system, I think Cvania 3 on the NES is actually the most striking. I would absolutely LOVE to see a 16-bit style remake of that one. You'll notice that Symphony of the Night draws most directly from RoB, but also from Cvania III.

^ Castlevania III (NES) was grand.  Released during 16-bit era, it made me wonder why the "modern" consoles had so few games that had the depth of Castlevania III.

A very solid entry.

Quote from: esteban on 11/17/2013, 12:02 PM^ Castlevania III (NES) was grand.  Released during 16-bit era, it made me wonder why the "modern" consoles had so few games that had the depth of Castlevania III.

A very solid entry.

Totally awesome and super hard game :D

Quote from: PunkCryborg on 11/17/2013, 12:31 PM

Quote from: esteban on 11/17/2013, 12:02 PM^ Castlevania III (NES) was grand.  Released during 16-bit era, it made me wonder why the "modern" consoles had so few games that had the depth of Castlevania III.

A very solid entry.

Totally awesome and super hard game :D

I have to admit I've not played Castlevania III, will add it to my to play list.

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 11/17/2013, 05:44 PM

Quote from: PunkCryborg on 11/17/2013, 12:31 PM

Quote from: esteban on 11/17/2013, 12:02 PM^ Castlevania III (NES) was grand.  Released during 16-bit era, it made me wonder why the "modern" consoles had so few games that had the depth of Castlevania III.

A very solid entry.

Totally awesome and super hard game :D

I have to admit I've not played Castlevania III, will add it to my to play list.

You've not played III?  You've not played III?????? People we now have concrete proof that SNERD = n00b.  This explains the creation of this entire topic.

To me SCIV was more Westernized that Rondo. By that I mean, the art style/design. From the colors to the overall feel. The flexible whip was cool but to me it kinda defeated the purpose of having 2ndry weapons. I need to play through that game again to see if my memory is biased. I've been playing Rondo lately so that one is fresh in my head.  SoTN was my favorite game but it's now a tie with Rondo and I only started playing Rondo a couple of years ago.

Hmmm time for a Castlevnia Marathon....

Rondo and SotN are like one team. You can play through Rondo and just go over to SotN, therefore they're like on big game.

Very funnily only, Rondo runs on a supposed to be "8-bit" machine that came out OVER 3 YEARS pre SNES release, and SotN runs on the commercially strongest 32-bit machine at that time. And it still looks and sounds as if made from one piece.
Just shows how DAMN GOOD Rondo is :idea:

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/18/2013, 07:07 PMRondo and SotN are like one team. You can play through Rondo and just go over to SotN, therefore they're like on big game.

Very funnily only, Rondo runs on a supposed to be "8-bit" machine that came out OVER 3 YEARS pre SNES release, and SotN runs on the commercially strongest 32-bit machine at that time. And it still looks and sounds as if made from one piece.
Just shows how DAMN GOOD Rondo is :idea:

To be fair Konami did revamp the graphics of Rodo at the beginning of SotN.  They even added the weird whip swing from SC IV to Richter.

Quote from: SuperDeadite on 11/17/2013, 07:33 AMIV has tons of enemies that CANNOT HIT YOU.  Unless you actually choose to run into their line of fire, they CANNOT HIT YOU.  Bloodlines isn't perfect, but at least it knows that enemy's should have a purpose besides walking back and forth until you decide to push UP+Whip a few times.  How the hell can you ignore the absolute horrid design of IV and then complain that Bloodlines isn't perfect?  SNERD hypocrisy at it's finest.

Ah, I see, you're focusing mostly on your dislike for SCIV because you think it's too easy than anything else.  Well, I disagree, it's an outstanding game regardless.  And are you talking about just the first time through the game, or also the second?

QuoteKonami chose to ditch the 8-way whip because it does not work with traditional castlevania stage design.  Hence, the X68000 game uses a 5-way whip giving you amazing precision but still a solid challenge.

I have the Castlevania Chronicles version of that game... it's good, but so, so hard!  At least in Chronicles you can save after every level, though, which avoids the worst of Bloodlines' saving problems.  Also I don't think the levels are quite as long.  Really hard game, though.

Quote from: SamIAm on 11/17/2013, 08:26 AMFor the record, my favorite Castlevania is the X68000 game.

RoB has FAR better boss design than IV, and probably the best in the series. It also nails traditional Castlevania gameplay and has better difficulty. If gameplay trumps all, RoB wins.

But to me, a big part of what makes the Castlevania experience is the atmosphere, and when it comes to this aspect, IV is the peak of the series. It's got a haunting loneliness to it that's downright sophisticated. It's practically a spiritual journey.

RoB, with its bright palette and its bouncy music and its cartoony cutscenes, feels to Castlevania like Parodius feels to R-Type. Don't get me wrong, some parts of it are amazing to look at, but it doesn't hit me in the same place the other games do.

It is true that RoB has a more anime-styled tone, but it's got serious parts as well as silly ones.  Its mix of serious and silly is somewhat unique in the series, but I think it works.  Sure, if you're looking for consistency SCIV is probably better, but RoB isn't far behind -- I think it melds the two elements together well.

On another note, the N64 Castlevania games have some of the best atmospheres of any games in the franchise... they really do a great job setting the scene, with the environments, creepy stuff, adventure elements, etc.

QuoteAlso, and though I would be totally open to the idea of a female main character, I do think that Castlevania should be a strictly "no bitches" affair. Simon is going after Dracula because Dracula's got to go. Richter, on the other hand, is just trying to get laid.

I'm not sure what you mean by this, but if you're saying anything about not liking the various female characters in Castlevania games, yeah, you're completely wrong.  As for Simon v. Richter, though, Simon has almost no discernible character, really... what is there to say about him?  That his character design is probably cooler looking than Richter's?  That is probably true.  As for motivations, "rescue the girl" vs. "beat the villain"... I do prefer the latter, because "rescue the girl" is a old, should-be-gone sexist storyline, but neither one is all that original.  It's the gameplay that matters the most... and that's where SCIV Simon, with his awesome whip controls, far outpaces more NESlike Richter.  At least there's also Maria with her nice arc-attack birds. which also hit enemies more than the whip but do the same amount of damage per hit, in RoB anyway, too.  With that I like to use the red-birds secondary weapon the best, for coverage against enemies coming from above.

Quote from: SuperDeadite on 11/17/2013, 09:26 PMYou've not played III?  You've not played III?????? People we now have concrete proof that SNERD = n00b.  This explains the creation of this entire topic.

III isn't nearly as common as the first game, for sure... or even IV on SNES, either.  And Bloodlines is cheaper, I think.  So I can see that, even though III is a great game.

QuoteOn another note, the N64 Castlevania games have some of the best atmospheres of any games in the franchise... they really do a great job setting the scene, with the environments, creepy stuff, adventure elements, etc.

OK thats just enuff nonsense :lol:

anyway marias big easy bonus was her shadow attack (know that?) which made the game so incredible easy. but the control of herself was a big improvement in the dracula serie, like 100x more than that  silly 8way whip-dip in CVIV, which does not add any real shit to the game. if the game is only soo good because of the 8-way whip (as so many snerds always try to claim), then the rest of the game must be really crap (which it obeyously also is compared to a so much bigger, nicer and so well designed and executed Drac x RoB).

SC IV had a more western art direction feel to it.

I wanted to do a Deep Blue versus match next but I couldn't think of a suitable crap enough opponent.
 :lol: :lol:

 Why not take SC IV one more time then? :lol:

I thought maybe Deep Blue Vs Energy, crap enough but really it needs to be another shootie game.

Deep Blue Vs Stamp Collecting
 :lol:

Energy is awesome so it doesn't need a VS against Deep Blue.  Also, Deep Blue to me isn't really bad, just misunderstood.

Quote from: A Black Falcon on 11/19/2013, 08:43 PMSimon has almost no discernible character, really... what is there to say about him?

Clearly you've not seen Simon on the Captain N TV show!

(https://web.archive.org/web/20141129035323im_/http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2010/185/9/3/Captain_N__Simon_Belmont__by_Virus_20.png)

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 11/20/2013, 11:14 AMI wanted to do a Deep Blue versus match next but I couldn't think of a suitable crap enough opponent.
 :lol: :lol:

D-Force (SNES)?  It's a vertical shmup, not horizontal, but it's definitely not very good.

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/19/2013, 09:02 PM

QuoteOn another note, the N64 Castlevania games have some of the best atmospheres of any games in the franchise... they really do a great job setting the scene, with the environments, creepy stuff, adventure elements, etc.

OK thats just enuff nonsense :lol:

Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness in particular is a great game.  It's easily the best 3d Castlevania game, and is a pretty good game overall as well.

Quoteanyway marias big easy bonus was her shadow attack (know that?) which made the game so incredible easy.

Oh, right, the special moves with fighting game style commands... I've barely ever used those, they don't usually seem needed...

