So for those that don't know, I'm going to explain what this game actually is. If you remember a while ago, I made a ranty post about how much of a colossal shitfest Dracula X on SNES was. Well this game was the original game that they butchered, but with a graphical face lift and a ton of other extras.
So the game itself is basically everything we've experienced with previous Casltevania games, but refined and perfected in order to produce a platforming masterpiece. The level design for this game is top notch and the bosses at the end of each stage are original and fun to fight against. The branching paths make a return from Castlevania 3 but this time round they actually have a big impact on the outcome of the game. Also there is a companion but I'll get into that later.
One complaint about this game is that it's a little bit too easy, but I don't really think that's the fault of the developers dumbing it down or anything. Whenever I go online and look at forum posts about this game, there is a large number of people talking about how hard this game is. The reason I probably think it's so easy is that I've been playing so much Castlevania that I've probably just gotten really good. So to sum up this point, if you're a veteran CV player, you'll breeze through it, and if not, you'll get your ass kicked. Either way it's still really fun.
But now we have to address something that is quite a glaring problem with this game, and that's your companion.
Anyway, this bitch right here, is too fucking powerful for her own good! You can get her really easily, really early on and after you get her she will just destroy the fuck out of anything Dracula can possibly throw at you. Compared to the main character, Richter, her attack is faster, she has a double jump and her item crushes are so overpowered it makes my face melt.
Now this isn't a bad thing, it doesn't ruin the game, but I have some problems with her from a storyline point of view here. Richter is supposed this seasoned vampire hunter, with a legendary whip made for killing Dracula. He's supposed to be a bad ass, but in the context of the game, his combat power is dwarfed by a small girl who shoots doves. I'm aware that Maria is also supposed to be a vampire hunter too but c'mon, talk about stealing the spotlight here.
Once you get her there is basically no reason to use Richter AT ALL unless you're doing the secrets. Her attack is faster and you get no sacrifice in power, her double jump is extremely useful and shes a hell of a lot more nimble than Richter is. The only disadvantage to using Maria is that every time she attacks, she makes this annoying "EY!" sound. I think she might also have less health, but shes so fucking fast you'll never get hit anyway.
Well I'm not going to talk about Rondo of Blood itself, because it's not really all that different from any other Casltevania game prior, but what I am going to talk about, is the insane replay value in the PSP version. There is SO MUCH SHIT here that even if you paid full price for it, it's worth every goddamn penny.
So lets go through all the big shit that you get with this game. You get the Rondo of Blood remake, then you get the original PC Engine version of Rondo of Blood. On top of that you get a full version of fucking Symphony of the Night! I mean holy shit that's another HUGE game just packaged in with an already meaty Castlevania game. Finally you get some piece of shit parody game called Akumajou Dracula: Peke, but that takes about 30 seconds to play.
On top of getting an extra 3 games on top of the game you originally paid for, the remake itself contains a shitton of extra music CD's to collect that all count to a completion %age. So if you're like me and you can't put a game down without getting the 100%, then you'll love finding all these discs. Plus the music is awesome so they're worth getting anyway and you do need to use Richter for a couple of them, so just roflstomping your way through everything with Maria is not an option. Finally there is a hidden ending after you fulfil a few requirements, so once you've beaten the game, you have a reason to go back.
To cut a very long story short, this game is fantastic and is easily one of the best games for the PSP. So go pick it up and give it a whirl, you won't be disappointed at all. If you don't have a PSP, then go emulate Rondo of Blood or some shit, because if you've not played it you're missing out.
I'll end this post with a picture of my 100% game just because I'm a dick and I like to show off
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