The history of Castlevania: Super Castlevania IV

Super Castlevania IV

Akumajo Dracula in Japan
Released: 1991
Systems: Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES)

Basics
Before Castlevania: Symphony of The Night, people sighed when they heard the name Super Castlevania IV. Why? For many, it was a kind of lust. "Finally, you could whip in all directions," they yelled. "Finally, you could crouch and walk," they panted. "Finally, you could change direction in mid-air. Oh, sweet bliss," they screamed.


But then the critics chimed in, those old cynics of romance. "Maybe SCIV is nothing more than 16-bit 'Castlevania,'" they countered. "Maybe Konami could have done these modifications all along," they parried. "Maybe the storyline, which stars Simon Belmont, supports the theory that this is nothing more than a prettier Castlevania," they stabbed. (If you do the math in the manuals, it seems SCIV takes place at the time of Castlevania. Plus, the game's length gives it a Castlevania I feeling.)

This is serious debate, folks. Before SCIV, such thought-provoking rhetoric sparring could only be found in publications like Congressional Quarterly. Which side will win? Who knows!

Walk-through
You start outside in a courtyard. Skeletons, bats and - when you enter the barn - Mr. Heds (Horse heads... get it?) attack. A skeleton riding a horse-skeleton, Rowdain, slices you at the end. In the next level, hands from underground grab you, and birds swoop down at you until you get to Medusa. Next, you plunge into a swift river, where tiny red spikes kill upon touch.

You travel through a small cave in the next level, where rocks fall and rockmen multiply. Then, you're scaling a water-soaked tower. (Waterfalls hide some of the ledges!) Mermen goose you with fireballs on the way to the Orphic Vipers at the end. In the next level, you scale the outer castle walls. The skeletons have armor and swords now! Up at the top, Puweyxil, a giant skull, uses his large tongue to kill you. Then you enter a very cool spinning room in which you must hang from a ring in the center while it rotates. Stone-monster Koranot comes after you, and you run outside in a courtyard where large birds drop Igor-like creatures.

The history of Castlevania: Super Castlevania IV

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This game could be played at:

SNES