Quotebut the control of herself was a big improvement in the dracula serie, like 100x more than that  silly 8way whip-dip in CVIV, which does not add any real shit to the game. if the game is only soo good because of the 8-way whip (as so many snerds always try to claim), then the rest of the game must be really crap (which it obeyously also is compared to a so much bigger, nicer and so well designed and executed Drac x RoB).

Control was a big improvement?  How so?  Do you mean her double jump?  That is pretty cool, yeah... and the distance her roll goes is great too.  Anything beyond that though? 

(But yes, the 8-way whip does add a lot to SCIV.)

Quote from: Nando on 11/20/2013, 11:08 AMSC IV had a more western art direction feel to it.

That is true, yes.

Quote from: A Black Falcon on 11/20/2013, 06:51 PM

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 11/20/2013, 11:14 AMI wanted to do a Deep Blue versus match next but I couldn't think of a suitable crap enough opponent.
 :lol: :lol:

D-Force (SNES)?  It's a vertical shmup, not horizontal, but it's definitely not very good.

I remember D-Force, I bought it on the SFC when it was released and was absolutely gutted, it's a terrible game.
Buying new games wasn't cheap back then so when you got a crap one it really hurt.

I can't believe this is even up for discussion. Drac X is one of the top 3 if not the number one best PC Engine game. I probably wouldn't even put Castlevania IV in the top 10 SNES games. And as we all PCE is a million times better than SNES PERIOD. /endthread

I recently played through several Castlevania games, a holloween tradition, and for the 16 bit games Drac X is best with CV4 in second place. Bloodlines is my least favorite.

Although I agree the 8 directional whip makes 4 too easy, I think using Maria in X makes it too easy as well.

Quote from: guest on 11/24/2013, 01:35 PMfor the 16 bit games Drac X is best with CV4 in second place. Bloodlines is my least favorite.

Truth, I agree.

Voted CVIV only because i like how much control i have over simon.While,Dracula-X still has the advantage of length and replay value.For music i do like both very much on that front.By the way i'm not putting down the pce castlevania 'because i voted for the snes one.I still think rondo of blood is one of the best traditional castlevaina out there.

Quote from: TR0N on 11/25/2013, 01:26 AMone of the best traditional castlevaina out there.

only one of the best? hmm..how many are even out there that are really able to compete with the pce drac x?

having in my mind: x68k akumajou dracula..hm..not much left anymore.

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/25/2013, 01:31 AM

Quote from: TR0N on 11/25/2013, 01:26 AMone of the best traditional castlevaina out there.

only one of the best? hmm..how many are even out there that are really able to compete with the pce drac x?

having in my mind: x68k akumajou dracula..hm..not much left anymore.

Beside dracula-x,castlevaina 3,bloodlines,CVIV and i all ways had a soft spot for the original and CVII simon's quest.

oh ok, I just don't see those as a valid opponent to the great pce drac x.
they just don't have the class, the visuals, the musics, the brilliancy, the atmosphere, the variety, the overwhelming, the gorgeousness etc. as pce drac x has to play on the same party. even though they might be or are in fact good to very good games.

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/25/2013, 02:31 AMoh ok, I just don't see those as a valid opponent to the great pce drac x.
they just don't have the class, the visuals, the musics, the brilliancy, the atmosphere, the variety, the overwhelming, the gorgeousness etc. as pce drac x has to play on the same party. even though they might be or are in fact good to very good games.

In general i'm a fan of vintage castlevania games.I guess if the game originally had a u.s release to begin with i would hold it in higher regards,being able to play it on it's release.I remember when i finally bought the game years ago and after completing it i wonder why it got so much hype.Still dracula-x rondo of blood,is a excellent title that should be in any bodies pce collection.

I got Dracula X for XMas 93'  At the time that game amazed me.  It was so different for a CV game.  Everything about it was just great.  Even now I can still sit and play it and get a ton of enjoyment out of it. 

I can understand people getting the game years later and holding it to a certain high standard based off surrounding hype.  They are then somewhat disappointed imagining it to better based off of what they thought it would be. 

I still think it's the best CV game ever done.  Symphony of the Night is good, but in a way it's not really a typical CV game.

Quote from: geise on 11/25/2013, 12:42 PMI still think it's the best CV game ever done.  Symphony of the Night is good, but in a way it's not really a typical CV game.

Considering they went on to make six more Castlevania games that play just like it, I would say it is. :)

You could technically include Simon's Quest in there also, even though it's not quite at the same level as the others.

This is an unfair comparison. DracX is legions greater than CV4 in every conceivable way, and that's not fanboyism speaking, it's reality. As much as I like CV4, it doesn't hold a candle to the masterpiece that is Rondo. A better Castlevania did not come out until Portrait Of Ruin, and wouldn't ya know it... Richter and Maria are in it too. Go figure.

Quote from: jperryss on 11/25/2013, 01:20 PM

Quote from: geise on 11/25/2013, 12:42 PMI still think it's the best CV game ever done.  Symphony of the Night is good, but in a way it's not really a typical CV game.

Considering they went on to make six more Castlevania games that play just like it, I would say it is. :)

You could technically include Simon's Quest in there also, even though it's not quite at the same level as the others.

Haha!  Touché

What I was getting at (and I should've mentioned) was that SotN didn't have you playing as a Belmont for the main character.  I liked SotN, but I got tired of the non linear play actually fairly quick with a lot of the other CV games that came after SotN.

I honestly can not decide. I really like the total whip control in Super Castlevania IV. But X did pretty much standardize castlevania lore with the release of SOTN. I love 2,3,4, X, and SOTN.

I would personally go with the PSP version. It can be played on a television, and has the arranged and original PC Engine version included. And sega saturn version of SOTN.

Quote from: greedostick on 11/26/2013, 06:44 PMI honestly can not decide. I really like the total whip control in Super Castlevania IV. But X did pretty much standardize castlevania lore with the release of SOTN. I love 2,3,4, X, and SOTN.

I would personally go with the PSP version. It can be played on a television, and has the arranged and original PC Engine version included. And sega saturn version of SOTN.

That's not the Saturn version of NitM. :wink:

A compilation of standalone games is not a version. Ys I & II for PCE being intertwined as a single continuous game can be considered a single game, but extra games tossed into the same container isn't the same. Otherwise, the Capcom Classic Compilations have the best version of each included game, no matter how buggy they are, because there are other games in the same container.

The regular version of Dracula X in the PSP set seems decent enough (I've only played it with PSP controls), but I don't like the changes, new soundtrack (it's not too bad) or localization as much as the original (and don't like the gameplay or graphics of the budget 3D remake). Is there a method to use any controller you want on a PSP? If not, then the PCE version would win for controls alone, even if the emulated version was 100% faithful.

Quote from: OldRover on 11/25/2013, 07:41 PMThis is an unfair comparison. DracX is legions greater than CV4 in every conceivable way, and that's not fanboyism speaking, it's reality. As much as I like CV4, it doesn't hold a candle to the masterpiece that is Rondo. A better Castlevania did not come out until Portrait Of Ruin, and wouldn't ya know it... Richter and Maria are in it too. Go figure.

Please give this man a medal! :D 

And preferring to play drac x other than on the pce is kinda hilarious for almost every possible reason.

Quote from: guest on 11/26/2013, 08:02 PM

Quote from: greedostick on 11/26/2013, 06:44 PMI honestly can not decide. I really like the total whip control in Super Castlevania IV. But X did pretty much standardize castlevania lore with the release of SOTN. I love 2,3,4, X, and SOTN.

I would personally go with the PSP version. It can be played on a television, and has the arranged and original PC Engine version included. And sega saturn version of SOTN.

That's not the Saturn version of NitM. :wink:

A compilation of standalone games is not a version. Ys I & II for PCE being intertwined as a single continuous game can be considered a single game, but extra games tossed into the same container isn't the same. Otherwise, the Capcom Classic Compilations have the best version of each included game, no matter how buggy they are, because there are other games in the same container.

The regular version of Dracula X in the PSP set seems decent enough (I've only played it with PSP controls), but I don't like the changes, new soundtrack (it's not too bad) or localization as much as the original (and don't like the gameplay or graphics of the budget 3D remake). Is there a method to use any controller you want on a PSP? If not, then the PCE version would win for controls alone, even if the emulated version was 100% faithful.

are you sure its not the Saturn version? I haven't played throught it yet. only a little over 50% so I haven't got Maria yet. but I heard she is unlockable. I agree, I don't care for the arranged version. I'm pretty certain you have to use the PSP unit. this does not bother me at all. I like the PSP buttons and dpad. with the component cable it looks pretty good. But if we can't pick compilations then I would choose X after thinking about it. It's just a great game. But I love mist the 2d castlevsnia games.

Quote from: CrackTiger on 11/26/2013, 08:02 PMIs there a method to use any controller you want on a PSP?

You can use a DS3 with a PSP Go, but I think that's it.

I sat down and played both of these again to consolidate my thoughts on them.

