Castlevania I

However, it had to be noted that that sneaky menu update on the 1st of March was just a sneak peek.

Though, from then on and onwards, it did get people to take note and had them marching first into their trusty comic book stores, more or less.

The marching part wasn't really in general.

It's not like there's some general-ranked nerd forward-hutting his nerd subordinates along to where they're all going.

But, at this point, it was really coming along to be some force of habit that it may not be that long for a synchronous marching of sorts to be achieved!

Still, even when one sets aside the exaggerations and this overdue March First lingo gets toned down... it really wasn't that far off.

The dweebs, that are luckily close by, walked.

The dorks, that are in a hurry, ran.

The geeks, somewhat far away, opted to drive or ride... their cars. But mostly, just their prized bicycles.

Interchangeably, all of them are really just the same nerds of anything Creed, regardless of where they are at that nerdy Venn diagram.

As clerks of the comic book stores didn't have any doubt that they were called over by this latest offering in the Creed Games roster... Castlevania!

They didn't doubt it but they can hardly not joke when they make sense of it.

For them... maybe those notifications and the ringing sound they make to be the bells, and the games they serve are the positive reinforcements that come with it.

So, Creed could be doing some wider Pavlovian conditioning to this growing niche community.

Or perhaps that chaotic Creed Chaos System start-up has some influencing illusions under its sort of mesmerizing red-green display.

Whatever the case it may be, conditioned or illusioned, these lined-up customers of theirs still ate the appeal of this 13th Creed video game up!

--------

For the most part and the part of these customers and consumers, this one is actually either much-anticipated or much-dreaded.

Much-anticipated as it should be, for it is another potential new game that they could play through.

If the last 12 were indicative enough, then how could this be any different?

As for why it's much-dreaded...

Well... it's not just because of the accruing expenditure that came with all these 30-plus dollars of back-to-back GameKeys.

It may also have to do with triskaidekaphobia, or the usual hokum that most tend to associate with the inevitable number 13.

Something that probably wouldn't take long to be bumped up into paraskevidekatriaphobia.

Not because of the hockey-masked Jason Voorhees but because of the Friday the 13th that's right around the corner of this March.

For what it's worth, Creed and their Chaos units were unabashed when they directly displayed what they should at 13/13.

Where this new game settled.

Making one really wonder just how befitting it is to be given such a spot.

But if the accompanying manual that they beheld were to be believed, it's sort of spot on.

As the game is said to be set in the late 17th century, where vampire slayer Simon Belmont must destroy Count Dracula by infiltrating his sanctuary...

Which is not just any other castle in Transylvania.

Hence, Castlevania!

It even had the tagline... enter at your own risk!

So, as the "brave" nerds that they are, how could they not?!

How could they not risk their hard-begged dollars to a feel of what it's like to go up against the fabled Vampire King?!

------

And so begins their video gaming journey as a different kind of Van Helsing. With a whip?

Yep, a whip.

Yet that's hardly as disconcerting as playing as Drew Barrymore, kicking and hula-hooping through a wave of theatrical mobs.

Something to keep in mind as their respective games loaded in...

With eerie images being played...

While their character already marched first, towards a looming castle...

Even before they could get their bearings right... their character's whip already crackled... busting the gate wide open!

Opening with it a whole slew of enjoyment, experience, frustration, and game information that they're going to have to sift through.

Engrossed and whatnot.

That's just how it is...

-------

In Castlevania...

Where Creed gamers or players control Simon Belmont, descendant of a legendary vampire hunter, who will enter the castle of Count Dracula to destroy him when he suddenly reappears.

A full 100 years after Simon's ancestor vanquished him. This begs the question of who even was this ancestor.

Did he also use platform gameplay, which is divided into six blocks of three stages each, for a total of 18 stages?

That goes to show just how expansive this titled castle is.

Traversing through all of it now is Simon, who can move, jump, crouch, climb stairs, and use a magic whip as his primary combat weapon.

Which would come to be known in the series as the "Vampire Killer".

Quite temperamental as whenever the player presses the button to crack the whip, there is a short delay before Simon actually does so.

As smooth as Creed's coding is, this can't be intentional, right?

Fortunately, aside from the whip, Simon can also find and use various backup weapons throughout...

Including throwing knives, axes, vials of holy water, a magical watch that can briefly freeze enemies, and sacred crosses that function as boomerangs.

These are made available as long as he snuffs out candles, destroys flame pedestals, and finds peculiar spots in walls.

It's really nifty.

However, only one of such nifty weapons can be carried at a time. If the player picks up a new one or loses a life, the weapon is automatically lost.

Some backup weapons require hearts for their use, which can be found by extinguishing more candles or defeating enemies with the whip.

Other hidden items include point bonuses in the form of sacks of money...

Temporary invincibility through a golden jar...

Upgrades to the whip's length and power via some metal chain...

Instant destruction of all on-screen enemies through the blue rosary...

And there's something to double and triple the use of the backup weapon.

Other than that array of utilities, the player begins the game with four lives and five hearts, and must complete the current block of stages before a timer runs out.

Simon also has a health meter, which decreases whenever he is hit by an enemy or projectile.

One life is lost if either the meter or the timer reaches zero, or if Simon falls off the bottom of the screen or is hit by a moving spiked ceiling.

Hidden food items restore health, and bonus lives are earned at certain score thresholds.

Of course, these are all perks of being a game character, not from being a Belmont. But maybe that's the case.

Lore-wise and also game-wise...

Still, such perky perks are quite necessary. Against monsters, bone-throwing skeletons, and oversized bats.

Especially so when fighting a boss character, usually themed after a classic horror movie monster at the end of each block.

From the likes of Frankenstein's Monster and Igor, Medusa, the Mummies, and the Grim Reaper.

It really makes one wonder why all of these guys are working for a mere vampire.

One will never know... it's not like this Transylvanian castle is some hotel getaway for monsters, right?

Besides, whether it be in the world of Castlevania or in other media, it's not like Count Dracula is just an average vampire Joe.

Count may be in his title but he's actually king!

Making it the ultimate goal for Simon to truly defeat Dracula himself at the end of this raid...

Triggering the collapse of Dracula's very lair and hopefully wiping out this accursed place once and for all!

Be all that as it may, everyone is just starting out... and most of this information is still privy only to a few.

It's also important to note that this is just the start and the very first of the Castlevania series.

There's still more on the way!