Topic: Castlevania Anniversary Collection Incoming?

[GuyStarwind]

So this is out right? Anyone have it yet? I can't till after work. Also is that bonus book digital only?

[Zuljaras]

So this is out right? Anyone have it yet? I can't till after work. Also is that bonus book digital only?

I just bought it on the EU shop. I must admit it is very nice collection with LOTS of extras! The Digital book is actually inside the game. And you can view it there.

[JayDominus]

Got it on Steam.

Well, this is absolutely dreadful.

So, check it out: the controls are unremappable. Like, you can't remap them. And the person who mapped them in the first place must have been one of those people who got put into a "special" class back in elementary school. The mappings are horrible no matter which platform you're on (the PC being the worst of the bunch).

The display options are scarce and bad. Filters? Pfft. It's either unfiltered or scanlines, and if you pick unfiltered 4:3 (since the scanlines options is abhorrent and messes up the colors), the image won't reach the top and bottom of the screen.

Also, a chap over on Steam claims they put in the wrong ROM for CV1, so the game crashes at level five. Can't confirm it myself.

Some people got audio issues (again, not PC-exclusive).

The system requirements are just unbelievable for a bunch of 8-16-bit games.

Do not buy.

[Lumi Kløvstad]

The amount of people losing their shit on other message boards over the lack of Rondo, Symphony, and what each commenter thinks the best games in the series are is highly amusing to my inner troll (who doesn't even have to do anything today, just sit back and let Konami do their thing with a bag of popcorn) because they are so willfully blind to Konami's very simple logic for what games should be included.

They just released the first 8 games (that were not the JUST rereleased Rondo) in direct release order. This is clearly not a greatest hits collection, but an Origins collection, and it was pretty honestly this from the moment it was announced. Hence, I enjoy watching those who spooled themselves up believing this would be something this was never intended to be just lose their minds today.

Got it on Steam.

Well, this is absolutely dreadful.

So, check it out: the controls are unremappable. Like, you can't remap them. And the person who mapped them in the first place must have been one of those people who got put into a "special" class back in elementary school. The mappings are horrible no matter which platform you're on (the PC being the worst of the bunch).

See, my heart goes out to PC players for this issue, but this is a huge reason I got a Steam Controller for my PC gaming: it literally does not care what the publisher thinks the controls should be and I can tweak them to my heart's content. I mean, hopefully they fix that in a patch, but solutions do still exist. The best ones just... cost a little money but they really are the gift that keeps on giving.

[knightmere]

Got it on Steam.

Well, this is absolutely dreadful.

So, check it out: the controls are unremappable. Like, you can't remap them. And the person who mapped them in the first place must have been one of those people who got put into a "special" class back in elementary school. The mappings are horrible no matter which platform you're on (the PC being the worst of the bunch).

The display options are scarce and bad. Filters? Pfft. It's either unfiltered or scanlines, and if you pick unfiltered 4:3 (since the scanlines options is abhorrent and messes up the colors), the image won't reach the top and bottom of the screen.

Also, a chap over on Steam claims they put in the wrong ROM for CV1, so the game crashes at level five. Can't confirm it myself.

Some people got audio issues (again, not PC-exclusive).

The system requirements are just unbelievable for a bunch of 8-16-bit games.

Do not buy.

Yeah well I personally am really enjoying this collection on Switch. Sure it's not perfect and there could certainly be more games like Rondo and Chronicles. Firing up Bloodlines again on my couch was a pretty amazing experience after 10+ years. Also, there is no need to insult people with mental health issues, grow the hell up.

[JayDominus]

See, my heart goes out to PC players for this issue, but this is a huge reason I got a Steam Controller for my PC gaming: it literally does not care what the publisher thinks the controls should be and I can tweak them to my heart's content. I mean, hopefully they fix that in a patch, but solutions do still exist. The best ones just... cost a little money but they really are the gift that keeps on giving.

Well there are free solutions as well, it's just that it's kind of not very good that we have to resort to them instead of, you know, having it like every other emulated game collection. I mean, one can do the same with a regular controller as well and I would, but it's back home and I'm on a business trip, so all I got is this here laptop. And the console controls are... well, pretty much set in stone. Not a good thing by any stretch.

