Ghosts 'n Goblins Resurrection is NOT "Clunky" or "Outdated" | Review

[@boghogSTG]

The comparisons to RE4 are more than surface level, for those who don't know, the creator of GnG who made this game was kinda like a mentor of Shinji Mikami. It makes the complaints about control limitations as some kinda archaic thing by dumb arcade developers funnier cuz the same guys went on to influence the creators of everyone's favorite games. Here's a quote Mikami mentioned : "Mikami found himself compelled to do exactly as Fujiwara bid. In a 2001 interview, he described the general manager as a “scary master for me. Maybe evil master. I’ll put myself at his feet. He has some kind of different atmosphere than other people. He is not big or macho and he doesn’t raise his voice either but he is really scary. His way is not ‘Yes’ or ‘No,’ only YES. I learned a lot from him. One big thing I learned from him is ‘create freedom inside restriction.'”

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Exactly Bog, I love this quote ha. Great reference. I always imagine a young Mikami kneeling on the floor and suggesting different gameplay ideas and Fujiwara just silently staring out the window and only giving a single nod when Mikami suggested that Resident Evil should use fixed camera angles lol.

[@boghogSTG]

@@TheElectricUnderground Mikami's still waking up in cold sweat after dreaming about Fujiwara Sensei playing RE4 with a subtle unamused expression before shutting the console off without even getting out of the village

[@Steve-Fiction]

That's a great quote, thank you for sharing!

[@gabrielsyme4550]

Such a great quote and info. Thank you!

[@YudaHnK]

“Create freedom inside restriction” Love the quote

[@anchor-cross]

One of the roots of the problem is that many people prefer consuming video games rather than actually playing them

[@Xoulrath_]

I don't think that that in and of itself is a problem. I just consume most movies. I'm not looking for some type of arthouse movie that I intend to critique, for example. I'm just looking for a movie to consume, to just be lazy for a bit. Plenty of people play games to relax, and I don't think that it's our place to tell them that they can't have a fun time with their game after work, unless they intend to put in the work to "git gud," anymore than I want someone telling me that I can't just watch some brain dead popcorn movie to veg out.

[@yan-amar]

That would probably be because the consumer mindset is heavily pushed in every areas.

[@psionicflash]

​@@Xoulrath_they should just play casual games then instead of going to a game that clearly isn't for them and calling it shit

[@Xoulrath_]

@@psionicflash people have opinions, dude. I don't get pissed off because the world at large has grown weary of comic book movies, even as I still enjoy them, being a lifelong comics fan and all.

[@daserfomalhaut9809]

@@Xoulrath_ Some peoples opinions are ill informed and do harm to the perception of something that is good within it's niche. If you're someone who can only stomach Pokemon and Animal Crossing and more than 2 hazards on screen in a game causes you to hyperventilate, I don't want to hear your takes on Akai Katana or Powered Gear. This is the exact plight Mark has been contesting for years on this channel. People on big platforms badly reviewing action games and putting a stigma on very much still good game design.

[@quadpad_music]

"Why do all my chess pawns move so sluggishly, when the queen already demonstrated how a board game piece should control? It's just setting you up for failure, and infuriating instead of challenging. Chess is clearly an outdated game."

[@CosmoYuki]

its great that CAPCOM always let the original Ghost and Goblins director make the next installment, even though he isnt a CAPCOM employee anymore, kinda shows they know this is something only its original creator can approach or preserve in a specific way.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yeah it's very cool that they did that and I think is a unique part about japanese developer culture. A western studio would never do something like that ha. From time to time even these large Japanese companies, like Capcom, will be willing to eat some loses or make low rev on projects for the old school devs they still respect.

[@RexVergstrong]

This reminds me of the tank controls discourse. Which, if you play for five minutes, you can master.

[@Near_Pluto_]

Tank Controls and fixed angles offer so much. I wish devs would play around with them again.

[@RexVergstrong]

@@Near_Pluto_There's some really good decent games with tank controls. One of them, Them and Us has both tank controls and third person camera. Mind you, this was done by one dev alone yet Capcom couldn't be arsed to do the same with their remakes...

[@thomasffrench3639]

@@Near_Pluto_what about tank controls that control the camera, as that seems way more common?

[@khululyp]

I am not a big fan of tank controls but a lot games also feel too floaty when playing, I would kinda like a middle ground in terms of feel because tank controls do add a more deliberate approach to something like RE4.

[@GenesHand]

@@Near_Pluto_ Onimusha is one of the best feeling and controlling games ever made in my opinion but I must say that thank controls feel like they got designed specifically to be played with a Dualshock controller in mind, it just feels right on that controller.

[@colonelsandwich641]

The whole "16:9 aspect ratio affecting the shot limit" bit isn't something I ever thought about. That's the kind of critique I love from this channel, another great vid

[@babypinksnail]

ColonelSandwich spotted.

[@todesziege]

Aspect ratio affects gameplay immensely, yet players keep demanding aspect ratio changes. If you'd change the width of a hockey field, or a chess board, that would greatly affect how the game is played, but a lot of players (and reviewers) fundamentally misunderstand that a video game is a game.

[@agt_pendergast8899]

Whenever I heard people talk about an older games having clunky controls it always confused me, especially with the way a lot of new games are praised when they have "weighty" sluggish movement or games that feel like they're on autopilot and you can't steer against it. I just sort of eventually took it as "clunky" to these people meant the controls held you accountable.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

OH that's such a great point pandergast, because this double standard makes no sense. With a 2d limited style control system, it's described as "clunky" because you can't freely control the jump. And yet with a lot of modern games, that have massive gunsway and inertia, which is legitimately clunky, reviewers will call these mechanics "immersive" ha. It's completely backwards.

[@davidaitken8503]

Any game that doesn't give you a "fixes all problems" dodge-roll with i-frames is labeled "clunky" by morons today.

[@darkridearts]

It reminds me of when Monster Hunter first popped up in the USA, the "clunky" controls were talked about a lot in the press. Overcoming the limitations is literally the gameplay reward in the games. The satisfaction you get from timing attacks properly against the enemies is immense. Classic Tomb Raider and executing traversal properly is the same way.

[@GreenTengu97]

Funny thing: I beat this game's first loop (Knight difficulty) without using the magic system. Not as like, a self-imposed challenge. But because my dumb ass completely missed that the skill tree was in the game. I legit just didn't notice until a few levels to the end.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Ha this is something I would do honestly. My first few hours with the game I was like, wow this is insanely brutal, but then I researched some of the mechanics like the treasure chests and upgrades and realized, oh this is one of those games that require some homework (which is my least favorite part of it's design). Like your story shows, I think it's upgrade system should have been more directly implemented, rather than sectioned off into extra knowledge that you have to research.

