Is Castlevania II: Simon's Quest Worth Playing Today? - SNESdrunk

[@claytonwalker8779]

When my grandmother passed we found out that she owned a nes and a handful of games. This was one of the games she had! It is still in the original paper box, with a manual and everything. In the manual she has a bunch of hand written passwords for the game!

[@gonzalotorres5282]

You had a gamer grandma? Sweet! And the final note in the manual: "This game sucks." (AVGN reference)

[@JonGee420]

Sorry for your loss....but I bet there are people (myself included) in the comment section that would have stood in line to play contra with her. My grandmother convinced my grandfather to get an atari 2600 because "The Kids want one".....this was a ruse. She wanted to play pac-man at home.

[@kurtdewittphoto]

That is so cute.

[@Outliers4Life]

My mom's favorite game was the OG Castlevania. RIP to my mom and your grandmother!!!! May their spirits live on through the art they loved to consume.

[@genekwagmyrsingh9433]

@@Outliers4Life or games

[@se7enist]

Credit where it's absolutely due: We wouldn't have Bloody Tears without Simon's Quest.

[@kind2311]

Composer Credit: Kenichi Matsubara

[@13amproduction]

This is an essential NES OST.

[@heyhonpuds]

Eh, they could have just put it on Castlevania 3 instead.

[@retropunk24]

Such an amazing piece.

[@lukewood2662]

And the fact that they had the nerve to try this much. Konami was great back in the day...

[@masterrserch3971]

And the flame whip is one of the dopest weapons ever AND makes such a sick sound effect too

[@johnnynorrisjr.39]

Whatever anyone says about Castlevania II, the Flame Whip is the answer, really Yeah, it can be irritating, clunky, dull, obtuse, and opaque... BUT YOU GET A FLAME WHIP OK

[@masterrserch3971]

Johnny Norris, Jr. boom! Nailed it... I just love that sound too when you well, WHIP it lol

[@VicViperT301Pilot]

It’s so powerful you can literally defeat Dracula before he moves.

[@AYANAMlREl]

its also in cirle of moon

[@despawn7663]

I was 14 years old, NES games were disappearing from the shelves, SNES was the rage. My parents knew i always wanted this game. They went to on their own either a comic store or second hand store and picked me up a boxed copy of the game for my birthday. Sometimes parents can nail a gift.

[@muesalsa]

[@kri249]

I'll say. I got this for Christmas. Although it was a new release at the time.

[@dljworks]

I love that relic reference. Nice indirect shout out the Drac’s nail

[@hubertcumberdale2651]

You about 43 Eric?

[@despawn7663]

@@hubertcumberdale2651 39, time starts to blend a bit together. I might be mis-representing the time when my parents bought it :). But was def in the late 90s. Confession time. My parents bought us a NES back in the day and the first issue of NIntendo Power. Unfortunately, the subscription went into affect on ISSUE #3 so We never received the Castlevania 2 beheaded Cover on issue #2. Life regrets... Also my subscription ended the ISSUE before the final ISSUE of NINTENDO Power. I had to go and order that one online from ebay :)

[@dude_8434]

2020: "What a terrible year to have a curse!"

[@joedoe5189]

Okay kiddo

[@dude_8434]

@@joedoe5189 I'm older than you.

[@mortenera2294]

@@dude_8434 Okay kiddo

[@Aforg209]

@Pine Barron Dude Dude just stfu...keep the politics away

[@corporalclegg914]

The November Election Has Vanquished the Horrible Curse

[@DocMaggie]

For me, personally, I love every single bit of this game. Nothing in the game is annoying to me. It's what gives it a nightly flavour. I could be playing during the day and feel like it's nighttime. I'm not kidding.

[@bobsciascia]

Big same. Prolly played through it a dozen times.

[@jasenwm]

I used to stare at the mountains a d wonder what was out there....nothing literally its just a background. But! It was memorizing to me

[@DonnyKirkMusic]

@@jasenwm See, this is the type of stuff that I love about people's stories about old games. Its the stuff that "objective" game reviews fail to understand or acnowledge. These are the things that make Simon's Quest worth playing today: the memories people have.

[@j0nnyism]

I prefer the original but this and the third game are fantastic. Rondo of blood is the best apart from the anime cutscenes

[@jessehilton1337]

I am the weird guy who loves this game AND Zelda II. It’s the rpg elements of each game that hook me.

