Castlevania Anniversary Collection

Review by Mike Finkelstein

For a time, fans believed that Konami had lost interest in the Castlevania series. Although the company had put some effort into the Lords of ShadowThe first full reboot of the franchise, the Lords of Shadow series introduced a new hero, Gabriel Belmont, and reimagined villains all in league with a new antagonist, Satan. sub-series, right up until sales for that section of the franchise rolled right off a cliff (from a high of selling over a million units for the first game to only 120 thousand units sold for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2), the classic series hadn’t seen a mainline entry, or anything really showing love for Castlevania in general, since 2010’s Castlevania: Harmony of Despair. Mostly the company seemed to want to take their franchise and crank out pachinko and pachislot titles instead.

And while it’s hard to view a collection of games that were already released as a big step for the franchise, there is no doubt that the Castlevania Anniversary Collection was a labor of love for fans as well as the developers that made the collection. Overseen by M2, the Castlevania Anniversary Collection was released as part of Konami’s 50th anniversary celebration, along with the Arcade Classics Anniversary Collection and the Contra Anniversary Collection as well. These were games and series that had helped to make Konami a name in the arcade and console scenes for several gaming generations, and the company put together a collection that made Castlevania fans feel worth again.

The meat of the collection are the eight games included: CastlevaniaThe game that started the series, the original Castlevania was hailed for its combination of action and platforming, all wrapped in Gothic style, to create one of Konami's earliest Million Sellers., Castlevania II: Simon's QuestThe first true sequel in the franchise, and one of the few direct sequels ever released. It was the first game in the series to introduce players to the concepts that would eventually become the Metroidvania genre., The Castlevania AdventureThe first Castlevania portable title, it manages to squeeze in the basics of the series onto the four-color Game Boy... but only barely., Castlevania III: Dracula's CurseThe third, and final, NES entry for the series, Dracula's Curse returned the series to its roots with a more traditional adventure. But it also added in branching paths, multiple characters, and new hero Trevor Belmont., Castlevania II: Belmont's RevengeThe second Castlevania title for the Game Boy, this game was a marked improvement over its predecessor, becoming a beloved entry among fans and a must have title for anyone with even a passing interest in the series., Super Castlevania IVOfficially a remake in Japan, this was the first entry in the series for 16-bit consoles, and is often considered among the best Castlevania games ever made., Castlevania: BloodlinesThe first Castlevania game for a Sega console, this title marked the introduction of elements from Bram Stoker's novel, Dracula, into the game series., and, as a bonus, Kid Dracula. That’s a weighty number of games representing the best of the classic Castlevania franchise across the 8-bit and 16-bit eras. Additionally ,each game can be played in various different screen modes, from pixel perfect all the way across a variety of aspect ratios. Most of them (except for Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest) also included the Japanese versions in the American release to give players a chance to see all the regional differences between the games.

This, naturally, is lovely. That’s a lot of content for any player to get through and while, sure, most of these games were available via shady means to emulate online, this is a one-stop shop for many of the games players wanted to play, all for a reasonable price and legal means. If you’d always meant to get into Castlevania, or you wanted to add some legitimacy to your digital collection Konami had just the release for you right here.

With that said, the collection does have some surprising omissions, especially considering the eras that the collection covers. For instance, where is Castlevania: Dracula XThis SNES game was a loose remake of Castlevania Dracula X: Rondo of Blood, and even by the team that made it is considered a non-continuity adventure.. While that game isn’t exactly loved by fans, for any collection gathering NES, SNES, and Genesis titles, you would think Castlevania: Dracula X would be among them. It’s an understandable exclusion if Konami were planning to do a follow up that had both Castlevania Dracula X: Rondo of BloodThe first adventure for Rochter Belmont, this game didn't originally make it to the West (instead seeing a SNES remake to replace it) as was considered something of a prized collector's item by fans. and Castlevania: Dracula X in it, presumably with other games… except Konami didn’t do that later. They kept Castlevania Dracula X: Rondo of Blood locked down with the Castlevania: The Dracula X ChroniclesA remake of Castlevania Dracula X: Rondo of Blood which featured updated graphics, music, and some new gameplay elements. It also included classic versions of Rondo and Symphony of the Night (the latter of which had a new bonus Maria mode). version of Castlevania: Symphony of the NightReleased on the PlayStation in 1997, this game, while not hugely successful in the U.S. at the time, went on to become on the most beloved titles in the Castlevania series. on the Castlevania: Requiem collection, exclusive to the PS4, and they’ve left the rest of the fans out in the cold. It’s just a really strange omission.

