About Castlevania Godot
This is a re-implementation by me (Tony Casale) of the original Castlevania (as released on the Nintendo
Entertainment System in
1987) using the Godot game engine. As one of my favorite
games as a child this project has been a labor of love. If you're interested in looking at the code,
you can find it on Github.
The game is entirely written in GDScript using the Godot game engine, with
the exception of a couple of shaders.
The levels were built using the Tiled Map Editor and reference images
from the original game. I used aseprite for
laying out the sprite sheets and Audacity to edit the sound files (to make
them loopable).
Downloads
If you want to play the game locally (where the performance will likely be better), feel free to download one of
the executable versions below.
| Windows .ZIP |
Download |
| Mac OS |
Coming Soon |
| Linux |
Coming Soon |
Differences from the original
I have made every attempt to recreate the original game faithfully, however there are bound to be some
differences. I did not read through the original's source code, so things like movement mechanics, item drop
tables, enemy AI behaviors, and animation speeds are likely to be slightly different, as they are based entirely
on my own observation of the original game. There are obviously some technical limitations the NES had that
modern systems are not constrained by (most notably the sprites-per-screen limit that caused the flickering so
prevalent in older titles). Other changes were made on purpose and are primarily cosmetic.
Here's a list of the differences I am aware of. Note that there are ***SPOILERS BELOW***
General
- The fully upgraded whip does not flash. I always thought this looked messy, especially with the sprite
flickering.
- The HUD shows both the double and triple shot as you pick them up, instead of just the highest one. Mainly
did this to take up the extra space in the UI.
- Weapons that spin (the axe and cross/boomerang) actually rotate, rather than simulating it with sprite
animation.
- I did not implement the "second quest" that unlocks after beating the game. Maybe in the future...
- Enemy damage doesn't scale up as much as the original. Most monsters will deal the same amount of
damage the entire game (with some exceptions).
- In general, stuff does not respawn like the candles and pre-placed enemies when moving on and off screen.
- Damage-boosting does work, but only in certain places where navigation would not be possible
otherwise.
Title Screen and Intro
- Added "cheat" menu to intro screen and changed wording slightly.
- Reworked the entire introduction sequence so that the castle looms in the distance as a bat flies past Simon
in the foreground.
Level 1
- Simon's walking speed remains the same when entering the castle. It was weird that he went so slow in the
original.
- The secret treasure is easier to reveal on the first screen.
- Fish men create larger splashes when jumping in and out of the water (as does Simon if he falls in).
- When the boss is destroyed, a more interesting explosion occurs. This is used for most bosses.
Level 2
- I added a short spawning animation for Medusa.
Level 3
- I did not implement the unobtainable treasure at the end of stage 9.
- When a mummy is defeated, they explode in a cloud of bandages.
- Fleamen and skeletons do not respawn
Level 4
- The level design graphics are slightly different mainly because I was too lazy to match up every single
tile.
Level 5
- Axe Knights' throwing axes slow rotation gradually while they travel through the air.
- You can't force Axe Knights to despawn by "pushing" them off-screen.
- The Grim Reaper spawn animation is slightly different. He also slowly hovers up and down when he isn't
leaping.
- The Reaper's scythes slowly speed up their rotation before activating and attacking Simon.
Level 6
- Dracula's spawn animation is slightly more interesting.
- Added a different death scene for Dracula before he changes into the Cookie Monster.
- Cookie Monster spawn animation has more particles.
- Camera shake effect added to Cookie Monster's jumping slam attack.
Ending
- Added smoke effects to the collapsing castle.
- I kept the credits the same as the original, except that I added my own name to the credits, obviously.
Credits
All programming was done by me, but the game assets were adapted from various places on the Internet.