Can You Beat Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow With Only the Handgun

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In this video, I take a break from my usual MegaTen content, and do a challenge run of Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow by beating the game with only the weakest weapon; the handgun. A weapon that not only is weak, but is also halves your ATK stat. Watch as I struggle to beat the likes of the Headhunter, Death, Julius Belmont, and the works.
Let me know if you want to see more Castlevania videos in the future.
Intro by Lyric: / @lyric3595
GameBoy Player overlay by: www.deviantart.com/daneebound...

[@midnight_gmr8562]

"I'm going to defeat you with the power of friendship, and this gun I found"

[@joshshrum2764]

Asriel, no what happened to you. Actually that works for Ralsei, to because of the gun meme.

[@ZorotheGallade]

Also ramen

[@Muriuki34]

Maybe the true friends was this gun I found all along.

[@dazedheart9006]

Maybe the true handgun were the friends we made along the way?

[@NickiRusin]

The power of this gun I found on the ground compels you!

[@redzeoranger7718]

From a story perspective I appreciate that the gun is so weak. It explains why all the armies of the world still needed a Belmont in 1999 to really get the job done.

[@Voldrim359]

You know you can get the positron laser in the game? That thing melt down enemies but is slow AF

[@GoldieTamamo]

Silver Gun's actually not that terrible as a compliment to shit like Balore or Red Minotaur soul, to conserve mana in between mega-hits, since it deals holy element damage (EDIT: Surprisingly, does not deal holy damage, but this actually makes it useful vs a 'certain holy resistant boss'). Has to be Hard Mode to drop, though--the regular handgun unfortunately scales terribly by comparison.

[@rapatacush3]

A gun is way more powerfull than a sword, i'd always hated how rpg ignore that.

[@Thornbloom]

@@rapatacush3 it depends what you're fighting. A gun isn't very good against an armored car or something like that and a lot of the enemies in the game are pretty definitely wearing thick armor. There's probably some rule about the paranormal not being susceptible to shock and catastrophic tissue damage from mundane weapons that justifies the need for shit like Claimh Solais.

[@GoldieTamamo]

@@rapatacush3 I mean, the difference is you're using physical strength and dexterity (sword), versus a controlled explosion (firearm), to power a set of wedges (the wedges being the edges and tip of a sword, versus the tip of a bullet). If you're a ridiculously strong person, as may be the case within a fantasy setting, a sword could potentially do more damage than a bullet--what makes a gun the superior weapon is it doesn't require the same degree of physical conditioning or training to use, for the degree of lethality to the target--anyone can pick up a glock and discharge it into a soft target full of blood vessels organs and bone matter to break--and in the case of armored things, you have high-caliber rifles that can be used for 'anti-materiel' purposes--i.e., the damaging of equipment and supplies, often supplemented by something like an explosive or incendiary property where just penetrating a target is insufficient. In the case of an RPG, you've got 'elemental typing' and such, to consider. An undead skeleton or demon is held together by a kind of malefic evil energy that is smote by holy power, so a crystal sword that emits holy energy is going to hurt a lot more than a regular glock, by the reasoning that it attacks whatever magic holds the entity together. Similar premises, just extended to fantasy physics on top of real-life ones.

[@Treblaine]

"This sword is forged from the blood of the ancients, imbued with rippling arcane power beyond mortal comprehension." "I bought this glock in a pawn shop."

[@durandol]

Rippling eh? *Hamon breathing intensifies*

[@MajinObama]

Why a glock

[@Treblaine]

@@MajinObama The icon for it looks black and boxy, like a glock.

[@KatoCoyoteCombatWorkshop]

@@MajinObama vro its like 3 pixels on a gba screen does it even matter

[@eschcal9839]

@@MajinObama The revolver was home sick. And all the .38 and .45 and .50 endless ammo clips got bought out when Covid hit by California along with .223 and 5.56

[@richterbelmont2544]

5:46 "As long as I'm standing in the back corner of the room, he can't hit me. Except with his extremely, easy-to-dodge fireballs." *takes damage

[@KebaRPG]

Happens every time he claims attacks are easy to dodge. I guess I been spoiled by watching Rando speed runners who have the twitch perfect reflexes to dodge all attacks when they want to.

[@VelvetKitsune]

"Can you imagine beating Death with almost no health left, only for his scythe to kill you during his dying animation" Yep! It sucks, a lot.

[@Maty__XD]

yep, happened to me three times at this day

[@Jim_WoodPike_Gherkin_WangWick]

Same, though I died enough times that I had an pretty easy time killing death (heh) after so many tries

[@ddjsoyenby]

me: THIS ISN'T FAIR!

[@andresmarrero8666]

It is fitting though.

[@walesjedi9217]

couldn't be me *cries*

[@marioagainsttheworld6248]

The fact that both your Persona 4 and this challenge where recorded days before ports of them were announced isn't a coincidence

[@worldofcyn]

he knoooooooows!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@Nemeniah]

Someone get him to play Xenoblade X.

[@user-qo8ge3tw4o]

But its going to be ported to where tho?

[@LoquenderoInazuma]

@@user-qo8ge3tw4o The nintendo direct of a few days ago they announced that the GBA castlevania games will be ported to the switch

[@onewingedren2228]

@@Nemeniah indeed

[@OtherMomo]

Soma and julius just runnin circles around a room while Soma, a teenager with a gun, is screaming and wildly popping shots off backwards at Julius, an old amnesiac

[@ZorotheGallade]

Play Joker vs Simon in Smash for a semi accurate recreation

[@sterlingmuse5808]

Nobody ever talks about that Game Over screen, but it's one of my favorites. I especially love how Soma throws the glass the same way Dracula does in Symphony of the Night; amazing attention to detail there.

[@funninoriginal6054]

"Some people say they outsmart me... maybe... maybe... But i yet to see someone who can outsmart boolet." -Soma, before shooting up Dracula's castle

[@yootbaggoot1681]

Light weapons guy

[@mcfry13]

Lol. Boolet. What do ghost guns shoot? Boolets. Sorry, but its cute misspelling

[@goldvivec1344]

@@yootbaggoot1681 Soma is a scout main?!

[@mkv2718]

why did you put 2 Ys in “maybe?”

