It’s kind of wild to think that the classic video game Pong came out 50 years ago. That’s five decades worth of memorable gaming experiences with some of the most classic video game series starting with the 8-bit era of games on consoles.
Two amazing experiences from this time both came from Konami in the form of Castlevania and Contra. These two series are still talked about today and have spawned many sequels and inspired countless other titles.
What’s even more amazing is that they still hold up to this day and gamers of any era can appreciate them for their gameplay, stories, and art.
Now that we’re adding the awesome Konami Collector’s Series: Castlevania & Contra to our evergrowing library of games on GOG.COM, we thought it would be the perfect time to look back at some of the games that defined a generation.
Castlevania
First released in 1986, Castlevania has you playing as Simon Belmont. Your task? Defeat Count Dracula, the vampire. It features 18 levels divided between 6 stages. While your iconic whip will be your main weapon, you’ll have access to sub-weapons like holy water, a dagger, and more.
These additional weapons helped make each run-through unique and allowed players to cater to their playstyles around the weapons they enjoyed most.
Even in 1986 and with 8-bit graphics, Konami was creating atmospheric titles and Castlevania is the perfect example. The game takes heavy inspiration from horror movies and the director of the game, Hitoshi Akamatsu, notes that he approached the game with a “film director’s eye,” and that he wanted players to feel like they were playing a horror movie.
Another fun fact, the iconic whip not only fits the game’s setting, but Akamatsu was also a big fan of the Indiana Jones movie, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and wanted …read more
Source:: GOG – Good Old Games
