[8] Castlevania was developed in tandem with the MSX2 game Vampire Killer, which was released a month later and uses the same characters and setting, but features different gameplay mechanics.

A remake, Akumajō Dracula, for the Sharp X68000 home computer was released in 1993, and was later re-released for the PlayStation as Castlevania Chronicles in 2001.

Simon can move, jump, crouch, climb stairs and use a magic whip (known in the series as the "Vampire Killer") as his primary combat weapon.

[9] The player begins the game with four lives and five hearts, and must complete the current block of stages before a timer runs out.

One life is lost if either the meter or the timer reaches zero, or if Simon falls off the bottom of the screen or is hit by a moving spiked ceiling.

Throughout the game, the player can find and use various backup weapons, including throwing knives, axes, vials of holy water, a magical watch that can briefly freeze enemies, and sacred crosses that function as boomerangs.

Other hidden items include point bonuses (money bags, crowns, chests), temporary invincibility (golden jar), upgrades to the whip's length and power (metal chain), instant destruction of all on-screen enemies (blue rosary), and double or triple use of any backup weapon except the watch.

An admirer of cinema, Akamatsu approached projects with a "film director's eye", and said the visuals and music for Castlevania were "made by people who consciously wanted to do something cinematic.

[17] Other sub-weapons were planned, such as garlic, wooden stakes and an item that transforms the player-character into a werewolf, but they were not included in the game.

The release omitted the name registration screen from the original Famicom Disk version (as well as saving) and included an "Easy" mode.

The original end credits of the game, which consisted of puns on the names of horror movie stars, were removed in this version.

[7][28] Computer and Video Games also gave it a positive review in 1989, praising the "huge playing area and lots of neat touches" that would "keep you engrossed for weeks."

Robert Workman (an editor for GameZone) felt that the game had aged well and was a great value on the Wii Virtual Console.

[36] IGN's Lucas M. Thomas noted the relative realism of Castlevania's weapons versus "glowing flowers that let you throw bouncing fireballs."

It also felt that Symphony of the Night's influence on the series after its release caused people to forget about the NES games.

Ninja Gaiden borrowed various gameplay elements from Castlevania, including power-up items that give special abilities.