[@funninoriginal6054]

@@mkv2718 Oof, not an native english speaker, i assumed thats how it was spelled lol

[@hylash5444]

"He can't hit me except with his extremely easy to dodge fireball" *Gets hit by extremely easy to dodge fireball*

[@GalaxyWarrior2099]

Dude I wanted to write this literally the same way lol

[@Pokeking45]

You gotta imagine how much ammunition Soma is keeping on him to be able to make it through the entire castle.

[@SyRose901]

I imagine they found a way to reload the gun infinitely by 2035 in a fantasy world like Castlevania.

[@superdarklink]

I always just assumed it was magic

[@kevinlopezobrien5366]

He borrowed Ivory from Dante

[@felypinho020]

Bro learned to craft ammo like Leon

[@dfallen4ngel]

@@SyRose901 Dante did that way before them lol

[@wolfgangallanalhazred802]

The fact that Kali got translated as Curly is hysterical. It's like they're implying that The Three Stooges are lurking in Dracula's Castle!

[@nittayoshifumi8252]

There isnt anything proving otherwise tho

[@wolfgangallanalhazred802]

@@nittayoshifumi8252 Obviously not. I'm not serious.

[@donovanlocust1106]

It might be because of the romanization of Kali is Kāri so they probably translated it as Curly.

[@wolfgangallanalhazred802]

@@donovanlocust1106 It definitely is. But wouldn't it be funny?

[@donovanlocust1106]

@@wolfgangallanalhazred802 yes.

[@dr.latency8679]

"This is soma, for his neutral special he wields a gun"

[@aynarukami3122]

a great comment

[@melvinthesexyskeleton]

And for his down special he summons a demon

[@CYBER_FunkER]

Funny enough, Soma is who I wrote in for the smash questionnaire, but was ok with any CV rep. I got so happy when I leveled up the Dracula soul and got the Soma Soul, one of the most powerful in the whole game.

[@quasimodokiwi1500]

HAHAHA NEUTRAL SPECIAL HAHAHAHAHHA GUN HAHAHHAHA

[@Abigdummy4life]

@@CYBER_FunkER yet he actually shares Marth's Japanese voice, Hikaru Midorikawa

[@michaelolaf9968]

"You're greeted by maids who bow to you before trying to beat the crap out of you." This is just like Melty Blood

[@somejerk5662]

Wait until the next game where you fight a guy who stops time and throws a bunch of knives at you.

[@fuckingking6796]

@@somejerk5662 wrong game

[@syrelian]

@@fuckingking6796 No, actually correct, the sequel DOES in fact have a man who stops time and throws a bunch of knives at you, Zephyr, who's JP voice is even DIO

[@internetcrusader2419]

@@syrelian I didn't realize he was voiced by the guy who does Dio. Maybe they should have given him a road roller instead.

[@demi-yeethus5440]

@@fuckingking6796 there is ONE character who is a maid and throws knives and stops time but its not in Melty Blood.

[@krullachief669]

33:11 Okay the answer for the "When do the souls need to be equipped for the Graham fight?" is actually super interesting. The actual check for the souls happens in between the phases, specifically between his second human phase and the transformation into that abomination. You can tell that you have the right souls equipped because the text box will be slightly different compared to when you don't have them equipped in that little cutscene before the transformation. As long as that text box gets checked, you can use whatever souls you want in the fight before and after that point. It's just one of those weird little things in the game. Also, I learned it from watching Aria of Sorrow randomizer races, so that's cool.

[@zachtwilightwindwaker596]

So, you don't need them equipped when you enter the room?

[@krullachief669]

@@zachtwilightwindwaker596 Nope, only when you switch phases, so basically once you feel like you're getting close to killing him in phase one, you switch souls to the correct ones.

[@MaskedGuyCh]

The final hit to his second human form is what determines the outcome. As long as you have the 3 correct souls when you deal that hit, you will get the special text box which means you will get the good ending. You can freely change your souls after getting that text box, and you don't need to enter the boss room with the correct souls equipped.

[@SonicVegeta]

3:39 Fun fact, in the new game + runs if you equipped a different weapon to Soma before starting it than he’ll use that weapon instead of the knife

[@NicksgamertagXP]

20:12 "Can you imagine beating Death with almost no health left only for his scythe to kill you during his dying animation?" I don't have to imagine. That exact thing happened to me in Castlevania 1.

[@noishfanboy1141]

it happened to me in this game.It was the worst feeling

[@pivotalpancake5454]

This literally happened to me a while ago when playing this.

[@eschcal9839]

It got DSP, was hilarious stuff. What he gets for using save states every 30 seconds.

[@hicknopunk]

And in castlevania 2, you can just walk past him without breaking a sweat. 🤣

[@DaMoniable]

i cant count how many times i died to his last move in this game alone. So irritating!

[@stefanfr13]

"I am a Belmont, I carry with me the Vampire Killer - the legendary whip passed down through my family for generations. What could you possibly have to surpa- Wait is that a glock?" *BANG* "Yes."

[@starmaker75]

Hokey religion and ancient weapons aren’t match for a good gun at your side.

[@flandrescarlet8967]

Dracula was not clear leathered when a bullet fairly ripped, and the Cruz's aim was deadly with the Big Iron on his hip~

[@blight00000]

He brought the Kitchen Gun! He is ready for everything

[@blight00000]

@@flandrescarlet8967 Big Iron on his hiiiiiiip

[@TheFirehands150]

@Zachary Erickson I dont think you know how strong, fast, and durable a Belmont is...

[@Iknowtoomuchable]

*Aluc- I mean, Arikado:* "Go to the Master's chamber. Then, you will understand everything" *Soma:* "Good thing I brought plenty of ammo."

[@chrismanuel9768]

The translations are so bad. Arucard I could understand. Arucardu maybe. Arikardu even. Arikado? ARIKADO?! It's not even close! IT'S DRACULA BACKWARDS, HOW DID THEY-

[@ventexovakon2178]

@@chrismanuel9768 That's just his cover name. It's like that on purpose. He chose it.

[@lemonov3031]

​@@chrismanuel9768It's a fake Japanese name he had. Play the game lol

[@Eva1337]

So, the takeaway here is that Julius is so bad ass that he can survive being shot hundreds of times and even still doesn't actually die.

