Castlevania on the Atari 2600 is one of those gaming what if’s, this one involving Nintendo’s illegal contracts restricting game publishers. Back in the day, I did not know about licensing so when I saw the occasional “Nintendo game” on a competing platform, I wondered why not these others? Double Dragon on Sega Genesis and Atari 2600, or seeing sequels like Ghouls n Ghosts on Sega Genesis, etc. I know now those were not “just” Nintendo games but for me, that is the first place I experienced them and I was young. A fan is tackling porting Castlevania to the Atari 2600, another one that baffled me as the Atari 2600 was still on some store shelves in the town I grew up in as late as 1989.
Introducing DracuVania
First off, obviously the graphics are going to not be on the same level as the NES version, or the arcade original. That is just the lay of the land with Atari 2600. The essence of the game is what matters.
That is something DracuVania seems to have down already. Jumping, cracking the whip, both feel good. To me, those are vital pieces to a Castlevania port – like the feel of the jump and running is vital in Mario games (something clones often miss the mark with).
Work in Progress
You can follow the development of DracuVania over on the AtariAge forums where it has been ongoing for a while now. It is interesting to see how this fan project started and follow along through development to get where we are now.
It will be interesting to see how the game grows as development continues. I know I am intrigued by it. I was far more a fan of the second Castlevania but can respect the place the original held in history. Which Castlevania was your favorite?