I voted for SCIV before, and I have to say I'd do it again. What follows, of course, is my subjective take on the two games.

IV's only real weakness...whether it's large or small...is that the enemies aren't aggressive enough, including the bosses which are just too simple. I totally agree that traditional Castlevania gameplay balances everything perfectly around a straight-forward whip, but there's no reason why they couldn't have tuned the enemies to be more threatening against the 8-way whip and struck an entirely new balance.

So I'm cool with the 8-way whip. In fact, even though it makes things too easy sometimes, it's also more stimulating than I used to give it credit for. One thing I noticed while playing these back-to-back is that IV has a higher frequency of "stuff" you can whip. You might still argue quality over quantity, but with the 8-way whip, there's quantity and good variety. Even in segments that aren't very difficult, there's a pleasant "cleaning house" kind of feeling to it. With better difficulty, it would have been awesome.

Dracula X's gameplay IS better overall, definitely. Enemy movements are so much deeper and demand so much more in the way of reaction-to-their-actions. Like I was saying before, the thrilling, well animated boss fights are probably the best in the old series. I love how for all the depth and difficulty, it's possible to get through every segment consistently without getting hit as long as you know what you're doing. That's good Castlevania gameplay in a nutshell.

Richter moves just a little better than Simon, too. He's faster, not quite as bulky, and he handles more nimbly on stairs.

The production of Dracula X feels much bigger and slicker. It packs some real "wow" moments, especially with the volume turned up. If it weren't Castlevania, it might be my favorite PCE game. But because it is Castlevania, I'm expecting it to have a certain dark sophistication to it, and I'm sorry to say I just don't get that at all. Instead, Maria the well-endowed 12 year old in a bright pink dress floats down and has a cutesy giggly chat with Richter, and I just wonder WTF I'm playing. The same thing happens when Annette cries "Save me, Richter!" while a soap-opera clarinet plays in the background. This isn't a Japanese-style vs. Western-style issue to me. Old school Castlevania really just shouldn't have damsels in distress.

Call me crazy, but I think Castlevania is best when there are no words spoken in the game at all.

What can I say about the music? Dracula X makes me tap my foot. IV makes me feel like I'm alone in Transylvania. As for graphics, you could say Dracula X has the sprite animation while IV has the background animation. But while IV's enemies look a little dorkier, its world also feels a lot bigger, and that's the clincher for me.

And one last thing that pisses me off about Dracula X. Why the hell can't I get a perfect ending in one go? It's not possible to save Maria AND go to level 3' to save the nun without dying or resetting the system. Why didn't they put Maria first in level 2?

I would really love to see a hack of Dracula X that puts all the stages back-to-back.

oh man, that is some complaining on very high niveau. but sure thing to each his/hers own.

QuoteAs for graphics, you could say Dracula X has the sprite animation while IV has the background animation. But while IV's enemies look a little dorkier, its world also feels a lot bigger, and that's the clincher for me.

This statement doesn't make any sense to me at all, since Drac X has tons over tons of great background animations, that I don't even know were to start with. it sure and undoublty beats the hell out of CV4 in this department, unless your talking about some lame mode-7 trickery, which would be just plain hilarious.

Quote from: greedostick on 11/27/2013, 12:29 PM

Quote from: CrackTiger on 11/26/2013, 08:02 PM

Quote from: greedostick on 11/26/2013, 06:44 PMI honestly can not decide. I really like the total whip control in Super Castlevania IV. But X did pretty much standardize castlevania lore with the release of SOTN. I love 2,3,4, X, and SOTN.

I would personally go with the PSP version. It can be played on a television, and has the arranged and original PC Engine version included. And sega saturn version of SOTN.

That's not the Saturn version of NitM. :wink:

A compilation of standalone games is not a version. Ys I & II for PCE being intertwined as a single continuous game can be considered a single game, but extra games tossed into the same container isn't the same. Otherwise, the Capcom Classic Compilations have the best version of each included game, no matter how buggy they are, because there are other games in the same container.

The regular version of Dracula X in the PSP set seems decent enough (I've only played it with PSP controls), but I don't like the changes, new soundtrack (it's not too bad) or localization as much as the original (and don't like the gameplay or graphics of the budget 3D remake). Is there a method to use any controller you want on a PSP? If not, then the PCE version would win for controls alone, even if the emulated version was 100% faithful.

are you sure its not the Saturn version? I haven't played throught it yet. only a little over 50% so I haven't got Maria yet. but I heard she is unlockable. I agree, I don't care for the arranged version. I'm pretty certain you have to use the PSP unit. this does not bother me at all. I like the PSP buttons and dpad. with the component cable it looks pretty good. But if we can't pick compilations then I would choose X after thinking about it. It's just a great game. But I love mist the 2d castlevsnia games.

I played the Saturn version death when it came out, after having played the Playstation version a lot when it was new. Aside from the fact that it's easy to tell which version it is if you know them both, while promoting the upcoming release of the PSP set, Koji Igarashi went on and on about how it was a port of the Playstation version and how the Saturn version's original content would never be used for anything ever again, because he wasn't involved with that version.

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/28/2013, 07:32 AMThis statement doesn't make any sense to me at all, since Drac X has tons over tons of great background animations, that I don't even know were to start with. it sure and undoublty beats the hell out of CV4 in this department, unless your talking about some lame mode-7 trickery, which would be just plain hilarious.

Name me one section of IV that consists of only one completely static and uniformly scrolling background plane.

Such areas of Dracula X:
the middle and underground sections of stage 2
the first part and late-middle parts of stage 3
the first part of stage 3' (except for the flapping cape and the appearance of the mid-boss)
all of stage 4
the first part of stage 4'
the middle part of stage 5'
and a bunch of the pre-boss areas.

All of that accounts for a fair chunk of the total game. Maybe 25%?

In IV, the nearest I can find is last section of stage 3-3, which still has a transparent waterfall layer that Simon can go behind.

Quote from: SamIAm on 11/28/2013, 08:08 AMName me one section of IV that consists of only one completely static and uniformly scrolling background plane.

Such areas of Dracula X:
the middle and underground sections of stage 2
the first part and late-middle parts of stage 3
the first part of stage 3' (except for the flapping cape and the appearance of the mid-boss)
all of stage 4
the first part of stage 4'
the middle part of stage 5'
and a bunch of the pre-boss areas.

All of that accounts for a fair chunk of the total game. Maybe 25%?

In IV, the nearest I can find is last section of stage 3-3, which still has a transparent waterfall layer that Simon can go behind.

Most would agree that Rondo is the better game, but you and several other posters here have made some excellent points about IV and some fair criticism of Rondo. I'd be pretty bad at trying to write game reviews, but most of the comments regarding IV's atmosphere and feeling of loneliness are right on, and though I don't have an issue with Maria's cutesy charm in Rondo, it's hard to deny that it all feels very un-Castlevania-ish.

It's too bad that all you get in return are brainless "nuh uh!"s from SOME of the members here. Yes, Rondo is a fantastic game, but surely you can take it's cock out of your mouth for five minutes?

Oh, and shame on anyone who hasn't played Rondo using an original disc on an original PCE, because that simply doesn't count and the idea of playing it any other way is ridiculous.   :roll:

I've never understood how critics of PCE games can go to such extremes to stretch the lack of parallax in some games to cancel out existing parallax or the library in general. Lots of "legendary" games from popular consoles have lots of parallax free sections and nobody thinks anything of it. But it happens in a PCE game, somehow it devalues or writes off the game in general.

Too many people say how bad it is that there are dozens of PCE games without much of any parallax and that is supposed to make the overall library weak. But if those games were never released and there was only the hundreds of remaining games, then the same console with the same games would be magically be normal? At the same time these people always dismiss the massive amount of crap for Genesis/SNES and popular systems in general, as an avoidable result of success.

Dracula X has 400% the content of Castlevania IV, but 25% of it is parallax free (just like many sections of SotN and similar games that followed)... and somehow than equals Castlevania IV>Dracula X in that regard?

The particular discussion point that Tatsujin raised was background animation. Parallax matters quite a bit in that case.

Rondo wins in sprite animation, but I think the backgrounds in IV are more impressive.

Also, 400% more content? When it comes to the number of music tracks, number of stages, number of enemies, number of bosses, and number of changes in the scenery, IV has either the same or a little more of everything. Both games take about the same amount of time to clear 100%. Rondo's probably got more background and sprite tiles, which is an unmistakable advantage on its own, but IV is overall very competitive thanks to all its graphical effects.

Yeah, IV is a longer game than RoB.  It has more content, not less.  RoB may seem longer the first time through if you're going back and trying to find how to get to the alternate levels, but they lead to the same ending, so that's all just optional stuff -- and anyway, if you do know how to unlock them, playing through all the levels still is shorter than a single playthrough of SCIV, I believe. 

