Update []: It's been a long time since we last checked in on the Master System coder xfixium's attempts to bring the original Castlevania to the Sega console, but we now have an exciting update to share.
Earlier this month, on February 14th, the developer released a new demo (version 0.1) of the port over on the SMS Power Forums, giving players a chance to finally check out xfixium's progress on the project for themselves.
In the demo, players will be able to switch between an original and an enhanced mode with updated graphics. All of the stages can be traversed, but there are still some parts of the game that are incomplete, including power-ups and enemies, as well as some bugs that you'll still likely run into.
Nevertheless, it's a promising start and will likely come as exciting news to those who always wanted to play Castlevania on the Master System.
If you want to put it through your paces yourself, you can grab the demo here.
Original Story []: Castlevania is a series many fans will associate with the Nintendo Entertainment System.
Konami's franchise made quite an impact when it launched on the console in 1987 (1986 for the Japanese Famicom Disc System version) and would be followed by two 8-bit sequels. Titles like Super Castlevania IV, Belmont's Revenge, Aria of Sorrow and Dawn of Sorrow further cemented the connection between Nintendo and Castlevania over the years.
Castlevania's link with erstwhile Nintendo rival Sega is a lot less pronounced; the series wouldn't come to a Sega console until Bloodlines / New Generation in 1994, while the Saturn port of Symphony of the Night wouldn't be released outside of Japan. The only other Sega Castlevania is the cancelled Dreamcast game, Resurrection.
Thankfully, you can always rely on fans to remedy video gaming's wrongs and Master System coder
xfixium – the same individual who "fixed" the console's dire port of Golden Axe – is working on bringing Castlevania to Sega's 8-bit platform.
The developer notes that the video above is very much a work in progress and that Castlevania III's Trevor Belmont sprite is merely a placeholder at this stage. It is also noted that the port is 'inspired' by the X68000 version (which also formed the basis of Castlevania Chronicles on the PlayStation 1) and that the demo, as it exists now, is mainly "a proof of concept code for scrolling, which was later applied to my SMS TMNT project."
It might be some time before we see this as a finished project, but it's encouraging to think that finally, Master System owners are getting their own Castlevania. Sure, Master of Darkness was an acceptable substitute for a while, but you can't beat the real deal.
This is the second good bit of Castlevania-related news we've had this week; yesterday, a superb fan-made remake of Simon's Quest hit the web.