Yeah well I personally am really enjoying this collection on Switch. Sure it's not perfect and there could certainly be more games like Rondo and Chronicles. Firing up Bloodlines again on my couch was a pretty amazing experience after 10+ years. Also, there is no need to insult people with mental health issues, grow the hell up.

Well, as someone who fired up Bloodlines on his couch through other means, while I can understand your feelings, I definitely not share them. Official collections should at the very least match (or better yet, surpass) emulation, and of all the collections and rereleases that I happen to own, this one is definitely the one-eyed half-dead runt of the litter.

[Nagumo]

It's pretty mind-blowing they were thinking about putting a ninja Belnades character in Bloodlines. What were they smoking when they came up with that idea?

[Foffy]

It's pretty mind-blowing they were thinking about putting a ninja Belnades character in Bloodlines. What were they smoking when they came up with that idea?

Probably the same stuff that made them think "yeah, a dog with a Gatling gun for an arm makes sense for Contra".

I take it the interview with the producer alluded to in the Yamane sample was just an interview with the Netflix show producer?

[Aceearly1993]

Also, a chap over on Steam claims they put in the wrong ROM for CV1, so the game crashes at level five. Can't confirm it myself.

The best way to further confirm it would be throwing (triple shot) crosses during Death/Grim Reaper boss fight. Being the earlier ROM version the (PRG0) ROM would have a huge chance to crash when multiple crosses and tiny sickles filled all over the screen, if the current anniversary collection being this case.
And there're several other features that would help recognize the ROM version better: https://tcrf.net/Bugs:Castlevania_(NES)


Speaking of Bloodlines I'm a bit disappointed that the design sketches didn't mention about the molten steel area and Zeppelin stage which didn't pass the final cut. I probably won't purchase this collection...

[Lumi Kløvstad]

Well, I am disappointed to find that I still cannot git gud with The Castlevania Adventure. It's among the few games that I find overly tough mostly because by Castlevania standards, it's pretty objectively bad -- losing whip power ups on injury despite no increase in drop rate for the power ups themselves (with a much smaller period of invulnerability afterward), no subweapons, a massively reduced movement speed and all the mid-air buoyancy of the Rock of Gibraltar, platforming that requires literally pixel-perfect accuracy, limited continues and a pretty punishing per-stage time limit makes the entirety of Adventure into Castlevania's equivalent to the boss fight against the Dancer of the Boreal Valley in Dark Souls 3: you can win but it's going to take unlearning and relearning everything Castlevania ever taught you about how it works to do it.

With a shrug that is equal parts disdain and dispassion, I say that I don't have both the willingness and time to do so: the only time I ever saw the ending was when I used cheats on an emulator.

No complaints about everything else though -- not regretting this purchase on Switch at all.

Take my money and hear my message loud and clear, Konami: More. FEED ME MORE.

[GuyStarwind]

Some of the ideas mentioned in the book could be cool. I know some have been added in other games like turning into a werewolf, but things like swinging from curtains (there's a little CV3 mock-up picture of it) could be fun. I haven't even started playing the games just been reading the details.

[Super Waffle]

Aw cool the original Guilty Gear was released on the same day as Castlevania Anniversary on the Switch. Now I can play Bloodlines and listen to Death & Republic 24/7

[Reinhart77]

i couldn’t help but notice the original name Simon Dante and think of Devil May Cry.  lol for the bootleg multiverse.

[Nagumo]

I take it the interview with the producer alluded to in the Yamane sample was just an interview with the Netflix show producer?

Actually, no. He or she is the person who interviews Yamane. It's also explicitly mentioned this person is a video game producer at Konami which I'm pretty sure rules out the possibility that it's Shankar. So it seems the identity of the mystery producer has yet to be revealed.

[Lumi Kløvstad]

Actually, no. He or she is the person who interviews Yamane. It's also explicitly mentioned this person is a video game producer at Konami which I'm pretty sure rules out the possibility that it's Shankar. So it seems the identity of the mystery producer has yet to be revealed.

I kind of enjoy that there's a sense of mystery to this producer's identity, actually.

I move that we start referring to them as Trans Fishers until their identity is revealed.