[@koopakape]

I feel like back in the day most people loved both those games. I think it was more modern peeps, even as soon as 'SNES was my first console', going back and having more issues with these more 'adventurous' NES games with more esoteric design elements, weird puzzles with weird clues and such madness, as well as some of the older crowd that preferred straight-to-the-point action titles over tangling with RPG elements, that gave these games a bad rap and only grew over the years.

[@Rosbergen80]

Back in the day we had so much more time and patience to figure games out we had no phone no internet just a couch television and a stack of nes games . The whole weekend gaming those were the days

[@Quimper111]

Both games are awesome and much MUCH better than "hip" commentors give them credit for.

[@sammyshehole]

This, Zelda 2, Mario 2 (US). Love these odd “black sheep” sequels.

[@brandonlynchock9553]

Totally agree Those were probably my two fav games growing up!

[@nikoma_]

This is actually one of my favorite games of all time. I never seem to get over how cool it is.

[@patrickdiggins85]

My favorite Castlevania game. The music alone is amazing.

[@chriswinkler284]

Agreed. It's what made me come back to it over and over. BTW love your profile pic...'How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?...The world may never know...'

[@ThejokerNSorrow99]

I playing it now and I been digging the music hard. I actually love those old school game music sounds. 🎶

[@RamonHernandez]

This was one of my very first games for the NES. As a kid I had no clue what Castlevania was and Simon's Quest was my first exposure to it. I absolutely loved this game and wasn't until I was older that I discovered it was reviled by many. I recall knowing maybe two other kids that had it and we would exchange whatever hints we had with each other. There were one or two kids that got NP and would bring it to school, so I suspect someone brought one in with a guide or something, because I did end up completing the game. There was no way I would have been able to do it without some kind of extra guidance because there was just so much cryptic stuff in SQ. I played through it probably a half dozen or more times to the degree that years later(maybe high school) I decided to try and play through it again and I pretty much remembered all of the various secrets needed to get through the game. It is absolutely one of my faves even though it is hated by many.

[@4_vaccuum_salesman_of_marr944]

my experience exactly. I had to buy a copy of "Nintendo strategies" in order to discover the essential secrets.

[@Strider_Shinryu]

One cool note about Castlevania 2 is that it was one of the first games to have alternate endings. Depending on how fast you finish the game, there were actually 3 completely different fates for Simon so even with all of the potentially time wasting annoyances you're actually rewarded for learning and replaying the game.

[@koopakape]

Excellent review. I've always loved CV2 personally, even coming back to it as an adult after seeing that legendary AVGN episode (though I loved that video anyway and it got me obsessed w/ AVGN...) but you pretty much explained both the appeal of those who love it and detriment of those who detest it here; it's got fun gameplay, great graphics and superb music for the time, which was the most important elements a game can have!... plus some time-consuming and clunky design, weird obtuse puzzles and translation issues and bizarre time choices like the wait time for the day/night cycle and the random plethora of fake floors. The positives are what drove Metroidvania as a genre to emerge and become such a huge phenomenon lasting to this day though, and I'd urge anyone who hasn't played this yet to give it a shot. But hard agree on CV3 and Zelda 2 both being better games.

[@DanielSong39]

It all depends on your preferences but Castlevania was highly regarded by reviewers and gamers back in the day, the backlash came later Similar story with Zelda 2

[@spikedtrap2949]

Gotta set my priorities in place before the day starts, by knowing at 7AM if Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest is worth playing (at least where I live).

[@louyork553]

6am at my house lol

[@matttherrien9608]

Eastern Time baby!

[@EZDoes1t]

That’s funny, I had to know as well first thing. Started at 645am ... now 653. Well have a good rest of your day!

[@Steven-ph6pp]

8am in Canada

[@matttherrien9608]

@@Steven-ph6pp Province?

[@JorgeFuentes-TGMagus]

Woohoo! Simon's Quest Revamped is mentioned! I created the Simon Belmont sprite used in-game so that it matches the NES box art colors. MetroidQuest put it to use in the game.

[@duffduffington843]

I've actually always loved this game.

[@Jeffmetal42]

me too. One of the first Nes games behind Dragon Warrior I ever beat as a kid.