[@Layazeroda]

Bro, this channel really knows what's up. You're humble, but knowledgeable, analytical and great at putting ill-defined gaming things (such as this "clunky" topic") into words very well. Easy sub, I agree with this whole video. And btw! Mario Kart Double Dash is my favorite "clunky controls" example. I played and 100%'d that game as a kid with no issue, but when I saw online discussion about it, so many people complaining that the controls were clunky and how its the hardest Mario Kart etc., and I just never noticed. Even during game night with the boys, none of us ever brought up a problem with the controls. The steering does have a bit of delay and weight to it, but to me its like... don't you just learn how the game works and adapt to it? Instead of expecting every game to use the same physics and control the exact same way? Well, that's what we've got now because every Mario Kart game since the Wii one has used the exact same control feel. Tales of Vesperia is another one. That game's battle controls get called "clunky" or "outdated" a lot because there's no free-cancel-on-any-frame maneuver, can't i-frame dodge roll out of every bad situation, and enemies can stun lock you to death if you carelessly get yourself surrounded. When really, the game is just more committal, precise, & technical than most Tales of games. It's fine if you don't like that type of design, but when folks act like its objectively bad design and games shouldn't be designed to be a bit more punishing and precise? Definitely doesn't sit well with me. Feels like they're critiquing it for being something that it's not trying to be.

[@naejimba]

I'm glad you brought this up; I'm a huge fan of Super Ghouls n' Ghosts, and I view it more as a puzzle platformer than anything else. If you go for the items that only give score, you can easily have infinite continues... but it requires you to go out of your way and take a bit of risk with each item (they are often placed in areas where the wrong jump arc will kill you). I think part of the issue is modern gamers aren't familiar with the concept of learning through repetition and there is a severe lack of focus on mastery as a goal. Back before we could look things up online, it required you to experiment and it was through repetition that you learned their locations. They even included a super move that showed the locations of hidden treasure chests, which was tied to the easiest weapon for new players, the bow (because it helped you deal with Red Arremer Ace, the most difficult enemy type). Now, why would they include all of these design choices, including a committed jump arc? Because it is a DISEMPOWERMENT fantasy akin to horror movies. It isn't just a spooky aesthetic, they made you as the player FEEL weak. Compare this series to something like DOOM, which is an empowerment fantasy. In a game where your every action takes considerable thought, they included continuously spawning enemies because that creates pressure. This pressure can easily cause you to panic and make the wrong choice... the game makes you feel fear. You always feel as if you are about to be overwhelmed due to the shot limit, and whenever you beat a level you feel like you just barely scraped by. You are supposed to die over and over and be hit by some BS that is a knowledge check. If you don't feel like the odds are stacked against you, if it doesn't feel brutal and unfair, it isn't a true horror game. So when making a sequel, I think it is more important to understand WHY certain design choices were made. The best I can tell, it was to provide a disempowerment fantasy. With that said, there is a big difference in game development between something that is objectively unfair and something that FEELS unfair. Most games give the player advantages that only works if they remain hidden (like the first bullet an enemy fires at you will always miss in an FPS, or your hitbox in a SHMUP being ridiculously small, etc.). For the most part, this series doesn't give players these kinds of advantages and it is quite obvious. It is a fine line to walk, but something that is at the heart of what this series is IMO.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

What a great comment. Yeah I think the idea behind the design of the series, from what I can tell so far, is to try to create meaningful trade offs for all of the players choices. So if you jump, that has weaknesses. If you stand still and shoot, that has weaknesses. And even if you run and shoot, the shot limit will punish random suppressive fire. So what you have in the end is a game that really rewards memorization and situational awareness of even basic mechanics, which definitely grinds against the way modern games are designed, which don't require the players to think much about their shooting or movement.

[@naejimba]

@@TheElectricUnderground , thanks buddy it was a great video.

[@5irgo]

Now that I read your comment, I never realized I liked games with a disempowerment fantasy, hahaha. I still haven't bought this game yet (though I'm planning to get it), but some of my favorite games have this type of fantasy, like classic megaman, pikmin, metal slug, cuphead, etrian odyssey, and of course, ghosts n' goblins. Great comment!

[@eightcoins4401]

Tbf i wouldnt call GNG a real horror game either. Youre actually quite powerful when compared to the enemies

[@Galaxy40k]

Your discussion at around 9:20 about putting yourself in "unwinnable situations" is something that is so unique about GnG. In GnG, you can mess up and put yourself in a situation where you cannot avoid damage and get a solid second or two to wallow in your misery as the realization dawns on you. I've seen so many people say "it's so unfair, I couldn't avoid damage!!" because they lack some sort of get-out-of-jail dodge technique for those moments, but in reality the damage could have been avoided if you just put yourself in a better position. It's an aspect of GnG that I adore, and is really only present in Classicvania and the older Monster Hunter games. The fact that Resurrection was thrashed by mainstream reviews is such a tragedy, I think a lot of people overlooked this game because of the bad reviews (I did at first too, despite being a fan of the franchise)

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

Some fan you are. Kapp

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yes this is snowball design. It occurs in shmups as well ha. I think in GNGR it's particularly harsh because of how limited arthur is in all aspects, but it's not a product of bad design or anything like that, but rather a style of difficulty design like old school shmups vs modern bullet hell shmups.

[@rodneyabrett]

One of my favorite releases in recent years. The game really kicked my butt, but I persisted and refused to switch from OG rules of 2-hits and you're dead to the more forgiving difficulty setting. Felt very satisfying when you mastered a level. You really had to master positioning and timing. I love a game that puts you in a box, tells you what the rules are, and forces you to play by those rules in order to win. That's what a 'game' is.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

great post rodney! Yes I agree completely, I think the best type of game design is the type that is firm with the player and clear with it's rules and punishment. A lot of modern games have rules, but no stomach for punishing the player ha. So you can abuse their mechanics and cruise through will little resistance, which is not rewarding in the long run.

[@rodneyabrett]

@@TheElectricUnderground Like imagine if you were playing chess with the computer, but then the game randomly gave you the ability to move the rook diagonally or the pawns could suddenly move in straight lines during random turns if it looked like you were losing the game. You might end up victorious, but you would feel cheated because the game let you break its own established rules. That's how I feel sometimes with modern games. They'd rather give the player more empowerment than to allow them to suffer even in least. It might even be based on QA feedback that certain things in the game are "too hard", so the designers attempt to fix it.

