The history of Castlevania: Castlevania: Bloodlines

Castlevania: Bloodlines

Vampire Killer in Japan
Castlevania: The New Generation in Europe and the UK
Released: 1994
Systems: Genesis

The Basics
Bloodlines seems to launch from where Bram Stoker's novel, Dracula, left off. (OK, maybe you saw the movie instead.) You remember that, in 1897, Quincy Morris, a Texan, accompanied the Kill Dracula troupe. Well, what you didn't know was that Quincy was a Belmont descendent and that his son, John (along with John's childhood friend Eric Lecarde), sat in the shadows and watched Quincy kill Dracula.


They also watched Quincy die from the wounds he suffered. Well, you can imagine that didn't look very cool. So, they swore they'd be ready to "rid the planet of the evil creatures of the underworld."

Now, 20 years later, in the ruins of Castlevania, an amateur witch, Drolta Tzuentes, brings Elizabeth Bartley back to life. (Bartley was executed in 1421 for killing someone in a vampiric way.) And, true to Castlevania character, Bartley wants to return Drac to life. Morris and Lecard come back to Transylvania to do away with Bartley. That's where you come in.

Walk-through
You start in Castle Dracula, Romania, where you hack past skeletons (they blow up real good, too) and a hell hound who howls and breaks windows. Then, you make your way to the backbone of a long-dead creature and jump up the spine as it collapses. At the top, Drolta's mecha knight marches out with an axe and staff. Next, you're in the Atlantis Shrine in Greece. There's lots of running from water in this level, including a water mage who tries to flood you out. Two giants - one with a mace, the other with an axe - come at you. Then medusa heads zip up and down in a room where you slowly make your way down as water drains. At the bottom, a gigantic rock creature kicks your buttocks.

You go to Italy and the Leaning Tower of Pisa. There are couple of different paths here, depending on which character you play. Watch out for lots of minotaurs here, too. At the top, a gargoyle swoops and stabs. Then it's on to a munitions factory in Germany where lots of skeletons wear Nazi helmets. (Huh? In 1917?) Then Frankenstein, a mini-boss no less, tries to keep you from a monster made of gears at the end.

Then, you're on to France and the Palace of Versailles. There's a cool blood fountain outside here that spawns skeletons, and at the end of a garden, a sword bearing monster swings at you. The path splits again. Which way you choose depends on which character you're playing. But you wind up in a long hallway filled with knights and some kind of moss creature waits at the end. Now you're in England at Castle Prosperina. Lots of stuff happens here, so hold on. First, a flying medusa shoots lightning at you while you try to run across a crumbling bridge. Next, you're upside down through a small part until mecha knights start coming at you. Then - surprise! - you must fight the bosses you killed earlier before you get to the grim reaper! And right after the grim reaper comes Bartley!

The history of Castlevania: Castlevania: Bloodlines

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