For play beyond the first time through the game, RoB's "second quest" is playing the same game with the other character.  Of course one is harder to play as than the other, but the contents are the same.  In SCIV you play as the same character, but the game gets harder in the second time through (hard mode).  I'd say SCIV's second quest is more fun, since after playing RoB with Maria, I can't bring myself to suffer through playing it with Richter... while SCIV's second quest is more of the same but a bit harder.  Also, the second time through RoB you learn where the hidden stages are, which reduces the exploration element of the game and makes it shorter in that respect, so that advantage, if you consider it one, is temporary.  I like that they're there and it does add to the game, but it'd have been nice if they had more of a point beyond just finding some alternate stages along the way... you know, if they led to an alternate ending or something like that.  Ah well.  Of course SCIV is linear, which has its own limitations (it's always the same), but I at least am fine with linearity in games, as long as they are well-designed along the way.

Quote from: SamIAm on 11/28/2013, 08:08 AM

Quote from: Tatsujin on 11/28/2013, 07:32 AMThis statement doesn't make any sense to me at all, since Drac X has tons over tons of great background animations, that I don't even know were to start with. it sure and undoublty beats the hell out of CV4 in this department, unless your talking about some lame mode-7 trickery, which would be just plain hilarious.

Name me one section of IV that consists of only one completely static and uniformly scrolling background plane.

Such areas of Dracula X:
the middle and underground sections of stage 2
the first part and late-middle parts of stage 3
the first part of stage 3' (except for the flapping cape and the appearance of the mid-boss)
all of stage 4
the first part of stage 4'
the middle part of stage 5'
and a bunch of the pre-boss areas.

All of that accounts for a fair chunk of the total game. Maybe 25%?

In IV, the nearest I can find is last section of stage 3-3, which still has a transparent waterfall layer that Simon can go behind.

I am sorry Sam, but I still do not get your point here really.

Only for that I had to force me to at least play through 3/4 of CV4 to see what you might be talking about, and I still don't get it perfectly.

and the few things that popped right again into my mind were:

..that game is so slow paced and it seems that almost nothing goes on. pure boring whipping trough some partly really tastless and synthetic lengthened levels with odd and boring enemies (both in attack and design point of view).
..it als reminded me once again how silly, boring and unspectacular its level bosses are. no really, a fucking joke straight up to dracula.
..the color sheme at some points is so wrong, it almost produces eye cancer.
..mode 7 isn't the same any more than it was back in 1991.


but regarding your concern, RoB might have a few less animated BGs as you prefer to single it out here, but that's almost the only negative point that can be handed out. but in return it has the 100x cooler animations than anything seen in CV4. who whants to see a level long the same boring low-frame skull that looks after you while passing it?

remember stuff in RoB like the saurus with its red eyes that walked in the dark background before entering the castle? the three mirrors that the last one suddenly refelcted a skeleton instead of you? or the sitting man which crumbles if touched or whipped? the cursed picture that tries to take you to hell (probably not really a BG per se, but you'll get the point of how much richer this game is regarding details and animations), the lost souls that are trying to drag you to hell with their hands? ... not to speak of all the super cool level boss introduction animations. that's the real stuff that makes RoB so great in animations, not some silly boring 100 times repeating 3 frame animationed nonsense skulls. hell, already the fiery BGs in the first level were fantastic, and tops almost anything shown in CV4. and there are many many more great examples to be found.

the only really good thing I can say about CV4 is regarding its music. real nicely done in a good old well-known konami fashioned way. but all the rest just aged badly, and wasn't even up to RoB for just one split second back in the days.

as some others already had pointed it out earlier, RoB plays that much in a different league, it is hardly possible to even put them up against each other.

It sounds like we're not disagreeing about so much. This is my third time saying that Dracula X has better gameplay, better bosses, and better sprite animation. It's just that the there are many aspects of its tone that turn me off.

SCIV has, to my taste, a deeper and more appropriate tone and much more interesting backgrounds. The bosses were disappointing, but the gameplay still works (I have fun), and the stages in the castle are no walk in the park in terms of difficulty.

Dracula X has nice touches all over the place, but IV has plenty of character of its own, too. Think of the library level. Portraits reach out and grab you so you can't move. Something under the rug tries to push you up into spikes. Statues fall out of the background to hit you.

The swinging chandeliers is a fun, moderately challenging little section made better by mode 7, and the transparent water throughout the game looks great, too. Yeah, some of the colors are a little funky, but that's not a deal-breaker for me. The vision of the designers still comes through to me, and artistically I think it's the best game in the series.

Quote from: SamIAm on 12/01/2013, 11:59 PMIt sounds like we're not disagreeing about so much. This is my third time saying that Dracula X has better gameplay, better bosses, and better sprite animation. It's just that the there are many aspects of its tone that turn me off.

SCIV has, to my taste, a deeper and more appropriate tone and much more interesting backgrounds. The bosses were disappointing, but the gameplay still works (I have fun), and the stages in the castle are no walk in the park in terms of difficulty.

Dracula X has nice touches all over the place, but IV has plenty of character of its own, too. Think of the library level. Portraits reach out and grab you so you can't move. Something under the rug tries to push you up into spikes. Statues fall out of the background to hit you.

The swinging chandeliers is a fun, moderately challenging little section made better by mode 7, and the transparent water throughout the game looks great, too. Yeah, some of the colors are a little funky, but that's not a deal-breaker for me. The vision of the designers still comes through to me, and artistically I think it's the best game in the series.

I do see your point now a bit better.

So to put it all down to a single statement, the (all in your opinion of course) "deeper and more appropriate tone and much more interesting backgrounds" of CV4 is the only one deciding reason that you prefer CV4 over Drac X, even Drac X delivers so much more in almost every comparable area, including gameplay etc?

I mean really, put those two games side-by-side and one could get the giggles out of CV4.

So even if you were right and the BGs in CV4 in fact are better (even though many of them looking so generic and randomly boring repeatedly put together), I still think this does never makes it up to the sheer infinite grace that Drac X possesses. It's just so much more of sheer everything that they are not even the slightest able to be compared to each other.

Quote from: Tatsujin on 12/02/2013, 04:10 AMSo to put it all down to a single statement, the (all in your opinion of course) "deeper and more appropriate tone and much more interesting backgrounds" of CV4 is the only one deciding reason that you prefer CV4 over Drac X, even Drac X delivers so much more in almost every comparable area, including gameplay etc?

Replace "delivers so much more in almost every comparable area, including gameplay etc" with "delivers more gameplay" and you've about got it.

To me, the gap is wider between the quality of the atmospheres of the two games than is the gap between the quality of their gameplay (gameplays?). If the gaps were equally wide, the one with the better gameplay would win, but IV's advantage in atmosphere is enough that I ultimately enjoy finishing it more.

Dracula X is a better challenge, but IV is a better experience.

How's that for a single statement?

QuoteSo even if you were right and the BGs in CV4 in fact are better (even though many of them looking so generic and randomly boring repeatedly put together)

I really think that if you were to try to describe the scenery of both games in words using a strictly objective method, you would be able to write a higher number of words for IV than Dracula X.

I think both games set the mood quite well.  SC IV does have levels that are way drawn out.  When I think of drawn out levels in SC IV the library level comes to mind. 

On a different note.  SC IV has amazing sound effects for a launch title, and for being on SNES/SFC.  Not talking music (which is also amazing for a cart) but just the sound effects.

Now there's things I love about both games, but when i think of what I like about SC IV I realize that RoB does it all better.  I also totally disagree with A Black Falcon saying it's shorter because you can't play those "other levels" right off the bat.  Well it adds to the replay value of the game.  Being longer isn't necessarily a good thing.  I used to be kind of sick/done with SC IV by level 9 thinking "Man, when is this going to end?". 

This also isn't a biased opinion because I owned SC IV at launch and loved it, and I still do!  I just love RoB 45897263459876234598763259876445120+1 times more.

Both of these games are incredible, but personally, I prefer Rondo.  The art style is more pleasing, to me, and it marks a return to the "traditional" Castlevania gameplay.

Damn, I think I finally finished ripping Rondo, I know these numbers are boring to just about every one....your typical 16bit side scrolling action game, Altered Beast, shinobi, castlevania, GNG, Act raiser, etc are between 280 and 700 frames of animation, the best action games, batman & Robin, Demons crest, Dracula XX, Kaze Kiri, etc are around 1000 to 1100 frames of animation, Rondo has approximately 4000 frames of animation, but to be completely accurate, lets compare it to SCIV 700 frames, which is amazing for an 8 meg game, on average the sprites in rondo are far, far larger, so that 4000 frames vs 700 frames is actually 5000, 6000 frames(only a guess) vs 700 frames, ah, but it doesn't end there, not all animation is equal, many if not most of Rondos sprites have what I call full body animation, take richter vs Simon or the standard skeleton for example, whether the main character is standing on flat ground, facing up stairs or facing down stairs, if you swing your whip the upper and lower part of the body animate, 7 for the top and 7 for the bottom, in SCIV Simon and enemy sprites the lower part of the body does not animate, and since enemy characters and and bosses are typically made up of multiple sprites(not talking about multi jointed bosses) you see that you can save a lot of memory this way especially for cartridge game.

