Was it Good? - Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

[@ducksoff7236]

I played Symphony of the Night for a month. Literally played nothing else. After I found every secret I started Metal Gear Solid. When Psycho Mantis told me "You like Castlevania don't you?" My jaw hit the floor and I sat there STUNNED! That experience will never be topped in gaming.

[@brockpeterson6158]

try fighting him with an empty memory card

[@CHamlin86]

He had remarks for just about any Konami game on your memory card, even Silent Hill, which had not yet been released at that time.

[@doctorakiba]

Imagine the PC port of MGS and Psycho Mantis being able to see into your browser history.

[@williamgreene3610]

ROFL I know that feeling!!!!😂

[@DGneoseeker1]

@@brockpeterson6158 What does he say? Accuse you of being a fake gamer?

[@supertaoman12]

Just a note, you don't actually "get" spells, you already have them, and can use them from the start. The scrolls just tell you how to use them.

[@tekkaman65535]

As long as you have the MP, that is.

[@obananagato]

@@tekkaman65535 If you keep in mind that on level 8 you have already enough mana tô cast soul steal, It pretty much means you always have enough mana

[@tekkaman65535]

@@obananagato not if you almost always play using the luck code like I do.

[@Dewani90]

Gotta say, the first thing i do its to grind to level 8-10 to get enough MP to use soul steal, then i fill the rest of the spell list with spirit summon, tetra spirit, hellfire and lastly dark metamorphosis... because accept it, very few enemies in this friggin castle can bleed.

[@obananagato]

@@Dewani90 i do the same normally on the merman room

[@gaijinkuri684]

The fact that the whole game is playable a second time but with everything inverted blew my mind away as a kid.

[@M4STERD00M]

yeah me too, now seeing it i wonder how i got that, but it was awesome :D

[@thelazylionsden8539]

the REAL challenge is playing it upside down, like you physically turn upside down! #goals

[@Dhalin]

Also, what might blow some peoples' minds, is that there are some graphics in the _first_ castle that are drawn upside down if you look close enough. Easy to miss or dismiss as something else, then you see the 2nd castle and it's like "woah, that was done that way on purpose!?"

[@RobsterCWell]

@@Dhalin Yeah the room where you fight Shaft. I was blown away.

[@Dhalin]

@@RobsterCWell That's not the only place. Look closely at the statues in the room where you fight Cerberus/Death. Or the very top of that room with the big corpse pile (where you later find Galamoth).

[@BNT461]

I played this game 25 years ago and still remember the howling of the wolf and the music kicking in as you enter the castle...one of the best games ever made

[@HMAcademia]

It's just engraved in our minds. I play the game once every 5 or 6 years just to capture the feeling again.

[@DjDizzy216]

22:53 fun fact. Alucard's thought bubble is Trevor Belmont from Castlevania 3, who is Richter's ancestor. Alucard hasn't met Richter Belmont (yet) so Trevor is the only Belmont he knows because Alucard and Trevor were on the Castlevania 3 adventure together. [edited for punctuation]

[@shepherdsgamingrun]

His actual thought: "Just when things could not get worse, it's Trevor Belmont."

[@TheDeathMare]

Which makes the anime essentially Castlevania 3 now that I think about it and the new season announced would be their version of Rondo of blood I guess since its Richter as the MC EDIT: I wrote symphony of blood instead of Rondo of Blood because im bad and the video title tainted my mind

[@edgytheedgehog8618]

@@TheDeathMare Uh... yes. It's always been very explicitly a Castlevania 3/Curse of Darkness adaptation.

[@purwantiallan5089]

​@@edgytheedgehog8618even in 2024, Castlevania Symphony of the Night is as amazing as even DMC5. Even the overall game difficulty is as brutal as Dark Souls 1 to 3 and 2020 demons souls.

[@Tenchigumi]

This all reminds me of how the Lords of Shadow reboot ended up turning Trevor INTO Alucard.

[@BackhandOfTheGods]

28:41 "Possibly the most overpowered weapon" Me: laughs in Crissaegrim

[@rollandstoneberg5748]

I remember farming up two of those for juicy dual wield button rolling goodness ❤️

[@looneychikun7242]

Dammit, I came to comments to say this lol

[@Maestercbr]

I like to see I'm not the only one who spent HOURS at the library to get this OP masterpiece of a weapon... x2 It absolutely trivializes the rest of the game. And if you also skiped Death at the start of the game, it is basicaly a walk in the park (I don't recomend doing it in your first playthrough, tho)

[@moxdonalds925]

Me: Laughs in Shield Rod + Alucard Shield

[@looneychikun7242]

Crissagrim disables XP gaining when you have it equipped fyi But yeah, HOURS in the library… run forward into room, kill ghost, back step out of the room… can’t count how many times I saw it drop but had already hit back step out of habit

[@Crowley9]

"What is a man? A miserable little pile of secrets!" Comes from French novelist André Malraux, who wrote that in his autobiography Antimémoires, published in 1967.

[@crysosisback7115]

Since you taught me that bit of trivia, as a french guy, i'll ad this : The entire quote is that : "Pour l'essentiel, l'homme est ce qu'il cache : un misérable petit tas de secrets." Which pretty much translates to :"For the most part (or, what "only matters" kinda), a man is what he's hiding : a miserable little pile of secrets. Surprised they didn't just use the entire quote, would've been even better

[@Crowley9]

@@crysosisback7115 I find interesting the wider context in the text. Malraux is not using that phrase straight as if he himself believed it. He is commenting on the mentality of digging up the slightest misdeeds someone has done in the past and then presenting them in the public like they are what defines the person. A person is reduced to what secrets they harbor.

[@Shalakor]

@@crysosisback7115 They probably didn't use the full quote because it was translated from French, to Japanese, and then into English. Or, it was dropped in there by the English translators while they had limited line space to fill. Not going to look up which one was the case right now, even if it is an interesting topic. ...Could be on purpose, and it's as simple as Dracula being the kind of personality that likes to be seen as cultured yet will only use the part of the quote that supports his worldview. Which is almost definitely how Capcom Dracula is.

[@riptors9777]

@@Crowley9 Cancel culture then?

[@SeanScorpion]

I though I knew everything about this game. Thanks :)

[@Susiruhtinas]

SotN is not just good, it is a masterpiece. One the greatest games ever made.

[@PeachDragon_]

I wish it was on steam

[@chfrankc]

​@@PeachDragon_I wish it was on Switch. It would be perfect. But yeah, Steam also! Stop being cowards Konami! YAAAAAHHHHH!!!! KONAMIIIIII!!!!

[@TheBathrobeWizard]

It made the metroid style game into the MetroidVania style game

[@christopherthompson8454]

SotN is an ok game. Calling it a masterpiece is like saying Madden is the creme de la creme of football games. Ocarina of Time, Goldeneye, Twilight Princess, Mario 64, RE2 64, RE4, Breath of the Wild these games are masterpieces. Masterpieces change the game they innovate. They don't go back to a simpler era. This is such a member berries game.

[@canontheory]

@@christopherthompson8454 I don’t think breath of the wild is a masterpiece

[@thetastytango7374]

It's worth noting that the five bosses in the inverted castle that give you the pieces of Vlad are the five original bosses in the very first Castlevania.

[@ARStudios2000]

I noticed that! It was a fun detail

[@purwantiallan5089]

​@@ARStudios2000still a very fun detail even in 2024.

[@jamariscollie1045]

Also, the pieces of Vlad are the same ones from Castlevania 2. The parts Simon needed to destroy to stop Dracula's Curse

[@danielnidhiry5796]

and one of the optional bosses in the inverted castle is the playable characters in castlevania 3

[@Seyryo]

This game was, is, and will forever be a masterpiece. Ayami Kojimas artwork, magnificent. And the music, still stunning.

[@JJMRA]

Sorry but is not a masterpiece the game is Good but all Castlevania games are good

[@wudly9195]

@@JJMRA If Symphony of the night isn't a masterpiece then what game is??

[@TheloniusIcy]

@@JJMRA sotn is still the best one

[@MisterSpaceGhost]

@@JJMRA Your stupid is showing put that away you're embarrassing yourself

[@GodwynDi]

@@wudly9195 I'm waiting for a reply on that as well.

[@Orchestructive]

"I now have to kill this boss taking exactly no hits or I fail..." Welcome to Koji Igarashi's design philosophy on enemy encounters. The devs had to prove you could beat a boss without taking damage or he wouldn't approve the design.

[@RedRobinTitan]

That's honestly amazing to think about. It's an interesting way to develop boss battles, and makes me wonder if that would make more boss encounters a bigger deal in other games too?

[@mortaneus]

@@RedRobinTitan What's even more fun...you start the Alucard part of the game with substantial *permanent* stat boosts depending on how well you do the Richter fight at the beginning. The best stats come from beating Dracula without picking up a single item nor getting hit once. And it's a *big* upgrade.

[@adoringfan1226]

This is a brilliant design philosophy

[@balthazar579]

@@mortaneus That is absolutely amazing

[@Orchestructive]

@@adoringfan1226 Brilliant in its simplicity. "You can make this as hard as you want but you have to prove you can beat it without taking damage." It's just so freeing and at the same time responsible.

