Super Castlevania IV

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JaySevenZero
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Super Castlevania IV

Post by JaySevenZero »

Here's where you can contribute your thoughts and opinions for Super Castlevania IV for potential inclusion in the forthcoming podcast.

A friendly reminder that where the feedback for the podcast is concerned, we love it - but keeping it brief is appreciated. We do want to include a breadth of opinions where appropriate, but no-one wants a discussion podcast that’s mostly reading out essays. Better to save yourself time and cut to the chase if you can.
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AndrewElmore
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Re: 588: Super Castlevania IV

Post by AndrewElmore »

Super Castlevania IV is a fascinating expansion of the original game. It's got problems, but they only add to the sense of charm for me. The sprites are too big, the freeform whip renders sub-weapons nearly redundant, all the hardware tricks of the new console (it was a very early Super Famicom game, after all) may be awe-inspiring to behold but they drag the framerate down to a crawl, and above all the game is flat out much easier than many other entries in the series. But those are all things that I love about it. That's the game's personality on full display, warts and all. It's a remarkably honest video game, making no effort to hide its flaws. I love that it's more than happy to let you just walk around and hang out, with many spaces being relatively minimal on enemy threats and environmental hazards. There are so many fascinating experiments on display in Castlevania IV, both technical and artistic. There are entire aesthetic directions tried in this game that really don't come back in the series going forward. Konami was certainly making an effort to try out some new ideas and see how they play out. There are so many of those ideas crammed into this game that even if a mechanic or art style isn't working for you, you'll be on to something completely different within a minute or two, and that truth stays consistent for the entire runtime. I think one of the most indicative statements of intent (so to speak) with Castlevania IV is that this is the game that marks the shift in music focus for the series, moving away from the 8-bit games' emphasis on gothic symphonic metal, and into darker jazz odysseys making use of the SNES' sample-based soundchip to play with a broad palette of instruments and voices. Super Castlevania IV is short, awkward, strange, and a bit on the easy side, but I love it dearly. Taken as a whole, it may fall somewhere in the middle on a ranked scale of Castlevania games for me, but I do think it's an excellent video game and a must-play experience for anyone interested in action platformers.
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Jobobonobo
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Re: 588: Super Castlevania IV

Post by Jobobonobo »

Castlevania is a series that I am completely new to and spooky things usually do not interest me but a lot of people rate this series highly so I thought I would give at least one a try. I thought it would be good to start with a more traditional title rather than going straight into the metroidvania type titles so Super Castlevania IV seems to be a nice way to get into it. First thing to notice straight away is that this game really is a looker. That title screen with the various creepy crawlies scuttling over the castlewalls followed by the appearance of shadows belonging to bats makes for a very strong first impression. Really shows how big of a leap the move to 16 bit hardware represented. This is accentuated even further by the level design itself with rotating towers where you have to use your whip to hang on while looking for a safe place to land or the spinning backgrounds while you navigate crumbling platforms. This would have been mind blowing stuff to a Castlevania fan raised on the NES.

Another reason why I chose this is that it is meant to be a bit easier than the NES trilogy and I wanted something not too tough to dip my toes with. This is true for most of the game but my word does it get really turn the heat up on the level before Dracula, where you face three bosses in a row with Death being just as hard as I feared. My strategy was to hide in the lower left corner and wait until he was above me so I could whip Death and his scythes. It was not easy but I managed it eventually. The fight with Dracula itself was also no joke where it took me a while to figure out how to whip him without being attacked by his fireballs. It is here where I must mention the music because it is another real highlight. The hopelessly oppressive organ when you first face Dracula is really incredible in the atmosphere it sets up. This is then followed by the return of Simon Belmont’s theme when Dracula is on his last feet and it really encourages you to finally take that blood sucking creep out. But the real highlight of the soundtrack is the beautiful piece that plays during the ending and credits. It is a serene yet triumphant piece and again is a great introduction to the power a new generation of consoles could pull.

Overall, I liked this game a fair bit. The jump is a little too stiff for my liking but that could be me being spoiled by the likes of Mario. Not a big fan of the knockback either especially when dealing with flying Medusa’s heads while jumping on small platforms. Thankfully these issues were not enough to keep me away from the game entirely and I am now interested in trying out some more entries like Rondo of Blood and the Metroidvania titles. For a newbie like me to this prestigious series, Super Castlevania IV serves as a more than adequate introduction.