[@franciscor390]

The "Burrito enemies" 🤣 Hadn't noticed that won't be able to unsee now.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yeah lol, they look like little burritos ha. Cute little guys.

[@rensopinto2139]

You gotta watch “avoiding the puddle” playthrough highlights of this game. He called them burritos too

[@davidaitken8503]

My brother and I have always called them Snausages after the dog treat. They look exactly like them.😂

[@jowilson5581]

I honestly don't know what they're supposed to be, if not burritos

[@seanmcbay]

A fantastic game that deserves way more attention.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

I agree! and more respect too. It got some attention, but most of it people being salty about its difficulty ha.

[@daviddefortier5970]

Would be nice if there was a "baby" mode to select.

[@NotABot55]

@@daviddefortier5970 Nah, there needs to be a "Game Urinalist" mode that plays itself, then gets a game over on the first boss. -2/10 game unfair, they'll say.

[@Maicol_WK]

​@@daviddefortier5970 That's called "Page mode" XD

[@NIMPAK1]

I remember way back when Egoraptor talked about why Castlevanias stiff controls actually mattered and it always stuck out to me. As much as I like Celeste, I can't help but feel that because that game naturally attracted game journalists and video essayists, it ruined game design discourse, especially for 2D platformers. Like if you had a bingo card for video essays that talk about 2D platformer game design, mentioning Celeste or coyote time is almost a guaranteed free space. Obviously Celeste worked well for the type of game it wanted to go for, but because they didn't want to make controlling the character itself difficult or have any randomness, the harder levels start to feel like a rhythm game and a lot of modern platformers are like as well.

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

If you think Celeste didn't get difficult you didn't play far enough into it.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Exactly Nimpak. I personally really enjoy games with lots of unrestricted movement in their mechanics. like super metroid. But what's important to understand and is not being understood that having lots of movement options and unrestricted jumps is not good or bad itself, rather it is a type of gameplay style. And so what should be examined more is the relationship between the player's mechanics and the enemy's mechanics and level design. Like in the Maria example, if you don't match the two up well, then the natural difficulty of the game is shifted and things become too easy. So with something like Celeste, the later levels should have stuff like really aggressive enemies that shut down and challenge the player's moveset. Otherwise, like you say, it just becomes a rhythm game by the end.

[@ImWatchingYou69]

Also, it's ugly lol.

[@GrandChiefSmackaho]

It's funny, in the 2010's I remember phrases like "This game is NES hard" getting thrown around a lot. For a while it seemed like gamers wanted more punishing game design.

[@AcceleratingUniverse]

gamers do want more punishing design. game reviewers are rarely gamers, however

[@thomasffrench3639]

@@AcceleratingUniverse it depends on the gamer I guess

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yeah and I think players do want more "difficult" design in their minds. But the kind of difficulty they want is really static where the game doesn't have lost of elements that you need to master and fit together into long sequences (like this game), but instead just bite sized chunks of difficulty that you grind through in little self contained segments. Basically check point grinding where you never lose progress, you just repeat sections over and over till you win.

[@futureskeletons66669]

The random chance stuff has always been a series feature since 1985. In the first game it's less pronounced, because you have to shoot the gravestones to summon the owl that turns you into a frog, and there's always been a fireball/penalty weapon - the OG game also makes you use one of the worst weapons to achieve the true ending. That's part of what makes the game. Cheap? Yes. The game's difficult, but it adds that layer on top. Which is why it's infamous. Even seasoned players can still get their game ruined by a weapon swap. That's why it's there. Glad you got around to reviewing it.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yeah I get that some of these more troll elements of the game are traditions of the series, and I don't think they have to be removed outright necessarily. But I do think the game had an opportunity to improve on these traditions in some small ways, like having some visual clues as to where the treasure chests are or having some kind of mechanic where if the player reacts fast enough, they can change the wizard back into armor or something. Overall I think the game is fantastic, but I do think there were some missed opportunities to take these more troll random elements and fit them into a more natural style of difficulty design ha.

[@then1533]

Great review of a game that is great for the reasons you mentioned. Currently playing Locomolito's Cursed Castilla EX which is a homage to this series and also worth checking out for those that like these classics.

[@ranchan215]

A lot of people forget about cursed castilla, ex, which is a fantastic game. buy it physically before it gets crazy expensive

[@systemshocker2557]

Cursed Castilla is what GnG would be without the random BS. Amazing game!

[@NekoPerro]

Obligatory quote from Orson Welles: "The absence of limitation is the enemy of art."

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Absolutely! Wells is a great example of this too because a lot of the shots he achieved in Citizen Kane were groundbreaking and obviously inspired by the limitations of what he can achieve with old school analog cameras.

[@thomasffrench3639]

Although I kinda agree, absence of limitations made Revenge of the Sith awesome. It's not true with every work of art, but it does have it's advantages.

[@rindenauge3426]

Doesn't mean that every videogame has to be slow and sluggish. There is a reason why tank controls have a bad reputation, because they feel very sluggish. Doesn't mean they are objectively bad, but it's not for everyone.

[@rindenauge3426]

Also Orson Welles had a rich inventor as a father and a pianist as mother. He went to private schools. The guy was a rich fart who obviously had no idea what the word "limitations" actually means.

[@ImWatchingYou69]

@@rindenauge3426 Not the own you think it is. Just makes me like him more.

[@drlight6677]

Super Ghouls n Ghosts on SNES is my favorite game in the series. Capcom designed the stages, environmental hazards, enemies and enemy attacks completely in mind of the double jump ability. Mastering it and knowing when/if to do the 2nd jump at specific heights and if so to either jump again in the same direction, straight up or backwards is critical to playing successfully. I think the stormy sea kraken boss at the end of stage 2 perfectly exemplifies this. And that's not even counting the timing of using gold armor magic attacks and how essential those are at mastering (except the crossbow magic attack which just makes hidden treasure chests appear lol).

[@chihchang1139]

i gotta admit, getting trolled by weapon drops like the flame magic is pretty hilarious

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

It's hilarious to watch, terrible to play. Lol

[@thomasffrench3639]

@@HighLanderPonyYT unless you have a sense of humor

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

I've all the sense of humor... still terrible to play. @@thomasffrench3639

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yeah it is, and I get there is that fun nasty dynamic with that stuff, but I think it is a little much in this game ha.