[@HunterIsRad]

“You were holding back. I could tell.” “Yeah, or maybe I wasn’t at my prime because SOMEBODY DECIDED TO BRING A HANDGUN INTO THIS!”

[@ZorotheGallade]

"Parry this you filthy Belmont"

[@appelofdoom8211]

@@ZorotheGallade Where's your whip now?

[@Cactus_fucker]

@@appelofdoom8211 "over there, and a bit over there. Oh and theres a part of it in the corner, or is that a bullet. I cant really tell because you shot it so many times"

[@keybladeciel3716]

Soma: _Don't make me use this piece!_

[@asianjackass237]

This whole comment section feels like what happens when Dawn of Sorrow gets a Netflix adapt

[@stompchunkman4248]

"How I destroyed a castle full of horrors with a handgun and became Dracula". Would be hell of a autobiographical book. Firearm companies would be begging to say it was their gun the one Soma used.

[@schizophrenic_rambler]

That sounds like the title of a kickass anime

[@corryjamieson3909]

​@@schizophrenic_ramblerHellsing

[@kamina9901]

Nyarly when he gets to the living quarters: "Ahh, my old enemy. STAIRS."

[@ZeroEscape2074]

"Can you imagine beating Death with almost no health left, only for his scythe to kill you during his dying animation" yeah that shit happened to me quite a few times

[@felixmartinez1100]

Me too. When that shit happen, I f#$%ng quit for like a week

[@ls190v2]

Oh dang.

[@vain_x]

When your body strength increases the guns damage, I always find it funny.

[@kaimcdragonfist4803]

Yep, big muscles make you a more steady shot and make your bullets bigger, just in real life!

[@VechsDavion]

Handgun proficiency in real life is largely determined by your grip strength. To fire a handgun accurately and quickly at a target, you need a fair bit of strength to hold the gun tight and steady.

[@SephirothRyu]

@@VechsDavion True, but that affects accuracy, not the damaging potential of the bullet. Which in a weird way means that our "real life strength stat" actually increases the CRIT CHANCE of guns.

[@rhonpen5388]

@@SephirothRyu or you can simply throw bullets from your gun just like the guys from wanted.

[@xm_heecka.laddder.job_mx5962]

@@VechsDavion You're talking about ACCURACY... you need strenght for better accuracy, not for the power of a gun. That's what CALIBER is for.

[@Shyguymask]

I'll take the half-damage gun over the fists.

[@MetallicGold]

Definitely

[@darianclark3980]

Hey SGM

[@jasonsgroovemachine]

The fists are awesome, man.

[@GoldieTamamo]

Eh, depends. Kaiser Knuckle can punish pretty hard and appears a lot earlier in the game in Study when it's practical to use, 9mm is all the way in Underground Reservoir, right next to the Arena where you find Silver Gun (admittedly through a really annoying spiked hallway with gold medusas and conveyor belts). If you're just doing a challenge run, yeah, bare fist is gonna be the trickier choice since you gotta get up close, but it also has a better rate of fire than 9mm, if I recall?

[@leoleo4469]

@@GoldieTamamo I think he's talking about a "naked soma" run without combat souls, armor, weapons, etc, so yeah. challenge run.

[@storymaster21]

My favorite thing to do in the sequel game "dawn of sorrow" is to turn on the "rapid fire" cheat via action replay, then buy the handgun. Then you literally walk around with a gatlin gun in your hand because the "rapid fire" cheat removes the cooldown for "bullet" based weapons and souls. And the gun is a bullet-based weapon [duh]. You ever watch 1000 bullets ream through a final guard? Truly glorious.

[@ls190v2]

Bababababababababa-

[@SatinFoxx]

I swear Mina has a lot more to do with the plot, but you have to go talk to her after EVERY important battle. Super tedious until you have the mirror system.

[@ghoulchan7525]

wow that's uh easy to miss.

[@SatinFoxx]

@@ghoulchan7525 I've replayed it since then. It's EVERY MILESTONE. There is so much story just...sat there in the area that just gets forgotten.

[@ghoulchan7525]

@@SatinFoxx oof. I feel bad for Mina. They probably should have hinted at that better by making Soma think that he should check up on Mina each time he beats a boss for maybe the first 3 ones.

[@MrFelblood]

​@@ghoulchan7525 Soma does hint that he's worried about Mina for the most important ones.

[@ghoulchan7525]

@@MrFelblood oh thanks. I'll keep it in mind when I'm going to play Aria

[@jouheikisaragi6075]

In which Soma takes the Engineer's advice to heart and solves all of his problems by using a Gun and if that don't work he uses more gun

[@IANGEL101I]

"Sometimes you need a little less gun."

[@InvictusSolDeus]

Dracula: It's that a Belmont? Death: He's got a gun!!! Belmont: "BLAM BLAM"

[@Frankcastlepunisher74]

Belmont's got a gun, everything in the castle is on the run....

[@matthewwilliams8267]

He's....not a Belmont.

[@InvictusSolDeus]

​@@matthewwilliams8267 Because typing "random guy with a Spanish surname who is supposed to be my reincarnation" is too long.

[@matthewwilliams8267]

@@InvictusSolDeus Belmont: Is that a Vampire? Belnades: HE'S GOT A GUN! Dracula: *BAM BAM*

[@Frankcastlepunisher74]

yes, but we let him do what he has to do.. .

[@galladegamerletsplays]

dracula: you cannot defeat me with those silly weapons. Nyarly: ok, I'll just use a glock

[@UltraZombie115]

Soma: *shoots self*

[@xxblackred_gachaxx]

​@@UltraZombie115 Now Dracula can't be revived!

[@omoriperocondrip9130]

​@@UltraZombie115"PERSONA"

[@UltraZombie115]

@@omoriperocondrip9130 BABY BABY BABY BABY

[@omoriperocondrip9130]

@@UltraZombie115 YEEEEEEEEEAH

[@rosfell00]

The headhunter's soul is very useful for this type of runs, it boosts your stats depending on how many souls you have collected

[@sanae99.9.9]

The boost is really minor tho and it require a lot of grinding to make it high. Lubricant is just better

[@supersmashbro596]

"he is in no way interested in inhereting draculas power" actually his intentions are quite clear. he just was never asked.