[@EgaoKage]

It's probably for the best that you didn't happen upon the dropped-item, *Muramasa.* This is a sword which gains levels as it "drinks blood". Your level-cap is 99. Muramasa's level-cap is 999. Fear-not, if does level up significantly faster than you do, when focused on. And it is _weirdly hypnotic_ to level this sword up. A dazzling array of bloody trails make patterns though the air, in the blade's wake. These bloody trails signify its AOE area. Not only does its attack-strength grow as it levels up; so does the size of its AOE! Not long into leveling this sword, it will hit _everything in front of you; several meters out._ If this weren't enough, it's _very fast_ and grants you permanent *Dark Metamorphosis;* which includes that awesome pulsating bloody aura. This effect does benefit from any accessory-items that would normally enhance said ability.

[@EgaoKage]

@@lVl_A_L_B_O_R_O That's a good place to gain a few starter-levels. The room with all the squids, in the inverted castle, is good too. But the _real_ grind-spot is a narrow vertical room in the inverted castle where a very fast stream of Medusa heads comes straight at you. The flow is always from the "farther-side" of the room (in relation to where you're standing). So just put your back to the wall and swing-away! I made an AutoHotkey script to loop controller input to Mednafen (emulator), so it can run indefinitely, hands-free, at 12X speed. But rubber-bands on a controller with turbo buttons works too, if you're on real hardware. After about a week of this, my Muramasa hit Level 999. Realistically though, anything over Level ~200 is over-kill. I just went to level 999 to see how long that would take; which requires a 2nd play-through to even test. And yes, there is a way to transfer the Muramasa from your 1st play-through to your 2nd play-through, without cheating.

[@RuinaLux]

Muramasa takes hours of grinding to get significantly strong, so for a casual playthrough (which his definitely was,) he'd never really see it as a notable weapon. I'd say Mourneblade or Crissaegrim would have really changed his experience. It's odd hearing someone talk about how hard the game is, but him saying the Combat Knife is among the most broken weapons in the game makes it clear why he felt that way.

[@BasicWorldbuilder]

You just gave me PTSD of the GameFAQS forum wars about Muramasa vs Crissaegrim. Don't use either is the real answer 😄 Alucart or bust baby

[@crispydankmemes958]

@@RuinaLux I got a crissaegrim drop on my first playthrough by complete luck as I went in blind playing through the game other than I knew beforehand how to get to the inverted castle so I could experience the whole game. Trivialized the entire rest of the game and just had me laughing at the fact that it was so ridiculously powerful

[@knighty8975]

It a good thing he didnt find the shield rod + allucard shield lol

[@Dogasupreme]

That dude in Alucard's Thought-Bubble is actually Trevor Belmont, from Castlevania 3. Which is also the first game, to my knowledge, that lets you play as Alucard.

[@william_.575]

wym first game

[@Demoncradle]

@@william_.575the first game that had Alucard as a playable character. If you beat him in the stage where he is a boss you can use him to switch out with Trevor for the rest of the game. He’s the most out of the way companion to get

[@purwantiallan5089]

​@@DemoncradleTrevor is also a bit more powerful than Alucard.

[@jamariscollie1045]

Yep. The whole joke of the conversation is Maria is thinking of Richter Belmont, Alucard thinks of Trevor because he doesn't know Richter, but he knows Trevor. I grinned like a fool seeing it my first time. ♥

[@AndreJHoward]

I was 16 when it was released and a friend and I got it and played through to the bad ending and only a month later did we find out we didn't beat it. So over the summer we just kept grinding and finally figured everything out. No magazines or internet walkthroughs just playing and playing and playing. This game is a love letter to my childhood and honestly taught me about hard work when I needed it most.

[@Alamyst2011]

I had the same exp. Played it with a friend. Beat it. Then heard rumors of a second castle but no one knew how. We played till we figured everything out.

[@AndreJHoward]

@@Alamyst2011 Those were fun days :) I feel like the internet robs kids these days of some of the patient childlike wonder moments we had. I'm sure they get it in another way.

[@WithScienceAsMySheperd]

yup this was amazing to get back then. This and diablo were the top adventure / action RPGs with Secret of Mana from the 1990s

[@mitchellscanga747]

Honestly the fact that you walk up to Richter and straight up murder him and the game just ends tipped me off. Not only that but the fight was way too easy for a final boss. Plus if you listened to Maria she kind of drops some hints too. It was always kind of suprising that people never realized what was so blatantly obvious to me, but I guess videogames are basically a second language to me.

[@generationzero787]

@@mitchellscanga747 Wow man. You're so special.

[@RH_-_]

You can make it across the "stupid collapsing bridge from earlier" with the "useless" wolf form. Wolf form is awesome once you can run and do damage, makes farming some areas very easy.

[@ratix98]

RIP YOUR MP

[@onanisland6813]

It can also do glitch jumps too

[@JordanKenneth330]

I never used the wolf when I played. I tried it, it was bad, I didn't try it again.

[@Rodgerwilco91]

Yeah it’s annoying how he dismisses so many things in the game.

[@hangc10]

You don’t need a wolf. A regular jump can make it.

[@LionmightOfficial]

This is such a nostalgic watch, and also I love this format instead of overlong Let's Plays. Great job!

[@ReaverPrime]

It's invigorating to see someone take on an absolute classic with a totally fresh, untainted view. And now you understand why so many people over the years have heaped praise on this game.

[@ArakDBlade]

I kinda envy him. I wish I could pay this for the first time again.

[@AdonanS]

What's a tainted view?

[@euchale]

@@ArakDBlade While I agree on this game, I have played many games that people call a "Flawless gem" and they have aged very poorly. Hard to imagine why people love the game so much, when you play them without nostalgia googles and are less likely to put up with the bullshit a lot of these older games have.

[@ArakDBlade]

@@euchale oh for certain. There are games I've loved that ill freely acknowledge I'd be unlikely to get into if I picked them up for the first time today. Morrowind comes to mind. It's what makes games like this that dont need nostalgia to hold up all the more special.

[@gv2212]

@@ArakDBladeI wonder if Id enjoy Re-Volt if I played it now for the first time.I think it still hold up but thats the first pc game Ive ever played so nostalgia is at max level.

[@Kryostasys]

"The combat knife, probably the most overpowered weapon..." Guys, nobody tell him about Crissaegrim ^^

[@ianmason6446]

That was my first thought too. Weapons are pretty balanced until you luck into that one.

[@mechanomics2649]

Or the Shield Rod and Alucard Shield.

[@lokasocba]

@@mechanomics2649 That is the most game-breaking combination. I pretty much trivialized the final encounter with them.

[@Solus749]

@@ianmason6446 nah try the other library weapons the lions can drop a combat glove which hit as hard as crissagrim but have 2 special moves ( one being ranged ) and my personal favorite, remember those impaled people on swords that jump around? THOSE can drop sword that gain 1 attack PERMANENTLY for EACH enemy killed that bleeds with it. This can stack to 999 btw....it makes crissagrim look like a wet noodle as it hit for roughly 40+strength ofc. Then ofc we have shield rod + hidden shield powers and a few other things like alucards sword or the sword familiar ( which can be equiped ). Ever found the gem sword btw? it is a bit weak sword found behind a hidden area in the first castle that can turn enemies killed into gem. It is stupidly hard to get the room to open unless you do it by dumb lock or know how though.

[@soundscape3065]

@@Solus749 Except you're completely missing out on why that weapon is considered broken - because it trivializes the game difficulty considerably without requiring any particular skill to master it or any type or farming to strengthen it, and its arc-type range in front of you means you don't even need to worry about hiting the enemies properly, you just spam square and win. It's not it's damage that makes it so good, it's how easy to use it is. In fact, that weapon can completely ruin the game for someone who is playing the game for the first time.

[@Troconnell]

I decided to give this game a go 10 years ago expecting it to…. “be about as good as a psx game can be from that time.” Nope… it’s more than that, it’s a total and complete masterpiece from beginning to end. The games I was playing in 2010/2011 couldn’t even hold a candle to this game.

[@ausgamecollector]

Hold a candle 🕯…… nice 👍🏼

[@ConnorJara]

Castlevania is amazing! Harmony of Dissonance and Aria of Sorrows were some of my favorite GBA games. I only ever played part of Symphony of the night from when i was a kid. I always thought the twist was amazing thst you would play as a Vampire instead of a Vampire hunter like in the previous games. I love hearing the high praise Symphony receives since im guaranteed a great experience when i finally get the time to play it :)

[@davidaitken8503]

Symphony of the Night was the beginning of the end for the Castlevania series. I'm fine with the Metroid setup to the overall structure but the level design and much of the enemy placement is just plain boring. It just feels like a copy and paste job everywhere and it's just simplistic and dull. Any level in Castlevania 1, 3, 4, Rondo, and Bloodlines is far more inspired, intricate, and varied than the entire castle in SotN. The play mechanics of swinging a sword felt like more of a step back from the uniqueness of the whip in previous games, especially all of the versatility found in Castlevania 4. You could even use it as a tool for swinging on. Also, what happened to all of the creative level gimmicks from Castlevania 4 and Bloodlines like rotating rooms or a fractured glass view of a section of level?

[@xm_heecka.laddder.job_mx5962]

Waht games were you playing in 2010 and 2011

[@Dravianpn02]

Closest is Dark Souls, Shadow of the colossus, Okami, original resi 2

[@alucas705]

Thank you for playing the full richter and drac scene i have a need to recite the whole thing every time i hear it

[@AlexTenThousand]

The True Ending is even harder to get, since you need to complete everything to get it - Maria develops an affection for Alucard and stops him from hybernating, and this sets up his future appearances in the series.

