User Rating: 9.1 | Konami Collector's Series: Castlevania & Contra PC
The reason I gave this entry of Konami Collector’s Series ‘10’s in every category except gameplay is because it perfects, in every way, the original Castlevania and Contra games. However, the one thing Konami could not control was the player’s game-pad hardware. The graphics, sound, and game physics are all faithfully re-created in PC format. If you had any reservations (as if the $19.99 entry fee was an obstacle) because of these reasons, rest easy. The only problem I encountered was that I used several game-pads that closely resemble the original NES controller and they all failed to replicate a decent ‘crouch’ function. In a Castlevania game, this is a must. The problem can appear again in the Contra series when diagonally shooting downward. Again, this is all due to the varying quality of game-pads I used. Some clever button mapping can cure this, but the nostalgic buzz is broken when you have to press a shoulder button to duck a Medusa head.
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