[@arkane9b]

So Soma gets souls that improve his strength and presses the trigger harder for the bullets to do more damage?

[@someoneusedtobeknown2645]

The bullets become more buff because Soma transmits his strength into them.

[@arkane9b]

@@someoneusedtobeknown2645 Who knew that you could take physical strength, convert it to energy, and transmit it to bullets for them to do more damage. Soma is incredible.

[@someoneusedtobeknown2645]

@@arkane9b Truly, the power of the reincarnation of Dracula put to its best use.

[@James-oj6ru]

The Power of Dominances and silver bullets

[@Rhoasckm]

He actually just shoves his arm forward and that increases the speed of the bullet, causing it to do more damage. Same logic as Wanted

[@ZionSairin]

Man, I remember doing this on a touch screen phone. It was absolute pain, and I am so glad I’m not the only one who thought of it. Can’t wait to do it again when it drops on steam.

[@sterlingmuse5808]

I honestly didn't have much trouble doing that when I first did, but it helped that I was able to map the R and L buttons to the volume buttons and didn't have to use the touch screen for those.

[@marscaleb]

The Soma Cruz games were my favorite SOTN-style Castlevania games. they were the only ones where I went through and collected everything; I just love that soul collecting mechanic.

[@sonnitude]

“Soma, you don’t need the gun anymore, it’s been peaceful for-“ *Interrupted by gun* Soma: Dont test me… if I see another creature with multiple eyes ever again, it will be too soon.

[@SephirothRyu]

But... humans have multiple eyes. Well, a few don't, but they usually have eye patches or something.

[@akirathewildcard9625]

@SephirothRyu shhhh don't tell him His mind is like a liter of soda that ate a pack of mints for breakfast

[@SephirothRyu]

@@akirathewildcard9625 He must shoot them all, then? Or perhaps, he must BECOME them. ...or not, since he already IS them.

[@SkoomaGodDovahkiin666]

Soma's brain on Dracula's temper.

[@NerdyGamer-lq9nc]

Dawn of sorrow bad ending in a nutshell

[@daddysempaichan]

Fun fact about the Big Golem, you can just dash behind him and he literally can't do anything against you aside from maybe walking backwards.

[@TheDaibu]

My main issue with the game is just how many of the bosses are extremely easy to beat, to the point where even some of the ones in Symphony of the Night, notorious for being extremely easy to begin with, end up being harder.

[@NessBrawl64]

36:28 - The yellow one keeps draining your MP until you kill it. It's easy to not notice this even on a regular run because you can't properly use souls until you kill the other two and the Chaos Ring counters this (it gives you infinite MP but you only get it in this area when you have every soul in the game). Also, you really missed out on using a great soul: the Medusa Head soul. Under your rules it would be still valid to use, because it just keeps you floating in place as long as you hold R (and have the MP, which drains at a reasonable pace). This makes Balore a significantly easier boss, especially on his second phase, as he literally can't hit you out of the air. At worst you might have to end it early so you don't land on its attack when the MP runs out, but by that point you should have already done some solid damage. This also would have been a huge help on Chaos's second form, as you can just float near the top of the room and keep shooting at the eyes from there, as well as Chaos itself once all 4 eyes are gone. You'd still have to move occasionally to avoid the green balls, but it's much easier to deal constant damage.

[@Vatiaure]

The whole video i was hoping he would realize how useful medusa head would be under those rules

[@zeronim1965]

​@@Vatiaureevery time he mentioned that he is not in position to shoot, and in need of jump tricks :/

[@madbombermedia3070]

A soul someone who attempts this themselves might consider grinding for is the Medusa soul. This is one of those "drains your magic over time" souls but against a couple bosses, it is super useful. All it does is freeze you mid air while it's active. You don't fall down. You just stay in the same spot. So you can use this against Death's second form to easily dodge his dashes and full room spin by not being where he's attacking. Against Balor's second form, you don't even need to worry about jumping. Just activate Medusa and go to town on him. You'll be too high for the attacks and take no damage.

[@Nidolord777]

Fun fact, talking to Mina at the castle entrance fully refills your hp. Why they didn't just put a save point next to the warp point at the entrance? /shrug

[@MrLordNeptune]

Because it was in Symphony of the Night.

[@itspunger2033]

To be fair there is a save point just as many rooms away in the oposite direction of Mina

[@eschcal9839]

Same reason you need a lady to heal Link in Zelda 2.

[@MrLordNeptune]

@@eschcal9839 ah, I see you're man of culture as well

[@jruler93]

Probably because it's just across the hall from the first save point, which also fully restores HP and MP, so Mina even restoring you is kinda redundant, even if it is a nice little detail.

[@shyla7722]

I always hated how pointless the pistol was. It's teased early on and isn't acquirable until near end game, all the hints of a powerful weapon. But ends up being worse then the starting knife

[@ZigealFaust]

That's why you boost it through passives and armor. Turns into an unlimited knife throw basically at that point with a much higher damage output.

[@lenlimbo]

Because it is a tease for the Silver Gun, that you can get in hard mode at the same spot. Unlike the HandGun, the Silver Gun has actually a decent attack power (42) and doesn't suffer a damage penalization at all, so what you see and what you have in str is what you get. The Silver Gun is a monster killing machine. Not quite on the level of the Positron Rifle or the Clahm Solais, but still quite powerful.

[@lenlimbo]

@Talion G. As I said, it's not Claimh Solais or Positron Rifle, but if you don't have either of those, in halls it trumps pretty much anything, with it's fast attack speed, second best range in the game among weapons, decent attack (specially with its speed and range) and the holy element. Of course, there are parts in the game where it doesn't shine as much, like the vertical zones, but for those, anything but weapons that are swinged above the head have the same problem. And it's a pity Julius is actually resistant to holy, or it would be the best weapon against him. So calling it trash... it is a valid opinion, I guess, if you don't like the weapon, but it's one opinion I disagree with. I love to use the Silver Gun.

[@lenlimbo]

@Talion G. Fair enough.

[@sefieezephiel9851]

I got plenty of use out of it by combining it with the succubus soul. Pretty much free health refills

[@jacobbarty6579]

9:18 Pretty sure the only invulnerable part of the great armor is his shield, your bullets just don't pierce it and it doesn't cover his legs and head. The reason some shots miss even while crouching is because his shield moves up and down with his walking animation so sometimes it's in the way, sometimes it's not. That's also why the whip sword is so good against him(and probably why it's stashed so close to him), because it's hitbox extends through his shield so it can hit him even if his shield is in the way.

