The enchantment of Konami’s just lately launched Castlevania assortment is, in concept, that it’s a brand new strategy to play three meaty Castlevania adventures from the Nintendo DS period (Castlevania: Daybreak of Sorrow, Portrait of Wreck, and Order of Ecclesia). However the spotlight for me, an avowed and longtime hater of the 1987 sport Haunted Fortress, is one thing new: Haunted Fortress Revisited, a remake of Konami’s terrible try to carry Simon Belmont’s battle in opposition to Dracula to arcades.
Konami launched the unique Haunted Fortress a few yr after the unique Castlevania got here to Nintendo’s Famicom Disk System in 1986. A reimagining of Simon’s unique journey, Haunted Fortress sends our hero on a mission to rescue his new bride Selena from her kidnapper Dracula. Armed with a whip and different collectible weapons, Simon faces acquainted threats like Medusa, Frankenstein’s monster, and a large rock golem.
The unique Haunted Fortress did have just a few issues going for it — particularly giant sprites and catchy music. However Haunted Fortress was punishingly tough, awkward to regulate, and poorly animated. The unique Castlevania was difficult, too, however Haunted Fortress’s problem spikes had been brutal and sometimes unfair, seemingly designed to steal quarters from harmless younger gamers who cherished the NES unique and had been lured in by fancy graphics. (This harmless younger participant is me.)
Haunted Fortress Revisited takes the fundamental framework of the unique Haunted Fortress and transforms it right into a traditional Castlevania motion side-scroller. Developer M2 and Keisuke Koga, who designed Castlevania: The Journey Rebirth, a slick remake of the primary Recreation Boy Castlevania sport, are liable for turning Haunted Fortress round in 2024. The developer has streamlined the problem, redesigned ranges and enemy encounters, and given Haunted Fortress a serious graphical glow-up with Revisited. Simon is now properly animated and far simpler to regulate.
On the sport’s regular problem setting, Haunted Fortress Revisited in all fairness simple to finish, partly due to beneficiant checkpoints, continues, and an possibility to pick out ranges from the principle menu. There’s a tough problem setting, too, which remixes enemy layouts and introduces new enemy variants that aren’t within the regular setting. The laborious model is extremely enjoyable — difficult, however not punitively tough.
The largest improve in Haunted Fortress Revisited is the sport’s bosses. They’ve all been reimagined in a roundabout way, however two of the (six) boss fights stand out among the many relaxation: the Stained Glass Knight and the ultimate battle in opposition to Dracula himself. I received’t spoil them, as a result of they’re value experiencing for your self, however they’re now ingenious and thrilling spectacles.
M2 has even given Simon’s whip an improve. Like different traditional Castlevania video games, Simon can energy up his iconic weapon from normal leather-based bull whip to morning star by gathering orbs. Haunted Fortress Revisited provides an additional layer to this; As soon as Simon’s whip is upgraded, any orbs he collects will give him a short lived energy up, giving it larger attain and a wider hurtbox. It’s a small element, nevertheless it provides a way of urgency to play — you’ll need to get essentially the most out of your super-charged whip when you can.
Haunted Fortress Revisited will not be the largest attract Konami’s new Castlevania Dominus Assortment, however for fellow Castlevania lovers who performed and despised the unique Haunted Fortress, the remake is value enjoying. It has reworked a blight on the franchise right into a fresh-feeling, traditional Castlevania sport, the likes of which we haven’t seen in a few years.
Castlevania Dominus Assortment was launched Aug. 27 on Nintendo Swap, PlayStation 5, Home windows PC, and Xbox Collection X. The sport was reviewed utilizing a pre-release obtain code offered by Nintendo. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These don’t affect editorial content material, although Vox Media could earn commissions for merchandise bought by way of affiliate hyperlinks. Yow will discover extra details about Polygon’s ethics coverage right here.
