Released: 19990126 Publisher: Konami Developer: KCEK Genre: Action

Review by: Eva00

Castlevania has graced a variety of platforms since its NES original. The series is synonymous with solid gameplay, sharp, eerily crafted environments, and gothic character design, all strung together on a plot that is as timeless as it is intriguing. Since debuting it at the E3 prior to the last, Konami has stirred up quite a bit of hype for the 64-bit upgrade to it’s flagship series. Gamers that fondly remember trekking through Dracula’s castle in the glory days of the 8 and 16-bit eras have assuredly been following its transition into the 3rd-dimension with eager anticipation. The classic evil manifests once again, and Castlevania 64 (C64) is finally here.

From the opening realtime movie (which is very well done), the mood and dark nature of the series is brought to life, and the atmosphere seemingly set for the coming adventure. Enter the adventure as either the whip-wielding Reinhardt Schneider, heir to the legendary Belmont clan, or the magically enhanced Carrie Fernandez, a wandering character about which little is ever known. Each have different attributes, as well as branching areas in the game where each will travel in paths unique to them. It is by means of this that the game is worthwhile to play through with each character, adding significantly to the otherwise lacking longevity. The story is quite typical. It is the job of whichever character is chosen to tromp through the woods, villa, garden, tower, and every other area of the Dark Lord’s castle in order to achieve the ultimate goal of slaying him once again. Those are the basics--on to the gameplay.

The control fluctuates. Specifically, it is sluggish, floaty, unforgiving in many cases, unintuitive, and creates for more then a few unnecessary deaths throughout the course of a given area, especially those that are platform intensive. The camera serves only to compound this frustration, as there is absolutely no way to control it! There are three modes which the player can select for camera movement, but all are completely flawed in most instances, and actually have little variation. This obscene lack of control over what is a fundamental aspect in a 3D game of this nature is simply unforgivable. However, this is not as big a problem as it could have been because the environments are generally so linear and devoid of exploration that the camera need only follow directly behind the primary character. (More on this later) It is in fact due to the simple nature of the environments and design that neither the flawed control nor the camera is too much to keep C64 from being a competently playing game. Another glaring flaw is the unexpected variation between the feel and control of each character. They both have the same control scheme, yet Carrie controls a bit cleaner and jumps further, while Reinhardt is considerably more sluggish and is much more unforgiving when grabbing onto ledges. This imbalance has rushed written all over it as the latter character seems to have almost been thrown in towards then end of the development process, and left completely unrefined. The attack methods of both characters are unbalanced as well. While incorporating Reinhardt’s trademark whip into a 3D environment is an intriguing and thoroughly kick ass premise (had it turned out), it controls as if in a 2D area. By means of a lock on system, the player only has to hit the attack button and the whip automatically lashes out at the nearest enemy, even if it is behind Reinhardt! Perhaps this would be forgivable if there were instances where the whip needs to be aimed manually in order to complete a task, but alas it remains critically underutilized. The whole thing comes off feeling overly simplistic, and it is a case of brainless single-button attacking at its best. Carrie’s attack works pretty much the same way, only it is an auto-seeking projectile, which is perhaps even more mindless. Most boss fights consist of nothing more then shooting, running and dodging while you wait for it to impact, and repeat. If only under development for a bit more time, the control could have been tightened, the camera system improved, and the attack methods given more depth. (Unfortunatly we’ll have to wait for the sequel to C64 to see what an effectively implemented whip feels like in 3D) Overall, Castlevania 64 achieves only competent control, with shallow and mostly mindless gameplay. If only it would have been given a bit more time.

Visually, C64 spasms between being downright ugly, to looking quite masterful. The horrid and unevenly detailed outdoor area in the first stage is quite under whelming, while the villa in the third stage is filled with decent architecture and outfitted with enough furniture and detail to make a certain Victorian queen jealous. Even in this though a lack of seemingly unintended balance is present. For instance, in the villa there are two wings on either side of a great stairway, on one side there is a door leading to a garden, and then a hallway filled with additional rooms, and on the other side, nothing. It almost seems as if something was supposed to be there, but it was simply never included. Again, an obvious sign that the game was rushed. All of the environments are structured as to lend themselves to exploration, but turn out to be unpleasantly barren. Secrets are almost non-existent, and though it plays in 3D, C64 is about as linear as it gets. Furthermore, the actual mood that is achieved throughout is inconsistent. In some areas the target (I assume target) dark and tense feeling is set, while in others it all comes off as rather cartoonish and silly. The cutscenes however are nicely paced and do add significantly to the overall experience. Enemy and character designs are, of course, varying. While some characters are detailed, sharp, and superbly modeled (Carrie and Dracula, as well as a few enemies in particular), others are simply ridiculous and animate poorly. (Especially Reinhardt, who runs as though he has a stick up his) Rushed, rushed, rushed!

The sound is average, riddled with certain overused sound effects, but complimented by a decent set of compositions. Some of the music tracks are simply average, while others may even have you humming for days. (Again, this trend of lacking balance) The opening and intro tracks specifically are top notch, and add to the well done, full-voiced intro very well.

Castlevania 64 is, in the end, a bit of a shame. With many promising elements abound, it makes the fact that it is all brought down by simple sloppiness, and resembles a game still in the beta stages, hard to stomach. Still, what is there is fairly solid, and the elements that truly shine, such as some of the environments, music, and basic structural designs, foreshadow what could have been if it were given some more time in the development cycle. Afterall, and rushed game will always be rushed, while a delayed one is delayed only until it is released. Indeed, it is unfortunate that C64 falls into the former category. As it stands, it constitutes a very solid rental, and is still an intriguing buy if you enjoy it after having a chance to play it first, especially with the added length of two somewhat separate quests. Do not however expect to play a 2D game that makes a smooth transition into 3D, and certainly do not anticipate the level of detail and depth that the former titles in the series possess. It represents an average, simplistic 3D action/platformer set in that classic Castlevania universe.

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