[@DomRhoades]

To get this ending you need to discover 100% of both castle maps. And most emulated versions are bugged and won't allow you to get the full 200%.

[@MalekitGJ]

@@DomRhoades yes you can, only don't forget that you can travel between castles with the tower

[@DomRhoades]

@@MalekitGJ which emulator? Cause every port and emulation I have played there are spots on the map that don't fill in that I know don't have secret spots. The most common spot is next to a ceiling in the caverns.

[@MalekitGJ]

@@DomRhoades even on the original ps1 release, there are parts where you need to "crouch" so it registers the square. Also the sword brothers glitch works in every version.

[@chainsawplayin]

Big ups for the Metabee pfp!

[@patriciasmiley9131]

I will always remember the two absolute cheese weapons in the game. 1) The Crissagrim, drops in the inverted library and has no animation lock or cooldown, also each button press causes 5 attacks, it's bonkers 2) Equip the Shield Rod in one hand and the Alucard Shield in the other and mash both hand buttons at once, now touch literally any enemy with your shield, kills Dracula in about 5 seconds XD

[@MrHaVoKeR]

there are multiple shield combos that do a load of damage and only consume a bit of mana, also crissaegrim and the flying sword, forgot its name, but yeah, dps wise crissaegrim is laughable, in fact i remember even my younger self preferred to use alucard sword because of the sound/weapon effect (and actual double hit mechanic per attack it had) because crissaegrim was too bonkers

[@patriciasmiley9131]

@@MrHaVoKeR yeah there are lots of good shield combos, but the Alucard Shield is effectively the Crissagrim but with a healing effect added on. It just causes a constant stream of damage as long as you touch the shield to anything. (After hitting both buttons with the Shield Rod in your other hand)

[@StabYourBrain]

I remember using that Item that lets you use infinite throwing Weapons without actually spending them and then just going for the Buffalo Star Shuriken every time. Was strong enough to carry me through most of the game and the inverted castle.

[@mutavhello6654]

Yeah, the crissaegrim was unbelievablely broken, literally set the game to easy mode. Never stopped me from using it though. Lol

[@benja9029]

best weapon ever

[@flyer3232]

I dunno man. I didn't hear the word Crissaegrim so was this REALLY a SOTN full play? But yeah it's important to remember that THIS game put the Vania in Metroidvania as before this Castlevanias were arcade style side scrolling level based action games. Metroid and SOTN set the stage for this genre to really come into its own.

[@Solus749]

crissagram is probably one of the weakest broken weapon. In the library where you can get the crissagrim there is also the lions that can drop a battle glove with not 1 but 2 special moves and it hits harder than crissagrim and i sactually faster. It just have fist weapon range. Another one from the same library is the monsters run through by swords that jump around. THOSE can drop a weapon that start weak but gain 1 permanent attack for each time you kill something that bleeds and there are alot of those including medusa heads *hint hint* . Yes this weapon can potentially have 999 attack crissagram have 40 something. It makes crissacram look like a wet noodle and I haven't even started on shield rod and hidden shield activation effects and other fun things like the 8+ spells which you can find either by chance or buy from the guy in the library. So if you though crissagram was the most powerful thing in there, did you really explore or did you follow a guide/got told to farm crissagrim? Did you know that the floating knights can drop a 2 handed version of crissagrim and that there is one hidden in the second castle as well? Heck even the hidden moon rod have a special move that unleash 5 moonshards projectiles covering the entire screen EACH doing 50 ish damage as it pass through ANYTHING and bigger hitboxes can get hit multible times by the same moonshard. crissagrim is entry level when it comes to the hardhitting toys. Even alucards sword have a special move that alloow him to teleport strike ala the netflix show while being invulnerable. We also got the sword familiar which if leveled high enough can be equiped, again watch netflix show^^. The secret hid clues to secrets in symphony of the night and I love it. For a first time blind playthrough to find these things however you need either the devils luck or be in the right mindset. Also the gladiatoriary jazz song bets song of the game fight me^^

[@kilura9459]

@@Solus749 i love double crissaegrim, max sword you can do the gate glitch

[@rafaeltm123]

It was his first play of the game, how you could expect he saying about an rare item? It was the same to say that he dont mentioned that the shield rod + alucard shield is the most OP thing of the game, that makes the game a piece of cake

[@Solus749]

@@rafaeltm123 yup I never expect first time players to find those things but you know how people saw a top 10 most broken weapons in games/most broken weapon in symphony of the night video and think everyone knows them. I mean when I were younger I played through it twice and it wasn't until later on with a friend that I accidentaly by pure dumb luck managed to open the gem sword hidden room for example. You need to be in a specific spot of the castle, enter a hidden passage as wolf or bat ( forgot which ) and then do something inside and then leave transformed as something to open that damm room. Have fun doing that without a guide the first time. Heck I could make top 10 broken weapons i games from sympony of the night alone^^

[@Novamatter]

Crissaegrim, a heavily upgraded Muramasa or the shield rod in tandem with Alucard's shield, and these are just the ones I am familiar with. I am positively sure that there's more that I just haven't given the chance of trying.

[@Op_Intrude-N313]

Crystal Teardrops and Wandering Ghosts, the cavern and colosseum tunes respectively, were a surprising, yet somehow extremely appropriate fit for those two areas. CT just reminded me of a drippy, underwater cave and WG gave me the feeling of an area that was once full of avid battle fans, watching their favorite warriors fighting it out. The musical decisions made for this game were sometimes unusual (see Marble Gallery's theme) but never inappropriate in my opinion.

[@alexanderm2976]

I saved up every (and I do mean every) consumable damage item in the game until the final fight with Dracula. I then proceeded to use every single one in the space of a few seconds. It looked like a damn nuclear bomb! That is how you cheese the final boss.

[@DisKorruptd]

That moment when you kill Vlad with the Power of Vlad

[@blindsage177]

Shield Rod + Alucard Shield combo effect is even cheesier...

[@PadChords]

26:02 "and the Gravity Boots relic, so I can jump even higher, which is nice but kind of irrelevant, seeing as I can fly." This is a valid statement, based on how you were playing, but not so for the way I've played this game. The Gravity Boots allow you to do a super jump that goes several screens high, but more than that, it allows you to do the jump _again_ in midair, effectively conferring the effect of flight. While you were enamored of the bat soul, I barely used it except when necessary because, unlike the boots, the bat soul costs MP. And for me, that MP was far more useful performing the *SOUL STEAL* spell to heal than it was for mobility, especially when I could just hit down, up, jump to get to anywhere I needed to. Different strokes, but perhaps something to try if you ever come back to this one. Oh, and another useful detail: Soul Steal also works on walls, so you can inadvertently uncover hidden rooms while using it to heal. The Devil familiar is probably more useful for this, but it's still a nice side effect.

[@vxicepickxv]

The gravity jump still cost MP, but not as much compared to vat because of how fast it went.

[@DAGBEAVER1995]

You need gravity boots to bash the items out of the librarian

[@MalekitGJ]

Also, while the boots give fast VERTICAL movement, the Bat's Charge gives fast HORIZONTAL movement. Also for almost no MP cost.

[@asdfghjkllkjhgfdsa8725]

I cant believe he didnt mention soul steal.

[@tolindaniel]

Boot flying is the true OG way

[@MrKoutsuko]

SOTN is one of the games that people used to bring up in discussions about games not being "art" and is one of the few that can be called a masterpiece.

[@Bingo_the_Pug]

I tonetally agree mit you friend. Grate responce.

[@shblade5984]

@@no.one.2 considering art nowadays is a banana nailed to a wooden plank or randomly splattered paint over a canvas I'd agree games aren't art, they're more than that.

[@018FLP]

Who the fuck don't think videogames are art?! Damn, it's so much art that it can accommodate every other type: panting, music, cinema, writing,and adds another layer: immersion. Of course, there are fully commercial games, but so does art in general.

[@UmVtCg]

@@shblade5984 Art nowadays? That where the 60's dude. You from under a rock? Art nowadays is NFT's like Cryptopunk.

[@yankokassinof6710]

@@UmVtCg meh, untrue, nfts are just a scam, people who believe they legit are art are just unneducated

[@makokx7063]

I understand "Was it any Good" is the name of the series, but seeing that question next to SOTN gives me heart palpitations.

[@decal4707]

I’m going to die of a heart attack if he ever covers FF Tactics or Vagrant Story in this series

[@zachary_attackery]

The whole thing just shows how stupid KZbin is now. What's next, "Pizza: Is it any good?"

[@makokx7063]

@@zachary_attackery At least change the format to "how good was it"? or something for the legends. lol

[@zachary_attackery]

@@makokx7063 or how about people just PLAY the damn game, why do they need yet another guy on youtube to tell them if it's good or not. There's probably 5 billion videos about this game already

[@Evan-k]

​@@zachary_attackeryare you being serious or trolling, because what you said is privileged bs

[@AndresLionheart]

22:48 I bet you get several comments about this, but Maria met Richter Belmont in Rondo of Blood when she was much younger. Alucard only knows Trevor Belmont, since this is the same Alucard from Castlevania 3. So when Maria mentions a "Belmont" Alucard thinks of Trevor, hence the NES sprite. I played this one for the first time last year with the release of the Symphony Collection. I played it right after Rondo of Blood so I didn't find it that difficult. I think what made it a lot easier for me is that I found out that landing after attacking in the air cancels the attack ending lag. So by short hopping you can use any weapon much faster and move while attacking.

