Free indie Castlevania project

Maria Renard’s Revenge is a free-to-play adventure experience created by the Z-team. In this indie spinoff from the Castlevania franchise you play as Maria Renard. She’s a sorceress and a vampire hunter distantly related to the Belmonts. In her own journey, she travels across different lands and fights monsters with a variety of familiars.

As a modern game created for the Amiga console, expect a full 32-bit experience from Maria Renard’s Revenge, both in graphics and audio. For vampire-hunting lore, try Castlevania Anniversary Collection. If you’re after more Amiga games, check out Speedball 2: Brutal Deluxe or Warblade.

Play as a fan-favorite character

Maria Renard’s Revenge aims to create a full experience revolving around the eponymous character, who has become a fan favorite over the years. She first appeared in the 1993 title Castlevania: Rondo of Blood, interacting with various protagonists and members of the Belmont clan across the series. Here, however, her powers are put on full display and she’s given an opportunity to shine—all in the classic pixel-art Castlevania style.

It’s important to note that with the game in the Beta phase, it still doesn’t have a full conclusion to the story. However, it already has a couple of fully developed levels and enemies. It features an assortment of Maria’s skills such as birds and cats. As an Amiga game, it requires consoles such as Amiga 1200 or CD32. Conversely, you can also use supported emulators to play this game.

Also, despite not being an official Konami title, it features visuals and sound effects that feel at home with the rest of the franchise. It optimizes the 32-bit aesthetics, thanks to the capabilities of the Scorpion Engine, resulting in a suspenseful action experience. The same goes with the audio, with its chiptune tracks completing the unique vibes of the available levels.

A worthy non-canon entry

Over the decades of the Castlevania franchise, it has spawned a lot of characters and storylines—and Maria Renard’s Revenge makes for a good, albeit non-canon, addition. It explores the titular character’s capabilities, not just as a supporting character. With an authentic Amiga experience crafted with the Scorpion Engine, this has to be one of the best indie Castlevania projects, even more so with the completed version.