Castlevania: Bloodlines

From Sega Retro

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CastlevaniaBloodlines title.png

Castlevania: Bloodlines
System(s): Sega Mega Drive
Publisher: Konami
Developer:
Genre: Action

















Number of players: 1
Release Date RRP Code
Sega Mega Drive
JP 		¥7,8007,800 T-95043
Sega Mega Drive
US 		T-95076
Sega Mega Drive
EU 		T-95076-50
Sega Mega Drive
DE
Sega Mega Drive
UK 		£44.9944.99[1]
Sega Mega Drive
AU

Castlevania: Bloodlines, known as Vampire Killer (バンパイアキラー) in Japan, is an entry in the Castlevania series, and the first of two games to reach Sega systems. Bloodlines was the subject of much debate at the time, as even though it has a considerable amount of violence and many depictions of blood, Sega's Videogame Rating Council only gave the game a "GA", the lowest rating possible. This affected the European release, which was heavily censored and renamed Castlevania: The New Generation, and the Australian release kept the name while remaining identical to the American release in content. The game was released exclusively for the Sega Mega Drive.

Bloodlines does not feature the Belmont clan featured in previous games. Although the characters are related to the Belmont clan by blood, they belong to other families and their relationship is not clearly explained. It is also the first game not to take place exclusively within in Romania.

Compared to other Castlevania games, Bloodlines was faster and more dynamic, e.g. it's possible to jump onto stairs. Weapons can be powered up, which also exchanges the equipped subweapon (axe, boomerang,...) into a smartbomb.

Like most Konami games on the Sega Mega Drive, Bloodlines has become rather expensive.

Story

In 1897, Quincy Morris defeated Count Dracula, but died afterwards due to the wounds from the battle. His son, John Morris, and his friend Eric Lecarde witnessed it.

Twenty years later, a vampire named Elizabeth Bartley - who had been executed in 1421 - was accidentally brought back to life by a witch named Drolta Tzuentes. Once back, Elizabeth wants to revive her dead uncle - none other than Dracula.

Now, it's up to John and Eric - descendants of a clan of vampire hunters, the Belmonts - to find Elizabeth and stop her, before she brings Count Dracula back to the land of the living.


“ The ancestors of the Belmont family are doomed to confront the power of evil incarnate......Dracula!

In 1917, a countess sought to revive the long dead spirit of the vampire. Her name was Elizabeth Bartley.

To revive him, she needed to travel all over Europe, enlisting help from all the powers of darkness.

Two young vampire hunters set out to fulfill their destiny.... Push back the evil hordes and drive the vampire back into his dark netherworld.

„

— Opening sequence


Gameplay

In Castlevania: Bloodlines the player travel through six different countries of Europe, controlling either John Morris — current owner of the "Vampire Killer" whip — or his childhood friend Eric Lecarde — a master lanceman. Macabre creatures such as zombies and skeletons are summoned by Countess Bartley to kill you.

Along the way you can collect items to power-up the weapon (up to three times), as well as one of three special weapons, useful to hit enemies from afar. In order to use the special weapons you must collect jewels, which are hidden inside candles found all over the way.

By default A attacks, B jumps and C uses the special weapon; controls can be changed at the options menu. Special weapons normally require one jewel per usage, though holding Up while pressing C turns it into a smartbomb, which uses up four jewels. Also, if you collect three power-ups having at least eight jewels, the special weapon is temporarily replaced by an ultimate attack that costs eight jewels. Holding Down and pressing A midair performs a straight down attack.

Passwords are given at the end of each stage, once the stage boss is defeated. When passwords are used, the weapon level, jewels count and score are reset — the special weapon is also lost.

Playable characters

Castlevania MD JohnMorris.png John Morris (Johnny Morris in the Japanese version)
Born in 12 December 1895 in Texas, USA, he is the son of Quincy Morris (who died upon defeating Dracula in 1897), and a distant descendant of Trevor Belmont. His weapon is the sacred whip "Vampire Killer", used by the Belmonts for centuries and temporarily entrusted to the Morris clan, since the Belmonts are unable to touch it until the year of 1999.