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

I've all the sense of humor in the world. YT keeps eating comments. @@thomasffrench3639

[@HaraldQuake]

Man I agree so much... For example I love classic Tomb Raider because it has limitations in it's tank controls... It gives the game a learning curve and it's own gameplay and charm... I think it's a mistake that they added modern controls because it absolutely changes the game (to the worse) because it gives the player more agility which he/she should not have by it's original design

[@PS1APE]

Huge day for Mr Boghog

[@boghogSTG]

Put on my best suit for this one

[@TheCrewExpendable]

Glad to see Mark adopt BogHog-thought

[@boghogSTG]

@@TheCrewExpendable Oh this stuff is something we both agreed on for ages (Mark's been talking about it at least as far back as the euroshmup vs japanese shmup design vid) and fleshed out through convos/arguments. It's just that now he's gotten better at elegantly putting it into words & has a concrete example 😎

[@TheCrewExpendable]

@@boghogSTGMarkism-Boghogism

[@tommylakindasorta3068]

@@TheCrewExpendable Shmuppie pinkos

[@truxardus4331]

As a game is a challenge created by a person or group of people, when I see the term "artificial difficulty" it always seems to obviously mean "something I don't like". You'll see these same complaints more commonly used against Castlevania, but applies to this series too, of course.

[@swan-cloud]

artificial difficulty is barely a term, it's more of a buzzword.

[@bulb9970]

I almost never see the term “artificial difficulty” being used correctly. It usually means “I couldn’t figure out the solution for the challenge immediately, therefore it’s bad”

[@thomasffrench3639]

@@bulb9970 I feel like I get conflicting info. The most common ones I’ve seen are beginners traps, offscreen enemy killing the player, and having to restart with a game over after losing all of your lives

[@TheElectricUnderground]

I think there is a real conversation that needs to be had between what is natural difficulty and what is artificial difficulty, but the two often get lumped together like you say. Because not all difficulty is the same or is healthy. I think this is a trap that most reviewers often fall into, because so many people complain about difficulty in any context, very few people take the time to separate out difficulty that is natural vs unnatural. So like i say in the review, difficulty that stems from limitations placed upon the player and then exploited by the fundamental elements of the game, like the enemies and level design, I think are examples of good natural difficulty. Examples of artificial difficulty, on the other hand, are design elements that make the game harder, but don't connect back to player skill in a meaningful way. Like having wizards pop out of what should be a treasure chest unpredictably. There is no real interaction with the game on the players part here, other than the player needs to route around the concept that armor drops are never guaranteed. But in this case why not just make armor drops more rare or have less of them? if the designer wants you to have to play through sections without an armor drop from time to time, why leave this to chance outside the player's control? Because this leads to just run roulette, where if I don't get the armor drop, it's more efficient to just kill myself and start the checkpoint again in a lot of cases. The wizards in the treasure chests isn't game breaking or anything, but I do think it's an unnecessary distraction from the more rewarding and well made challenges of the game. Same with hiding the treasure chest locations. This does add some extra challenge of having to do homework and figure out where they are, but this is just a separate static challenge that has nothing to do with the main mechanics and skills of the game. There is no risk reward or trade off to learning their locations. You have to learn their locations if you want the best routes. So day 1 you need to watch play throughs and figure out where they are, but for what reason? It's just a bit of homework that once you learn it, it's solved forever so why have that be part of the game's overhead to begin with? I think static disconnected challenges are always worth questioning when it comes to difficulty design. Like if you were a runner and at the end of the race you had to solve a riddle before crossing the finish line.

[@ergastolo4281]

​@@TheElectricUnderground How about adaptive difficulty? Games like Resident Evil 4 do have it. Basically the game adjusts its difficulty based on the player skills: -How much time does the player take to surpass this section of the level on THIS difficulty? -How many enemies can the player defeat at once? -How does the player defeat those enemies? What tactic is it using? -How many hits does the player take? How frequently? Based on these metrics, the game adapts its difficulty to the player by either spawning less enemies/obstacles or make them less aggressive and allows the player to defeat enemies with less hits.

[@Steve-Fiction]

Now this was a vote worth spent. The discussion about limitations was just beautiful and I loved the examples that you chose. And an unexpected highlight of this video were the boghog stream moments, some of them really had me laughing. I'm wondering about Metroid Dread though. I was under the impression that it didn't compromise all that much. Sure it has all the modern game design things added like the parry, but it was also surprisingly difficult (much more difficult than Super Metroid or Zero Mission), and it encourages speedruns exactly like one of the older games. I don't know yet how it holds up to high level gameplay but I am wondering why you seem to hold it in low regard.

[@magicjohnson3121]

Game is actually very easy once you get the boss patterns down and parry is op against regular enemies.

[@Steve-Fiction]

Using parry a lot against regular enemies is bad for your time because it's faster and safer to just shoot them. And that the bosses are easier once you get their patterns down is kind of a given.

[@ser_o_estar]

Fair points in the intro but that also applies to criticisms about checkpoints and other older mechanics in shmups criticized in this very channel and by many "modern" shmups players. I guess we all are guilty of this in some way or another, most likely in general with just some exceptions when we do like the "outdated" mechanics ;) Great video though! :)

[@mishikomishiko9088]

The art style of this game is simply phenomenal

[@bulb9970]

Yeah, I don't agree with Mark's points on the visuals here. I think Resurrections looks beautiful.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

I think the idea behind the art concept is cool, but I think the actual presentation and quality of the art is a little meh. It's not terrible or anything, but i think some extra detailing and stuff would have gone a long way.

[@Bootleg_Jones]

I feel like, instead of the rigid skeletal animations they used, that using more static full-body sprites with smear frames on set animations (or even just adding a blur trail on some moving limbs) would make the art feel less cheap. The actual backgrounds look great imo, and I think the sprites are pretty good too when they aren't moving.

[@321cheeseman]

If they'd pushed the quality of presentation as far as a Vanillaware title it would be a hell of a thing. As is there's just a bit too much "looks like Flash animation" cheapness holding it back.

[@Harmzz]

I think it looks crap like it was made using flash.

[@qwertyuiopqwerqwererty]

another absolutely GOATed review, keep it up Mark!

[@busterkeaton1041]

Anyone else still hoping for that third Maximo game? This game reignited my hope, I know it's not likely to happen but maybe eventually.

[@evan2902]

This guy right here. Ghosts to Glory was good and Army of Zin was even better.

[@seudoquia3558]

Loved the analysis. Since the first game, the weapons spawn in an order related to the weapon you're currently holding. Same thing with chests. Also; enemies with jars will spawn items according to odd/even numbers of times you have them spawn in the level. Avoid the even spawns. Heh. The art style of this game is based on the original 3 artwork posters, which are themselves based on fairy tale artbooks; the ones where you pull the tabs to make the characters move their limbs, hence the 'wonky' animations. The only thing that bothers me about this game are the instantaneous hitboxes on enemies when they appear in a spot (not the ones entering the screen from left and right). In the old games you could use those animations to position yourself on a better spot before they became 'active'. Thanks for the video.

