Haunted Castle (video game)
Haunted Castle | ||
---|---|---|
Composer(s) Kenichi Matsubara[7] | Masahiro Ikariko "T" | |
Series | Castlevania | |
Platform(s) | Arcade, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC | |
Release | Arcade PlayStation 2
Nintendo Switch
| |
Mode(s) | Single-player |
Haunted Castle
The game has the player controlling Simon Belmont, who embarks on a journey to save his wife Selena from the clutches of Dracula.
Gameplay
Haunted Castle is a
Each of Haunted Castle's six levels conclude with a
Multiple board versions exist, all of which have varying levels of difficulty. Version M is considered the most challenging, Version K and Version J are regarded as being easier to play.[9]
Development
Audio
The soundtrack was composed in part by Kenichi Matsubara, who previously worked on the soundtrack of Castlevania II: Simon's Quest. There are several music tracks in Haunted Castle that have been reused in other Castlevania games. "Bloody Tears", first heard in the previously released Castlevania II, is used as the theme for Stage 3. Another arcade piece, the Stage 1 theme "Cross Your Heart", was reused in Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin under the title "Crucifix Held Close" and as an unlockable song in Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles. It is part of the "Akumajo Dracula Medley" that appears in Konami's Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix 3 (originally appearing in the Japanese arcade and PlayStation 2 music game series Keyboardmania), along with "Bloody Tears". "Clockwork's Beat", which plays during Stage 5, was remixed in Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow under the name "Underground Melodies" (actually the name of Haunted Castle's Stage 4 theme). Finally, "Don't Wait Until Night", played during Stage 6, which borrows hints of "The Silence of Daylight" (the town music from Castlevania II),[citation needed], was remixed in Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow for Julius' theme "Heart of Fire", though this particular song is actually a medley of the Haunted Castle tune and "Heart of Fire" from Stage 5 of the original Castlevania.
Releases
A PlayStation 2 port of Haunted Castle was released by game publisher Hamster in May 2006 as part of the Oretachi Gēsen Zoku series. This port was only released in Japan.[10]
In September 2017, Hamster released the game for the PlayStation 4 as part of their Arcade Archives line of digital releases. This version includes the option to play the Japanese, North American and European versions of the game.[5] Haunted Castle is also included in Konami's Arcade Classics Anniversary Collection, released digitally on April 19, 2019 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC (via Steam).[11] Unlike the stand-alone Arcade Archive release, this version varies depending on the region.[12]
Reception
Publication | Score |
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Micom BASIC Magazine | [13] |
Publication | Award |
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Gamest Mook (1998) | Best Graphic Award 10th Best VGM Award 7th[14] |
In Japan, Game Machine listed Haunted Castle on their April 1, 1988, issue as being the sixth most-popular arcade game at the time.[15]
Time Extension placed Haunted Castle last on its list of ranked Castlevania games. It was described that "It starts off well enough; the sprites are nice and large (a fact that makes it hard to avoid danger) and there are some amazing tunes here. However, the brutal difficulty level is clearly designed to suck in coins, and the controls feel stiff and awkward. [...] Outside of saying you've played it, there's little reason to seek this one out. It's dreadful."[16]
Notes
References
- ^ "Haunted Castle - Official Konami page (EN)". Retrieved July 24, 2020.
- ^ "Haunted Castle - Official Konami page (JP)" (in Japanese). Retrieved July 24, 2020.
- ^ "Haunted Castle - Official Konami page (EU)". Retrieved July 24, 2020.
- ^ "PS4『アーケードアーカイブス 悪魔城ドラキュラ』12月1日配信決定!" (in Japanese). Famitsu. 25 November 2016. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
- ^ a b "Latest | Official PlayStation™Store US". Archived from the original on 2016-05-12. Retrieved 2017-10-18.
- ISBN 978-0992926021.
- ^ Konami Game Music Collection Vol.1 (Media notes). King Records Co., Ltd. 1988. Archived from the original on 2009-06-13. Retrieved 2010-09-28.
- ^ Konami (2010-08-04). Castlevania: Harmony of Despair. Konami.
Japanese: 歴代の「悪魔城ドラキュラ」シリーズから選ばれた登場キャラクターを操作して、仲間たちと悪魔城に乗り込み、宿敵ドラキュラ伯爵に立ち向かおう。 English translation: Take control of past protagonists from the Castlevania series to brave the Demon Castle alongside friends and defeat the ancient enemy Count Dracula.
- ^ https://castlevaniadungeon.net/games/hcfaq.txt
- ^ "Haunted Castle". The Castlevania Dungeon. Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
- ^ "The Absolute Worst Castlevania Is Coming To Arcade Archives On Switch". Nintendo Life. March 31, 2021.
- ^ "Anniversary Collection Arcade Classics". Archived from the original on 2019-03-21. Retrieved 2019-03-23.
- ^ Miki, Koji (May 1988). "Super Soft Corner: 特集 AOU アミューズメント・エキスポ レポート - '88AOU出展ビデオゲームを完全レポート — 悪魔城ドラキュラ(コナミ)". Micom BASIC Magazine (in Japanese). No. 71. The Dempa Shimbunsha Corporation. p. 270.
- )
- ^ "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - テーブル型TVゲーム機 (Table Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 329. Amusement Press, Inc. 1 April 1988. p. 25.
- ^ McFerran, Damien (2 January 2023). "Best Castlevania Games - Every Castlevania Game Ranked". Time Extension. Hookshot Media. Retrieved 19 February 2023.