[@TomAnderson7]

I see myself as an oddball. This was my first Castlevania and I loved it. The other Castlevanias felt too arcadey. Also, my first Super Mario was SMB2 and find SMB1&3 inferior because of the clunky controls and weird looking enemies xD

[@datoad82]

D core same here...i love the 2’s!

[@silverwolf761]

loved this one too. I love what they were trying to accomplish with this one, even if it wasn't all successful. Having played this one first and the relative freedom it gave, I didn't like how restricting the structure of the others felt

[@nates9029]

Same way. I loved this game as a kid and I still play it on occasion. There is a guy working on an updated version of this called Castlevania 2 Rebitten where he is adding in boss fights like Frankenstein's monster and stuff. I can't wait until he releases it but I still love this game.

[@tommiefunk2099]

I would pay good hearts for the Bo Jackson clear screen attack.

[@LanceUppercut78]

This was my favorite NES game when I was a kid. Times were different back then. You just grinded the clues and figured out what was going on. That was life. Ill never forget how I felt when I figured out the Red Crystal tornado passage. I went nuts. You can never replicate that feeling. So for that reason this game will always hold a special place in my heart.

[@Andrew-qu7lq]

same. As "random" as it was, it gave you an understanding that you have to figure out what each item does, and this (and the blue lake) should clue you in that a dead end is conspicuous enough that it holds something more behind it. I remember that it was years later after replaying it so many times that I realized there were different endings, which was a really cool discovery to find out on your own and then try to figure that whole thing out also.

[@resinblade99]

i remember playing this as a kid with my neighbor. none of the negative aspects of the game were apparent to us. we loved this game at the time and would stay up all night playing it. the mansions to us were like exploring a new dungeon in zelda and we were always eager to discover which new item was inside. the cryptic stuff was part of the charm back then where you had to find the solution in nintendo power or from a friend via word of mouth.

[@kindermaschine2515]

I like how SNESDrunk always wishes his viewers a nice day at the end of each video. It shows he has class.

[@Fattydeposit]

I prefer to interpret it as needless and cruel sarcasm.

[@MattyStoked]

I think this was well-rounded and balanced. I really enjoy the highs of Castlevania II. It was a brave leap forward and introduced a lot of elements which IGA wanted to bring forward into SotN, which makes it pretty seminal. The lows (and there are some) never outweighed the highs for me. This is still one of my favourite CV games in the series.

[@humb1s3rvant]

It's good once you know where to go...I beat it and showed my buddy the progression and we both found it satisfying. As a kid, it is frustrating not knowing the next step. Listening to awesome music the whole time made it worth it to me.

[@maverick_loneshark]

I'd argue this game has more in common with SotN than Metroid does (though that certainly has some obvious influences as well). I'm curious to see if those improved & revamped versions help to approximate what a modern take might be like.

[@MattyStoked]

@@maverick_loneshark the designer of CVII, Hitoshi Akamatsu, never cited Metroid as being an inspiration for his NES games. I'm not sure if IGA did when he sat down to start SotN. But it could be that these two games just happened at the same time, influenced by their own unique inspirations.

[@maverick_loneshark]

@@MattyStoked I think Iga mentioned Super Metroid as an inspiration, but it may have been in response to someone making that connection. From my point of view, the map was really the only thing that seemed to be uniquely Super Metroid-inspired, and everything else could arguably come from previous Castlevania games or other influences. Metroid gets too much credit, imo.

[@PaperyPip]

@@maverick_loneshark I remember IGA saying something to the tune of: Zelda was a more direct inspiration for SotN than Metroid, but Zelda-inspired gameplay in a platformer rather than in a top-down game is on its own enough to draw out Metroid comparisons.

[@bergamt]

Simon’s box art has big David Bowie energy

[@seanwhitman4365]

Simons quest is easily my favorite castlevania game. I play it at least once a year mainly in October. Having to wait a few seconds for the day night text doesn’t bother me at all and I love the cryptic parts of the game.

[@losttribe3001]

This was the game my parents bought when they finally bought us a NES. Hours of playing with my brothers, time was simpler because we were young and didn’t have responsibilities. Good memories! Edit; I agree with SNES drunk, it was frustrating and we would get stuck for long periods of times.