[@davivman6009]

Limitation also makes it easier to tailor level design to an appropriate challenge. If a character has too many options, then overcoming obstacles often becomes a matter of finding the effective vs ineffective options as opposed to executing limited options in a skillful manner.

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

Banging your head against poor QoL isn't always skillful.

[@boghogSTG]

@@HighLanderPonyYT Movement & attack properties/limitations aren't QoL-related wtf are you smoking. It's like saying that giving Mario the ability to fly is QoL. Also it's always skillful, even dodging crashes in a buggy game can be skillful, just depends on whether you consider it a skill worth testing.

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

I never smoked in my life.

[@1000MEGASHOCK]

The "too many options" design is what I find frustrating about IGA-vanias. I want them to be challenging and balanced like an arcade game (or at least an arcade-inspired console game), but they're constantly piling up the equivalent of Game Genie codes that the stage and enemy designs never account for, which frequently undermine the combat mechanics. So instead of being combat-centric action games, they've become movement tech heavy maze games for speedrunners / action RPGs with very light combat.

[@todesziege]

@@1000MEGASHOCK It's a problem that almost always comes with introducing RPG elements into action games. They don't really gel well.

[@tiagokogi9]

I started following the channel because of shmup content but this video made me realize why I like your content so much. We have similar opinions about game design and I think that's why I like the topics you emphasize in your reviews. It's the kind of details and how you appreciate every game's intricacies that made me become a fan of the channel's content. You're doing a really good job! thanks for all the rich content here.

[@JD-xz1mx]

To your early points about increased player choice limiting player expression, this is also true even outside issues of artistry and expression. It is a universal truth that in any game with strategic choices, once you pass a game's given threshold of diverse viable options, increasing options further decreases the number of options which are viable. If you take a TCG, the format with the widest card pool is always the one with the fewer number of viable deck types. Fighting games with giant rosters have a smaller percentage of them which are top tier. Chess has tens of thousands of ways to open the game and yet you can count the ones players actually use on your fingers. This isn't a coincidence. When you add options to a pool of choices, you also increase the number of opposing choices that your choice must be better than in order to be good. In a game of 10 characters, you need only be better than a few of those choices in order to be viable. A "top tier" choice in a game of 10 choices beat out maybe 5 or 6 choices. In a game of 100,000 choices, your choice needs to be better than at least 40,000 of them in order to even be considered, and a top tier choice will beat out a staggering number of alternatives. Gamers tend to have an addiction to more complexity, emotionally confusing it for adding depth. If we just walk up to an enemy and hit the X button to kill them, that's "shallow", but if we open up a map, set a waypoint, walk across a mostly barren world, then hit X,Square,Triangle to kill them, that's "engaging". Both players and reviewers tend to view gameplay through this "how complicated is it, even if its artificial" lens and it spills out into reviews of games like GnG. It *feels* like adding restriction to the jump reduces player input, which obviously does in terms of how much button pressing you're doing. But it actually dramatically increases player input in terms of making the choice of when and where to commit to a jump. If you can free float your way to any position mid-air at will, well........ does it really even matter where or when you jump? You can correct to whatever you need on the fly. You don't need to make a choice at all really. Dark Souls understood this. Monster Hunter understood this. Popular gaming is still catching up to the idea.

[@slimynaut]

Loved to see GV3 shown I hope you review the Gunvolt games some day Id love to hear your thoughts on their score system and how they demand perfection from the player.

[@brightsuperstition]

You make a lot of great points here. I especially didn't even think of the whole aspect ratio and the way shot limits are affected by it and make missed shots feel extra punishing (which was something that wasn't a problem in the older GNG games with their narrower aspect ratio), so that's something new for me to think about when it comes to game design. Also, yes, you are right that this game definitely did not get much in the way of budget from Capcom. It doesn't even have any kind of physical release on any platform! As for advice for new players, there is no shame in playing the game on lower difficulties at first, just so that you can at least memorize the level and hidden treasure chest layouts. Then you slowly work your way up to Legend so that you no longer have to worry about any of that and just focus on the enemy onslaught. Anyway, what I want to focus on with this post is on the term "artificial difficulty". I think it's about high time videogame discourse gets rid of the term "artificial difficulty". All difficulty in videogames is inherently artificial, because it is designed by people. There is no grass-fed, free-range, USDA-certified game difficulty. There is no difficulty that grows on trees for you to pluck and eat. I am not just being pedantic or playing semantic games here. I am saying this because I think it's harmful to discourse to refer to these things as being natural and artificial, which implies that there is an objectively right way to do things and a wrong way to do it, when really it's more that different genres (and even specific titles within those genres) call for different ways of balancing difficulty. For instance, take weapon randomization. Rogue-lite action platformers like Dead Cells are designed around randomizing the weapons you get over the course of a run. The game has been meticulously balanced over the course of 7 years to ensure that just about every weapon selection is as balanced as possible and can be useful regardless of where in your run the weapon spawns for you. Part of the skill ceiling of Dead Cells (and other rogue-lites like it) is the player's ability to adapt their run to the weapons they get. Does this necessarily mean such weapon randomization is good for Ghost and Goblins Resurrection? No, you are right in this regard. Simply because as far as I know, the game hasn't been balanced in such a way that all weapons are designed to be able to face whatever scenario the game throws at you. Such weapon randomization COULD work if the game's weapon selection was more balanced instead of having specific weapons completely make certain scenarios nigh impossible to overcome. There is nothing wrong with referring to poor implementation of difficulty as "cheap" or "bullshit" difficulty, instead of distinguishing between well-done and poor implementations as "natural" and "artificial".

[@DIOBrando-ij2bp]

Funny to see a review for this. I just happened to look Ghost 'n Goblins Resurrection up the other day and noticed that at the moment it’s on sale on everything. Although for some reason it’s not marked down as much on Xbox.

[@CrawlingPanther]

The GameSpot/IGN game "journalist"/blogger sphere has been a disaster for the video game industry lol

[@eightcoins4401]

It predates the Internet. Nes Magazines gave Action 52 9/10

[@CrawlingPanther]

@@eightcoins4401 Wow. That game is easily a 10/10 if not higher

[@thomasffrench3639]

Not to mention KZbin journalism by people like Act Man and Critical

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yes it has. It's insane how incompetent they are and yet how powerful and influential they are in terms of marketing and sales.