[@lokasocba]

Jump-Attack-Standing Attack-Backdash-Attack is a relatively easy combo that gives you a massive increase in DPS with middle speed weapons.

[@burningpapersun1]

I loved just sliding backwards everywhere. Good times

[@thisnamehaschangedthanksto8185]

I was about to comment the same on the Belmont sprite confusion

[@kendlerkendler2667]

@AndresLionheart I also played the game last year and found it very easy. After I finished it I checked what people said about the difficulty, and the majority of what I saw was "really easy". I wonder why this guy had such a tough time with it.

[@speokeosai]

@@kendlerkendler2667 Likely one of the first metroidvania's hes ever played

[@ALessandrone]

@11:50 I loved that "funky jazz" so deeply. It totaly fit in for me even if it wasn't in the style i expected it too, it surprised me and i enjoyed it thoroughly

[@Tenchigumi]

Yeah, call me a heathen, but for me, having video game music "fit" a scene is more of a bonus than a requirement; that's one of those things from film criticism that isn't quite as important in video games (imo). Sounding pleasant to my ears while I do cool stuff: that's the priority. A heavy metal version of Bloody Tears technically wouldn't fit in any gothic castle, but damn if it don't rock out here.

[@KraftLawrence1]

Wandering Ghosts is one of THE BEST songs in the game, who gives a fuck if it fits or not. Actually, strike that, just like Guile's Theme, Wandering Ghosts goes with everything!

[@matthewhwong4312]

@@KraftLawrence1 Honestly imo as a kid Wandering Ghosts fit so well in my head. The flamenco flair conjured images of a matador in an arena for me, which might be a bit of stretching for my nostalgia ridden mind, but Ill still love it regardless.

[@GoodOlKuro]

same

[@Kugrox]

It fit as far as I was concerned. It was action adventure music that indicated this was more of a casual fight for Alucard and not some hyper difficult challenge, it was him just obliterating everything, thats why you fight so many "bosses" here that die super easily. I dont get why he says it doesnt fit. The Marble Gallery wouldnt fit either if thats the case.

[@SeikiRikodou]

When he said the gravity boots and wolf spirit are useless made me chuckle, at lot sequence breaks starts with the wolf spirit 😂.

[@billythenarwhal1579]

I remember as a kid, I was probably 50+ playthrus in when I finally realized how to use the wolf and gravity boots, tbh tho once you start speedrunning most shit becomes useless.

[@Aluze]

The gravity boots are amazing and I almost never use the bat again once I have them. Most fun thing int he game. And that you have to input and time it for multiple uses adds something that later games assigning it to a simple button loses, somehow

[@Tatwinus]

He lambasts the wolf spirits usefulness and directly after complains he cant get past where hes supposed to use the wolf spirit. Wonderful irony

[@kgniku503]

Gravity boots also unlock the final frontier, the last explorable area: an old man's butt.

[@phil-c]

Theres so much you didn’t uncover too, I never have a bad playthru of SOTN and I always find something new.

[@TheDoughboy1917]

I'm surprised you didn't mention Richter mode! Playing as him in the prologue isn't just a one off thing, and this began the long tradition of having secret playable characters in Castlevania games.

[@laplongejunior]

They probably missed that because to even know about it you need to wait in the New Game menu while having a CLEAR savefile already

[@Micchi-]

There's also maria mode only in sega saturn version

[@laplongejunior]

@@Micchi- But the Saturn version is untranslated and a performance underperformer + IGA didn't make that maria canon, so the video is focused about the PSX version.

[@Skellotronix]

@@Micchi- Maria and Richter and every other extra mode are available at the start in the Castlevania Requiem Collection which I believe is the most recent containing Rondo of Blood and Symphony of the Night.

[@Cyclobomber]

@@Micchi- Wasn't she added to the PSP collection version of SotN as well?

[@IShallCallHimTaders]

Fun fact, that ending is actually the middle ending. Complete the game with over 200% completion and get the True ending.

[@delgande]

200.6 lol

[@TheCountOfMommysCrisco]

Was scrolling through these comments waiting for someone to point this out.

[@Multienderguy37]

I think its higher than 196 not full completion.

[@liljon042]

@@Multienderguy37 yup. 196 or higher. Basically every room that isn't the secret rooms

[@ordinarynocturne]

And tracking down every last bit of map to get 200.6% completion is a infuriating endeavor that I always end up doing because, damn it, I feel compelled to since the game is that damn good.

[@Orchestructive]

"The Soul of Wolf is pretty much useless..." Speedrunners: 👀

[@elisheva1753]

The bridge to reach the clock tower is also crossed with the wolf easily, and running through the castle is best done in wolf in general. Without speedrunning there is still plenty of use to get out of that form.

[@Orchestructive]

@@elisheva1753 Oh for sure. JSH really felt like he found so many secrets and balance-breaking stuff, but really, he only scratched the surface. No Shield Rod combos, no dual-Criss, no Soul Steal, no Wing Smash... be curious to see his finishing percentage.

[@Freefall347]

@@Orchestructive I laughed when he was acting like the Combat Knife was broken. First time I found a Crissaegrim my eyes nearly bulged out of my head. Got it completely by accident. On my next playthrough I think I had to spend at least a half hour trying to farm the stupid thing.

[@lancee4753]

@@Freefall347 it’s not the same game without the crissagrim

[@joelbaker9366]

@@Orchestructive I prefer dual chakram so you can have four of them on screen at once. And if you know the trick, they have almost the same range as crissaegrim, but with more speed.

[@VulgarRage]

This game was perfection. It’s like admiring a masterpiece where everything fits perfectly. You know something is good when it creates a whole new genre of games but it still keeps being the best game of the genre it created.

[@konaqua122]

I would probably agree with this in the past but then I accidentally watched a SOTN speed runner breaking game, literally. Also, the part that the lower garden was not in SOTN but only in the Sega version was a big bummer.

[@dryuya1]

Hollow Knight maybe gives it a strong competitor but otherwise yeah I don't think anything's beaten it yet...

[@euqinemor]

@@konaqua122 Every speed run breaks their game, like have you seen Zelda Breath of the Wild, awesome game... can be beaten is less than 20 min with Link killing the final boss waring nothing but his underpants.

[@idontwantahandlethough]

well, your mom is a masterpiece where everything fits perfectly

[@igorfiuza144]

"...the soul of wolf is pretty much useless!" Ha! I laughed here! You just can't unlock the whole map without it!

[@paladinplayer]

I mean sure, but it's the least used form in the game I'd say.

[@soldancer]

@@paladinplayer Agreed. It's really only good for secrets or traversing flat areas quickly once you get the second upgrade.

[@LynkBuscemi]

Useful for the library stair glitch ;)

[@thesrwgallery4341]

"Tell me if the tone fits the underground levels" Yes. Yes it does.

[@AndrewScott1762]

💯 one of the best parts of the game.

[@solblackguy]

None of the music in the game seems out of place. My favorite has to be the clock tower because it seems to be an unwritten rule that every clock tower theme in a Castlevania game has to be epic, Bloodstained included. My only complaint is we never got the unused tracks put in until the PSP version and some of the songs repeat a lot, especially in the inverted castle.

[@conorl1894]

Agreed, michiru yamane is a genius

[@nwcr_]

It's not that the music doesn't fit the area, but rather that the music doesn't fit _his_ expectations. I also expected something more serious or badass to start playing, but my joy was immeasurable when I got instead a nice jazzy track.

[@XileIV]

yeah it fucking does.... i don't understand

[@superplayerex2431]

I wish you stayed in the game for longer and discovered more secrets, because damn is it packed with things to find and use. It would also be great to see your take on Richter Mode, which is you playing as Richter Belmont through the entire game. It's easily my favorite game mode and unlockable in any video game ever, even if there isn't really any reward in beating the game as Richter, and all because he is just overpowered as hell and really fun to play as.

[@LoveFor298Yen]

Maria in the Saturn version is even more powerful than Richter or late-game Alucard.

[@superplayerex2431]

@@LoveFor298Yen Yeah, but Richter also gets that alternate costume... might not be well done, but I love using it.

[@mr.battle20]

@@LoveFor298Yen Late-game Alucard is god-tier in the right hands. Maria and Richter don't QUITE measure up in terms of potential, but they come pre-loaded with a bag of tricks that make the game pretty much a breeze.

[@ChrrolloDI]

Eh, playing as Vergil in any DMC>>>>

[@superplayerex2431]

@@ChrrolloDI But can you spam the holy *HYDRO STORM!?*

[@boondock2099]

The inverted castle always made me think of "as above, so below"

[@vertyisprobablydead]

The music in the Colosseum absolutely fits. Because you're in a lively place with or used to have spectators. The jazz music is a funky rejuvenation from the depressing baroque.

[@TheWonkster]

The jazz music has a similar sinister theme, but more bass because you're, ya know, deep down

[@snailthelostcow63]

This. I would agree that it doesn't fit the map, but my God if it isn't refreshing. It's not even too jazzy as it still has some bits of spooky ambience, it's perfect.