[@NiceTryLaoChe]

Same. I don't even remember how I found out about the "kneel at the cliff with the crystal" thing, but even in the 2nd grade I knew that was some straight-up bullshit.

[@7thangelad586]

Luckily my brother had that one guy in his class that somehow knew EVERYthing about NES games. The cryptic bits did leave us scratching our heads...

[@kind2311]

@@NiceTryLaoChe this book I got in 1991 is the only reason I ever beat this game and Zelda II before anyone else I knew i.redd.it/3op5sdvwkha51.jpg

[@cazamilfs8945]

@@7thangelad586you're old.....,🤤

[@JV12382]

U needed that friend that had that uncle that worked for Nintendo.

[@EbenezerScroogeMcDuck]

one of my favorite games ever. didn't know how to do the river/cliff until a friend showed me, otherwise after that, the challenge of beating it in time is one of the best NES experiences ever. great music, fun gameplay, very ambient. 9/10 for sure.

[@ShadowSumac]

Just replayed it today for the first time after 8 years. Still as awesome as ever. Almost meditative experience.

[@morgothbauglir7086]

"Geez, the holiest floor ever" 😆

[@alexiswritingvideos]

Those invisible pitfalls are a great example of a huge design flaw; adding challenge that is just a chore and not fun in any way.

[@ShadowSumac]

@@alexiswritingvideos It can be easily circumvented by using holy water. Or being observant. Not much of a problem really.

[@thenostalgiafactor5023]

Total length of video: 434 secs. Total length of "SNES Drunk": 6.5 secs. 1.5% of the video was spent listening to "SNES Drunk."

[@heyhonpuds]

God bless you sir.

[@cazamilfs8945]

You don't have a life too much oftenly do You ......

[@spencercress5348]

I could've used 2% this time; but 1.5% was pretty OK too

[@Yussnan84.]

The comment section on previous videos was so much better without you...

[@randomduck8679]

@@Yussnan84. Easy now

[@FuegoJaguar]

I just played this beginning to end and adore it.

[@cedurion]

This game gave me the chills back when I was a kid. Heck, even today it's eerie already in the password screen.

[@chriswinkler284]

PCLR FQZ2 VIBT S4AZ

[@cedurion]

@@chriswinkler284 Had to try that.

[@jessemarkle5413]

Remember. Kneeling with the flame whip and holy water, riding the tornado to that Bats castle, and putting him to sleep with my flame whip. Classic game!

[@scoob1551]

"This game sucks." I think about that classic first line every time I watch anything on Castlevania 2

[@chriswinkler284]

AVGN sucks and doesn't know what he's talking about :P

[@anouk356]

@@chriswinkler284 AVGN is a character where whole joke is that he gets way too frustrated over stupid shit. James Rolfe has reviewed games he likes several times. CV2 is one of them

[@ShadowSumac]

@@chriswinkler284 It was not a "serious" review. Calm down.

[@zakazany1945]

@@chriswinkler284 Shut up.

[@skydiamsteam6005]

Chris Winkler No Chris :P

[@baigandinel7956]

Play it. It's like Shadowgate. It is essentially the way it was meant to be. IGA confirmed this in an interview. Despite claims of bad "translation", the game intentionally gives you less information than you need, requiring both brains and experimentation. Now at just ONE OR TWO junctures, it may have gone a bit too far, but for the most part it comes together quite well. Each small victory at unraveling "Dracula's Riddle" will be well earned.

[@green.9082]

The patches are a terrific service and help to improve the experience by a lot. Thanks for referencing them, @SnesDrunk!

[@Thormaturgy]

This is the Castlevania I played the most as a kid, due to it being so forgiving compared to 1 & 3. As an adult, I see it’s flaws, but I still enjoy it enough to go back and play it every couple years or so. Bloody Tears will always be a banger.

[@upstandingcitizen3877]

Correction: you said “hearts are currency, not ammo” they are currency AND ammo, just not for holy water and I think the most basic dagger.

[@jameskm03]

1990 I got this and Zelda 2 for Christmas. I was 9. I’m very biased but I’ve spent so much time with both of these games and love them both to this day. They aren’t the best in their series but hold a special place for me.

[@invalidsin5665]

Yes. This and Zelda II are one my favorites.

