Akumajou Dracula X - Chi no Rondo [Model KMCD3005]

悪魔城ドラキュラX 血の輪廻 © 1993 Konami Company, Limited.
(Akumajou Dracula X - Chi no Rondo)

Konami only released a handful of games for the PC Engine system, and Akumajou Dracula X is often considered as the most polished and one of the best Castlevania game ever made. The player starts his long journey as Ritcher Belmont, descendant of the Belmont bloodline whose eternal destiny is to oppose the evil spirit of Dracula. Our hero, like his ancestors did before him, is on a mission to rescue his beloved Annette Renard from the hands of the Prince of Darkness and his minions. As the player ventures deeper inside Dracula's dreaded castle, the adventure quickly proves more challenging than anticipated, with more villagers to rescue and terrible monsters to be feared (and even play as the young Maria Renard if he happens to be skilled enough to find her). The game follows the tradition of its popular predecessors, and Ritcher can strike his enemies with his trademark Vampire Killer whip or secondary weapons such as daggers, axes or crucifixes. However, and unlike other early games in the series, although the path to victory is for the most part linear, various stages are designed with alternate routes and hidden secrets - Akumaj? Dracula X features seven huge areas to explore, but also includes countless alternate routes which bring the grand total to twelve stages! Finally, thanks to the Super CD-ROM² format, a long and full screen introduction sequence feeds the game story with elegance and... German voice acting. Konami put the icing on the cake by also giving players the ability to purchase clues and tactics to beat bosses and the total percentage of game completed.