[@jzzycaprice]

Sekiro: "Glad I don't have to fight anyone important with guns like this guy here"

[@ThePigKnight]

The books aren’t actually necessary. You just need the souls.

[@Grgrqr]

Just clues for the souls

[@kingdomcome3914]

Half right. Without prior knowledge, the books point you in the right direction for the souls needed.

[@jonathanortiz5243]

The books for me didnt help at all. Didnt know what the books meant until i searched up a guide and then felt like a dumbass

[@kingdomcome3914]

@@jonathanortiz5243 I think upon reading the books, that you read the beastiary for monsters that fit the books' description of the souls. I think the only sorta 'misleading' one is the one for the demon part, which is supposed to point you in the direction of the Flame Demon, but it was rather vague.

[@jonathanortiz5243]

@@kingdomcome3914 the worst part was that i had all the demon souls needed i just didnt understand

[@nb_nb]

this random teenager wakes up in literal dracula's castle, sees zombies and skeletons and every monster imaginable to the horrors of a human mind and just pulls out a glock. horrors beyond comprehension? well, they're not beyond Being Shot In The Face! go soma. edit: i for sure would watch you do more of this with castlevania games! i enjoyed it.

[@Pulmonox]

Well, I mean... considering this is the Castlevania world, teenagers are probably used to fighting these things by now. These kinds of creatures have plagued humanity for millennia at this point. It's literally said that in the War of '99 all of the Earth's militaries united to fight back against the forces of Dracula. Survival and combat training are probably taught as early as grade school.

[@boxtank5288]

@@Pulmonox and suddenly Soma knowing how to FIGHT makes a ton more sense, Dracula was a thing and keeping your skills sharp against the forces of darkness deciding to rear their incomprehensible faces again is incredibly vital. Along with SERE training possibly as it's some of the hardiest survival training ever concieved.

[@jojonta2119]

@@boxtank5288 My headcanon is that due to soma being the reincarnation of Dracula, he still retained a bit if his dark soul and became a delinquent/gang leader (I mean he kinda dresses like one) and therefore got into a lot of fights. But after meeting Mina, a reincarnation of Lisa, he became more gentle (similar to Dracula when he met Lisa in the 1400s) although he still retains his combat skills.

[@boxtank5288]

@@jojonta2119 mix with Arikado (Read Alucard) and others training him and NO SHIT he is a fighter and a half.

[@lemeres2478]

Yeah, and that is a glock in japan. Soma might not be dracula evil, but that doesn't mean he isn't a gangster.

[@pokesonav]

When Soma turns into Dracula after beating Graham, he looks EXACTLY like a Russian singer Kirkorov. It's uncanny how similar he looks

[@nittayoshifumi8252]

...should we be wary?

[@pokesonav]

@Nitta Yoshifumi Not really, he's actually Bulgarian, just lives in Russia. Considered one of the most popular pop-singers in Russia, actually.

[@Alias_Anybody]

​@@pokesonav I'd be concerned if he was Romanian, actually.

[@11cats666]

Nyarly has an uncanny ability to make videos moments before the game he plays gets rereleased. (See persona 4, smt 3, this)

[@sidlukkassen9687]

"It is better to have a gun and not need it, than to need a gun and not have it." - Al Capone

[@melchiormerrowson9576]

He got Syphilis and died. Next?

[@Selzor]

Never did I think I would agree with Al Capone

[@linkbond08]

“Carry your gun. It’s a much lighter burden than regret.” Also “Guns are like parachutes: If you need one and don’t have it, you’ll probably never need it again.”

[@RedSpade37]

@@Selzor Well, I believe this quote from him is apocryphal, and he very well may have said it, but the original quote is: "It is better to have a sword (blade, technically) and not need it, than to need it, yet not have it" Of course, Capone's version is a bit easier to say, haha

[@superdarklink]

As George Washington once said, "stay strapped or get clapped"

[@davinw1671]

So, some stuff about Legion, because it's my favorite boss in the series. While it is easier to just kill one or two sections to get to the core, you need to kill all four sections to get the soul from it, making it the only permanently missable soul in the game. That's obviously irrelevant for this run, as its soul is a damaging move, but if you're playing normally or going for 100%, you should kill all four sections before going for the core. And while Legion is technically optional, it's only optional so far as game knowledge goes. If you want the bad ending then it's completely optional, but if you want the good ending you need certain souls equipped in the throne room. One of the ancient books that tells you what soul to have is locked behind the chronomage that can only be passed after defeating Legion. So if you were playing the game for the first time and not looking anything up, Legion would be required to get the good ending. But once you know what souls you need, it becomes optional in future playthroughs, which is an interesting way for a boss to be optional.

[@akirathewildcard9625]

I has a terrible time killing legion in symphony of the night Then again I was playing the mobile version so

[@DN_123]

Huh, I never knew that's how you get his souls. I never actually miss getting his souls nor I knew that he was ever optional.

[@Santiago-Farrell]

@@akirathewildcard9625 SOTN legion is very hard at low level and the laser is almost an instant kill if it hits you

[@akirathewildcard9625]

@@Santiago-Farrell thank you for that Kinda needed the reassurance

[@GlennMagusHarvey]

I was wondering about that! I noticed that the soul drop was missing from the death animation, but I'd previously heard that it's only if you kill Legion without killing *any* parts of the shell that it goes missing. Apparently, you need to kill all parts of the shell *just to get it to drop*.

[@TheSorrowfulAngel]

This sounds like an interesting challenge. Aria of Sorrow is actually one of my favourite castlevanias, too. For Balor, I remember that I used a very specific soul to make him MUCH easier. It's a non-damaging one, so it should've been good with your rules. Medusa Soul. It allows you to stop mid-air.

[@rockmanzeromodernday941]

Medusa Soul is pretty good. I used it on Balore and it gave me no trouble defeating him.

[@sterlingmuse5808]

Yeah, the Medusa soul is perfect for that fight's second phase. It almost feels like the soul is specifically designed for that, although it's definitely still possible that it was just an oversight.

