Castlevania Anniversary Collection

Castlevania Anniversary Collection is a 2019 compilation published by Konami to mark the series’ thirty-third anniversary. Released digitally on May 16, 2019, it brought eight historically important Castlevania games to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows PC. Rather than presenting a new adventure, the collection documents the franchise’s development across home consoles, handheld hardware, and arcades.

The lineup begins with the original Castlevania, first released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America in 1987. Players control Simon Belmont, a vampire hunter who enters Dracula’s castle and battles enemies such as Medusa, Frankenstein’s monster, and Death before confronting Dracula. Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest changes the structure into an exploration-focused quest, following Simon as he searches Transylvania for Dracula’s body parts to lift a curse. Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse serves as a prequel, starring Trevor Belmont and offering branching routes and recruitable allies, including Sypha Belnades, Grant Danasty, and Alucard.

Super Castlevania IV represents the Super Nintendo era. Its responsive eight-direction whip control, atmospheric Mode 7 effects, and elaborate stage presentation distinguish it from the earlier NES titles. Castlevania: The Adventure and Castlevania II: Belmont’s Revenge represent the Game Boy entries. Both follow Christopher Belmont, with Belmont’s Revenge functioning as a direct sequel and expanding substantially on the first game’s design.

The compilation also includes Castlevania: Bloodlines, the 1994 Sega Genesis game. Its protagonists are John Morris, who uses a whip, and Eric Lecarde, who fights with a spear. The story connects Dracula’s return to Elizabeth Bartley, a vampire associated with the historical figure Erzsébet Báthory. The final game, Kid Dracula, is a comedic spin-off originally released in Japan for the Famicom and later adapted for the Game Boy. It depicts a cartoon version of Dracula facing the demon Garamoth.

Beyond emulation, the Anniversary Collection provides save states, screen options, selectable borders, a music player, and a digital history book containing production information and archival material. Konami later added Japanese versions of several games through an update, making regional differences easier to examine. Consequently, the collection is valuable not only as a convenient way to play eight older titles, but also as a compact record of how Castlevania evolved from linear action stages into exploration, alternate routes, portable experiments, and character-driven gothic adventure.