Castlevania ReBirth coming to WiiWare

[Valigarmander]

Castlevania ReBirth Coming to WiiWare

There's been plenty of speculation that Konami's Rebirth initiative -- WiiWare releases of some of its most beloved franchises, but in the style of the old 2D classics -- would eventually extend to Castlevania, and today it seems we've received the first confirmation of this. The Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) has just listed a Castlevania the Adventure ReBirth (as discovered by GamerBytes). And while there's no real information on how the game will look or play, one could speculate based on the name that it's based on Castlevania: The Adventure, a popular installment for the GameBoy. Here's how the ESRB describes the game:

"This is a side-scrolling action game in which players battle against monsters in Dracula's castle. Players use a chained whip to fight their way through halls and dungeons filled with zombies, skeletons, flying eyeballs, and bats. The enemy creatures frequently shoot projectiles and attack players in hand-to-hand combat. If players sustain too much damage, they keel over and emit a burst of red blood. Some rooms in the castle also have spikes or spears stained with red, blood-like splotches."

Interestingly, while the game is most likely being developed by M2, the small studio responsible for the other WiiWare ReBirth titles, longtime Castlevania director Koji Igarashi (IGA) may be involved with it (answering the question of what he's up to since he's not attached to Castlevania Lords of Shadow for PS3 and 360). He recently helped with Contra ReBirth, so there's a good likelihood he could be helping with or overseeing this game. However, given the ReBirth games are return to the visual and play style of the 8 and 16-bit titles, this will likely be a more straightforward, linear affair, rather than a game using the Metroidvania style adventuring and backtracking that's become common in Castlevanias of recent years (and that IGA's been known for).

We'll hopefully have more information on Castlevania the Adventure ReBirth soon, possibly at the Tokyo Game Show later this month.

Sounds pretty cool. I'll probably check this out once it's released.

[1-up Salesman]

Awesome! What a great idea.

[Robotazy]

f**k yes.

[Cosmonautical]

YES

[1-up Salesman]

I hope that there's some actual story than it, other than "You control a man with a chain-whip and go through Dracula's Castle."

[Panfan]

yesssssss

[Valigarmander]

Konami Releases First Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth Screen

Konami has released the first screen for Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth, their upcoming remake of the franchise's very first Game Boy title. And in keeping with their previous ReBirth titles, it looks a lot like a Super Nintendo game, in this case Super Castlevania IV.

Based on the shot, it appears that Christopher Belmont's trademark will be making its triumphant return. With luck, that will be one of the few carryovers, as the original game was notably awful. This remake is a nice opportunity for Konami to make things right and give Christopher a proper debut adventure.

Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth will be out next week in Japan, at which time we will be able to give you full hands-on impressions. North Americans will have to wait a bit longer, but considering that it was given a "third quarter" release, it's likely to be out sooner than later.

Looks awesome. I'm probably going to get this one.

[Valigarmander]

Castlevania the Adventure ReBirth Preview for the Wii from 1UP.com

This is just my humble opinion, but I think Konami is on a roll with their ReBirth series. They (and developer M2) are doing what many retro game nerds often say they want with other classic series: They're giving us a new game that's decidedly old, and keeping the modern frills to a very bare minimum. So, like the previous Gradius ReBirth and Contra ReBirth, Konami's latest production, Castlevania the Adventure ReBirth, stays true to its name -- it's not so much a remake, but a conglomeration of elements from the originals put together by a group of folks who are clearly fans of the franchise themselves. It just hit WiiWare in Japan this week, and I made sure to download and play it ASAP.

Castlevania the Adventure ReBirth is -- if you pay attention to the name -- inspired by the first Game Boy Castlevania games, The Castlevania Adventure and Belmont's Revenge, and focuses on the trials and tribulations of hero Christopher Belmont. In ReBirth, what this basically means is that Belmont's whip can shoot fireballs after grabbing a couple of power-ups. In the originals, that power stuck until he was hit, but now it's temporary, with a secondary meter below the health bar that ticks down until the fireball power is lost. The general strength of the whip is preserved, though, and you can shoot fireballs again if you manage to get successive power-ups, so it's not all bad. The adherence to the Game Boy games also means there are lots of giant rolling eyeballs. Hey, sometimes it's the little things.

But it's the level design, the natural centerpoint of the game, that won't remind you too much of the old handheld titles. There are no awkward ropes to climb in order to get Belmont around the stages -- good ol' fashioned Castlevania stairs are in abundance in ReBirth. And of course, the challenge increases exponentially the farther you go, as it's not just enemies you have to watch out for, but also a variety of traps and other dastardly-designed contraptions that will either force you to hurry up (like falling through breakable crystal platforms to avoid a fleet of rolling eyes) or slow down (like cautiously ducking under giant swinging blades) to preserve your precious health. In a nod to slightly later entries in the franchise, ReBirth's stages have multiple paths, usually accessible by finding special keys that can be used to unlock otherwise impassable doors, and take players through a completely different path to the main boss than usual. I only played the game for a few hours, so I couldn't be exactly sure how this matters at the end of the game (especially since the whole thing is high score-driven), but it's a neat little touch.

It's a fair bet that most people won't notice, or perhaps even care, about ReBirth's links to the Game Boy series. This game is, after all, in full color and with brand-new levels. The Game Boy games were relatively rough around the edges, though, but ReBirth is crafted to feel much more like the timeless 16-bit Castlevanias, so if you have fond memories of Castlevania IV or fond memories of pining for Dracula X: Rondo of Blood, you should feel right at home here. ReBirth is also just as punishing as those classics, though the weak-willed can immedately dial the difficulty down to "Easy" and dial the number of lives up to nine. At this point, these technical and superficial details are all unsurprising for the ReBirth series, but considering the result (and the price; 1,000 Points), that's pretty much what I'd expect, and it's quite nice.

This game is looking real good. I grew up on the older Castlevania games, so this'll be a pleasant trip back in time.

Click the link for a couple of gameplay videos.

Koji Igarashi Producing Castlevania the Adventure ReBirth

With the upcoming big-budget Castlevania: Lords of Shadow being developed by a European studio and overseen by Hideo Kojima's production team, some Castlevania fans have wondered (if not outright worried about) what has happened to Koji Igarashi, the man who has been the main brain behind almost all of the Castlevania games for more than a decade, and was responsible for the series' turn into Metroid-style open-ended action games. Well, he's not gone, and he's still working on Castlevania games. A quick look at the staff roll for the new WiiWare title Castlevania the Adventure ReBirth shows Igarashi's name listed as Producer. So there.

Igarashi just appears once at the top of the credits, though, followed by the long list of outside programmers, artists and other designers that crafted the game, so his presence may not have been that big of a deal, but at least he still has some say within the walls of the Castlevania franchise.

(Oh, and ReBirth looks pretty hot, by the way).

[Valigarmander]

The game was released in North America today. Enjoy.

[Cosmonautical]

Any word on the PAL? I should check Wiiware.