[@thegaminghubby8467]

Good stuff, Mark. I've said it before, but when you look for your next arcade action platformer fix, take a look at Volgarr the Viking. This incorporates the fixed limitations you mention (borrows from GnG) + the level design and arcade structure you also appreciate. It's a fantastic game and, IMO, the best of it's type since the likes of GnG.

[@KeyRogueDRL]

Funnily enough, Goku Makai-Mura Kai, a japanese only update of Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins, added the traditional 2 loop Arcade Mode because the original felt too forgiving.

[@bulb9970]

I have to thank Super Ghouls n Ghosts on the Virtual Console for shaping my gaming taste. That was the first hard game that forced me to learn it and overcome a big challenge. It's something that looks impossible at first, but you slowly solve it and becomes extremely satisfying. This design is present in almost everything I play today. I love that Capcom didn't pull anything back from Ghosts n Goblins Resurrections to appeal to the masses. It's something that only a small group can truly appreciate it. Thank you for doing it justice here. Also, this might differ from Mark’s perspective here, but I don’t think GnG was ever made with a 1cc in mind. I love the series, but it always had very troll-ish design like the whole shield thing from the first game. And that’s part of the appeal, they’re even self aware and kept the tradition of the final phase of the final boss being a pushover. Beating the first loop with no deaths is nothing short of madness because of how things can go terribly wrong at any time. Boghog deserves big praise here and a visit to the therapist.

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

Sounds like "fine dining" style gatekeeping.

[@bulb9970]

@@HighLanderPonyYT It’s not gatekeeping to appreciate something that has an inherently small audience. If anything it’s admirable to even make such a product knowing in advance that it will not bring the same sales as something more accessible.

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

Kk

[@Xoulrath_]

​@@HighLanderPonyYTpersonally I'm a fan of gatekeeping now, within reason. Too many things that I've loved over the years have been corrupted by the masses because those hobbies become the next "it thing." Then, instead of appreciating what they have now become a part of, they demand that the thing bend to their whims. That is a problem.

[@thomasffrench3639]

@@Xoulrath_ I just say let people enjoy things. If you are worried about gatekeeping, then you’re focused more on community politics instead of the actual hobby

[@derekwright7447]

I just beat resurrection the other day, well, the first ending anyway. This was a super challenging game, but it was so much more accessible than the previous games, but I think this game was amazing.

[@sin9479]

This game beat my ass but beating this game on nightmare is probably the most difficult gaming feat i've done and it was satisfying.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Yeah GNGR is such a bully ha. But beating the game and getting through the levels is very rewarding because of how well made a lot of its mechanics and enemy designs are. There are some sections in the game that do get wearing, like the autoscroller sections, but overall it's extremely repayable and absolutely gives the players plenty of opportunity to develop their skills.

[@PM-xc8oo]

Great video. I think the point you make is a great one. And more importantly it is somewhat non-obvious. At the surface level, restrictions just feel frustrating, but as you dig into a game, the limitations are actually what make things interesting, deep and strategic. I think that is a big part of why I still generally prefer games made many years ago to modern AAA games. The modern games absolutely have all of the edges sanded off and in the end have to pad out the game with fluff to make up for a lack of depth through the restrictions of the game.

[@daserfomalhaut9809]

I honestly never thought people were dunking on GnG's jumping. I thought it was extremely clear that this was intentional and was meant to demand more forethought of every player action.

[@bulb9970]

Many times I’ve seen people ask why GnG and Castlevania had fixed jump arcs while “Mario had already figured this out”. Like the devs lived in some alternate reality where jumps with full control never existed in videogames. It has always been a design choice.

[@thomasffrench3639]

⁠@@bulb9970I’m just picturing that designers see the biggest console game and thinking man I can’t understand how Mario moves while jumping, I can implement that the just decided not to change it for the sequels

[@todesziege]

@@bulb9970 I guess maybe in like 1981 people hadn't yet figured out how to do "smooth" jumps. But by GNG it was very clearly a deliberate choice.

[@lenarmangum8630]

I greatly appreciate all of the Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts music in the background! I love that game, it’s probably my favorite Ghosts ‘n Goblins game and it has an amazing soundtrack!

[@magicjohnson3121]

Yep spot on. They say the Donkey Kong arcade game is “outdated” because of the limited jump but it’s a stupid argument because the game is clearly designed around it. So many clueless reviewers dismiss good games because “that thing is bad because everyone says so” without putting much thought into it.

[@todesziege]

It's much easier not to think for yourself.

[@PauloCesar-oz6dy]

What you said about people don't caring about gameplay is so true. Every fucking time a new resident evil comes up there's someone complaining about the story or how capcom doesnt care about the series lore. At this point i think people dont really appreciate/understand video games. As in a video version of a GAME. Like how the first games were inspired by card games, and games you could play in real life only in video format. Its like if videogames dont bow to other more artistically recognised media format they dont deserve any value. We can disagree on modern resident evil combat, but they at least put effort on the gameplay loop of unlocking doors and using item's, the GAME aspects. Everytime someone complain about story in a gameplay focused game i feel like they're complaining about the lack of story in BlackJack or soccer. "wait wait, why do players pursue the ball? Its a orb of energy or something? why blackjack cards have those symbols? It must have been an old fallen kingdom. Why they dont elaborate on such cool lore?

[@DOGEELLL]

Resident evil fanboys are something else that awful trash village was so trash that capcom just fanservice bait so the fanboy could waste time by talking more about the fan service or story than the actual gameplay This game sucked how can anyone still defen this series is beyond me

[@PauloCesar-oz6dy]

@@DOGEELLL c'mon Village is not that bad. Sure it's linear, but the shooting is at least better than RE4 remake, which is a better game overall but I can't stand how they made Leon movement excessively realistic. We know that being hit by a axe hurts but do we really need Leon suffering the attack with no invicibility frames after? Or taking ages to swap a gun? At least Weapon swapping is fast and very arcady in village. Now I have to agree with you on the fanboys. Can't stand the waifu/furry fandom of Capcom in general. A bunch of grown ups lusting for a 3d model is just weird

[@Alianger]

13:57 Can't you see this is a genius mockery of the concept of unbridled player expression? By forcing the player to randomly adjust to the worst weapon for the situation, it changes the answer to the puzzle and denies the player's attempt at leaning back on old tactics while presenting an opportunity for true skill expression.

[@greenpoolball5136]

It's crazy how people don't really talk about this game. By far, the best entry of the series.

[@yeahyeahwowman8099]

A ton of players out there that don't understand when a game is built around the controls. It's the same people that say they want something different, then complain when something different comes along.

