It’s a remake of Castlevania: The Adventure – originally released for the black and white Game Boy – except this time it’s been changed to look and play like something of a cross between an X68000 and a Super Nintendo Castlevania game. It could also be mistaken for a Castlevania arcade game. But it isn’t any of those.

Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth is a WiiWare game for the Nintendo Wii. It was released only through the WiiWare service for a number of years. At the time of writing, I don’t think it’s currently available to buy and play anywhere legally, which is a pity because it’s superb.

It’s even presented in a taller-rather-than-wider aspect ratio, which adds to the retro feel of it.

The game was developed by M2 for Konami and is the third game in M2‘s “ReBirth” series (the previous two were Gradius ReBirth and Contra ReBirth).

The setting takes place a century before the original Castlevania, where you control an ancestor of Simon Belmont – called Christopher Belmont – and must defeat the vampire, Dracula.

The graphics throughout pay their respects to 2D Castlevanias of the past, but with modern lighting techniques used for atmospheric effect, which works really well.

I had no problems getting Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth to work in an emulator, and it played like a dream. Definitely a hidden Castlevania gem! Castlevania fans should be checking it out. Not only because it’s awesome, but also because it’s quite unique. The graphics; the music, and the gameplay, are all top-notch. It’s a must-play 2D Castlevania game, but with a more ‘retro’ feel than Symphony of the Night. It’s beautifully-presented and has obviously been put together by some talented programmers and artists who love Castlevania games and appreciate what makes them good.

More: Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth on Wikipedia