[@TheSorrowfulAngel]

@@sterlingmuse5808 Tbh, I think it is nice to be rewarded for creative soul use and figure that might be intended. Feels like a cheat, but Balor is also one of the harder fights for a casual player... makes sense for the game to give you a creative way to basically half the difficulty of the fight.

[@fadadapple]

SuperSkarmory taught me that one

[@FeatherBed-sc6vd]

I personally found that the Medusa soul works nicely to damage Chaos' upper eyes and the hole itself.

[@reichstein011]

Not sure if you realized, but the medusa head soul allows you to stop mid air. From the looks of things this would have made several of the boss fights much easier by allowing you to jump, stop in mid air at the right height, and then fire away.

[@nobgs4505]

I love how you dont even bother hiding Arikado's true identity cause the game all but spells it out for you.

[@Voldrim359]

Cuz here, the spells are broken and then, add the chaos ring and no enemy, no matter wich is it, would last seconds

[@TheSoulchild12]

I mean, saying his name in a Japanese accent pretty much gives the secret away, haha.

[@KungFuFishy]

@@TheSoulchild12 Never noticed that tid bit! Definitely gave me a chuckle when it dawned on me. lol

[@pokesonav]

@Blue Glasses Yeah, "Arikado vs Arukado" they literally changed one letter/syllable lol

[@dariogonzalez8989]

@@pokesonav Genya Alicard. Dracila.

[@ingvarsuigin609]

Balore has such a funny introduction, if you know that Giant Bat is a classic boss, and expect to fight it.

[@zefanyalt5944]

ngl i prefer to fight that giant bat than balore back in my 1st playthrough lol

[@IAMNOTRANA]

I never played old castlevania games before this so my first reaction was like "oh dear, a giant bat, this is going to be tough", then comes the real boss lmao.

[@rockmanzeromodernday941]

I utterly used my High Potions and Potions in Dawn of Sorrow during my battle with that Bat Company. Darn. Luckily, I was able to win, but jesus... I should be more conservative of my stuff.

[@Distain_Gaming]

Great Armor's shield is the source of it's invulnerability, so the parts where it's taking no damage are because the shield dipped in the animation.

[@WhatIsMatter101]

Protip: save before the Legion battle. There's a chance its soul won't be received after defeat. Just redo the battle if it doesn't.

[@thefrogwasnthurt2299]

I don't have the experience to say for certain but I have heard that you need to completely destroy the shell before killing it. With not doing so guaranteeing you don't get the soul, and destroying the whole shell guaranteeing that you do.

[@RoxasRikuFusion]

Nobody: Nyarly, during this run: "so anyways i started blasting."

[@pedrogabriel3158]

the nut blaster

[@andrewmanchiraju8005]

I don’t care this isn’t MegaTen. I love Nyarly Content and Aria of Sorrow and Dawn of Sorrow are my two favorite Castlevania titles.

[@brotbrotsen1100]

Also loved portrait of ruin, order of ecclesia was kinda meh though.

[@darkdemonwerewolf]

27:30 for anyone that is trying to get all the souls in the game you must take off all 4 parts of the shell or you won't get the soul.

[@brendowweberoficial]

If you want try this chalenge ⤵️ 5:35 Creaking Skull 💀 7:33 Manticore 🦁 9:14 Great Armor 🛡 11:01 Big Golem 🗿 12:51 Head Hunter 😵 17:40 Death ☠ 25:27 Balore 👀 27:08 Legion 👶 29:32 Graham ⚔ 33:29 Julius 😇 35:38 Chaos 👁 That is all ✌

[@coleandhisvideos]

I love with all the mystical elements my mans just busts out a fucking glock

[@lucylu3342]

Soma came prepared

[@kael070]

In Dawn of Sorrow, you unlock an rpg and a fkin railgun, my man soma had enough of this melee bullshit.

[@ZigealFaust]

@@kael070 Specificaly, it's Fortunes lightning railgun from MGS2. That shit is slow but clears a whole damn row. If you stack Golem or Mino souls it's hands down the safest way to no-hit the game imo.

[@lenlimbo]

@@kael070 The Railgun (the positron rifle, really) is from Aria of Sorrow. You get it from the boss rush. Unless you mean the Gugnir with it's special attack. Then yes, that one is from Dawn.

[@mqfii8992]

The most powerful mystical elements of them all. Lead.

[@DeepWeeb]

Soma's long coat makes a lot of sense now...

[@lowhp_comic]

"you're nice to me, don't come to Dracula's Castle tomorrow"

[@pragafds9278]

Oh....now i get it

[@turtlemaster7697]

Columbine?

[@OMartinez91]

@92ge2s not really. Trenchcoats have become the symbol for edgy teens who think are a lot cooler than they really are, and the coats came from edgy movies like Blade and similar films. A lot of school shooters tended to wear them, which is why now the trenchcoat now has the unfortunate rep attached to it now

[@MasterJunior93]

Yeah, to get the real ending, you need to have the souls equipped when you enter the room and during Graham's first phase. You'll know you did it right when you get different dialogue than the bad ending.

[@yappingdog2759]

Fun fact: medusa head lets you float in mid air. Kinda handy for those enemys that you have to jump repeatedly to reach.

[@Mooneymanjason]

I'm surprised you didn't make use of the medusa head soul throughout this run, since it locks you in place it would've been great for all those enemies that you had to do jumping shots to hit

[@bungsana]

this. it would have made this run MUCH easier.

[@CrookiNari]

The second phase of Balore is a complete joke with Medusa Head, if you position yourself next to his eye he literally cannot hit you.

[@mattmatter5643]

I love the Medusa soul. That’s what I did to balore, I just stopped myself in front of his eye and whailed on him.

[@anonimonovids]

Doesnt it drain like 20MP/Sec?

[@Mooneymanjason]

@@anonimonovids 10, but with an mp bar that goes into the high hundreds and the fact that it activates + deactivates instantly and usually is used in ~3-5 second bursts, it's way more practical than it seems

[@complete-and-utter-fool]

I like how the abbreviation of this game's title almost spells "Chaos"

[@atijohn8135]

in katakana, "caos" and "chaos" are spelt the same (カオス) (kah-oh-su), so it raises the possibility that that was intentional :p

[@jouheikisaragi6075]

"I'm going to kill Chaos" -funny meme guy from Final Fantasy

[@MeatOfJustice]

@@atijohn8135 Caos is also Chaos in Spanish.

