It is 1991 and the Super Nintendo was in its inaugural year on the U.S. market, following up the tremendous success of its predecessor, the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). It was battling head to head with the Sega Genesis and its new mascot, Sonic the Hedgehog, and this on-going competition was known as the "console wars." While the Genesis had a unique sort of appeal and attitude, Nintendo on the other hand, had a certain brand of quality that was unrivaled in the business. Furthermore, Nintendo had a full arsenal of renowned, established franchises. Super Mario World launched the SNES into the stratosphere, and soon to follow was another classic franchise getting the 16-bit touch, making its leap into a higher echelon of gaming. Super Castlevania IV continued the classic trilogy of Castlevania games on the NES and this new endeavor onto the 16-bit powerhouse system was more of a re-telling of the original Castlevania made in 1986.

     Super Castlevania IV, or SC IV for short, re-tells the tale of famed vampire killer Simon Belmont, the young fearless warrior of the legendary Belmont clan, on his quest to thwart Count Dracula and his insidious followers from haunting the land. It's a classic story re-told to perfection here in SC IV, however, with that said, it is not really a "sequel", or rather a continuation of the series, as the title implies.

     If you interpret the title literally, and go by the opening cinematic where it states that Dracula "comes alive every 100 years," then you could hypothesize that it is another chapter in Simon's never-ending battle to slay Dracula - as to say he is possibly cursed, or fated and forever linked to such a destiny. However, there isn't any indication that Simon is immortal, or can live for such a lengthy span, or even be resurrected as Dracula can, so it must mean that this is a re-telling. Also, Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse for the NES tells the story of Trevor Belmont a few centuries prior to the original story, thus adding to the fact that Dracula does indeed rise from his grave every one hundred years.

     Now that we have settled that hash of a telling and re-telling, let me say that what a re-telling it is! SC IV elaborates on the original tale so greatly; it expanded it from the usual location of Dracula's castle to having the first few levels in graveyards, rivers, caves, and other underground tunnels. The levels leading up to the castle itself are just plain awesome as Simon works his way up from an alternate route into the castle, and come through the bottom up, from the underground as it were. This game also features one of the best and most engaging opening levels in gaming history. The music accompanying the first level is the iconic "Simon's theme" and it is wholly memorable. And it is that word, "iconic," that describes many of the moments in this game. From the opening level, to the unforgettable bosses, to the swinging chandelier sequence, to the dimension-shifting room, to the 3-D background-spinning tunnel room, this game oozes with one iconic moment after another.

     The gameplay itself is dramatically improved over its 8-bit counterpart, as you can now jump with far better accuracy and control. Simon can also whip in eight different directions endowing the player with a much better advantage and strategy for defeating the varying enemies. The frustration of being blown backwards or forwards by enemies remains (perhaps as a homage to the original), but it is not nearly as inhibiting. In fact, the difficulty itself is more manageable as a whole, but that isn't to say this game it easy; the game does provide a strong, yet viable challenge. Additionally, a password system enables the player to continue his/her game at will. It is this flexibility, and the other enhancements mentioned that make this game so accessible and ultimately re-playable all these years later.

     Super Castlevania IV is one of the best SNES games ever made and it at least deserves a notable-mention when discussing some of the greatest games ever made of its kind. It defines classic from its supreme level design and attention to detail, utterly gorgeous graphics, finely composed music, and iconic sequences. It is a game that much be played, or rather, it must be owned! Track down an SNES cartridge, or get it for the Wii's Virtual Console.

     In a nutshell, Super Castlevania IV is the greatest iteration of a Castlevania game in the franchises lengthy twenty-plus year tenure.

-Kurt L.

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