[@ThoroughlyBaked]

I like this game quite a bit. When people mention how cryptic it is I think about Metroid. Metroid is regarded as one of the best on the NES, but I remember my cousin and I sitting on the floor with pens and graph paper. One playing, and the other making the map so we could try and figure out where the hell to go.

[@ThejokerNSorrow99]

I wish they have a map, I'm planning it now!

[@andersonrodrigo63]

I really love this game. I still keep my nes cart (since 1990!!)

[@kutulukutu]

I got Simon's Quest shopping with my mom before Halloween in I think 89? I was 9 or 10. The game made no sense, but was haunting. I still play it today, but I'm old now. Y'all should have tried figuring this game out, when it was new, without the internet. Even some books were wrong... I'd also recommend farming hearts in the towns, at night. So go play Castlevania 2. Maybe you'll beat it before Halloween 🤘

[@hungrygoriya]

An excellent perspective on a very, very underrated game. It's great seeing this one get some love!

[@chriswinkler284]

Grumble, grumble ;P

[@danieldelaparra7708]

Castlevania II is fantastic. Visually is more beautiful than Castlevania 3 (forgive me but Castlevania 3 gets messy visually) When I was a kid I would spend hours exploring this fascinating world, while Castlevania 1 and 3 were so ridiculously hard that I never saw further than level 3. I loved how cryptic it was, the false clues of the villagers actually enhanced the experience because it was like a dark world of superstition and legends. Somehow I figured out the mystery of the red crystal (and the blue crystal) so that was never an issue for me. The only real issue I see with this game is the lack of bosses, but other than that this is my favorite Castlevania of the trilogy and my one of my favorite NES games

[@CB-yb1jl]

This is one of my favorite nes games. Once I knew all the secrets I played this game over and over again. The great environments and music it was really fun being in that world. I still rep this game. Classic

[@Azuris190]

Got the Castlevania Collection on the Switch a few Days before this Video. Castlevania II is much more Fun than i thought, but i have to thank Videos like yours and that of the Angry Video Game Nerd for it, because you pointed out those cryptic Parts. Having unlimited Continues makes this Game enjoyable, because it doesn't get frustrating and puts you out of the researching Flow.

[@techstormster]

It's odd to be reminded that this was my favorite Castlevania growing up.

[@ronnyclayton194]

Best castlevania on nes,I dont know if newcomers would appreciate it but it was one of the best when it came out with its metroid style gameplay.

[@jamievaughn5586]

I can't even guess how many times I rented this game when I was a kid.

[@MrStrav81]

I loved Castlevania II. I still play it periodically when I visit my sister (she also likes it).

[@AntonioRodriguez-kl6uc]

Absolutely on of my favorite games ever. Not like any other game before it.

[@LobsterPuncher]

I will always love this game. I'll never forget being a little kid and having only a black and white TV. I thought all video games were black and white. Then we bought a color TV for the Nintendo..... 😵

[@steeplewiththesnakes]

I played this game with the retranslation patch and had a pretty good time. With a proper translation you get hints that are true and some that are fake so it's more intuitive to figure out what you're supposed to do without a guide. I still didn't find the designs of the dungeons very inspired though.

[@kenkoopa7903]

It should be said that the bogus hints were also in the Japanese script, so the translation was at least faithful.

[@steeplewiththesnakes]

@@kenkoopa7903 the original translation messes up some of the real hints though. The re-translated patch I used keeps both fake and real hints but with proper translation you can actually tell what the real ones are saying.

[@hectorcoronel7932]

Bloody tears is one of the best music themes of the NES

In addition to Zelda 2 and Faxanadu as action-adventure similar titles, I'd recommend Battle of Olympus as well.

[@edpistemic]

I loved Battle of Olympus! Another one with a lot of that obscure NES grinding, but very charming in its style.

@@edpistemic Yeah, grinding to get olives to buy all the final stuff and then dying and losing half of them made me throw the controller against the wall a few times, but the classic greek gods ambience made the game great.

[@williamsmith666]

Yes it is worth playing today. Once you figure out what to do, and in the days of online walk throughs you can have it figured out in no time, it's a very satisfying slice. Nice and dark, too, as far as an early NES title goes.

[@Lechteron]

Given the state of translations at the time I've always wondered if CV2 was better received in Japan.