[@complete-and-utter-fool]

@@atijohn8135 Huh, I never knew that The more you know

[@frds_skce]

@@jouheikisaragi6075 Chaos is also a boss in Aria of Sorrow

[@Kaloffee]

I'd like to thank you for getting me into such an amazing series with this video.

[@M4F1412]

Lots of castlevania games out there , check them all .

[@GenerationX7]

The fact you can use a handgun in Castlevania is FREAKING AWESOME!

[@unfortunately_fortunate2000]

awesome? yes useful? not at all which makes it the perfect video game weapon! lmao

[@GenerationX7]

@@unfortunately_fortunate2000 You mean the shittiest video game weapon, right?

[@unfortunately_fortunate2000]

@@GenerationX7 nah bruh & you dont need to be so aggro over a joke either b

[@GenerationX7]

@@unfortunately_fortunate2000 Oh haha

[@wanderingcalamity360]

Too bad it's absolutely terrible.

[@walterk9916]

“I’m sliding over cars while I shoot; they think that I’m Soma Cruz”

[@limmynade]

But, bitch, i'm bobby with that soul

[@Silverman160Zero]

"Cool, Nyarly uploaded a new video. Wonder what it's about?" *GUN*

[@joshshrum2764]

You know the rules, and so do i.

[@trickystar4602]

SAY GOODBYE!

[@Jim_WoodPike_Gherkin_WangWick]

And as his regular attack he uses *GUN*

[@guitarboy2015]

this is honestly a really cool change of pace for the channel. I was a huge fan of castlevania a long time ago, and Aria/Dawn were some of my favorite games, so I would absolutely love to see you do other challenge runs of these games!!

[@collaborisgaming2190]

9mm parabellum is the classic 9x19mm luger not to be confused with 9x18 Makarov. it was adopted as a smaller yet good alternative to larger, inefficient revolver calibers like .445 Webley and 6x22 nambu (for the Japanese type 22 revolver).

[@thearcheovistofsolkeeperof6326]

Julius: wtf are you talking about Soma

[@collaborisgaming2190]

@@thearcheovistofsolkeeperof6326 Probability wise due to military involvement of the JDSF, the handgun is 9mm. caliber wise it is a decent balance between stopping power and recoil. also cheap ammo due to how popular it is. If 9mm blows the lung out of the body than silver 9mm blows the demonic soul out of the body for consumption. Denizens of Castle Dracula included. (I'm trying to be educational while attempting roleplay, cut me some slack.)

[@Alias_Anybody]

"Castlevania, but you are actually American this time" Makes you wonder why the Morris family never used any real guns.

[@charlotteshenkenberger345]

Considering how weak the handgun is, I like to think they figured out that gun's don't work too well on demons and the undead quickly. And Soma just took that as a challenge.

[@Alias_Anybody]

@@charlotteshenkenberger345 John Morris was literally a "Texas Ranger" in the 1910s though. You'd honestly expect a revolver, at least as some kind of emergency sub weapon if you are out of hearts. If they ever remake bloodlines, that's one thing I'd like to see changed, the other big thing is Eric's design (the PoR version made more sense for a Spanish nobleman).

[@rosemarydwitasari4693]

What about Albus from Order of Ecclesia?

[@charlotteshenkenberger345]

@@rosemarydwitasari4693 Never played that one. But doesn't he use specialized bullets or something?

[@rosemarydwitasari4693]

@@charlotteshenkenberger345 yes, it's called glyph

[@MiniBlackWaltz]

I honestly love how in every fantasy game that has both guns and an assortment of melee weapons, its always the guns that are somehow the weaker weapons

[@kaimcdragonfist4803]

Seriously tho, even in tabletop RPGs. Vampires in World of Darkness resist gunfire but not melee damage even though bullets do terrible things to people’s flesh. I don’t imagine vampire kneecaps stand up to a .357 much better than human’s lol

[@rafaelsotelo4668]

The first SMT games could be an exemption especially the first one in the series. From what I remember guns were a better choice than melee in that game.

[@rafaelsotelo4668]

@Rotom Channel ah i see. But as far as i can remember machine guns with sleep bullets in the first game made my life easier. Then again I never got to finish the game, and we are also talking about damage here so I can see why the online guides encouraged stat allocation to str

[@JakenTheGreat]

Makes sense in Castlevania atleast. Traditional weaponry is pretty shit compared to weapons made to specifically kill demons and undead.

[@devranyilmaz9806]

@@JakenTheGreat but what if... Guns loaded with holy bullets or some shit? By all intents and purposes, firearms have a much higher wounding potential, so sanctifying ammunition can be far more deadlier than some shitty whip. Sprinkle some Jesus piss on some 5.56 and start emptying out Dracula’s shitty castle.

[@ganesh2levrai]

congratulations !

[@lepapanouwel4663]

Mdr trouvé le ganesh

[@noe3645]

Qu'est ce qu'il fait ici ce grand fou ?

[@myexile2374]

Soma: "So I just start blastin'!"

[@megmoore8681]

"Hey mom, can we play OOE Albus mode?" "We have Albus mode at home." Albus mode at home:

[@jojonta2119]

This actually made me laugh

[@Toadbug_]

I like ur profile picture

[@hussaina.4431]

"you can't hit me"

[@jeremyabbott4537]

A PICKLE SHOT

[@IANGEL101I]

"Vertical Shot! MAX SHOT!"

[@DoublemanFM]

"Headhunter turns into this old lady" Me: Ah yes, the dreaded old lady with a beard and a man's voice.

[@joshshrum2764]

I remember getting to that fight on a emulator.

[@GoldieTamamo]

The umm, weird thing is, actually, Headhunter is based on Langwidere of Ev, from the Oz mythos... who is a princess who steals people's heads and switches them on like accessories. So technically, the old mage and the lizard might not even be Headhunter's 'true' forms--possibly even, the lady head at the start is, and she has just taken a penchant for nicking an old wizard and a lizard monster's head out of the convenience of making it easier to kill you.

[@engiopdf8745]

Wouldn't be the strangest thing in this game.

