Castlevania: Bloodlines

About Castlevania: Bloodlines

Castlevania: Bloodlines (1994) is Konami's only Castlevania for the Sega Genesis, set around the First World War with two playable hunters and the series debut of composer Michiru Yamane.

Castlevania: Bloodlines in Depth

As in earlier Castlevania games, the player fights through each stage, collecting gems to power the axe, boomerang and holy water sub-weapons and powering up the main weapon. Each stage is split into sections, with a sub-boss halfway through and a main boss at the end. There are two characters: John Morris, who whips like a Belmont and can swing across gaps on his whip, and Eric Lecarde, who wields a spear and can make high jumps with it, so some stages split into different routes depending on who is playing.

The story picks up after Quincey Morris, a distant descendant of the Belmonts, put Dracula to rest in 1897. Dracula's niece Elizabeth Bartley is behind the assassination at Sarajevo in June 1914, using the war it starts to collect human souls for her uncle's revival. In 1917 John, Quincey's son, and Eric, whose girlfriend became a vampire when Elizabeth was revived, follow her and the witch Drolta Tzuentes across Europe.

Making Castlevania: Bloodlines

Konami developed Bloodlines in Tokyo as a Castlevania built for the Genesis, faster and more action-led than earlier games while keeping their strategy, and added Eric as a second playable character. Set in a different era from previous games, it is a spin-off from the main series. The team worked within the Genesis's colour palette and an 8-megabit cartridge but felt it still achieved a distinctive atmosphere with detailed character animation. It was Michiru Yamane's first Castlevania score. She felt pressure because the series was known for its music, blended her classical training with the series' rock themes and became a regular series composer.

It was released in March 1994 and sold 9,354 copies in Japan, according to Famitsu. Critics were generally positive, giving it an 81.88% GameRankings average. GamePro said in 1997 that it was not as impressive as Super Castlevania IV but was strong by Genesis standards, and Game Informer later called it "one of the most overlooked treasures in the franchise". It was re-released in the Castlevania Anniversary Collection and on the Genesis Mini in 2019.