[@pokepress]

I like to joke that maybe they told the composer “Shaft” was in this game and they got the wrong idea.

[@665kanata]

Yeah he’s just trying to nitpick and find something negative in a basically perfect game

[@TheJacklikesvideos]

it's pure 90's japanese awesomeness.

[@kamikazeraider]

Is Josh a Hobbit, because he keeps calling those daggers, swords?

[@mariobenedicto3582]

He's also called a skeleton a ZOMBIE!

[@myfirstasmrvideo8463]

@@mariobenedicto3582 a skeleton is essentially just a zombie but without the flesh

[@BadCookies1234]

As a teen, I had three games on rotation and ONLY three games for a long part of my youth. The original Diablo, Castlevania: SotN, And Final Fantasy Tactics. To this day, I still have PS1 memory cards with all the saved files that still work. Now, almost 25 years later, they are still three of the greatest games ever made, IMO.

[@nathangomesdavid3996]

My list is the same + FF7, Brave Fencer Musashi, and MGS

[@chadharger9323]

​​@@nathangomesdavid3996Wild ARMs 1 & 2, Lunar 1&2, Parasite Eve, Legend of Mana, SaGa Frontier. Thinking back it was some of the best story telling that still holds to this day.

[@konaqua122]

+ Azure Dreams, the only "probably" good rogue-like dungeon on PS1 (except for chocobo dungeon)

[@Runictheunic]

There are also some BUSTED weapons tucked away in rng town, meaning you have to farm certain enemies, but they are so worth it. If you liked combat knife you're going to LOVE the Crissaegrim.

[@jannytrash6171]

Fist of Tulkas was always my favorite.

[@stuflames4769]

Crissaegrim breaks the game, though

[@MunchJinkies]

SotN is my favorite game of all time. I’ve bought it probably 5 times, beat it at least 20 times, and STILL find things I don’t recall seeing before! Best. Game. Ever.

[@jamesflames6987]

Every 4 times you beat it, you buy it again?

[@AnimatronicBadgerlord]

So about the music, that's oddly enough something that sticks with Castlevania for a LONG time. I remember even in Aria of Sorrow there was some techno in places that while I liked I know it didn't fit. My favorite disconnect is in Lament of Innocence, a PS2 game, where there is one place that just sounds like a dance club. My roommate called it the Hallway of Techno Dreams. That stuck with me. Also can we talk about the Design of the castle that works Inverted, they designed the entire castle with both in mind and it feels so natural.

[@mdstevens0612]

Hahahah Castlevania Chronicles Arrange Mode, that shit is a DANCE PARTY. Aria (and by extension Dawn Of Sorrow) is perhaps the only game where it fits since it's set in modern day.

[@ChiisaiRamen]

The thing is, the upbeat music still fits because its an underground coliseum, not a mine.

[@KempuraChicken]

22:50 He isn't thinking about Richter, he's thinking about Trevor Belmont from Castlevania III, the one he actually fought alongside.

[@KevinSilva-u8v]

I've just met your channel and I'm loving it! Just one thing on 22:56 Maria talks about a Belmont an Richter is shown, when Alucard responds it is Trevor that pops up, which is the Belmont he knew from castlevania 3

[@McAllen07]

22:50 The Belmont that Alucard was remembering is TREVOR Belmont, the one he actually fought alongside in Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse! (And you described how to spam atracks with the Combat Knife, but only showed attacking with it without holding up while doing so.)

[@leonardobarros9322]

"The game is more about the skill then stats" laughs in Alucard Shield Spell

[@lancee4753]

Laughs in crissaegrim

[@frankvonbismo549]

@@lancee4753 The life absorbing, kill bosses in seconds, shield thing puts Crissaegrim to shame....

[@Solus749]

@@lancee4753 I wrote this in another comment thread of the same video but I copypaste it here. crissagram is probably one of the weakest broken weapon. In the library where you can get the crissagrim there is also the lions that can drop a battle glove with not 1 but 2 special moves and it hits harder than crissagrim and i sactually faster. It just have fist weapon range. Another one from the same library is the monsters run through by swords that jump around. THOSE can drop a weapon that start weak but gain 1 permanent attack for each time you kill something that bleeds and there are alot of those including medusa heads hint hint . Yes this weapon can potentially have 999 attack crissagram have 40 something. It makes crissacram look like a wet noodle and I haven't even started on shield rod and hidden shield activation effects and other fun things like the 8+ spells which you can find either by chance or buy from the guy in the library. So if you though crissagram was the most powerful thing in there, did you really explore or did you follow a guide/got told to farm crissagrim? Did you know that the floating knights can drop a 2 handed version of crissagrim and that there is one hidden in the second castle as well? Heck even the hidden moon rod have a special move that unleash 5 moonshards projectiles covering the entire screen EACH doing 50 ish damage as it pass through ANYTHING and bigger hitboxes can get hit multible times by the same moonshard. crissagrim is entry level when it comes to the hardhitting toys. Even alucards sword have a special move that alloow him to teleport strike ala the netflix show while being invulnerable. We also got the sword familiar which if leveled high enough can be equiped, the more level th emore sword power. The secret hid clues to secrets in symphony of the night and I love it. For a first time blind playthrough to find these things however you need either the devils luck or be in the right mindset.

[@Solus749]

@@ElShogoso nah you just got outtrumped in knowledge of the game, don't be salty. Sheild rod+ alucard shield for example kills dracula in 5-6 ish secunds while lifestealing. The blood drinking sword I mentioned if high enough damage value max is 999 can do it in 3 or so swings. If you swing the crissagrim and it have attackvalue of say 150-160 ish. Levels+other gear etc...and crissacrim swings 3 times per attack that is 450 attackpower. The blooddrinker sword caps at 999 so a single swing from that can do double the damage of 3 crissagrim swings. Like I said crissagrim is entry level . edit just for fun did you know nerd is just someone who knows details....yes sportfans that can qoute the last 6 years of league plays are just sport nerds. So how would that actually hurt me as I rather see it as an acknowledgment of my know how rather than a slur?

[@jeromefournier9667]

@@Solus749 The power of the Crissaegrim is not in it's pure damage output, it's in the "set it and forget it" nature of the weapon, there's no spell, no weapon switching... you just press A, walk forward and everything dies. The other weapons are more powerful but none of them match the Crissaegrim in pure effortless gameplay (outside of bosses at least) and that is a better "counter" to the "skill based gameplay" idea of the video, at least in my opinion.

[@Animosity00]

As an old dude, I've seen the rise and fall of so many "best game"s. SoTN though, it's just SO GOOD. I am really glad that younger gamers are exposed to it. Nostalgia plays a lot of tricks with our brains, but some games just mechanically stand up.

[@D-Nova]

Imho, unlike with early 3D games like OoT, SM64 and Spyro, the developers of SotN actually made a smart move by staying 2D. I find it quite difficult getting into early 3D games without a big dose of nostalgia. But by the time SotN came out, we had already mastered what makes a good 2D Jump 'n' Run. As a result, games like SotN feel nowehere near as dated as og Spyro or SM64 for example. Heck, I've met people who love Zelda but just couldn't get into OoT because they started with SS and going back to og OoT gives them a headache. The same people however love AlttP and other old SNES games. SotN feels like a modern retro game. It doesn't feel dated in its mechanics nor its presentation. (Aside from the CGI cutscenes, but those are so far in between that they really do not matter much.)

[@asdfghjkllkjhgfdsa8725]

I highly recommend hollow knight

[@Skellotronix]

@@D-Nova Try the original Tomb Raider games. They are on PC as well but graphics be damned are they not still some of the best games ever made. Blows Uncharted away besides graphics and combat of course. But even the reboots of Tomb Raider can't seem to get as close as the original 3.

[@darandomone1365]

Just goes to show what's really great

[@LivingGuy484]

I agree, and I think that if you give it at least 30/35 minutes, you would really fall in love with Hollow Knight. It is a wonderful metroidvania, with such a great sense of exploration Or, I I think you would probably like Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night. It's basically a spiritual successor to SotN and has elements from Aria/Dawn of Sorrow. The music was great and the gameplay becomes more fluid as you get used to it. If you ever get a chance to try those games, let us know what you think!

[@djzl05l]

I chuckled and liked and subscribed. Thank you algorithm for showing me your channel

[@jorgevespucci9878]

I honestly think the sound track fits perfectly at every point, it is both atmospheric and iconic.

[@AndrewScott1762]

💯👌🏻

[@FelOld]

I love this soundtrack, one of the best in videogame history.

[@LOLFLUSHDRAW]

The soundtrack is rivaled only by final fantasy 7 for best soundtrack of all time in my opinion

[@HiNRGboy]

@@LOLFLUSHDRAW must've never heard Streets Of Rage 2, Knuckles Chaotix, Shinobi 3 soundtracks then

[@crysosisback7115]

Disagree with the fact it fits, wandering ghosts makes no sense in a coliseum And yet, it's my god damn favorite track of the game, sometimes it's just so good that you don't even give a shit about immersion... Castlevania games never were about immersion and story, but mostly about a cool guy beating the shit out of dracula and his minions over some cool BGM

[@aintijustthecutest3863]

There's nothing better, for a veteran gamer, to hear someone articulately review and praise a childhood game you dearly love. Thank you for this!

