System Played: Famicom
Year Released: 1990
Year Reviewed: 2016
Akumajō Special: Boku Dracula-kun aka Kid Dracula is a kind of spoof on the Castlevania series, a Japan-only spinoff from Konami.
Playing more like Mega Man than Castlevania, Akumajō Special is a 2D platform game with familiar elements like patrolling enemies, climbing ladders, making jumps, etc. but it’s all been simplified (”kidified” I suppose) to make it less of a challenge compared to early core games in either series.
Only the first level takes place within a familiar castle setting. Common enemies like zombies, bats and suits of armor have all received a cartoony makeover, and after that, the game branches out into the kinds of typical environments you usually get in platform games, such as up in the clouds, underwater ...an ice level, contending with silly enemies as you go, like snowmen, UFO’s and a giant chicken. It’s lighthearted stuff, but fun.
From the outset, Kid can shoot (horizontally and vertically) an unlimited supply of fireball projectiles and freely jump around. Immediately this sets a different tone from regular Castlevania games, where you’re usually restricted to a short range whip, and once you jump, are committed until you land (or a lot of the time end up dead down a ditch).
The increased responsiveness empowers you as the player, and the inclusion of a charge shot means you can just mince most enemies.
Getting ‘knocked back’ in that familiar Castlevania way still happens when you get hit, but it isn’t as prevalent or frustrating here, with a lower general difficulty.
Controls make or break a platform game, and Dracula-kun almost succeeds, apart from one annoying snag.
Naturally, with any game that features a charge shot, I always just want to keep it charged and ready to fire as I push forward (even though doing so often results in having to listen to a prolonged and annoying sound effect). The problem came when needing to jump whilst also firing off the charge shot, resulting in a slight hesitation (just for half a second) as the ‘fireball throwing animation’ supersedes the jump. This lack of immediate responsiveness screwed me on the couple of occasions when the platforming was feeling particularly demanding (a series of falling blocks to get across for example).
Perhaps in another nod to Mega Man, each level concludes with a boss fight (none of which are especially challenging or memorable), where upon victory you obtain a new weapon or ability.
One is an ice weapon which freezes enemies, so you can use them as platforms to jump higher. This could have been an interesting gameplay mechanic, with levels designed around the ability (like the use of Rush in the Mega Man games) but feels more like a missed opportunity here, coming after you already learn an ability which lets you transform into a bat (so you can just fly anywhere).
A lot of enemies drop coins when defeated, which can be spent on various bonus round mini-games to win extra lives. Add in infinite continues, and Akumajō Special is a pretty easy game overall.
The difficulty does start to pick-up from level 7 (by which point you’re fighting space lizards), and feels more rewarding for it.
The graphics are a highlight, with extra large sprites, even if the animation is a bit hit and miss. The music is fittingly upbeat and jolly, but not standout.
The game being in Japanese wasn’t an issue until one boss fight has you take part in a quiz show hosted by the statue of Liberty (more like something out of Goemon than Castlevania). To progress, you’re required to correctly answer questions, which without being able to read Kanji requires some trial and error… Other than that, it’s straightforward.
Akumajō Special: Boku Dracula-kun is a decent, though ultimately forgettable Famicom/NES platformer. It would have been improved by better level design (taking advantage of the abilities you learn) and a more challenging difficulty.
6/10
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