[@todesziege]

People wanting to have it both ways, as always.

[@gavi888]

Monster Hunter World increased the combat options players had, lowered animation commitment, made the skill system more flexible and made healing easier and infinite. It made the game a lot more accessible and easy to play which turned out to be a good idea, until it wasn't, and they had to give all of the endgame bosses instakill gimmick attacks or mmo DPS check mechanics in order to pose a threat to the overtuned hunters. Yay!

[@Sorrowful00]

Play the first one, experience being constantly swarmed by endlessly respawning small enemies that make the playfield completely random and uncontrollable and be thankful for the giant fuck you explosions in World

[@gavi888]

Or I could just play anything from FU to 4U. I don't understand your argument. The first game was flawed therefore the newest game isn't? Dishonest.

[@juan.v9952]

The DPS checks and Instakill requirements of the endgame fights actually turned me into a better player. I had to design my builds more carefully to take into account the requirements of that fight, instead of just using one of my comfortable ready-to-go builds. They also forced me to play more aggressively and seek out (or create) openings in order to not fall behind, which I didn't do very actively prior to these fights. They did a good job at taking me out of my comfort zone, in other words. At first I didn't not like the radical shift, but I realized why they were implemented after spending more time with them. I now don't view them as a negative towards IB. Having some of these monster fights appear only during specific times, however, was indeed a stupid idea. The guiding lands weapon augments also make these fights easier, but that comes with the caveat of having to grind them extensively, which I definitely did not enjoy. But that is another issue all together.

[@soratheorangejuicemascot5809]

​@@gavi888 I borrowed my friend's vanilla MH Rise and got abit fun on it. The preparation aspect of it seems weird and grapling hook platforming is not my thing, do you think that 3U and 4U are a nicer experience for something that wants the core gameplay of Monster Hunter?

[@gavi888]

@@soratheorangejuicemascot5809 3U is a great introductory point since it's relatively easy, although it has swimming which is a one time gimmick not many are partial to. Also the best version is on wii u (lol)

[@Suhrvivor]

Mainstream videogame reviewers hate hard games like this one because they can't finish them effortless and quickly so they can meet their deadline.

[@thanksbetotap]

YESSSS, thank you for covering this!!! This was Game of the Year 2021 IMHO, if not for so many critics getting it _completely_ wrong! I encourage everyone to please go play this incredible game. Absolutely worth the asking price!

[@wynard]

This was my game of the year when it released and I immensely enjoyed playing it. Even if I hit some very frustrating points on the highest difficulty and died a ton before finally beating it, almost all of my deaths felt like something I could improve on.

[@wc999]

fantastic commentary and critique on the "clunky" word usage by reviewers keep up the great work!!!

[@eightcoins4401]

Maria was intentionally designed to be an Easy Mode in Rondo Of Blood

[@Layazeroda]

Yeah, the dichotomy between Richter/Maria might be one of the first and best demonstrations of limited control design shown in a single game. Because if you swap to Maria after game overing as Richter, you'll trivialize and skip past SO many things that were previously major hurdles. Its like night and day, impossible to not notice. Maria is straight up an easy mode but nothing about it was number scaling stuff like less enemies on screen, less aggressive enemy AI, or enemies having less HP. Everyone that complains about a clunky or limited control game needs to experience Rondo of Blood. Then we could hear "Richter is awfully designed but Maria was good designed"

[@TheElectricUnderground]

I know she was, and she's a fun little addition. But she does demonstrate this concept of I am describing where player and enemy mechanics are connected and if you start arming the player with a bunch of extra options, then you also have to shift the enemy design along with it.

[@racejase979]

You are the one gaming KZbinr who has a clue. Great analysis.

[@chancepaladin]

When I hear them complain about clunkyness I want to hear the framecounts, input lag, windups, gravity, momentum, hitboxes, s. Like, give me something actually measurable, otherwise its pretentious review fkery. >:[

[@TheElectricUnderground]

Agreed chance. There are clunky games out there (dirge of cerberus), but I think this observation does need to be backed up with more information. Otherwise you get into the insane situation where people are describing Resident Evil 4 as "clunky" which I've heard multiple times, despite it being extremely responsive and reliable control wise.

[@WHYZEE]

@@TheElectricUnderground Yeah I think "clunky" needs to be relative to what the game is actually trying to do. Like, having inertia in the movement of a bullet hell would be clunky because movement being unpredictable would remove your focus on patterns.

[@tournaline3448]

These reviews and insights are truly excellent. The best reviewer around - thank you always, Mark!

[@minimalmaster8489]

I really liked this game, although it is not without its flaws. It brilliantly mixes and revisits the first two titles of this legendary saga which made the heyday of arcades and 8 and 16-bit consoles, namely: Ghosts'n Goblins and Ghouls'n Ghosts. The game is obviously difficult and is sometimes unfair by putting us in impossible situations, but I still had a lot of fun. The infinite lives and more numerous checkpoints (banners) make it significantly easier to complete than its ancestor (Ghosts'n Goblins first of the name). In terms of criticism, we will regret, as was already the case in previous opuses, too great an imbalance in the effectiveness of the weapons. Aside from the dagger (by far the best weapon), the spear (correct) and the crossbow which can be very useful against large enemies and flying bosses, the others are more penalizing than anything else , or even unusable against certain bosses. Special mention to the hammer which is particularly unsuitable for the game design of the game. On the other hand, although it is not effective in all circumstances as a weapon, the spiked ball has its usefulness, it allows you to easily unearth the secrets buried in the ground. Furthermore, it quite often happens that the lack of visibility causes us to unintentionally pick up a weapon in the heat of the action when the screen is teeming with enemies. Not to mention those placed in places that cannot be avoided (you mentioned them in this video), I am referring to weapons dropped by enemies, of course. Very interesting review

[@thomasffrench3639]

Ghosts n Goblins is like the original troll game where it has so many beginners traps that it’s funny

[@minimalmaster8489]

@@thomasffrench3639 That's right, that's what I thought while playing this Ghosts'n Goblins Resurrection. Regarding the arcade version from 1985, we can also see it like that, but like all games from that era, it was designed to eat coins.

[@michaelstorer9567]

Absolutely agree with everything said. I love this game and find it frustrating in equal measure. The upgrade tree adds unnecessary complexity to a game that should be more focused on the difficulty of its fundamental gameplay elements. It often feels that you need to be using the right upgrade at the right moment to simply progress past certain points. And indeed the RNG is complete BS at times ( the random weapon selection issues have plagued all of the games in the series). An arcade mode would be most welcome.