[@ostiariusalpha]

Not as much as you would think; it is admired for its innovations, but criticized for its many flaws. The dialogue is cryptic in the Japanese version as well, though it's at least decipherable; the BS with kneeling at random spots with the crystals is also still there, as is the janky day/night transition. The Famicom Disk System has load time when transitioning levels, so if you run into an enemy right at the start of one (e.g. 2:59) and he knocks you back, you'll have to sit through a ridiculous amount of loading just to get into the level again; only to be knocked back by the same enemy. One good thing about the FDS is that it has a game save feature, instead of the lame password system the NES cartridge uses.

[@Lechteron]

@@ostiariusalpha Thanks. I've always wondered about that.

[@osurpless]

ostiariusalpha The music (for some reason) is awful by comparison. They really screwed up there, as the FDS was capable of great music, such as with Konami’s Arumana No Kiseki.

[@osurpless]

ostiariusalpha Also, the translation is better in some cases, like the hidden book in the mansion can be transcribed as “kneel at Deborah Cliff with a red crystal to wake the wind.” Whereas “wait for a soul at Deborah Cliff with a red crystal” at the same book is much more ambiguous in the NTSC version...

[@ostiariusalpha]

@@osurpless The core of the song is there on the FDS version, but Bloody Tears is a much stronger track on the NES. Matsubara probably had some real regrets about how bland the FDS songs turned out, because he amped up the percussion for the revised and replacement tracks. Also: it's supposed to be Arumana no Kiseki. Arumana is from Sanskrit, the "u" is supposed to be in there; the English patch by DvD Translations mistakenly transcribed it as Almana.

[@princessmagical]

Simon's Quest is still the best Castlevania to this day and it's been released in a collection for Switch. It's just as awesome as when first released!

[@mafiousbj]

The soundtrack alone is reason enough, Bloody Tears melody is fanstatic!

[@joedoe5189]

Those darn pauses to shift from day to night gets severely annoying

[@Str0b0]

Thanks for pointing out the improvement patches! Quality stuff as always!

[@DrVonBoogie]

Alright, I wanna thank you for creating and posting this video and I hope you have a great rest of your day.

[@TheOneTrueMaNicXs]

I never had Castlevania 3 growing up, but I had Castlevania II and liked it much better than 1.

[@immortallegacy100]

I personally like Simon's Quest more than the first and third games for the NES. I found them really difficult and I never even finished Dracula's Curse. I've beaten Simon's Quest three times now and in all honesty my first playthrough was probably the only one that was annoying. A lot of the more cryptic gameplay elements are pretty much famous now because of AVGN and other popular KZbinrs, and there are always guides online you can read if you get stuck or forget where to go. I really enjoy the graphics and music in this game, and it's just an easy game to pick up and play for a little while if for no other reason than to kill monsters while listening to Bloody Tears. Fun game, but I'd recommend using occasional save states either on the Virtual Console or Nintendo Online.

[@MackMainSupreme]

I never beat Simon's Quest because it was 2 difficult that game really pissed me off when I was a kid.

[@anouk356]

@@MackMainSupreme Did you know it was an rpg? It's easy af, most people finding it hard tend to just play it without trying to lvl up

[@jasonmiller3543]

This was always one of my favorite NES games and among the first few I ever beat. I replayed it over and over to eventually find all the items and am still learning things (like how holding the nail increases your physical attack). The NES had very few horror themed games that were not insanely difficult, so it's nice to find one I could soak up the gothic atmosphere night after night.

[@leadbones]

For an unfinished game, it was excellent at the time and I still absolutely love it. I can see how it wouldn't be worth the effort for most people these days.

[@ShadowSumac]

How its unfinished?

[@justiniadonisi9290]

Its worth it for the soundtrack alone, especially bloody tears and the silence of daylight.

[@ravagingwolverine]

Good review. The "holy" jokes were fun. I tried this one again maybe a year ago with various hacks to make it more tolerable. The visuals and audio are quite good. Unfortunately, the hacks didn't make the game fun enough for me. It exposed what I consider to be weak and boring stage design. But that's the kind of thing people need to determine for themselves. It was nice not having to throw holy water the whole time though thanks to a hack. I can't imagine that being any fun.

[@coffincat1465]

I played CV2 to death as a kid. While 3 is still the best of the original NES titles, this one has atmosphere and personality for days.