Morris has only one special move: Swing with Whip (hold Up, press A midair — lashes the whip at ceiling blocks and swing forward).

Castlevania MD EricLecarde.png Eric Lecarde
Born in 3 May 1892 in Segovia, Spain, he is also related to the Belmont lineage, though details are unclear. Eric decided to become a vampire hunter after Elizabeth Bartley changed his girlfriend, Gwendolyn, into a vampire. His weapon is the "Alcarde Spear", entrusted to the Lecarde family by Alucard, the son of Dracula, to assist the Morris clan. He has the advantage of being able to attack upward and diagonally, by pressing the desired direction on the D-pad.

Lecarde has two special moves: Mega Jump (hold Down, press B — jumps three times higher) and Spinning Lance (hold A, press Left/Right — spins the lance back and forth).

Items

Castlevania MD 1up.png 1up
extra player life
Castlevania MD BagofKreutzers.png Bag of Kreutzers
100 to 2,000 points
Castlevania MD RedJewel.png Red Jewel
adds 1 jewel for special weapon usage
Castlevania MD BlueJewel.png Blue Jewel
adds 5 jewels for special weapon usage
Castlevania MD CoatofArms.png Coat-of-Arms
power-up your weapon
Castlevania MD MirrorofTruth.png Mirror of Truth
hits all enemies on screen
Castlevania MD MuttonChop.png Mutton Chop
restores one half of your character's life
Castlevania MD SpellBook.png Spell Book
causes a random effect, such as weapon power-up
Castlevania MD BlackOrb.png Black Orb
Makes your character invulnerable for a short while

Special weapons

Castlevania MD BattleAxe.png Battle Axe
It's thrown up then falls down, making it difficult to hit enemies in certain cases, though it's great to reach the ones above you. At level 3 it summons three axes which fly straight forward.
Castlevania MD CrystalBladeBoomerang.png Crystal Blade Boomerang
It's thrown in a straight line then comes backward, possibly hitting enemies twice on its way. At level 3 it summons three boomerangs which fly forward forming a circle.
Castlevania MD SacredWater.png Sacred Water
Like the Battle Axe, it's thrown up then falls down and can damages enemies in the air, though when it touches the ground a sacred explosion is created. At level 3 it flies through the screen in a spiral movement, hitting a good area.

Stages

For more screenshots see Category:Castlevania: Bloodlines screenshots
Castlevania MD Stage1.png Stage 1 - Ruins of the Castle Dracula, Romania
The first stage is divided into eleven sections, featuring a Hellhound at the end of 1-5 and the stage boss — Armor Battler, a giant mecha knight.
Castlevania MD Stage2.png Stage 2 - Atlantis Shrine, Greece
The second stage has seven parts, featuring three mini-bosses — the Water Mage and two Armor Lords, all in 2-3 (the first one wielding a morning star and the other wielding an axe) - plus the stage boss — Golem, a stone giant.
Castlevania MD Stage3.png Stage 3 - The Leaning Tower of Pisa, Italy
Castlevania MD Stage4.png Stage 4 - The Munitions Factory, Germany
Castlevania MD Stage5.png Stage 5 - Versailles Palace, France
Castlevania MD Stage6.png Stage 6 - The Castle Proserpina, England
There are three boss fights throughout this stage starting at 6-5, which is a fight with Death and rematches against the stage 2 through 4 bosses, Elizabeth and Medusa at 6-7, and a final battle with Dracula and Drolta at 6-9.

Versions

The game utilizes a region lockout mechanism, but it can be disabled by holding down the A button during startup. Note that this doesn't affect the title screen and graphics modifications (so it's not possible to turn a censored PAL version into an uncensored NTSC-J or NTSC-U version).

Production credits

The only regional difference in the ending credits is in the very first line, where it says "<regional game title> Staff". Also, if you beat the game in normal difficulty it ends with "Try Expert Mode!"; if you finish it in expert difficulty it changes to "Congratulations! You are the master of Vampire Killer".