So its not 5000, 6000 frames vs 700 frames its more like 7000, 8000 frames vs 700 frames,(again a guess:)...Rondo of Blood is, a excuse my language, a Goddamn freak of video game design!!!

heres the last comparison of Rondo and SCIV, im sure I don't need to say which is which.

(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss114/bethcongo/bethcongo009/cv4draculakjz_zpse9d9e9e1.png)
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss114/bethcongo/screens/CDAkumajouDraculaX-ChinoRondoJ-100728_1130aaz_zps4f20fffb.png)
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss114/bethcongo/bethcongo008/CDAkumajouDraculaX-ChinoRondoJ-100728_1130aazoo_zps401dd9bc.png)

infact the game over animation for Maria has as many if not more frames than SCIV :) they are a bit small though, but you get the point.

(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss114/bethcongo/screens/Untitledbbv_zps55509534.png)

I tried again to play some more CV4, but it just couldn't catch me anymore as it did bitd when it was released. it was more of a pain than any pleasure. I'm frightened to say so, but in my honest opinion CV4 aged badly. the only good thing I still can say about it is regardijg it's great music, which was amazing for such an early cartridge based game.
If the music failed as well, there wouldn't be much left in that game for any enjoyment.

Yeah,  many sprites and BG tiles in SCIV are what I would call unrefined, I even felt this way when I bought the game on release.

The snes was never going to reproduce a game like Rondo of blood, it doesn't have the CPU or the memory, to do so...just look at Dracula XX possibly the most impressive snes action game when it comes to the stuff im talking about, just look at the death battle, richter moves slower, death moves slower, the syths move slower, everything moves slower, at the same time it has half the number of syths and half the amount of blood onscreen at once, also look at the mermen, DracXX has a set number on screen with a set pattern, about three mermen at once, Rondo has far superior AI, and the most merman I got onscreen in rondo at once was eleven...nor did it have the CPU to reproduce the special fx((like draculas orb attack, or enemy fiery  deaths)) not to knock the snes, it was amazing at turn base RPGs and other type games.

Quote from: awack on 12/09/2013, 08:57 PMnot to knock the snes, it was amazing at turn base RPGs and other type games.

this quite made me chuckle :lol:

and because it's also true.

And yes, I also felt about the often strange tiles and misscoloring in CV4, when I frist played it bitd.
I mean even the whole coloring is far superior in rondo, and colors aren't exactly the SFC most weakness.

When rondo came out, which of course was also the very next castlevania I had played after CV4, it offered a whole new world of so many awesome things I probably wouldn't have even ever dreamed about. its prodcuction value was such immense higher than for any existed CV at that time (was btw. konamis most expensive production at that time), and it shows it off all and very clear in the best imaginable manner just possible.

And yes I'm still confused by few people in here, that still think CV4 is superior to rondo, when it clearly isn't. I know the "it's a matter of taste" blabla thing, .. but this just doesn't count here anymore, way too big the gap between is.

Honestly, CV IV's weaknesses have a lot to do with it being an early SNES title with limited game data being used and Konami wanting to make it darker and "more realistic". While I'm not sure I like Simon's new look, I really do like the atmosphere. I think it is the creepiest of the CV games. The music and graphics design really create a dark, spooky environment that I think works well for the game.

Rondo has a very different kind of appeal, quite frankly. Sometimes I think the game is way too light-hearted, and a couple of the CD tracks actually bother me a little because they're not serious enough.

Yet, both are great games that are fun to play even today, and both are definitely CV games and will never be mistaken for anything else.

Quote from: guest on 12/09/2013, 11:42 PMHonestly, CV IV's weaknesses have a lot to do with it being an early SNES title with limited game data being used and Konami wanting to make it darker and "more realistic". While I'm not sure I like Simon's new look, I really do like the atmosphere. I think it is the creepiest of the CV games. The music and graphics design really create a dark, spooky environment that I think works well for the game.

Rondo has a very different kind of appeal, quite frankly. Sometimes I think the game is way too light-hearted, and a couple of the CD tracks actually bother me a little because they're not serious enough.

Yet, both are great games that are fun to play even today, and both are definitely CV games and will never be mistaken for anything else.

your first point may be valid, but why did the 2nd one the SNES so baddly too, compared to rondo? it even had a lot more of memory than the first had (sure still no real comparions to a full CD of data, but which most of it was used for cda red book anyway) and came even out two years after rondo.

also as said, the music in CV4 was great and added a lot to its darker atmosphere. though, the graphics are not really dark per se, more like muddy. like the SNES tried obsessive to pull off darker colors but for which it wasn't really designed. kinda of replicate the MDs brown palette, but with a higher color count.

I must say, rondo has its brighter parts compared to CV4, but it also has way muuuch more darker and creepier locs than anything ever seen before.

few locs that come to my mind:

1. the saurus in the 1st stage walking in the dark background before entering the castle (only red eyes)
2. the heavily splattered saurus is chasing you inside the castle (heart attack)
3. the beginning of 2nd stage with the great thunderbolt effects (enlights the dark back ground)
4. the sitting man that falls into dust when touched or whipped against the wall.
5. particulary every boss location is way more creepier (and adrenaline loaded) than anything in CV4.
-> especially the by bones made skeleton boss comes to my mind. damn I was really terrified while fighting against him the first time. such a creepy loc with all the bones and skulls everywhere and then suddenly the boss rises out of it and even transforms itself several times. only creepier in a similar way was the boss "legion" in SotN.
6. also that part (in the 5th stage I believe) with the graveyard where those dead souls try to grab you with their arms from the ground and drag you to hell. or the picture on the priate boat as mentioned before, as well the mirror etc etc... oh and the landscape with the viaduct in the back ground, where all sudden a mid-boss is coming out of the behind. that one dark landscape picture alone brings me more creepy atmosphere than almost any stages in CV4 combined.

I could go on and on...

walking throught CV4 is just like whipping the shit out of the same repeating as well mostly boring enemies again and again.

(https://static2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120302061327/castlevania/images/5/5b/Maria_Peke.JPG)

Legion was also used in Portrait Of Ruin and I have to say, the first time I fought that thing, it was quite terrifying. Hard as fuck to beat the first time too... had not played SotN at that point so I didn't know what to expect. The music that accompanied the PoR version of Legion just added to the intensity of the battle.

Every pre-boss area in Rondo is fucking creepy. The PSG music that plays during that time, and then the oppressive boss track that mixes in when the boss makes its appearance, is legions (haha, see what I did there) more memorable than anything in CV4, especially in the cases of the Minotaur and the headless knight. I do agree that there are parts that don't come off as being very serious... but I think CV4 actually tried too hard to be dark and creepy but ended up looking rather wimpy and washed-out.

CV4 isn't a bad game. It's definitely a Castlevania. I've played it through a few times; it's fun in its own ways. It's just a rather weak entry into the franchise. Trying to compare it to Rondo though? Pure insanity. That's like trying to compare a rhinestone to the Hope Diamond.

TATSUJIN

Quotethis quite made me chuckle :lol:

and because it's also true.

Yeah, and I mean it, just look at Final Fantasy 3 or Chrono Trigger, amazing turn base RPGs...I truly want to know, is there a PCE turn base rpg((other than Mysterious Song )) that's as impressive as those two games, I don't have a lot of experience with these type games, I think Black Tiger is the one person who can answer that question with some kind of authority, and I know its kind of an ambiguous question since what exactly do I mean by impressive, well, I mean animation/special fx....any way, that's not the subject of this thread, so.

I remember a few people talking about background animation, this is another category where Rondo dominates, and BG animation and Parallax  scrolling, horizontal or vertical line scrolling such as is in rondo(last boss fight) rotating tunnels, warping fire, the leaning tower of pisa etc...im talking about actual animation whether it be tile or sprite animation,  such as lightning, rain, torches, fish, figures, cogs etc, most games just have a handful or a couple dozen frames, Rondo has hundreds of frames....as far as parallax scrolling goes, does SCIV or Dracula XX ever have three or more over lapping layers, I cant think of any off a hand, Rondo has a few like the first part of the ghost ship level..... and by the way, not every section in a game has to use parallax, just look at SOTN, there are many, many sections that don't have parallax.

This is a bit of a one sided compare. The odds are obviously not going to be in Castlevania 4's favor due to its age, the fact it was an early release, and that it was designed to be more in line with Castlevania 1 and Haunted Castle as opposed to all the later Castlevanias. Dracula X really got the benefit of a system that had been on the market for a long while at that point and its capabilities could be exploited fully. Plus, I mean, cd-rom versus what, an 8mb cart who's development was started in 1989?