[@supersunpass3000]

I would agree this guy's is very articulate but he breezed through 30% of a game by cheesing mechanics. I would consider this half a review at best lol

[@bannin]

Ah, "Wandering Ghosts" and "Crystal Teardrops", two of my favourite tracks from the game. To answer your questions Josh, yes, actually I think these tracks fit the atmosphere tremendously. They have nice basslines which may sound too groovy at first, but the tracks still have a certain melancholy to them. With her Castlevania music, Michiru Yamane pushed what game soundtracks were expected to be like, in my opinion. SotN left a huge impression on me as a kid that way. The organ part from Crystal Teardrops is one of the most goth-y things about the game. But I've run through the game numerous times and these tracks are probably one of those aspects that grow on you the more you're exposed to them. Edit: Typos.

[@riptors9777]

Wandering ghosts especially evokes the image of Antique through the lyra parts, warriors fighting heroic duels in the sand of the arena, the showbizz of it all and ofcourse theres a certain dark twist to it inbetween. Wich all fits the theme of a Colloseum run by undead monsters and echoes of the past quite well.

[@bannin]

@@riptors9777 Nicely put! Each track, from it's title to the actual music itself, somehow tells a story (or evokes images of one) in the mind of the listener. No wonder SotN has one of the most beloved soundtracks in video gaming. A huge number of people regularly seem to mention SotN when it comes to discussing favourites, at least.

[@riptors9777]

@@bannin Its a shame that the music in games nowadays is more of an afterthought instead of a center piece that is an integral part of the whole experience. Megaman X or Super Metroid for example are great games made even better by their soundtrack. Secret of mana had some pieces that really pull your heartstrings. It seems that nowadays creating these kinds of soundtracks has somewhat become a lost art and honestly i usually just mute ingame music nowadays cause its forgettable and at worst simply annoying. I would never mute the music in any of the aforementioned games or SotN though.

[@bannin]

@@riptors9777 That's something I don't think I can agree completely with, though. But that's only my personal, subjective experience. FFXIV immediately comes to mind. Soken works closely with Yoshida and the writers. He puts a lot of heart and soul into his songs, to the point where he even wrote music for the game while being treated in hospital. Persona 5 piqued my interest for Jazz in general, and the music and lyrics of the game also tie heavily into the story and gameplay. The designer of Guilty Gear Strive (and the series in general) is also the composer of the games. Other great (newish) games I've played lately with great or unique soundtracks: Nier Replicant Remaster, Dragon's Dogma, Ys IX and MH Rise. These games gave me a lot of great music to listen to, but I regularly listen to the "classics" from earlier generations as well of course!

[@riptors9777]

@@bannin Im not saying that there arent games with great music out there. Im saying that there are hardly any games out there where the music is such an integral part of the gaming experience that if you turn off the music the game experience suffers. The games you mentioned have some great scores no doubt, but during gameplay i would be hard pressed to even notice. Like the monster hunter games for example: The monster hunter theme is amazing. Yet ingame while fighting big monsters the music just becomes background noise. I would be hard pressed to even remember a single ingame score of those games besides the bombastic intro theme. Also its telling that your list only comprises of games made in japan... shows that western game developers really dont think as ingame music as a priority. Then again it never has been for western developers.

[@TheRealProtagonistic]

You can learn the spells by just doing them by accident as well. Best part is all the secret item interactions you can do. For instance, if you get the shield rod and equip a shield, you can left and right attack at the same time and it will cast a shield specific spell. Also the secret items that sometimes drop like the HEAVEN SWORD. If you get 2 of them the game is easier than anything in the world. Beat this game at least 20 times over.

[@J.DeLaPoer]

Crissaegrim sword makes you unstoppable, literally breaking the game since it has no movement penalty and swings constantly for insane damage. The sword companion fully leveled will also make you unstoppable, swooping in to kill entire rooms of enemies before you can even take two steps forward, or one-hitting most bosses if you use it as a weapon. Other fully leveled companions can break the game too. Also Dracula is weak to holy items; shield rod + a certain shield will do such immense damage to him that you can end the final Dracula boss fight in about 3 seconds just by _touching_ him with that combo equipped. Almost all the enemies and bosses have particular strengths/weaknesses like that to certain weapons, items, or classes thereof... What I love about SotN isn't just the awesome art, atmosphere, perfectly tuned gameplay and tons of secrets -- but just how much *work* must've gone into all the elements of gameplay/combat and the hundreds of items, spells, weapons and consumables you can find (most of which have hidden uses/combos, in-jokes, and other specific uses against certain enemies or in certain areas). It must've taken forever to program all those awesome little touches that the game is _jam packed_ with. You haven't lived til you've gotten the infamous *Duplicator* and taken a run through the inverted castle with something like infinite Power of Sire items lol. So, so much great stuff hidden away for those who take the huge amounts of time and effort required to truly find everything there is to find. I've beaten this game several times since buying it on release, and even now I still occasionally discover something I didn't know about or see before.

[@TheRealProtagonistic]

@@J.DeLaPoer low damage though.

[@basilexposistion9211]

​@@TheRealProtagonistictheres a name you can input that gives you low health but a ring called the lapis lazuli ring. And right before you encounter death at the begining. Go into the room where death is and immediately slide back. Its tricky to pull off but you wanna respawn the wolf. Take your stuff off and jump on the wolf to fly past death and youll keep your stuff

[@MoonTiger88]

One thing cannot be argued, ever. The PAL cd cover art was a masterpiece.

[@lordkardok666]

"The Japanese Saturn cover has joined the server."

[@budafuka]

I know the US cover gets a lot of flack for just looking like a quick MS paint job. But I thought the castle being front and center is more iconic and always made the most sense since exploring the castle is the biggest draw of the game.

[@BrandonHeat21]

I love Symphony of the night. It is so brimming with secrets. It doesn't even end with just the castle. Even the items have secrets, like special attacks. The Alucard sword you have at the start has a teleport slash for example or the shield rod that allows you to release the hidden powers of your shields if you equip them with the rod and then use both items in quick succession twice. The fact that Alucard as Draculas son actually has a spell that perfectly copies Draculas attack from Phase one of the Richter fight. Even the fact that the annoying Doppelganger boss knows your character so well that he is the only boss in the game able to dodge Soul Steal, Alucards most poweful spell. There is so much stuff hidden that you never feel like you have seen it all. There is always new stuff.

[@bmwd4000]

Not entirely true. There are two bosses. :P

[@Sykroid]

Also the heaven sword is dropped from an enemy that is only found in 1 room in the normal castle (inverted castle has them too) and it lets you throw a sword across the screen. It also has a special that throws the sword further. And if you happen to get TWO of these rare swords, you get a entirely different special move!

[@48Salt]

@@Sykroid Heaven Sword doesnt drop on normal castle same for ring of varda. Both are only available in inverted

[@wakandaforever616]

​@@48Salt ring of varda only drops after you first beat the game

[@jensenraylight8011]

yes, and i'm disappointed that in the Netflix show, Dracula castle is just an Afterthought, inside of of the castle is like inside a 2 story building, it makes the castle feels like a slightly above average house in suburb.

[@AConnorDN38416]

The soul of wolf is awesome when you first get it. You can run through enemies and jump across that collapsed bridge you gave up on right after getting the soul. Not useless at all, you just didn't give it a chance :P

[@CoralCopperHead]

Yeah... kinda hard to watch these videos when he's got no clue of what he's talking about.

[@Kawamura2]

@@CoralCopperHead considering this was his first play-through, I think you're being a bit pedantic. He did fantastically for a first play-through, even if it didn't exceed your expectations.

[@yankokassinof6710]

@@CoralCopperHead but thats the whole point, he is not making a disonest or moral judgement, he is showing his experience and thoughts as someone who hasnt really played that game, and yeah it can feel a bit cringy at times but he does give a fair disclaimer

[@Maskami]

yeah same, there are entire groups of really difficult enemies you can cheese if you know how to use wolf form properly

[@justaguyonyoutube]

@@CoralCopperHead i think you're in the wrong place then buddy lol

[@phadedfantom5790]

So glad I found this channel!!

[@daseal1479]

The music mellowing out the further you get into the game, feels like it's somewhat transitioning into the old Castlevania OST style, to the jazzy, bassy tracks following along through the more dank and less gothic areas of the castle, while keeping a twinge of that moody atmosphere. I love it!

[@brokendreams5298]

Josh literally just played the 40% of the game XD he never discovered how OP your character could get and all the marvels it still hides.

[@jonathanblair5920]

At the point where he said that unlocking the upside-down castle was 50% of the game, I just started laughing. He has no idea that this game has even more depth than he realizes xD

[@Kugrox]

He never even fought Galamoth without lightning absorbtion. He's harder than Dracula. And yeah. Everyone is easy when you cheese them with broken items or by intentionally exploiting their AI. You go into a slugging fight with Galamoth can tell me he's easy without using busted weapons or cheesing out of his range with something like spells or duplicator. Galamoth is a monster and i was sad that he didnt make an appearance in the anime.

[@MasterCode86]

@@Kugrox indeed

[@MasterCode86]

if we are talking broken stuff in sotn, there is the muramasa, which gives you permanent blood heal and grows infinitely stronger with each blood shed, the shield rod + alucard shield that straight up burns bosess just by touching them, the crisaegrim of course, the cheese of choice to delete bosses and there is also soul steal which is arguably the best heal in the game. Also poison extend mist is absurb since its essentially a reverse uno card to any attack. Oh and let not forget power of sire + duplicator, which lets you spam infinite nukes. Yeah. This guy should not have rushed the game and instead lvled up and tried his options before making this review.