[@eppskevin]

And see I find it funny how people act like it’s so trashy, but when this came out, I remember people talking about this game all the time. So people loved it back then until people were able to even identify that it had flaws

[@danielmccormick700]

Funny, I was just searching your videos just yesterday and was surprised that you had not done Simon's Quest yet. What a coincidence.

[@JR-gl1nx]

3:45 The towns look even more gloomy than the dungeons.

[@kind2311]

that music tho ♫ ♫

[@NearLife4life]

The towns and buildings always reminded me of New England in the 1970s

[@adzi6164]

just a correction: using continues does matter, because continuing advances the in-game timer - and how fast in regards of this timer you complete the game determines the ending you get.

[@madspunky]

I love this game for being so weird. It's like the game is playing you. Kind of like Dark Souls. Edit: I will never look at Dracula the same way, now that I've realized he's made of Lego!

[@gamecomparisons]

Castlevania 2 and Zelda 2 are the only versions of their series I have played through multiple times. Castlevania 2's cryptic puzzles and try and redie gameplay put me off for sure, but the graphics and sound design just kept bringing me back until I finished it. I need to replay these games again soon.

[@tsacelbuod]

The day light theme of this game is one of the most underrated 8-bit masterpieces of all time.

[@Leotsune]

Isn't day theme Bloody Tear? Also know as one of the most iconic pieces of gaming music in existence? How can that be underrated? If you mean Monster Dance then yeah, its underrated and heavily shadowed by Bloody Tears.

[@trevorgardner4817]

This is honestly one of my favorite games. If it wasn't for the cryptic use of the blue and red crystals, more people would have enjoyed this game. (It makes me wonder why nobody mentions how the instructions for this game plainly states that some villagers will give you false information because they are/were loyal to Dracula.)

[@ZeroWalker26]

I recently beat this game for the first time ever plyed it on my anniversary collection and I will say I enjoyed it and it is not so bad as people make you belive. Sure I played it as a kid back in the day but I never manage to beat it. But yeah there where tons of games from back in the for me early 90s that I never manage to beat I mean it took me until 2016 to beat the Frist Zelda game on nes but I did it played and beat it on my 3ds .

[@dadrising6464]

its that AVGN episode that got stuck in the puplic mind... i just replayed it the same way and with today's option to quickly look up what you are supposed to do its quite fun. and its way more forgiving than the other two. boy, did i abus the savestates on cv3 🤣

[@gst013]

As a kid, crouching on the edge of the screen holding a red gem never would've occurred to me...then again, it never would now either, but a little easier to get that info now 😅

[@ZeroWalker26]

@@gst013 yeah that for sure. Same with kneeling at a lake

[@zero-theaveragegamer1159]

I own the inner versuri addition and I only have one other game to beat before doing number 2 last. Is it the original version where people make no sense and it is poorly translated or is it more like a redacted patch and Konami themselves fixed it?

[@dadrising6464]

@@zero-theaveragegamer1159 its the og version, it got poorly translated (not sure how cryptic the japanese original was, though). nothing a guide cant solve ;)

[@nestorcaceres8928]

So far its my favorite of the classic castlevania games.

[@Kevin-wx7wu]

"This game sucks" oh wait, wrong channel

[@DanielSong39]

Yeah, this is not the Angry Video Game Nerd. His videos: - Plays a challenging game poorly on purpose - Makes all sorts of angry facial expressions and gets frustrated - Rails on a game simply because of its genre Well in reality the dude is really good at video games and appreciates many different genres of gaming, but he played a character to entertain viewers

[@chriswinkler284]

AVGN can go suck it.

[@Gamer-lq4wl]

@@DanielSong39 Exactly ! Actually James and Mike played the game on "James & Mike mondays" and they ejoyed it. James of course not performing his role of the nerd. Just being James.

[@mattsstuff907]

@@DanielSong39 While James is playing the character of AVGN, that's not what those videos are all about. The games he plays actually do suck.

[@DanielSong39]

@@mattsstuff907 Some of them, yes. Still it's funnier to see him rail on Deadly Towers than Castlevania 2.

[@jdelix]

Simon's Quest is underappreciated. I personally have always loved this game for as flawed as it is, and it has one of the best soundtracks ever made.