I'd worry less about comparing the two and just simply celebrate the fact that Super Castlevania 4 accomplished its goal, of bringing the gameplay from pt1 back to the series, and enjoy both games for what they offer. As far as whatever drawbacks Dracula X on Snes has, you still have to admit the music is damn nice on it for Snes stuff (some of the best game music I have heard on Snes), as well as the backgrounds and colors. Its really not a bad Castlevania game. May not be up to the Pc-Engines snuff as a whole action wise, but compared to like Bloodlines it can hold its own fine. That and many of its backgrounds are way more detailed then the PCE Drac X. People when comparing the two never really seem to want to compliment the Snes version for that or anything else it did right, and that is pretty sad.

There has been a few Dracula XX vs Rondo threads, and the comparison was a little more fleshed out. As far as SNES action games are concerned (contra, Demons crest, super ghouls n ghost, act raiser1, act raiser 2, Batman & robin, Hagane, and so on) Dracula XX is one of the more impressive titles by far with its large sprites, lots of frames, beautiful sprite and tile graphics, cool fx, and yes really good music, the pre boss fight music is amazing, the clock tower stage looks fantastic, in many ways, I prefer it to SCIV, im kinda curious on how a 16meg Rondo of blood port for the Genesis would have turned out.

I love all of the classicvanias, myself, and I think both games you've mentioned have their merits.  I was lucky to score a copy of Drac X when it was released in 1992 (or was it 93?) and I played the heck out of it.. I'm sure I'd be terrible at it today but back then I had it basically memorized.  Loved the multiple paths, the boss fights, everything, and of course bragging rights to my friends since I was the weird one with the NEC consoles.  I really like the soundtrack to Super Castlevania IV, though, and that is what comes to mind first when I think of that game.  It has it's cool moments and I definitely enjoyed playing it at my friends house.  I wonder if Castlevania Bloodlines is a fairer comparison, I rank that one quite a but higher than IV personally.  But it's all a matter of taste and they are all great games.

I do enjoy the Metroidvanias, but Symphony of the Night is the best in my book and I don't like the direction the art design took in the later games as much as the originals.  I did enjoy the multiplayer Castlevania HD on Xbox 360 though, wish that would get a rerelease on Steam so I'd have an opportunity to buy all the DLC which I never got to try (because frankly it was a bit of a rip off on 360.)

The newer 3D castlevania titles I've barely played, they don't seem to convey the spirt of the series to me.

I also quite like those kind of peeps that brag about how dare of drac x rondo to bent off the classic way castlevania style with its anime stuff and multiple ways, but in the same sentence praise the n64 casts..le LOL

So, all this talk has me wanting a real sequel to Cvania II, and on the PCE. I think I enjoyed CV2 more than most folks...

I love both games but Castlevania IV will always have a special place in my heart. Rondo may be a deeper game due to multiple playable characters, branching paths, etc. but IV has the spookier atmosphere due to the music and overall darker look. IV also has better controls due to the 8 direction whipping, being able to change direction mid-air easier, using the shoulder buttons for weapons. Both games are neck and neck for me so I can't really choose one.

as said before, I don't think or feel that CastIV is spookier than drac x or its colors are held darker.

I have the feel that most peeps that claim that have probably played CastIV as an 8yo kid e.g., where drac x was experienced the 1st time many years later, which may cause that biased feelings.

in fact its colors is only "muddier" and mostly unfitting with the regular more pastel kind of SFC/SNES color palette. that's why it came out kinda strange. but some might be attracted  exactly to that look. I'm not very much.

I have to disagree about the colors only being muddier. There are parts where it's kind of ugly but Konami definitely went for a more dark, spooky look with Castlevania IV. The music is far more dark and spooky in IV as well compared to Rondo. Don't get me wrong, I love Cross A Fear and Op.13 but Rondo's soundtrack isn't spooky for the most part. As I said before, Rondo is a deeper game but it lacks the spooky atmosphere that IV has.

I decided to play SC4 again a couple of days ago... I had forgotten how boring it can be at times. I also did not remember the sprite animation being so crude.

Now that I've played CVIV, it's a very slow and kind of ugly game.

Rondo wins, hands down.

Bloodlines is really fun, but still not as good as Rondo.

I just watched the 100th episode of Game Sack and they rank SCIV above Dracula X!!

http://youtu.be/l2bPsntR2_k Game Sack - Top 10 16-Bit Games

I still maintain that SCIV is an awesome game, not as good as Dracula X but still awesome. :D

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 03/04/2014, 03:11 PMI just watched the 100th episode of Game Sack and they rank SCIV above Dracula X!!



Game Sack - Top 10 16-Bit Games (https://youtu.be/l2bPsntR2_k#ws)



I still maintain that SCIV is an awesome game, not as good as Dracula X but still awesome.
 :D

What a bizarre list...

At least Dracula X is in there and it's not a complete SNES and Genny circle jerk.

Drac x is the better game, but I believe with a top 10 list, IV was ranked higher because it appeals to a broader audience. More people owned the SNES, and played IV.

One that left me scratching my head was Road Rash.... Really!?... out of all the great games for those 3 consoles, how does road rash make the cut? I wouldn't expect to even see that on a top 25 lol

It's more their favorite five + five games, not a list based on technical feats, sales numbers, etc.

Gotta go with Rondo here.   

Quote from: guest on 03/04/2014, 04:35 PMIt's more their favorite five + five games, not a list based on technical feats, sales numbers, etc.

Which they both stressed before the video started..  :)

rondo alone is better than anything released on genny and snes together. period.

Quote from: guest on 03/04/2014, 03:38 PM

Quote from: Otaking on 03/04/2014, 03:11 PMI just watched the 100th episode of Game Sack and they rank SCIV above Dracula X!!

http://youtu.be/l2bPsntR2_k Game Sack - Top 10 16-Bit Games

I still maintain that SCIV is an awesome game, not as good as Dracula X but still awesome. :D

What a bizarre list..

I thought it was a pretty good list, I thought particularly Dave's top 5 games were good choices.

Some of you have way too much pent up angst over someone else's opinions (and opinions clearly identified as such). A lot of what we like has a great deal to do with timing. When did we discover a game? What was going on in our lives when we discovered it? This isn't about quality, necessarily, but about personal enjoyment and nostalgia. You can't argue that. It just is.

/ud3ngaG.jpg

Quote from: guest on 03/05/2014, 01:03 PMSome of you have way too much pent up angst over someone else's opinions (and opinions clearly identified as such). A lot of what we like has a great deal to do with timing. When did we discover a game? What was going on in our lives when we discovered it? This isn't about quality, necessarily, but about personal enjoyment and nostalgia. You can't argue that. It just is.

What are you thinking, trying to bring logic and rational thought into this discussion?

Quote from: Bernie on 03/04/2014, 06:37 PM

Quote from: guest on 03/04/2014, 04:35 PMIt's more their favorite five + five games, not a list based on technical feats, sales numbers, etc.

Which they both stressed before the video started..  :)

Yup. Just enjoy the video for what it is; a nostalgic look back at each persons 5 favorite 16-bit games.

And DO NOT comment about it in a discussion forum, else you'll be branded a half-crazed asshole.

IV ! maybe its because i grew up on it but buy a hair i go with iv

I also had IV 3 years before drac x, and drac x still wins a million times over IV. hehe.

FINAL CONSENSUS: Super Castlevania IV edges out Dracula X in a closely fought contest. Ultimately, Dracula X simply did not age as well as SCIV.

THANK YOU. THIS DISCUSSION IS NOW PERMANENTLY OVER.

YOU'RE PERMANENTLY OVER!




















O:)

 :pcgs:

I nearly made this versus battle
Dracula X (PC Engine) Vs Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (PS1)
I wonder if the voting poll have been closer with these two.

do'h eet!

Rondo>NitM

Not even close.

Quote from: Nulltard on 04/03/2014, 04:04 AMIt is what it is.

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 04/03/2014, 07:54 AMI nearly made this versus battle
Dracula X (PC Engine) Vs Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (PS1)
I wonder if the voting poll have been closer with these two.

I have been playing SotN over the past couple of days... never played it before. I've gotta say... this game is fucking awesome. But, it'd be like comparing apples to oranges... it's not a level-based platformer like Rondo is, it's an explorative ("open world") platformer, so really all you'd be doing is comparing representatives of two distinct platformer subgenres that both just so happen to be Castlevania games.

Only thing I don't like about SotN is how easy the damn game is.  Even with losing all your weapons reaching Death in the first level.