[@juanpabloarcostejeda7599]

What's supposed she/he (¿?) says?

[@atmosdwagon4656]

The L-Button is your friend in a number of these fights. Especially Julius. You can backdash cancel the handgun attack to double tap with it too. I actually prefer to use the handgun or whip sword when I fight him normally because it cheeses his A.I. completely once you know the distance and timing to backdash. He'll never hit you after that.

[@mastersummersjr]

I love your MegaTen content, but holy man, I am pumped to see some Castlevania from you as well. I, for one, would love to see more CV content. Great choice!

[@frisky7404]

Every time I hear the firing sound effect I just think of “I LOVE YOU KITCHEN GUN! BANG! BANG! BANG!”

[@dicksonmattxenoblade6491]

GOODBYE DIRT!

[@rotatorebato]

@@dicksonmattxenoblade6491 Have you also tried our other products, toilet grenade, laundry flamethrower, or house bazooka?

[@mortenera2294]

"Babe wake up, Nyarly posted a new video!"

[@vcdc6742]

Yep, that's me.

[@thestarwolf3312]

“And it’s perfectly timed with a recent announcement!”

[@volcanolord100]

@@thestarwolf3312 seems like most times he uploads a game playthrough, a remaster or media switch is announced or just released.

[@mortenera2294]

@@volcanolord100 He must upload a Persona 3 FES playthrough

[@prot07ype87]

*"Yes, honey."*

[@volkerbenedikt3868]

For the Balore and Chaos phase 2 fights, people usually tend to forget the Medusa soul, it lets you be suspended in midair, and you can attack from a safe distance!!!

[@SmolGawblin]

for the jump in the river up to the hanging garden, the game has a small grace system on jumps that lets you "step up" if you wouldn't quite make a jump, so you can actually make it up without the walk on water soul, and can just jump up from a standard swim. On the other hand, the other platform in the room is a little higher so you can't jump up to that one.

[@ren511]

Now you'll have to beat sotn with only the rebounding stone

[@goreman7160]

Bloodstained with only the starting weapon

[@cloaking111]

Or the Red Rust

[@fissilewhistle]

This sounds like actual hell.

[@goreman7160]

@@fissilewhistle you can do sliding kick damage in bloodstained. There's a challenge.

[@lowhp_comic]

OoE but only using Arma Chiroptera

[@dyescaperpg]

"weakest weapon in the game" dealing 20 less damage than I was with the best weapon in the game despite having 3x the range and still struggling

[@kaimcdragonfist4803]

Don’t knock the glock. I wanna make a pun for other gun manufacturers but this one was too perfect

[@dyescaperpg]

@@kaimcdragonfist4803 i wont knock the glock because its incredibly overpowered in this video

[@3ggnesto]

In addition to explaining about the run, you took the time to explain the story and the different encounters ... nice!

[@viniciustavolaro]

do more challenges, I really love this game and makes me happy to see quality content for it, keep up the good work

[@BknMoonStudios]

Wow, this DMC 2 remake looks pretty good! :D

[@fauzanramadhan9046]

U mean Demake??

[@omoriperocondrip9130]

Finally, someone says this challenge is DMC2 in a nutshell

[@Stephen-fi9mw]

@@fauzanramadhan9046 that would imply DMC2 is better than Aria of Sorrow.

[@NickiRusin]

BRUH

[@gu3z185]

@@Stephen-fi9mw On a technical level, it is... otherwise, not so much.

[@willstob]

That "old lady" form of headhunter has quite the magnificent beard on her.

[@zefanyalt5944]

probably because it looks similar to maid outfit... but yeah, the old lady has quite magnificent beard

[@TheRPGNerd]

ngl, i really like the story of this game! its very neat! i love stories where the twist is "im actually supposed to turn evil but i refuse to", its such a cool trope. nice run, would love to see more!

[@NarcissistMusic]

Together with Dawn of Sorrow this is my favourite game. I love how this Video popularizes these games. Keep it up 🙂

[@Anderson_101]

Armed with a gun, and lots of patience. My respects.

[@ppowersteef]

36:04 I've never noticed that Soma's outline turned red when he throws his glass away. Congrats on the run, it's great to see unique challenges!

[@MrRebelMan360]

I love the game switch. Your commentary and the challenge runs are what draw me back. Looking forward to the next vid!

[@yearslate9349]

Impressive. I used the handgun a lot in C:AoS when I played as a kid, especially against Julius since you get it near to that point. I dealt with his speed by using the superspeed soul to zip around. But I never shied away from using attack souls with it, knowing just how low the damage on the handgun was. That you took this task upon yourself and stuck to it takes some mental fortitude.

[@superkillerrobo]

20:12 That *Literally* happened to me a few hours ago when I was playing. I was playing on the Advance Collection, so I was able to rewind it. I usually don't like to use the rewind feature in games, but dying to Death's scythe after killing him was just complete bullshit.

[@kankeydong2500]

Yeah. Dying like that out of the blue is too fuckin cheap

[@milesprower6110]

Kratos in his second game after defeating his first boss be like... Last boss in Dead Space 1 from close the edge

[@ped3752]

Honestly that's totally fair, you shouldn't feel bad about a game design flaw.

[@milesprower6110]

@@ped3752 how's that a game design flaw? It's totally on purpose as a last resort troll

[@ped3752]

@@milesprower6110 It would be okay if it happened more often, but in most bosses their hurtboxes just disappear after they're beaten, and even it being on purpose doesn't make it fun.

[@garrettmarzo7858]

I wonder how useful the Medusa Head soul would be in this challenge, since it locks Soma’s position in mid-air. Not great against flying enemies but it can certainly help dps against bosses

[@ShawnPattonC]

I was going to suggest that, since I've done a few playthroughs with heavy reliance on gun. Floating is very useful and trivializes Balore phase 2.

[@RexStrider909]

That was a fantastic struggle! was nice to relive some nostalgia with ya with this challenge video to a great game. Well played ^^

[@Kafei2006]

I see others have mentioned it but the Medusa Head guardian soul allows you to lock yourself in place in midair (cancelling gravity) when it's active, while you'd shoot stuff down. That could have been useful especially against enemies that like flying around since you can just fly in place and keep shooting. I like to use that soul against certain enemies even without going for a gun-only objective