Three Word Review: Top audiovisual presentation
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Tolkien
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Re: 588: Super Castlevania IV

Post by Tolkien »

Castlevania IV, what can I say about this game that probably is my favorite of the system. It was my first one for the Snes, I still remember the price, the silver cardboard box that I still have, the Konami jingle, the intro with the gravestone busted by the lightning and the story written in the screen going up while the mist covers the backgroud and that eerie music with that base organ. I was barely able to read and understand english at the time but boy, oh boy, was it magical for me.

I remember now and will always do the first level of the game when you arrive to the castle, the animation of Simon whiping with the castle looking ominous in front of him. The first time you have control and you see in the background a huge stoneskull whit bats coming out of the empty eye cavity, you enter trough castle door and then fence comes up in the backgroud, organ plays and you have the feel that this is gonna be epic.

The game is completely wonderful, huge sprites, nice colors for the setting, marvelous and clever use of mode 7, the best control of any pre-SotN Castlevania and the music, the music is just phenomenal. This game made me ask my mom to buy me that Casio PT10 toy piano to play the songs of Castlevania.

Sure the game was a remake (when we did not know what was a remake yet), sure the story is just not there, but it was the novelty, the effects, the sound and sprites, the little details of every single screen. I trully love this game and even beeing a fan of the series since Castlevania 2 on my NES, this one made me love it until today.

Gameplay wise, it was an easy game for the time and the series. Couple of tricky jumps here and there, slow movement that felt like if Simon weighted a ton, but I trully think it had to be the perfect control over the whip what it made it easier than it's predecessors. And my younger self loved it.

All said, this is the best classic Castlevania game to me and will always be full of fond memories.
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psychohype
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Re: Our next podcast recording (23.9.23) - 588: Super Castlevania IV

Post by psychohype »

There are so many things about Super Castlevania IV that stand out, from the brilliant Mode 7 trickery to the huge Simon Belmont character sprite that dominates the screen.

Is it strange, then, that what stands out to me the most in this game is the soundtrack? To me, the shift in musical style is the most distinctive thing about it. It feels like Konami really went the extra mile in creating a more ambient, less “videogamey” sound for Castlevania’s 16-bit debut. It’s very good and strangely memorable in a way I wouldn’t expect. I can’t tell you the names of the songs like I could with the tracks from previous games. But all I have to do is picture the levels themselves and those instrumental arrangements are right there in my mind. I’m thinking of early stages like the underground cavern, where the soundtrack’s staccato lute-like melody creates an almost perfect auditory backdrop to the drops of moisture falling from the limestone stalactites. How about the first time you step inside Dracula’s castle proper and are greeted with a reverberating gothic pipe organ? This is the kind of music I would expect a 17th century vampire lord to greet me with!

And what is up with that jazzy number that plays in the watery ruins stage? It sounds like the kind of music you might expect to hear during the intermission of a National Public Radio program, not a Castlevania game. But it works! I actually prefer the one-off original tracks more so than the sampled arrangements of the classic songs like Vampire Killer and Bloody Tears that show up in the latter stages of the game.

Ultimately, I think the other 16-bit Castlevania games happen to be more interesting and enjoyable than Super Castlevania IV. As far as playing the game goes, I usually throw in the towel after about the first third. Even so, I have a ton of respect for the creative direction Konami took with this entry, and I can hardly point to anything in the game that wasn’t superbly crafted—soundtrack included.
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Mr Ixolite
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Re: Our next podcast recording (23.9.23) - 588: Super Castlevania IV

Post by Mr Ixolite »

About 13 years ago I resolved to try and play through the Castlevania franchise, and Super Castlevania IV was first on the docket, reasoning that it might be representative of its NES forebears, but slightly more accommodating.
And right off the bat, this is certainly the most formidable Simon Belmont has ever been, capable of changing direction of his jump in midair, whipping in all directions, and most impressive of all, jumping ONTO stairs. This makes the game much easier than its pre-metroidvania franchise siblings, yet much like Shinobi 3, it also makes the moment to moment gameplay fun. And yet, this is also one of the most atmospheric and broody games in the series, with the distinct and eerie soundtrack serving as a counterweight to the breezier gameplay.

The game is no slouch graphically either, and I love how the extra horsepower of the SNES is put to use rendering more varied and fresh settings – rather than just sprucing up the many woods, caves and parapets of its forebears we also get stables, torture rooms, libraries and treasure vaults. Everything 100% sells the idea of being on a journey to track down and kill Dracula.

I still thinks the game holds up very well, and is an easy recommendation as a starting point for franchise newcomers – who knows, If I hadn’t opted to try this game first way back then, I may not have 23 Castlevania games under my belt by now.
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