Sure, with hindsight we did eventually get Castlevania: Dracula X over in the Castlevania Advanced Collection, but that is such an odd placement for it. A strange remake for the SNES of a beloved game, shoved in with three unrelated Game Boy Advance games (which are all great in their own right) is the oddest place to dump this title.

And by similar logic, where is Haunted CastleKonami's first original foray into arcades for the Castlevania series. This game built on the concept of the series although it took some ideas in different directions, with mixed results. in this collection? Yes, it was included in the Arcade Classics Anniversary Collection, but if you didn’t care for the other games in that collection and you just wanted all the Castlevania you likely wouldn’t have picked up that collection. I know I didn’t initially, assuming that Haunted Castle would be in the Castlevania Anniversary Collection, because that makes logical sense, and then just didn’t ever motivate myself to grab it afterwards.

And, again, with hindsight Haunted Castle was also eventually included in the Castlevania Dominus Collection, but that’s also a weird place for it. Sure, it got a remake, Haunted Castle Revisited, as part of that package, and it was shown the same level of love as the Nintendo DS games that are the main feature, but still. This is all really weird from a preservation standpoint.

The one other strange omission is that Vampire KillerA loose port of Castlevania for the MSX2, this plaforming adventure took the bones of the original game but blended in minor exploration elements to create something different and interesting. wasn’t included at all, and so far has yet to be anywhere else. Yes, it’s an MSX game that most Americans likely haven’t heard of, and it is based on the first Castlevania, so maybe the developers felt that they didn’t need to put it in. But from a preservation standpoint, and to showcase the history of Castlevania across these eras, Vampire Killer should have been part of the set. It shows where Konami was at in their development, and what ideas they were playing with (that would eventually go on to influence many of their later titles). Even putting that game in with the Game Boy Advance of Nintendo DS titles would have felt oddly right since it’s a proto-MetroidvaniaAt the intersection of Metroid and Castlevania lies the exploration platforming genre, the game style with heroes wandering expansive worlds, looking for items to expand their quest, know as Metroidvania., but as yet, no love for Vampire Killer.

As far as the main series of games, the ones that fans know, this is a good set, though. Hell, the inclusion of Kid Dracula, a title most hadn’t seen in the West (because it was a Famicom exclusive) was great. A solid bonus for the era that really showed Konami was trying to do right by fans. Yes, not everything players might have wanted was in here, but there was so much that was here to sell the set. Eight games is a lot for a collection, a beefy number that keeps you coming back, and while most of the games are on the shorter end of the spectrum (30 minutes or so of gameplay, each), there’s a lot of content to enjoy and appreciate.

So, on the whole this is a worthwhile set, whether you’re a big fan of the series or just have a passing interest. The price is low (usually around 20 bucks or less), the content quality is high, and the games are timeless. This was a great way for Konami to celebrate Castlevania, and their own history, and certainly the best thing about it was that it inspired Konami to continue making more of these sets after this initial release.

Limited Run Games Ultimate Edition

Along with the main release of this collection, Konami eventually tapped Limited Run Games to print physical copies, too. These came in four different tiers: the standard edition of the game, in a standard game box for the console of your choice, with basic, slip sleeve artwork; the Classic Edition, which had that game and box along with a retro dust sleeve modeled to look like an NES slip sleeve, a soundtrack, a poster of the collection’s artwork, and a special retro styled box designed to look like a classic NES box; the Bloodlines Edition, which had most of the same items from the Classic Edition, except no NES dust sleeve and the artwork for the box (and the overall box design) mirrored Castlevania: Bloodlines; and finally the Ultimate Edition, which has so much more.