[@acrophis]

XD

[@Orchestructive]

I think this music, as good as it is, fits with the ambience they were going for.

[@LuizPrower]

its just kinda clear this may be his first Castlevania

[@smward87]

Mmhmm. The track he highlighted was the Colosseum theme. I think he still thought it was part of the underground labyrinth not realizing it's a separate section. But as it's a colosseum the music is fitting as it's high energy and up beat, fitting for a place designed to entertain (even if the entertainment is fighting to the death and torture, but you know. Dracula and vampires and all of that.)

[@Fabermorrow]

I kinda feel like the funky music fits in a different way.. i feel like its such an awesome risk they took for such a vibe!

[@Notsram77]

"Otherwise Dark Metamorphosis could be exploited." *Laughs in Soul Steal*

[@jgarling]

Ha ha - yup.

[@windhelmguard5295]

well soul steal is kinda balanced since it only does one damage to bosses and uses an absurd amount of mana.

[@davidaitken8503]

Soul Steal is easily the most useful spell in the whole game.

[@smallreddoggy]

alucard shield + shield rod

[@AndresRodriguez-xd4zg]

Josh you show a great portion of the game but left soo much out, this game is a masterpiece from any way you look at it. My only regret is that I cannot forget it so I could play for the first time again

[@zijahri8285]

Feel you bro. Was thinking precisely the same while watching, the joy of discovering this piece of art as a child/teenager!

[@lancee4753]

Nods in crissaegrim

[@Marc-rw3dd]

This is exactly how I feel. I feel like I have to play this game in one year intervals so I can forget some of it

[@macdallanzero2145]

Leaving a lot out can't be helped. He would have to do a Josh Let's Let Strife Play and make a series of videos to even show 20% of most of the games he will be covering.

[@rabnessmonster25]

Just wait for dementia my friend then everything will be new to you, games films friends family

[@maxmauer3353]

Glad you had fun. I’m a huge SotN nerd, so I want to “ummm actually…” all day in the comments. I’ll keep it to one: the image Alucard thinks of when he hears the name Belmont is Trevor from Castlevania III, the game the Netflix series takes its main story inspiration from. Thank you for your time. Edit: I have to give you you a hard time over one thing- Combat knife? I see you didn’t learn how to cast shield rod spells…

[@Ifreatking]

Rune sword, best weapon ;3

[@george_denbrough]

Oh man the shield rod... Everybody always goes on about the crissagrim but the shield rod and a few choice shields steams rolls the game. The 'grim is great, sure, but the shield rod is hilariously broken

[@James-oj6ru]

A near beginners/mid game weapon @@george_denbrough.... _and it is hilariously broken to the point where it rivals with end game weapons_

[@WalkerRileyMC]

@@Arcticia_Frost Yea I was watching Josh doing that last fight and talking about how difficult it is and I'm sitting here thinking "I remember blitzing that fight in like ten seconds with the shield rod"

[@MarcSiqueira]

He didnt farmed enough schmoos on inverted library also, otherwise he would have found a Grissaegrim and have his mind completely blow hahaha

[@bronzesausage]

Great video! As someone that never played SoTN, I’ll definitely consider a playthrough after this 🧡

[@core3086]

"Combat knife is the most OP weapon ever"... At the end of Symphony of the night my (lvl 99, 200,6%) Alucard was so powerfull that all enemies on screen would be instakilled no button push required and there is nothing that brings more satisfaction than seeing Darculas true form talking shit to you for 2 minutes for him to be straight up murdered as soon as the hitbox activates. This game is my Spinal Tap. 11/10 period

[@vxicepickxv]

He didn't ever find crissaegram.

[@aloehart3374]

Having beaten this game some 20 times, it is super weird watching someone first run it without prior knowledge. Not knowing that you have all spells at all times, getting stunlocked by enemies, seeing you use slow weapons, it's a trip. Glad you enjoyed the exprience. It's a great game. There's a reason the genre is called "Metroidvania" and this is why.

[@belias1582]

Been playing this since I was 5, so I just can't remember the feels of being a first timer in this game, it was fun to watch, and made me understand that this game can be tough for a blind first time run. I always thought this game was very easy, but without prior knowledge, it can be a challeging experience indeed.

[@paranoidgenius9164]

You're narrative is perfectly paced & flows like melted butter & I enjoy every video you do, but I tend to forget to click the like button from time to time. You are a perfect game narrator & you are one of the best on KZbin!

[@surge123456789]

22:48 Maria is asking about Richter Belmont and it shows her thinking of him BUT alucard is familiar with only one Belmont and that would be trevor and you see him thinking of him, the easter egg being trevor, alucard, grant and Sypha met in Castlevania 3.

[@skyesfury8511]

I put hundreds of hours into this game. It's also the game that I learned about shitake mushrooms. As a teen, I always giggled at the "shit take" mushrooms.

[@firebreathingguy561]

Same lol

[@kgniku503]

the spit take's messy sibling

[@1981troyboy]

he only put in about 16 hours

[@skyesfury8511]

@@1981troyboy ok... did you have a point?

[@b0gster]

I love it how his playthrough was completely different from mine (I never used combat knife nor the throwing knife, and I remember Dracula's final form being ridiculously easy)

[@Ruinic]

Hey Josh much love from the SotN speedrun community it was a delight to watch your first impressions of the game we love so much. It's a beautiful game and I'm glad to hear it from someone who didn't have any attachments to it. If you ever get bored and want to see the beautiful movement tech we have for this game look up a full boss speedrun. Once again much love, cya later

[@thelion117]

Man, that dark metamorphasis spell would have been great in a boss fight if you had low life and the enemy spilt blood when you slashed it.

[@VechsDavion]

11:58 THAT IS DRACULA ON BASS. DON'T YOU DARE TALK BAD ABOUT DRACULA ON BASS! :)

[@robertsides3626]

Josh: "This game is hard." Me: _laughs in Shield Rod + Alucard Shield_ Seriously. It makes the final boss take 5 seconds to kill. Tops.

[@rocoX1234]

and before getting the alucard shield you can pretty much rush every room in normal castle with shield rod and iron shield.

[@xenxander]

Thought I was the only one who did it that way. Alucard Shield is totally broken

[@1981troyboy]

yup

[@kereminde]

Crissaegrim. It's a rare drop but it's... it's just not FAIR to the enemies.

[@TheTimestreamer]

@@kereminde The Crissaegrim only drops if you have a cleared file on your memory card, though. The Shield Rod is always there.

[@KatoCoyoteCombatWorkshop]

"The combat knife is the most broken weapon in the game." Crissaegrim and Mourneblade: "Allow us to introduce ourselves"

[@hellboundspectre]

There is also shield rod and Alucard shield combo, yasutsuna katana, muramasa if you grind it to 999, and fist of tulkas. Combat knife isn't any where near as broken as he seems to think. Oh almost forgot about the moon rod.

[@greedfox7842]

@@hellboundspectre I'm a fan of the heaven's sword + crissaegrim combo with sword familiar out for -aesthetic-.

[@LazlaTheFallen]

@@greedfox7842 same, crissae is even way too strong, double heavens make nice god build

[@tendousouji14344]

the love for the mournblade

[@ED-yy4te]

Duplicator, though not a weapon, is technically the most overpowered item.

[@merfblaster]

It really says something that a game from the 90’s has a magic that very few games have been able to capture

[@atijohn8135]

"Bosses are more about pattern recognition than raw power" Me, spamming Hellfire, Tetra Spirits and Soul Steal on every difficult enemy in the game: "yeah..."

[@dmas7749]

except against doppelganger...until you realise you can also use spells as he's changing back from mist form leading to one of my favorite things to do against him oh you dodged one spirit, good now dodge four

[@budafuka]

@@dmas7749 Doppelganger can actually freeze with the pocket watch. Just use it, hack away and he's dead in seconds.

[@atijohn8135]

@@dmas7749 you use the stopwatch and then he dies in two seconds

[@dmas7749]

@@atijohn8135 i know that lol

[@ambrosiogiovanni6952]

Hellfire is just so good. Not only as a offensive spell, but it can get you out of a lot of trouble.

[@xaviergarcia273]

So many years playing this game. Whenever he double jumps, he appears to have wings of some sort in the animation. Its the little things that make this game GOATED.

[@xm_heecka.laddder.job_mx5962]

... what's GOATED - i also feel weird how Latinos are like really Internet Advanced people and idk why don't like it lol -

[@swf_buccellati2098]

@@xm_heecka.laddder.job_mx5962 Goat, G.o.a.t., or GOAT stands for “Greatest of all time” in this context. Another example besides the one in the first comment here is “this guy is the GOAT”. Hope this helps

[@eduardogaxiola3907]

@@swf_buccellati2098 he said GOATED

[@brucechmiel7964]

That was a detail I wasn't expecting to see in the Netflix series. But there it was Alucard's cape briefly turns into wings when he double jumps.

[@poohbear01x48]

I’ll save you 37 minutes - yes. This game is damn near perfect.