  • Programmer MK1: Hanaten
  • Enemy Program: Takashi Takeda
  • Trap and Enemy Program: Kenichiro Horio
  • Wandering Programmer: Koji Komata
  • Program: Hidenari Inamura
  • Main Designer: Bunmin
  • Design: Mamuun
  • Special Design: Tat, Norio Takemoto
  • Sound Program: Atsushi Fujio, Osamu Kasai
  • Sound Design: Michiru Yamane
  • Package Design: M.Yoshihashi, Kaori Sasaki
  • Special Thanks to: H.Takeuchi, K.Iketani, K.Kinjyo, T.Shinguu, N.Tanaka, S.Yomota, H.Jyuni, A.Shizuno, T.Niimi, T.Yabe
  • Copyright by: 1994 Tokumashoten Intermedia Inc.
  • Supervisor: Yutaka Haruki
  • Producer: Tomikazu Kirita
  • © 1994 Konami
  • All Rights Reserved
Source:
In-game credits

Magazine articles

Main article: Castlevania: Bloodlines/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

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Print advert in Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) #57: "April 1994" (1994-xx-xx)
also published in:
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Print advert in Sega Magazine (UK) #2: "February 1994" (1994-01-10)
also published in:
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Print advert in Joypad (FR) #29: "Mars 1994" (1994-0x-xx)
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Print advert in Video Games (DE) #1994-06: "6/94" (1994-05-25)
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Print advert in Mega Sega (ES) #11: "xxxx 1994" (1994-xx-xx)
also published in:
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Physical scans

Sega Retro Average 
Publication Score Source
82 №30, p92-93[13]
83 №147, p62-63[1]
80 №56, p46-47[14]
70 №15, p48-49
86 №29, p112-114[15]
91 №20, p22-25
82 №18, p43
83 №26
90 №16 (supp.), p2-7[16]
92 №40, p68-71[17]
86 №2, p91-92[18]
70 №52, p38-39
84 №30, p60-61
87 №25, p11
Sega Mega Drive
 83
Based on
14 reviews
Sega Retro Average 
Publication Version Score
1700 igr dlya Sega (RU) NTSC-U
70
[19]
1700 igr dlya Sega (RU) PAL
60
[20]
1700 igr dlya Sega (RU) NTSC-J
40
[21]
Beep! MegaDrive (JP) NTSC-J
63
[22]
Console Mania (IT) PAL
91
[23]
Consoles + (FR)
82
[13]
Computer & Video Games (UK)
83
[1]
Digitiser (UK)
83
[24]
Electronic Games (1992-1995) (US) NTSC-U
91
[25]
Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) NTSC-U
83
[26]
Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 1 (RU)
70
[27]
Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 7 (RU)
70
[28]
Game Players (US) NTSC-U
88
[29]
GamePro (US) NTSC-U
80
[14]
Gamers (DE)
73
[30]
GamesMaster (UK) PAL
70
[31]
Hippon Super (JP) NTSC-J
70
[32]
Hyper (AU) PAL
79
[33]
Joypad (FR) PAL
86
[15]
MAN!AC (DE) PAL
78
[34]
Max Overload! (UK) PAL
72
[35]
Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming (UK)
91
[36]
Mega (UK) PAL
82
[37]
Megablast (DE) PAL
80
[38]
MegaTech (UK) PAL
83
[39]
Mean Machines Sega (UK) PAL
90
[16]
Player One (FR)
92
[17]
Power Up! (UK)
78
[40]
Power Unlimited (NL)
74
[41]
Score (CZ)
75
[42]
Secret Service (PL)
70
[43]
Sega Magazine (UK) PAL
86
[44]
Sega Power (UK) PAL
70
[45]
Sega Pro (UK) PAL
84
[46]
Sega Zone (UK) PAL
85
[47]
Sega Force (SE)
88
[48]
Sega Mega Drive Review (RU)
84
[49]
Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J
74
[50]
Sonic the Comic (UK) PAL
87
[51]
The Zone (AU)The Zone (AU)
82
[52]
Todo Sega (ES)
85
[53]
Tricks (RU)
74
[54]
Tricks 16 bit (RU) NTSC-U
84
[55]
Tricks 16 bit (RU) PAL
80
[56]
Video Games (DE) PAL
85
[57]
VideoGames (US) NTSC-U
80
[58]
Sega Mega Drive
 79
Based on
46 reviews

