Castlevania Bloodlines

Castlevania: Bloodlines is the only Castlevania video game released on the Mega Drive/Genesis(or any other Sega console). It was developed and published by Konami, and was first released in North America, on March 17 1994. Its Japanese title is Vampire Killer (バンパイアキラー? Banpaia Kirā), and its European title is Castlevania: The New Generation.

As with most early Castlevania games, players proceed through each level, defeating enemies and collecting gems (hearts in previous games) to power special weapons (in this game, the axe, boomerang, and holy water). Each stage is sectioned into chunks, and has a sub-boss battle in the middle, with the big boss battle at the end. Some items will increase the power of the characters' weapons. Some portions of the game split into different paths, depending on which character is chosen. John is able to swing past huge gaps with his whip, whereas Eric must use a different route by performing high jumps by using his spear.

Bloodlines is also noteworthy for its abundance of special effects, such as the Atlantis Shrine's water reflections, the swaying tower of Pisa, and large multi-jointed bosses. One of the stages even uses effects to add challenge, such as playing upside-down or playing while the screen divides up into sections. The "Item Crush" feature (from Akumajou Dracula X: Rondo of Blood) makes its return in Bloodlines.