Akumajo Dracula X68000

Castlevania Chronicles (悪魔城年代記 悪魔城ドラキュラ), is a 2001 PlayStation remake of the 1993 Sharp X68000 version of the original Akumajō Dracula. The X68000 game, which was never released outside of Japan, is also a remake of the original Akumajō Dracula/Castlevania for the Famicom Disk System/Nintendo Entertainment System. It has been unofficially dubbed "Akumajō Dracula X68000" and "Castlevania X68000" to differentiate it from other games in the series that bear the same title.

Note: This article will use the title Akumajō Dracula X68000 when addressing the Sharp X68000 game to avoid confusion with the original Akumajō Dracula game.

Akumajo Dracula X68000
Since the X68000 version is essentially a remake of the original Akumajo Dracula game, there are some very familiar portions to those who played the original. However, the entire game is completely updated, including familiar stages that have been redesigned, as well as brand new stages all together. It contains all of the special items and sub-weapons from the original game, but exclusive to this remake is a rare occurring laurel item which refills 6 health blocks for 10 hearts. This game is also notable for its high difficulty level.

Like the original Akumajo Dracula game, hidden items worth points and hidden 1-ups will appear throughout the game if the player ducks or stands in particular portions of a level. Including Akumajō Dracula X Chi no Rondo, this is the only other linear game in the series to re-use this feature. Another notable feature is the multiple loops after the game is completed. Previous Castlevania games had increased difficulty for the game's second playthrough. An increased amount of damage taken from enemies in earlier levels as well as new enemy placement and attack patterns were just a few things to make the second playthrough more difficult. This game, however, has as many as six additional playthoughs with each one becoming much more difficult than the last. There are even cases of special Easter eggs; on the sixth playthrough on stage 18 (block 6-3), a cartoon image of Simon will appear in a mirror smoking a cigarette accompanied by Japanese text in one of the background areas saying "Here's Fake Simon!".

Castlevania Chronicles
The PlayStation re-release, Castlevania Chronicles, expanded much more to the X68000 game. This includes brand new rendered cutscenes, with new character designs by Ayami Kojima (of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night fame), a new sprite design for Simon Belmont and Dracula, improved graphical effects, enhanced music and sound effects, and a more balanced difficulty level. Players can choose to play this "Arranged" version of the game with all of the new features intact, or play the original version as it was originally presented on the Sharp X68000.

Completing portions of the "Arranged Mode" also unlocks special features such as an art gallery (described further in "Version differences" below) as well as a "Time Attack Mode". The "Time Attack Mode" allows the player to race through any stage, complete with a time meter, to beat their best time.

Story
The storyline for both Akumajō Dracula X68000 and Castlevania Chronicles is the same as the original Akumajō Dracula game. Simon Belmont has to set out to defeat the evil Count Dracula, who has been terrorizing the area.

It is the year 1691 and the evil Count Dracula has risen once again after a century of rest to terrorize the people of Transylvania. Simon Belmont, great-grandson of Soleiyu Belmont, picks up the Vampire Killer whip and sets out to Castlevania to destroy the Lord of Darkness and restore peace to Europe.

The introduction to both versions of this remake retell the story of Dracula's resurrection in 1691. According to this game, a dark sect performing what appears to be Satanic rituals revives the Count.

Music
The music for the X68000 game contains a variety of new arrangements of familiar tunes from the series as well as brand new compositions altogether. The familiar songs include: "Vampire Killer" and "Wicked Child" from the original Castlevania, "Bloody Tears" from Castlevania II: Simon's Quest, and "Theme of Simon Belmont" from Super Castlevania IV. Before each game, the player is given a choice between three different sound modules: the X68000's FM Synthesizer, MIDI Roland LA (MT-32, CM-32L, CM-64) and MIDI Roland GS (SC-55, SC-33, SC-155, CM-300, CM-500). While the soundtrack will remain the same throughout the game regardless of which sound module is chosen, the instrumentation may vary and some songs will be arranged slightly differently.

Sota Fujimori, staff composer for the Konami Corporation in Japan, performed all new arrangements of the soundtrack for Castlevania Chronicles' "Arrange Mode". While many songs remain very similar to their X68000 Akumajo Dracula counterparts, except with studio recorded live synth and other live instrumentation, a handful of songs are given a techno feel. Some of these songs include: "Vampire Killer", which now contains pieces of "Prologue" and "Stalker" from Castlevania; "Thrashard in the Cave", which is more ambient than its original version; and "Wicked Child".

Akumajō Dracula X68000 Vs. Chronicles
While the "Original" version presented on Chronicles is otherwise identical to the X68000 game, there are a few minor drawbacks being emulated on different hardware. One noticeable difference is the brief loading times that now appear before boss fights and stages. The other drawback is the lack of an internal clock on the PlayStation. The original game utilized the X68000’s internal time and date settings; the time on the clock tower during the boss fight on stage 15 would reflect the X68000’s current time and the color scheme used on the painting in stage 21 would reflect one of the four seasons according to the computer's current date. On the PlayStation game, each time the system is turned on, the time and date have to be manually adjusted only after a hidden "Extra Option" menu is accessed by inputting an altered version of the Konami Code.

Chronicles' region differences

 * The American and European versions contain an interview with Koji Igarashi (IGA) and an unlockable gallery featuring artwork by Ayami Kojima from Chronicles and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. The latter images were already featured in the Sega Saturn version of Symphony. The art of the Succubus is censored, since her chest in the original was topless.
 * In Arrange Mode on the US and European versions, the player can save the game at stage 24, the battle with Dracula.
 * In the Japanese, US and European versions, the sound hardware selection screen automatically appears before starting a game on "Original Mode" (just as it did on the original Akumajō Dracula for X68000) but a code must be entered to reach it in "Arranged Mode".
 * The Japanese version had slowdown issues with the music playback. These were fixed for the U.S. and European releases.
 * The marionettes on stage 17 cry out "Yamete!" ("Stop!" in Japanese) and "Omae wa dare?" ("Who are you?", in Japanese) when attacked in Akumajō Dracula X68000 and the Japanese Chronicles. In the U.S. and European versions, however, they are silent other than when they are destroyed.

Reception
IGN rated the Playstation release 7.8, saying it did not quite measure up with later titles, but was "still a lot of fun" Gamespot gave that same release a 6.1, saying it lacked replay value and was graphically outdated.