Castlevania: Bloodlines

Mega Drive, US
CastleVaniaBloodlines MD US Box.jpg
Cover
Castlevania md us cart.jpg
Cart
Castlevania Bloodlines MD US Manual.pdf
Manual
Mega Drive, US (cardboard)
Castlevania MD US Box Back Cardboard.jpgNospine.pngCastlevania MD US Box Front Cardboard.jpg
Cover
Castlevania md us cart.jpg
Cart
Mega Drive, EU
CastleVaniaBloodlines MD EU Box.jpg
Cover
CastlevaniaTNG MD EU Cart.jpg
Cart
Castlevania Bloodlines MD EU Manual.pdf
Manual
Mega Drive, JP
CastlevaniaBloodlines MD JP Box.jpg
Cover
VampireKiller MD JP CartTop.jpg
VampireKiller MD JP Cart.jpg
Cart
Vampirekiller md jp manual.pdf
Manual
Mega Drive, SE (Rental)

Technical information

ROM dump status

System Hash Size Build Date Source Comments
Sega Mega Drive
✔
CRC32 fb1ea6df
MD5 0f04fc1b5bf8c9a887abcf14ce96b0cd
SHA-1 4809cf80ced70e77bc7479bb652a9d9fe22ce7e6
1MB 1994-03 Cartridge (US)
Sega Mega Drive
✔
CRC32 4dd4e4a5
MD5 10d2e8576380e5c22d8771f470747c98
SHA-1 61aabb1053f090fb6c13968c86170357c5df4eba
1MB 1994-03 Cartridge (EU)
Sega Mega Drive
✔
CRC32 91b57d2b
MD5 3453bcc79345872034845cc5a7a1b15f
SHA-1 3e709bd27577056abbbd6735021eaffd90caa140
1MB 1994-03 Cartridge (JP)
Sega Mega Drive
 ?
CRC32 84cd103a
MD5 b7ab3ef9d51d2ed9228deaad0203adce
SHA-1 8c4004c0d8cbe211ffa3919fd609653221a0078b
1MB 1993-12 Page