[@moedog]

Yes this game is worth playing through.

[@Archedgar]

I don't know how, but way back in the day my older cousins and I were able to finish this game without any guides or walkthroughs. For the most part I just did the grindy bits and watched them do the rest as we discussed where we should go or what we should do. Good times.

[@Dorelaxen]

Despite the flaws, it's still my favorite of the classic CV games.

[@RW-ij1ci]

I got this game with my NES and the Mario, Duck hunt and power pad... I love it... but I never got anywhere in it :P

[@gab_v250]

James Rolfe has entered the chat

[@Skellotronix]

"Muh references for likes" get a life.

[@gab_v250]

@@Skellotronix oh come on

[@trueleox]

@@Skellotronix butthurt much?

[@kind2311]

@@Skellotronix You're lame. Get a life. Your username is lame, too.

[@rexfellis]

@@trueleox obviously he is. lol Kids these days. :)

[@TheBrowncoats85]

So good to have your videos back!

[@7thangelad586]

What a horrible night to have a prejudice against a game based on other people’s opinions.

[@DanielSong39]

@Edgar Friendly It expanded on the ideas from Vampire Killer, the MSX adaptation of Castlevania. The game also proved to be a launching pad for Symphony of the Night. Lots of good design ideas that would become mainstays in later games.

[@danielrecommends]

Castlevania 2 was the first CV game I ever owned or played and its always had a spot in my heart. I recently replayed it from the CV Anniversary Collection and even though there are those annoying parts like you mentioned, once you understand what you're supposed to do the game is really fun. I wish there was a new Castlevania in this style. While SOTN was awesome, it was all inside of Dracula's Castle. I'd love to see something like the art style in Rondo Of Blood but its more of a journey across Transylvania instead of a linear level design. Anyhow, keep up the great work SNES Drunk!

[@THECOMICBOOKMAN]

This game is worth it alone just for the music! It gave the world "Bloody Tears"!

[@fresh21627]

I loved this game as a kid. So adventurous. Flame 🔥 whip rules!!

[@christiansmith9306]

This freaking game!!!! This was my official all nighter just just trying to figure out where to go next!!!

[@venonat80]

In Japan, the villagers told u how to progress and secrets. In the US, they made the villagers talk nonsense. In order to progress or figure things out, you had to buy the Nintendo magazine. Capitalism of Castlvania

[@JCdragon81]

I’d say yes. Was always a Sega kid. But this was one of the few NES games I loved. I eventually bought a NES for this and other Castlevania games, tmnt games and mega mans.

[@CapnPicard]

It's worth playing for the music alone.

[@jgoodwin316]

this was my first video game that no one else could claim. i loved it.

[@_Red_Mage_]

The music is absolutely amazing in this game. It really makes it worth the effort to play through, IMHO.

[@endymallorn]

Just the fact that every time I see a video about Simon's Quest it features Bloody Tears makes it the best game I've never sat down and played through.

[@niagargoyle]

Now that you mentioned Faxanadu, I am curious to see your review on it.

[@GeorgiaRidgerunner]

Yes castlevania 2 is worth playing if you have the hours needed to put into the exploration required to finish it. If not a playthrough is availble online and even with a step by step playthrough it still a great playthrough... I highly reccomend this game

[@SleightOfCat]

This game is a gem if you play with the Retranslation patch. It's way better than the Redaction patch which removes some hints (all of the intentionally misleading hints, but also some of the useful hints!) and the dialogue feels very sanitised and unfitting to the setting. Retranslation keeps all of the hints, but fixes them as a lot of them were mistranslated. The NPCs talk like people and not copy+pasted hints like in Reaction. It also adds a well made intro animation, an in-game map (both of these are from the Japanese manual), loading/saving, smooth day/night transitions, jumping off stairs, and more. ALL of these features are optional, you can disable them individually if you wish. It's such an amazing patch, and I hope it becomes more popular than Redaction at some point so it becomes what first-timers play with instead.

[@bretthosmer6770]

Just played it this afternoon. When you know where all the items and secrets are, the game is absurdly easy. The main challenge is just trying to find where everything is.

[@XpRnz]

Can't wait till you cover Dracula's Curse! Multiple characters and routes, amazing atmosphere, it was just the best NES Castlevania for me.