Akumajō Dracula X: Chi no Rondo

Castlevania: Rondo of Blood, originally released in Japan as Akumajō Dracula X: Chi no Rondo,[a] is a platform-adventure video game developed by Konami for the PC Engine's Super CD-ROM² System directed by Toru Hagihara. Part of the Castlevania series, protagonist Richter Belmont goes to save his lover Annette, who was abducted by Dracula. It was first released exclusively in Japan on October 29, 1993. A direct sequel, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, was released worldwide in 1997.

The game was remade for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System as Castlevania: Dracula X in 1995, and the PlayStation Portable as Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles in 2007. In 2008, the original game was released for the Wii's Virtual Console service in Japan and for the North American and PAL regions in 2010. In 2018, the game was included along with Symphony of the Night within the Castlevania Requiem collection for the PlayStation 4. The title is also playable on the TurboGrafx-16 Mini. In 2021, Limited Run Games announced an English release for the TurboDuo.

Taking place in 1792, Rondo of Blood is set in the fictional universe of the Castlevania series. The story centers around the eternal conflict between the vampire hunters of the Belmont Clan and the immortal vampire Dracula, who has once again been resurrected. The protagonist is 19-year-old Richter Belmont (Jin Horikawa / David Vincent), heir to the whip "Vampire Killer" and Simon Belmont's direct descendant.[13] He comes to the castle after his beloved Annette (Atsuko Honda / Jessica Straus) is kidnapped by Dracula's servant, Shaft, as bait for a trap.[14] Richter makes his way through Dracula's castle, defeating his minions, including the spirit of Death, a headless knight, and a minotaur, all of whom attempt to stop Richter. Along the way, Richter can free various women kidnapped by Dracula's servants to feed him, including his distant relative[7] Maria Renard (Yōko Teppōzuka / Michelle Ruff), an orphaned 12-year-old who insists on joining him;[13][15] Terra (Hiromi Murata / Karen Strassman), a nun who mistakes him for a manifestation of God;[16] Iris (Akie Yasuda / Karen Strassman), the daughter of the village doctor;[17] and finally Annette.[18] After vanquishing Shaft (or Annette, who has been turned into a vampire, if he fails to rescue her in time, though this is only in the PSP version, not the original release), Richter confronts Dracula (Hiroya Ishimaru / Patrick Seitz) and defeats him before exposing him to sunlight, causing him to vanish.[19] Dracula's castle then collapses into the sea as Richter escapes on horseback.