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 File:CVG UK 147.pdf, page 62 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:CVG UK 147.pdf_p62" defined multiple times with different content
  2. ↑ File:SegaPro DE 18.pdf, page 42
  3. ↑ File:GamePro US 053.pdf, page 253
  4. ↑ GamePro, "April 1994" (US; 1994-xx-xx), page 89
  5. ↑ Electronic Gaming Monthly, "May 1994" (US; 1994-xx-xx), page 2
  6. ↑ Computer & Video Games, "February 1994" (UK; 1994-01-15), page 61
  7. ↑ Computer & Video Games, "March 1994" (UK; 1994-02-15), page 115
  8. ↑ Computer & Video Games, "April 1994" (UK; 1994-03-15), page 11
  9. ↑ Mega, "April 1994" (UK; 1994-03-17), page 92
  10. ↑ Mean Machines Sega, "April 1994" (UK; 1994-02-28), page 100
  11. ↑ Mega, "May 1994" (UK; 1994-04-21), page 92
  12. ↑ Mega Force, "Abril 1994" (ES; 1994-xx-xx), page 27
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 File:ConsolesPlus FR 030.pdf, page 92 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:ConsolesPlus FR 030.pdf_p92" defined multiple times with different content
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 File:GamePro US 056.pdf, page 48 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:GamePro US 056.pdf_p48" defined multiple times with different content
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 File:Joypad FR 029.pdf, page 112 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:Joypad FR 029.pdf_p112" defined multiple times with different content
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 File:MMS16 CastlevaniaReview.pdf, page 2 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:MMS16 CastlevaniaReview.pdf_p2" defined multiple times with different content
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 File:PlayerOne FR 040.pdf, page 68 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name ":File:PlayerOne FR 040.pdf_p68" defined multiple times with different content
  18. ↑ File:SegaMagazine UK 02.pdf, page 91
  19. ↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 43
  20. ↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 44
  21. ↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 326
  22. ↑ Beep! MegaDrive, "April 1994" (JP; 1994-03-08), page 19
  23. ↑ Console Mania, "Marzo 1994" (IT; 1994-0x-xx), page 54
  24. ↑ Digitiser (UK) (1994-03-21)
  25. ↑ Electronic Games (1992-1995), "May 1994" (US; 1994-04-21), page 79
  26. ↑ Electronic Gaming Monthly, "February 1994" (US; 199x-xx-xx), page 38
  27. ↑ Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 1, "" (RU; 1999-xx-xx), page 300
  28. ↑ Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 7, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 64
  29. ↑ Game Players, "Vol. 7 No. 2 February 1994" (US; 1994-0x-xx), page 60
  30. ↑ Gamers, "März/April 1994" (DE; 1994-03-04), page 18
  31. ↑ GamesMaster, "March 1994" (UK; 1994-02-17), page 48
  32. ↑ Hippon Super, "April 1994" (JP; 1994-03-03), page 61
  33. ↑ Hyper, "February 1994" (AU; 199x-xx-xx), page 46
  34. ↑ MAN!AC, "04/94" (DE; 1994-03-09), page 50
  35. ↑ Max Overload!, "April 1994" (UK; 1994-03-22), page 34
  36. ↑ Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "April 1994" (UK; 1994-xx-xx), page 22
  37. ↑ Mega, "March 1994" (UK; 1994-02-17), page 43
  38. ↑ Megablast, "2/94" (DE; 1994-03-30), page 32
  39. ↑ MegaTech, "February 1994" (UK; 1994-01-20), page 18
  40. ↑ Power Up!, "Saturday, April 02, 1994" (UK; 1994-04-02), page 1
  41. ↑ Power Unlimited, "Jaargang 2, Nummer 4, April 1994" (NL; 1994-03-23), page 36
  42. ↑ Score, "Červen 1994" (CZ; 1994-06-01), page 60
  43. ↑ Secret Service, "Październik 1996" (PL; 1996-10-01), page 72
  44. ↑ Sega Magazine, "February 1994" (UK; 1994-01-10), page 92
  45. ↑ Sega Power, "March 1994" (UK; 1994-02-03), page 38
  46. ↑ Sega Pro, "April 1994" (UK; 1994-02-24), page 60
  47. ↑ Sega Zone, "March 1994" (UK; 1994-02-24), page 46
  48. ↑ Sega Force, "3/94" (SE; 1994-03-29), page 8
  49. ↑ Sega Mega Drive Review, "1" (RU; 1995-04-03), page 31
  50. ↑ Sega Saturn Magazine, "September 1995" (JP; 1995-08-08), page 85
  51. ↑ Sonic the Comic, "May 13th 1994" (UK; 1994-04-30), page 11
  52. ↑ The Zone (AU)The Zone (AU) "Season 1, episode 3" (1994-05-14, ) (+17:44)
  53. ↑ Todo Sega, "Marzo 1994" (ES; 1994-0x-xx), page 54
  54. ↑ Tricks, "2/95" (RU; 1995-xx-xx), page 18
  55. ↑ Tricks 16 bit, "Tricks Sega Gold 800 igr" (RU; 1998-03-20), page 9
  56. ↑ Tricks 16 bit, "Tricks Sega Gold 800 igr" (RU; 1998-03-20), page 51
  57. ↑ Video Games, "5/94" (DE; 1994-04-27), page 99
  58. ↑ VideoGames, "March 1994" (US; 1994-0x-xx), page 67



John Morris sprite Castlevania games for Sega systems
Sega Mega Drive
 Castlevania: Bloodlines (1994) | Super Castlevania IV‎ (unreleased)
Sega 32X
 Castlevania: The Bloodletting (unreleased)
Sega Saturn
 Akumajou Dracula X: Gekka no Yasoukyoku (1998) | Castlevania: The Bloodletting (unreleased)
Sega Dreamcast
 Castlevania Resurrection (unreleased)
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