It's up to interpretation as to whether Super Castlevania IV is a remake of the original NES game, or a sequel to the classic vampire-hunting trilogy. Irrelevant to the chronology of the series, however, is the fact that this game kicks all manner of posterior from here to Transylvania and back.

This game took the formula that made the series popular on the NES, then revamped (pun totally intended) and improved on it in every way. In this game, Simon Belmont moves much faster and more fluidly than before with eight directions of whipping at your disposal. Hold down the button and he can then flail his whip in a 360-degree arc, acting as a weaker-but-effective way to deflect some enemy projectiles. Simon can now crawl on his knees under obstacles, and the improved jumping dynamics give you the ability to slightly correct and adjust your trajectory in mid-air. At times  movement is still a little clunky, but, unlike in the NES games, there will never be a cheap death that couldn't have been avoided with planning and skill. It's slightly easier than the three games before it, but getting through the game is still a mammoth challenge and not for the feint of heart!

Control improvements aside, the game looks hideous in the best possible way. Detailed monsters shuffle, crawl, flutter and ooze towards you from amongst the many multi-layered sliding backgrounds. There are transparency effects and scaling sprites, and both background and foreground animations. The atmosphere is coupled perfectly with one of the best soundtracks in the series, made possible with Konami's immortal synthesizer chip. Look forward to remixes of classic Castlevania tunes such as Vampire Killer and Bloody Tears!

This game comes from the glorious 16-bit golden age, and stands right up there alongside titles like Super Metroid and Donkey Kong Country. You need this in your collection.