Yeah, that's true... it's been a cakewalk for the most part for me so far... and in parts where it might be tough to kill a boss, all you have to do is level up and/or change equipment. Also, some parts were just bloody obvious to figure out, but I'm sure the designers thought they were so clever... spike-breaking armor found after a hallway of spikes you can Mist through... hrm... I'm sure that's clever to a 7 year old, but it was the bleeding obvious to me.

lol, rover became a bloody limey? :lol:

sadly i've never played the pce version of Dracula X, but have them both on the SNES and do enjoy X more than IV so I'm sure PCE X wins this contest for me too

yeah. definitely must be that way, since: pce drac x [x-------------------l--------------------]  snes drac x

and now, GET PCE DRAC X AT ONCE!!! :P

Yuck... SNES Dracula X is an abomination. YOU MUST OBEY!

lol, i would obey but not for $100......ill wait till i can get a deal

lol $100 is such cheap considering the uberquality of that ubergame it should be more like $3000..HAHA!!

if it was 3k we could call it magical dracula x chase, actually that would prob make it 5K or more

just wanted to express of how good of a game it is on a "would have to pay for its goodness" scala :)

Quote from: gamerslife on 04/06/2014, 02:29 AMlol, i would obey but not for $100......ill wait till i can get a deal

As tats already suggested, this is one of those rare times where paying $100, even if you are poor, is totally worth it.

This games is easily worth the price of several premium games because it provides so much entertainment/fun.

YOU WILL REPLAY THIS.  Then, even if you shelve it for a year or two, YOU WILL REPLAY IT AND ASK YOURSELF (1) why didn't I do this sooner and (2) why can't all my $$$ be spent on things that have a huge payoff/return on investment?

Thinking long-term, Dracula X holds it's value (fun-wise).

Lots of other games lose their novelty/magic once you play the hell out of them.

 :pcgs:

probably easily the most best spent monies for any game you can get out there, EVER :idea:

ok ill look into it a little harder but if i decide ya'll lied i will have to start beating my hamster again since they can't call the cops and no one cares about hamsters, its the lucky winner of my wrath....hahaha

I've owned the game for over 2 decades and I just played it again last night!  I will do the same thing in another 20 when I'm about 60 years old.  I just hope my reflexes hold out till then.  :lol:  "I don't remember this game being so difficult." (http://www.americanwx.com/bb/public/style_emoticons/default/grampa.gif)

Quote from: esteban on 04/06/2014, 05:32 AM

Quote from: gamerslife on 04/06/2014, 02:29 AMlol, i would obey but not for $100......ill wait till i can get a deal

As tats already suggested, this is one of those rare times where paying $100, even if you are poor, is totally worth it.

This games is easily worth the price of several premium games because it provides so much entertainment/fun.

YOU WILL REPLAY THIS.  Then, even if you shelve it for a year or two, YOU WILL REPLAY IT AND ASK YOURSELF (1) why didn't I do this sooner and (2) why can't all my $$$ be spent on things that have a huge payoff/return on investment?

Thinking long-term, Dracula X holds it's value (fun-wise).

Lots of other games lose their novelty/magic once you play the hell out of them.

 :pcgs:

Definitely.

Rondo is a testament to game design, while Dracula X is the antithesis.

Besides, think Rondo at $100 is expensive? Dracula X's U.S. version goes for $150 just for a cart!

Also, I played SOTN for the first time a few months ago (got the 360 port), and it was incredible. However, it's platforming isn't as good as Rondo's, and it's exploration isn't as good as Super Metroid's.

Ya I got Dracula x for what the cart goes for now....but my big prob is the japan ebay users keeping the prices high...I have lots of friends in japan so I've been waiting for a game to pull the buddy card and I might do it for this...we'll see

I always enjoyed Dracula X on the SNES, and I never understood why it got so much flak from everyone. Then I finally got to play Rondo on the PCE, and I was like "Ohhhhhhh, that's why." :lol:

Quote from: InfraMan on 04/06/2014, 10:16 PMI always enjoyed Dracula X on the SNES, and I never understood why it got so much flak from everyone. Then I finally got to play Rondo on the PCE, and I was like "Ohhhhhhh, that's why." :lol:

Such teh GOOD!!!
(http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb245/Jehutly/Diverses/megarofl.gif)

I am trying really hard to dig up a copy right now. I am cool paying around 100$ too (yay tax return). All i hear is how great this game is and I cant wait.

Quote from: MrWunderful on 04/07/2014, 12:51 AMAll i hear is how great this game is and I cant wait.

it is even greater than that!

£6 on wii virtual console for you fellow poor people.

That's what I did along with Gradius II to get an initial taste of the PCE, before spending money on the actual hardware.

Quote from: guest on 04/07/2014, 03:42 AMThat's what I did along with Gradius II to get an initial taste of the PCE, before spending money on the actual hardware.

And I take it that Gradius II superbness did just blow you right out of your shoes :)

Well, both games did. :)

Quote from: guest on 04/07/2014, 03:42 AMThat's what I did along with Gradius II to get an initial taste of the PCE, before spending money on the actual hardware.

All i had to do to get hooked was feel the amazing controller and play shadow of the beast once.

Dat parallax scrolling!

Dracula x pc engine is better!!!!

Quote from: cr8zykuban0 on 04/09/2014, 12:23 AMDracula x pc engine is better!!!!

(?action=dlattach&topic=5717&attach=8249&image)

.02 from the new guy is Dracula X hands down.  I bought my first TG16 about 1.5 years ago and fell ccompletely in love.  My expectations for collecting for it were very low as everything is so hard to find and a bit pricey compared to other platforms I collect for. 

One day I went to a buddy's house who had downloaded Drac X on virtual console.  The 15 minutes worth I played that game inspired me to acquire a CD system just to play that game.  I've played through IV and it didn't even inspire me enough to purchase a copy.

Quote from: Desh on 04/10/2014, 01:48 PM.02 from the new guy is Dracula X hands down.  I bought my first TG16 about 1.5 years ago and fell ccompletely in love.  My expectations for collecting for it were very low as everything is so hard to find and a bit pricey compared to other platforms I collect for. 

One day I went to a buddy's house who had downloaded Drac X on virtual console.  The 15 minutes worth I played that game inspired me to acquire a CD system just to play that game.  I've played through IV and it didn't even inspire me enough to purchase a copy.

Just the fact that you very recently played Drac X for the first time and were amazed, says something about this game.  I was blown away when I got it in 93, but for people to still be in awe by it shows how completely awesome Dracula X really is.

I'm up in the air over the Drac X and super castle. I thought both games were very well designed and very playable. I love the whip brandishing and swinging of super castle, and i love the back flip in Drac x. Both had great level design but I have to tip my hat to the SNES version unfortunately they were able to do things just not possible on the TG16 and I say this with the utmost love for my TG but the rotating rooms and swinging and skellies busing out of windows from the "tube room" in super castle blew me away.

Quote from: Ninja16608 on 04/15/2014, 11:52 AMI'm up in the air over the Drac X and super castle. I thought both games were very well designed and very playable. I love the whip brandishing and swinging of super castle, and i love the back flip in Drac x. Both had great level design but I have to tip my hat to the SNES version unfortunately they were able to do things just not possible on the TG16 and I say this with the utmost love for my TG but the rotating rooms and swinging and skellies busing out of windows from the "tube room" in super castle blew me away.

What about all the things Rondo does which are not possible on SNES?

Do you really value pixelation/distortion over beautifully detailed art and animation?

Quote from: Ninja16608 on 04/15/2014, 11:52 AMI'm up in the air over the Drac X and super castle. I thought both games were very well designed and very playable. I love the whip brandishing and swinging of super castle, and i love the back flip in Drac x. Both had great level design but I have to tip my hat to the SNES version unfortunately they were able to do things just not possible on the TG16 and I say this with the utmost love for my TG but the rotating rooms and swinging and skellies busing out of windows from the "tube room" in super castle blew me away.

I say: play the hell out of both games. I did, to point where I was sick of them (well, sick of all the old Castlevania games).

Let a few years elapse. A decade, say.

Ultimately, I find myself going back to PCE DRAG EXXX more frequently.

Believe me, I don't hate the SNES, or its Castlevanias (they dwell within a small crevice of my heart), but they simply can't compare to PCE DRAG EXXX.

Quote from: guest on 04/15/2014, 12:51 PM

Quote from: Ninja16608 on 04/15/2014, 11:52 AMI'm up in the air over the Drac X and super castle. I thought both games were very well designed and very playable. I love the whip brandishing and swinging of super castle, and i love the back flip in Drac x. Both had great level design but I have to tip my hat to the SNES version unfortunately they were able to do things just not possible on the TG16 and I say this with the utmost love for my TG but the rotating rooms and swinging and skellies busing out of windows from the "tube room" in super castle blew me away.

What about all the things Rondo does which are not possible on SNES?

Do you really value pixelation/distortion over beautifully detailed art and animation?

HAHAHA! exactly my thoughts.

I wish Konami would make some new Castlevania games up to the standards of these.  To me the peak of the series is Dracula X (PCE of course), Bloodlines, and Symphony of the Night.  I did play many of the Gameboy Metroidvanias but they were missing the right vibe imo.  And the last 2-3 games to come out don't compare either.  I think the lack of Japanese development is a problem for these old series, they just become completely different in the hands of anyone but the original creators and Konami loves to bid out their beloved franchises (rip silent hill as well)

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/17/2014, 12:38 PMTo me the peak of the series is Dracula X (PCE of course),Bloodlines, and Symphony of the Night.

