Software:Castlevania: Dracula X

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This page is about the Super NES game. For the PC Engine game, see Castlevania: Rondo of Blood.
Short description: 1995 video game
Castlevania: Dracula X
North American box art
Developer(s)Konami
Publisher(s)Konami
Director(s)Kouki Yamashita
Producer(s)Kuniaki Kinoshita
Artist(s)Akihiro Yamada
Composer(s)Tomoya Tomita
Masanari Iwata
Harumi Ueko
Masahiko Kimura
SeriesCastlevania
Platform(s)Super NES
Release
  • JP: July 21, 1995
  • NA: September 1995
  • EU: February 22, 1996
  • AU: June 22, 1996
Genre(s)Action, platform
Mode(s)Single-player

Castlevania: Dracula X, titled Castlevania: Vampire's Kiss in Europe and Akumajou Dracula XX[lower-alpha 1] in Japan, is a 1995 action-platform game developed and published by Konami for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.[1] It is the second Castlevania installment to be released for the Super NES. It is a remake of Software:Castlevania: Rondo of Blood, which was previously released in Japan on the PC Engine Super CD-ROM2 in 1993. While the plot is similar to Rondo of Blood and it uses many of that game's graphics, it features new levels and altered gameplay elements,[1][2][3] rather than being a direct port because of the limits of the Super NES cartridge format and exclusivity agreements with PC Engine maker NEC. It was released on July 21, 1995 in Japan, in September 1995 in North America, February 22, 1996 in Europe,[4] and on June 22, 1996, in Australia. The game received mixed reviews, with journalists considering it inferior to Rondo of Blood and criticizing its high difficulty.

The game was re-released as a Wii U Virtual Console download in Japan on April 23, 2014, in North America on October 2, 2014, and the PAL regions on November 13, 2014. It was released again for New Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console download in North America on December 29, 2016, and in Europe and Australia on January 26, 2017. The game was also re-released as a part of the Castlevania Advance Collection on September 23, 2021, for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One.

Gameplay

Gameplay screenshot

The gameplay follows that of previous Castlevania games, and is near identical to that of Rondo of Blood. The Super NES release features branching paths through the levels, like the PC Engine game, but has fewer levels. Also, whereas Rondo of Blood has game saves and the ability to play as Maria Renard after she is rescued, Dracula X uses passwords and does not feature any additional playable characters. Unlike Rondo, however, Dracula X features three different endings, depending on whether the player rescues Richter's girlfriend Annet and her sister Maria, just Maria, or neither of the two, who have both been imprisoned in Dracula's castle.[5]

Plot

Set in medieval Transylvania, several hundred years have passed since legendary hero Simon Belmont defeated the evil Count Dracula and sealed him away for what was supposed to be eternity.[lower-alpha 2] The people have long since forgotten about the horror of the undead, allowing a few depraved individuals to revive the Count; sleeping in his coffin by day and preying upon helpless victims by night.

Dracula plots revenge on Simon's bloodline by attempting to murder Richter Belmont, Simon's descendant. He does this by kidnapping Richter's girlfriend Annet, and Annet's little sister Maria, imprisoning them in his castle, and waiting for Richter to attempt a rescue.

Once Richter discovers Annet and Maria have been kidnapped, he takes his ancestor's sacred whip, passed down through generations, and sets out for Dracula's castle to rescue Annet and Maria, and to seal away the evil Count for good.

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
EGM7/10, 6.5/10, 6.5/10, 7/10[7]
Famitsu7/10, 6/10, 6/10, 5/10[9]
GameFan82/100, 84/100, 93/100[8]
Next Generation1/5[6]

Castlevania: Dracula X for the Super NES received mixed reviews, with most critics stating that it is an inferior conversion of the PC Engine game.[7][10] On the release of the game, Famicom Tsūshin scored Dracula X a 24 out of 40,[9] and Electronic Gaming Monthly scored it a 6.75 out of 10, saying it is a good game in its own terms but does not hold up to previous Castlevania games.[7] GamePro criticized that the stage design fails to encourage re-exploring stages, the bosses are not challenging enough, and the graphics and gameplay are primitive: "no knockout Mode 7 stages, no rotating rooms (like in Castlevania IV). Your character is also very small. The play engine feels like it's right out of the 8-bit versions ..."[10] A critic for Next Generation panned it, saying it retains the by-then outdated graphics and controls of the PC Engine game and would not appeal even to die-hard Castlevania fans. He summarized it as "eight levels of no-frills side-scrolling action ... without an original or interesting thought in its wolfsbane-stuffed head."[6] In contrast, IGN's retrospective on the series referred to it as "still one of the best traditional Castlevania games", and that it "holds its own" in terms of graphics, including a brighter color palette and Mode 7 graphics, but suffered from weak A.I. and bad level layout.[1] It received a ranking of 73.75% from GameRankings, based on four reviews.[11] In 2018, Complex rated the game 82nd on their "The Best Super Nintendo Games of All Time".[12]

Notes

  1. ↑ 悪魔城ドラキュラＸＸ (Akumajō Dorakyura Daburu Ekkusu, lit. Devil's Castle Dracula Double X)
  2. ↑ As depicted in Castlevania (1986)

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Bozon, Mark (January 18, 2008). "Castlevania: The Retrospective – Page 4". http://xbox.ign.com/articles/756/756729p4.html. 
  2. ↑ "The History of Castlevania – Page 7". http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/features/video/history_castlevania/p7_02.html. 
  3. ↑ Low, David (January 14, 2006). "Franchise Mode #11 – Castlevania, Part 2". http://palgn.com.au/3703/franchise-mode-11-castlevania-part-2/. 
  4. ↑ "Castlevania Dracula X — Release Summary". http://www.gamespot.com/castlevania-dracula-x/related/release/platform/snes/. 
  5. ↑ Bozon, Mark (2007-01-18). "Castlevania: The Retrospective". IGN. http://wii.ign.com/articles/756/756624p1.html. Retrieved 2008-02-06. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Castlevania: Dracula X". Next Generation (Imagine Media) (10): 126. October 1995. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 "Review Crew: Dracula X". Electronic Gaming Monthly (Ziff Davis) (75): 32. October 1995. https://archive.org/details/ElectronicGamingMonthly_201902/Electronic%20Gaming%20Monthly%20Issue%20075%20%28October%201995%29/page/n31. 
  8. ↑ "Viewpoint". Diehard GameFan 3 (10): 18. October 1995. ISSN 1092-7212. https://archive.org/details/GamefanVolume3Issue10October1995ALT/page/n17. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 NEW GAMES CROSS REVIEW: 悪魔城ドラキュラXX. Weekly Famicom Tsūshin. No.345. Pg.29. 28 July 1995.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "ProReview: Castlevania: Dracula X". GamePro (International Data Group) (85): 64. October 1995. https://retrocdn.net/images/c/c1/GamePro_US_075.pdf#page=66. 
  11. ↑ "Castlevania Dracula X for SNES". GameRankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/snes/563534-castlevania-dracula-x/index.html. 
  12. ↑ Knight, Rich (April 30, 2018). "The Best Super Nintendo Games of All Time" (in en). https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/the-100-best-super-nintendo-games/. 
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
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