Now, to start, let’s go over those basic inclusions. I like many of these items, from the NES box to the Genesis box, and the dust sleeve. Each of these is goofy and fun and I’m amused at their inclusion. You get all of these in the Ultimate Edition, so you get to pick which version you want on your shelf. The Genesis box was solid and substantial and it looks really nice, so that was the version I went with for my display.

The poster is, well, a poster. It’s a pack in and it’s folded. I never put mine up, just kept it in the box, and it’ll probably stay that way. The soundtrack is nice enough, though. It’s 29 tracks with all the big songs you’d expect to find, from “Vampire Killer” to “Wicked Child”, “Bloody Tears”, “Aquarius”, “Battle of the Holy”, “New Messiah”, and “Theme of Simon’s Quest”. Each come from their original games, plus there’s just a few duplicates from the Famicom version as well, which in the case of the FDS Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse, are the better versions of these songs. If you already have a Castlevania music collection, like I do, then you likely already have all these songs (and then some). But for a casual fan who’s spending just a little more for a soundtrack, this is a good starter set of music.

Past this, then we have all the extra pack-in materials exclusive to this set. First is The History of Castlevania: Book of the Crescent Moon, an art book that was digital only for those that downloaded the game, but is printed off here. It’s a nice retrospective on the series, providing little bits of trivia along with the wide perspective of art, some of which many fans hadn’t seen before. Having it here, physically, is a very nice touch.

Then there’s the truly goofy stuff, like little reproductions of the game boxes for all eight games. These are cheap, and cardboard, so not something I’ve taken out of their holder. I wish they were plastic, and in fact in collections sets these repro carts were plastic, keychains of the carts themselves that you could display without worrying about them getting destroyed. These first eight should have been like that as well, but it’s nice to see Limited Run Games recalibrated after this.

The set has art prints which, like the poster, you either love to have or hate. I’m never going to put these up, so I flipped through them once and then ignored them. An enamel pin of the original Castlevania logo was included as well, and my wife immediately stole it because she loves enamel pins. It’s been put up on her board with all her other pins, and it is sharp looking, so that’s nice, I guess. I didn’t really care about it myself but I’m glad someone did.

The set also came with a SteelBook case for your game box, which marks the fourth display box they’ve made for this title. I have the Switch edition of the collection, and the Switch game box fits nicely in the SteelBook, the NES repro box, and the Genesis repro box, but you can’t layer all of them together. You can’t have the Switch box in the NES box in the SteelBook in the Genesis box, for example, and while that does sound ridiculous, so is including four different ways to have the game on your shelf. That’s a bit much.

And, really, it’s five if you keep everything together in the massive Ultimate Edition box. The box itself is great, oversized and beefy. It has the collection’s artwork all over it, and the front is a shadow box of the main design, Simon posing in the looming shadow of Dracula. Press a button on the side and it lights up and plays “Vampire Killer”. I love this. I have to show it off every time someone asks about the box. And it stored everything inside it, so technically you don’t have to unpack anything if you don’t want to. I did, because I wanted the cart within easy access. So the shadow box sits high up on a shelf, looking proud, while the Genesis repro box sits on a standard shelf with my other games, holding my Switch cart.

With all of that covered, is the Ultimate Edition worth it? That depends on how crazy of a fan you are. I bought it because I wanted the shadow box and all the crap that goes with it, and I also wanted to review it for this site. Parts of the merch are great, but parts are pretty bland, and it does feel uneven. You could have gotten most of the good materials included here in one of the lesser sets, making the price prospect even harder to bear. In essence, you would have paid 120 bucks, give or take, for a really nice shadow box that lights up and plays music for your shelf. That much for a piece of art is reasonable… but it might not be reasonable for everyone.

Of course, you can’t get it now without paying an even more exorbitant price on Ebay since it was a “limited run”, and at that point I absolutely wouldn’t pay more. But at the time, I felt it was fine, for me. For anyone else… that would have been a harder argument to make.

I like this collection, but I will admit that most of what people want are the eight games included. And if that’s what you’re looking for, just get the collection on Steam. It’s great, and you’ll enjoy the games. You have no reason to be a crazy superfan and get this set, especially not now when you’d get fleeced by resellers.