I agree apart from I think that Super Castlevaina IV is million times better than Bloodlines.
 :D

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 04/17/2014, 02:46 PM

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/17/2014, 12:38 PMTo me the peak of the series is Dracula X (PCE of course),Bloodlines, and Symphony of the Night.

I agree apart from I think that Super Castlevania IV is million times better than Bloodlines.
 :D

All of my favorites, though I would stick Castlevania III in that group too.

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 04/17/2014, 02:46 PM

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/17/2014, 12:38 PMTo me the peak of the series is Dracula X (PCE of course),Bloodlines, and Symphony of the Night.

I agree apart from I think that Super Castlevaina IV is million times better than Bloodlines.
 :D

I like Castlevania IV, but I think I like Bloodlines more.  Bloodlines is all original material - lots of great new music (my personal favorite is the sinking sanctuary), great effects done by staff who would go on to form Treasure, and just an all around tight game.  Super Castlevania has one of my favorite themes though - the end battle with Dracula.  Lots of good memories with both. Simon looks his dorkiest in IV though.

Quote from: InfraMan on 04/17/2014, 04:11 PM

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 04/17/2014, 02:46 PM

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/17/2014, 12:38 PMTo me the peak of the series is Dracula X (PCE of course),Bloodlines, and Symphony of the Night.

I agree apart from I think that Super Castlevania IV is million times better than Bloodlines.
 :D

All of my favorites, though I would stick Castlevania III in that group too.

You are right of course, I completely agree.  Especially the Japanese version with the enhanced music!

Quote from: InfraMan on 04/17/2014, 04:11 PM

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 04/17/2014, 02:46 PM

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/17/2014, 12:38 PMTo me the peak of the series is Dracula X (PCE of course),Bloodlines, and Symphony of the Night.

I agree apart from I think that Super Castlevania IV is million times better than Bloodlines.
 :D

All of my favorites, though I would stick Castlevania III in that group too.

and the peke akumajou dracula. it's just the best 100% straight forward pure action cast there is.

and it has one of the best and also exclusive BGMs -> Moon Fight!!

Quote from: Tatsujin on 04/17/2014, 08:01 PM

Quote from: InfraMan on 04/17/2014, 04:11 PM

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 04/17/2014, 02:46 PM

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/17/2014, 12:38 PMTo me the peak of the series is Dracula X (PCE of course),Bloodlines, and Symphony of the Night.

I agree apart from I think that Super Castlevania IV is million times better than Bloodlines.
 :D

All of my favorites, though I would stick Castlevania III in that group too.

and the peke akumajou dracula. it's just the best 100% straight forward pure action cast there is.

and it has one of the best and also exclusive BGMs -> Moon Fight!!

Woah!  Hold the phone!  I knew Moon Fight (it was on the 68k version, I think) but I had no idea about this even existing because I played on a Duo!  I had to look up "peke" to see what you meant, I guess maybe I can try emulating to see it?  I can't believe I didn't know about this after all these years!

http://castlevania.wikia.com/wiki/Akumajyo_Dracula_Peke (http://castlevania.wikia.com/wiki/Akumajyo_Dracula_Peke)

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/17/2014, 09:25 PM

Quote from: Tatsujin on 04/17/2014, 08:01 PM

Quote from: InfraMan on 04/17/2014, 04:11 PM

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 04/17/2014, 02:46 PM

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/17/2014, 12:38 PMTo me the peak of the series is Dracula X (PCE of course),Bloodlines, and Symphony of the Night.

I agree apart from I think that Super Castlevania IV is million times better than Bloodlines.
 :D

All of my favorites, though I would stick Castlevania III in that group too.

and the peke akumajou dracula. it's just the best 100% straight forward pure action cast there is.

and it has one of the best and also exclusive BGMs -> Moon Fight!!

Woah!  Hold the phone!  I knew Moon Fight (it was on the 68k version, I think) but I had no idea about this even existing because I played on a Duo!  I had to look up "peke" to see what you meant, I guess maybe I can try emulating to see it?  I can't believe I didn't know about this after all these years!

http://castlevania.wikia.com/wiki/Akumajyo_Dracula_Peke (http://castlevania.wikia.com/wiki/Akumajyo_Dracula_Peke)

hahaha..some confusions here.

"peke" also is a synonym for "x68k", it simply stands for the "X" in front of the 68k. so not the akumajou dracula peke when you start it up without the sys 3.0 was ment.

and sure "akumajou dracula peke" does not include "moon Fight". it's only one silly, like in total 3 screens wide  super mini-stage, with maria waiting for you at the end and tells you aboutle sys 3.0 huey.


so what I really meant was to add the x68k akumajou dracula (= peke dracula).


sorry for that ;)

Tats, the drunken Swissler, has managed to confuse everyone.  :pcgs:

Quote from: Tatsujin on 04/17/2014, 10:02 PM

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/17/2014, 09:25 PM

Quote from: Tatsujin on 04/17/2014, 08:01 PM

Quote from: InfraMan on 04/17/2014, 04:11 PM

Quote from: HardcoreOtaku on 04/17/2014, 02:46 PM

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/17/2014, 12:38 PMTo me the peak of the series is Dracula X (PCE of course),Bloodlines, and Symphony of the Night.

I agree apart from I think that Super Castlevania IV is million times better than Bloodlines.
 :D

All of my favorites, though I would stick Castlevania III in that group too.

and the peke akumajou dracula. it's just the best 100% straight forward pure action cast there is.

and it has one of the best and also exclusive BGMs -> Moon Fight!!

Woah!  Hold the phone!  I knew Moon Fight (it was on the 68k version, I think) but I had no idea about this even existing because I played on a Duo!  I had to look up "peke" to see what you meant, I guess maybe I can try emulating to see it?  I can't believe I didn't know about this after all these years!

http://castlevania.wikia.com/wiki/Akumajyo_Dracula_Peke (http://castlevania.wikia.com/wiki/Akumajyo_Dracula_Peke)

hahaha..some confusions here.

"peke" also is a synonym for "x68k", it simply stands for the "X" in front of the 68k. so not the akumajou dracula peke when you start it up without the sys 3.0 was ment.

and sure "akumajou dracula peke" does not include "moon Fight". it's only one silly, like in total 3 screens wide  super mini-stage, with maria waiting for you at the end and tells you aboutle sys 3.0 huey.


so what I really meant was to add the x68k akumajou dracula (= peke dracula).


sorry for that ;)

Yeah, I looked up a video of the PCE one and it used OP. 13 I think.  I didn't want to be a smart ass and say "hey, that isn't moon fight" but turns out you were talking about the x68k version anyway.  I still don't get how peke=X though.

Either way, still amused there was something in Dracula X I hadn't yet seen after all of these years of ownership!

Quote from: johnnykonami on 04/18/2014, 12:31 PMI didn't want to be a smart ass and say "hey, that isn't moon fight" but turns out you were talking about the x68k version anyway.  I still don't get how peke=X though.

The Japanese characters for "PE" and "KE" form a perfect "X" shape together.

You think so? It doesn't look like it to me: ペケ in katakana or ぺけ in hiragana.

Googling ペケ 語源 (peke etymology) tells me that the term probably comes from a Chinese word 不可, read in that language as "puko". 不可 exists in Japanese as well, read "fuka", and the meaning is the same: wrong, bad, incorrect, etc.

Peke itself is a slang word in modern Japanese that specifically refers to an x symbol that is used to mark a mistake, like on a wrong answer on a test or a bad product coming off the assembly line. So Konami is really just making a sort of pun. It's like "Dracula Lemon" or something.

Quote from: SamIAm on 04/19/2014, 11:12 AMYou think so? It doesn't look like it to me: ペケ in katakana or ぺけ in hiragana.

Googling ペケ 語源 (peke etymology) tells me that the term probably comes from a Chinese word 不可, read in that language as "puko". 不可 exists in Japanese as well, read "fuka", and the meaning is the same: wrong, bad, incorrect, etc.

Peke itself is a slang word in modern Japanese that specifically refers to an x symbol that is used to mark a mistake, like on a wrong answer on a test or a bad product coming off the assembly line. So Konami is really just making a sort of pun. It's like "Dracula Lemon" or something.

I was "being a smart ass".

I wonder how different the result of this poll would of been on a Nintendo forum?  :-k

we should try that out. fortunately I'm on no nobey forum registered.

anyone?

Wow, I was way late to the party on this one. Not around too much these days though. Howsit all? Anyway, another vote for Dracula X. It's just a much better game. I guess I just was never really super impressed with Super Castlevania IV. The game just seems very slow and out of place to me for some reason. Funny as it is, I liked Bloodlines much better. I like IV, but when comparing it to Dracula X, there's no contest. XX, however, was just atrocious. If not for those horrid N64 3D games, that would easily be the worst Castlevania game on a home console ever.