This is my first time getting into the Castlevania series and man did I pick a great game. Castlevania bloodlines was the first Castlevania game that featured blood in it! The best feature of this game is the fun factor! Sure you don't have the vertical and 90 degree hit angles that Super Castlevania has. What it does have is two characters to choose from which defiantely adds to the replay value. I also liked the over all graphics and feel of this game. The dark yet colorful backrounds were very imaginative and looked great! The fact that this game along with Contra's hard corps were the only Konomi games (of their series)that made it to the Genesis, makes them special. Since I own both of them I can say they trully are great games!!! Back to Castlevania Bloodlines, I must add that the music is excellent!!! It really captured the feel of the game with its dark feel and scary approach. The only possible downfall is that it is a slightly short game. To the games credit you can change the difficulty which adds to replay value. Over all I would recomend this game to both fans of the series and those looking to play a great old school platformer!!!