[@rover5058]

Not near perfect IT IS PERFECT. If soulsborne games can be called masterpieces then this game is a super masterpiece

[@poohbear01x48]

@@rover5058 you’ll get no argument from me. This game is easily in my top 5 of all time. This game really spawned my true love of the Metroidvania genre as a whole. Very few games have the presence the SotN has. Blows my mind that it’s a PlayStation game and hasn’t been equaled since.

[@lewispooper3138]

@@rover5058 except those are goat games and this looks like trash

[@omarfelix5287]

@@lewispooper3138 souls are goat games, I agree (except for elden ring and ds2, I never even finished them) but SotN deserves a lot more respect than this, kid.

[@csl110]

@@lewispooper3138 troll

[@JustinHinzMagic]

I played this back in the PS1 days. For what ever reason our local library had the complete strategy guide/walkthrough for this game. This was pre internet days so having this book was incredible. I 100% the game. I collected everything. My favorite familiar was the sword. Once that puppy got leveled up you would just walk into a room and it would thrust forward and spin killing anything in the room. The spells were over powered as well. The spirit spell I remember helped take down the Ball of Corpses boss. What a great game. I will sit my son down at some point and have him take a stab at this one. I purchased the ps4 version.

[@sablephoenix4rce]

You know, I've watched a few of your videos and I swear to God, I love how you narrate in them. You clearly have a script, and it's extremely well-written. The 'schadenfreude" part? Chef's kiss to that.

[@marche800]

"The combat knife is possibly the most overpowered weapon in the game" Clearly someone never farmed for the Crissaegrim

[@DKarkarov]

Clearly someone never farmed at all. You can tell from the video his gear was trash at the end and not just the weapon.

[@windhelmguard5295]

@@DKarkarov dude also never experimented with the other weapons, leaving rare drops and gimmicks like the shield rod out, even the alucard sword is better than the gladius, it does more damage, has more range and has the same high strike speed. dude also clearly didn't fully comprehend the game mechanics, you can tell by how often he strikes while on the ground.

[@DKarkarov]

@@windhelmguard5295 I agree. Experimentation is king in SotN, I feel like that dark souls mindset hurt him.

[@solblackguy]

Malbung Sword + Alucard Shield > Crissaegrim/Vorpal Blade

[@xm_heecka.laddder.job_mx5962]

@@DKarkarov Realx dude relax, it wasn't trash.... it was more like NormallyWhatYou'dGetInTheEndIfYou'reNotHardcoreFan'ish. The actual objective trash was at the start of the game though

[@E-L337]

A couple of things you missed out on, that I feel may deepen your appreciation of the game even further: On the subject of spells: You don't actually have to FIND them. You can accidentally input them during normal gameplay, and once you perform the spell, it's listed in your spellbook! Only knowing Dark Metamorphosis is a huge disservice, because you have access to a regular wealth of far more useful combat spells. That is part of why Dracula was so difficult - not having found these spells does make the fight more difficult, because it expects you to use every tool available (even if it isn't really necessary). On the wolf soul: I laughed when you called it useless, and immediately found the one place it has a use and dismiss it for later! The wolf soul has a charge attack move - something you'll probably learn through experimentation - that allows you to dash across that bridge that breaks. This is its primary use actually: quickly zipping around the castle. The game has tons and tons of little secrets, even after you 200%+ the map. Additional character modes let you replay the game as Richter or the Axe Armor, and even Maria herself in the newer version.

[@TotallyCluelessGamer]

Of note about spells: You can actually buy Magic Scrolls from The Librarian as you progress through the game that will teach you the required inputs for various spells.

[@awkwardturtle20xx84]

Richters special moves 🤣 weapons having special attacks (and some shields) i loved this game back then

[@TheChiefSteve]

I love the Saturn version bc of the Richter and Maria Mode.

[@mitchellscanga747]

Power of Wolf is actually the fastest horizontal movement in the game. Only in specific circumstances does it save time though. As long as the terrain is fairly flat not even wing smash is faster.

[@andrewstencel]

I started playing this yesterday on my PS Vita, and I'm enjoying it more than I thought I would. The exploration and progression is very satisfying, to the point I never felt overwhelmed.

[@engelostermann7203]

PS Vita rules. It really needed more love. And a memory card that was able to hold more then 64 gig.

[@cookieface80]

@@engelostermann7203 SD2Vita

[@javierbastida9844]

It was good, it is good, and it will always be good. Its a timeless classic.

[@smokydogy]

Just found your channel and I just want to say I love the chill vibe and relaxing long form content

[@captainfach]

One of the most depressing things and all of human history is that alucard's voice actor didn't do any more games after this aside from a small part in blood-stained. His voice is so smooth and soothing, there are so many characters that would sound amazing with his voice

[@IraessRanza]

That's a shame I only ever knew him from SOTN but I absolutely loved his voice, very distinct super deep and very soothing

[@Craxin01]

Oh, yeah, he did O.D. didn't he?

[@PatrickGilland]

He also did a voice in a Fromsoft-inspired dungeon crawler, Lunacid. As the narrator and a boss.

[@finnish_hunter]

You mean the og actor or the remaster one?

[@captainfach]

@@finnish_hunter the OG actor. Sounds like a normal English anime character, but the OG had this unique deep Suave soothing voice

[@clarencegutsy7309]

This is one of the best games ever made. The atmosphere, level design, mechanics, gameplay, the outrageously detailed Alucard sprite, greatest hits of CV enemies, character artwork and of course the godly OST really makes you realize how damn good the game is today and how mindblowing it was back in the '90s when it released. Another thing that needs to be stressed is this released in the thick of an era where these 2D side-scrolling experiences were usually not received well and moving your game to 3D was seen as the hip new thing to do. And it still thrived.

[@sindri1447]

23:52 "Find a stone mask head item. Obviously I'm gonna equip it because nothing has ever gone wrong putting on a random stone mask you find hidden away" God I wasn't sure I'd ever hear Josh make a JoJo reference 😅

[@OverseerMoti]

The mask itself is a JoJo reference

[@piotrtoborek2442]

@@OverseerMoti exactly, and it is also used as Easter Egg in Netflix Castlevania (as many other things from multiple games in the franchise)

[@Dewani90]

yep, nothing wrong on putting on a mask you find randomly..... ssssssssssssssomebody stop me.

[@vxicepickxv]

@@Dewani90 you were expecting Stanley Ipkiss, but it was me DIO!

[@michaeloverton04]

I'd say the game is only hard in the early hours, and as Richter. You are given a LOT of options by the end, and using them becomes second nature. Granted, I know a few exploits that I couldn't tell you how they were discovered initially. For instance, the super-jump not only allows to jump absurdly high with a little button sequence, but allows basically jump infinitely, so long as you have MP. How anyone was supposed to find that out is beyond me, but it's one of the MANY things that snaps the difficulty in half. Even on challenge mode, it's only the hard in the beginning as the abilities you get more than make up for the hindrances. As for Richter, I don't really like playing as him. He can't get any upgrades whatsoever, so certain optional areas require absurd precision in super jumps and dash attacks which is really awkward to pull off. The game itself is really fun though, and I love it so much.

[@domihase8148]

I also got an autosafe moment once. I was playing Castlevania: Lords of Shadows. It saved automatically. In the last bossfight of the DLC, there was a very hard and long level before I could reach the boss. With almost no health, I needed to finish this last boss. I don't know why I didn't restart the whole level and try to get there with more life. Maybe I died too often on the way to him. And after very much atempts and a few days desprate trys, I managed to kill him. That joy after you kill a boss you try to fight several days, is unimaginable. Of course it's not a comparision to this Castlevania, I know. But it was a joy to share this story with you. :)

[@binkyandtony]

I love the soundtrack, and think the lighter eclectic choices for some areas just give so much character and charm. I think the colour is a nice contrast to all of the gothic darkness, with also a bit of a sign of the times with the 90s vibes.

[@Classic_DionysuS]

It's interesting your stance on the jazz/guitar tracks. That track, "wondering ghosts", is one of my favs because it's a well needed break / fun increase. The style diversity was done intentionally to give more depth to the castle. You saw this as a negative, I saw this as a positive

[@kidlatdakila2]

Same! I spend a lot of time in the Colosseum because I love the music.

[@JMyapiliscious]

same. i also saw this as the personality of the enemies in the area.

[@187Wretched]

It’s also very castlevania esque. CV4 had a lot of jazzy upbeat songs

[@Hecatom]

Agree. Imo, some songs on SotN are not meant to create ambience but to create set pieces, create a certain mood or give the player a break of the other more atmospheric songs. Or even be like some animes, where the song is to create a sense of journey.

[@KeyleeTamirian]

If you think Colliseum music is funky, then you haven't heard Opus 13 from Castlevania Rondo of Blood, which is a music you hear in an abandoned shipyard. And the theme itself is funky. Either way, that's the Castlevania style. Most Castlevania games have funky and rocking music. And to me Colliseum music "Wandering Ghosts" is a very fitting theme, as it does give the vibes. All the music in Symphony of the night is fitting.

[@LukeDodge916]

My absolute favorite game of all time. I loved this game so much back in 1997, my buddy and I played it every day for a year, even after we'd collected everything it had to offer, because it was stunning. The sound, the art, the gameplay - it was all just superb. What a great time it was... Awesome video. I think I'll revisit it now.

[@joselegaspi2549]

SOTN is my fav PS1 game of all timr, i love it i go back to play it every once in a while.