[@Emarrel]

This is why I feel more fondly about old Monster Hunter. Nowadays it feels like there's too much overlap in the various functions of each weapon type, their identities and their matchups against certain monster feels less distinct since I'll rarely ever think "maybe X would be better suited for Y". Bowguns probably suffered the worst of it since before you had to be much more deliberate because you couldn't fire or reload on the move, recoil and reload speeds were harder to minimize, various gun parameters were more impactful and being too greedy was gonna get you killed. Yeah sure, you could describe the old gunning controls as obtuse but the games were designed around it instead of now where it feels like I'm playing some sort of third person shooter in which you have unimpeded uptime and never genuinely feel at risk. I played through the whole King's Field series a while back too and I loved those games a lot. They're a real testament to how limitations really inform the player's experience and it really drove home why I find it hard to engage with a lot of first person action RPGs beyond the novel exploration phase. I genuinely felt a keen awareness from the developers while playing those games that would be impossible to properly recreate in current market conditions because everyone's "moved on" so the speak and if you dared make a first person action RPG game built around sluggish player controls instead of just being able to mouse look anywhere you want in an attosecond you'd be laughed at.

[@soratheorangejuicemascot5809]

Upon seeing hunting horn in Rise video, I refuse to use the weapon. About light bowgun, I use it alot in Rise but I still prefer the older ones, it feels abit too safe. I still like it but I do wish I got the old lbg in Rise

[@coffeedude]

Hard agree with every point you made in the video. I'll watch it later

[@DIOBrando-ij2bp]

I wish Capcom would just make a bunch of smaller games like this and throw them all together on a disc like some fake Capcom Classics Collection of new games. I do wonder if the leaked Captain Commando and Final Fight remake end up using a similar Spine style animation on drawings. That Vanillaware style of animation. They definitely could’ve had more parts of the character moving. I’m guessing the beat ‘em ups with have a little more money to do stuff.

[@SotNist]

I absolutely loved this game. Even more than any of the previous entries. It's gorgeous, and the mastery between checkpoints is so great. Everything is so deliberate, so well tuned and doable, you just have to pin it down and pull it off, keep the pattern in check. Totally agree that expression within lines affords the design some very unique, palatable qualities that give the gameplay depth and individuality. I really enjoy fast, fluid games as well, but I don't need everything to be completely spastic, mashy and weightless in all games. It's like expecting Souls games to be Bayonetta, or chess to be Crossfire.

[@ADreamingTraveler]

I absolutely loved Ghosts n Goblins Resurrection. It was my first game in the series and I thought it was great. Insanely challenging and tough but still fun

[@slimynaut]

Good stuff I wish they figured out a proper score system for it

[@thomasffrench3639]

Honestly, the term “outdated” not “clunky” is the worst term in game criticism. It’s like disrespecting developers by saying “they didn’t know any better” instead of just calling it poor design. It’s bullshit term that somehow is such a commonly used term like old game developers are too primitive to understand good design.

[@mzza]

I just started playing Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate after only playing World and Rise previously. It's not that old as a game, but it's relatively old school. And I honestly feel lied to by the reviewers who praised World for "modernizing" or even "fixing" the series. For example: Roll canceling attack recoveries is a big thing in both new and old MH, but in the old game you can't roll cancel backwards so you have to think about positioning much more. Many enemies have attacks that are clearly designed to check your positioning with this limitation in mind and those moves are trivialized in the new games.

[@heathmcrigsby]

2:37 what's this game?

[@SomeFaget]

Azure Striker Gunvolt 3.

[@Brunobi02]

Hope Capcom makes another one of these games. At least give us a Legacy collection like Mega Man 👍

[@Dessan01]

Most of them are on Capcom arcade stadium

[@BebehCookieIcecream]

Awesome breakdown, really motivates me to start writing more about game design.

[@Itsallover57]

I wouldn't be surprised if you already knew about this but it's worth stating, Egoraptor made a love letter about the old castlevania and how its limitations were fundamental to it and that it was what made it great. Its a good video. I've never even played a castlevania.

[@magicjohnson3121]

He has a lot more garbage takes

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

His takes are based.

[@dingo535]

Been meaning to check out this game for a while now. “Clunky” can definitely be a cop out. And limitation is definitely key, RE4 is better without a right analog stick by far.

[@artursjoblom5142]

Have you been to the galloping ghost arcade? I just found out about it and would be cool if you could make a video about it! Once I'll travel to usa I'll make sure to go there 😀

[@justinc.5591]

Great video. Ghosts and Goblins holds up excellently and deserves more respect. Metroid Dread slander was unnecessary though 😂

[@thomasffrench3639]

I think clunky is a fine descriptor, but the words they are looking for is “stiff” or “rigid” for stuff like Castlevania. In my platformers I actually tend to have better game feel with more rigid jump arcs as I generally know where to land and it makes attacks easier to aim as I am not controlling my jump at all. I just prefer that game feel compared to the momentum based physics of Mario World where I tend to slip off platforms all of the time. And as far as limitations being important for difficulty, I think the best example is Kirby and Mario, both great series. Kirby is fun, but you almost have no limitations in where you can go as you float basically anywhere you want, making platforming trivial. But Mario you need momentum to jump to different platforms and if you accidentally slip, you fall. If Mario could be like Kirby with no limitations there would just be no challenge or fun for Mario as jumping on platforms is the whole point of the game where Kirby is a more casual experience where the fun is in doing different copy abilities. The fact is that you need this limitations to for this creativity. Although I have my issues with pixel graphics and chip tunes not because they are pixel art, as I love old pixel art, but because old pixel art was about making characters designed well within the limitations where modern pixel art is focused on capturing those limitations instead of making the game look great. Same thing with chip tunes. There’s exceptions, but I don’t find many of them.

[@fearhunger3983]

You had me at 2 min mark already. 2D platformers have totally lost their identity because every single game needs to be a metroidvania with all the air dashes, double jumps, skill trees, etc. Anything less is outdated game design. It's ridiculous.

[@scouthatesrainbows]

Hey mark, very esoteric question but how often have you encountered the ability to ledge climb in this game? I'm admittedly not very far in (this game is really kicking my ass lol) but I encountered it once on 1-b and was surprised that the game even had a grace feature considering it seems to demand precise and deliberate platforming

[@rushiosan]

Simply put, one of the best games I've played in years.

[@StiffAftermath]

Man, I'd buy this game in a nanosecond if it came out physically for Switch!

[@khululyp]

There are certainly games that feel clunky to play, dodgy hit boxes, overly animated moves etc etc. But a game like GnG or SGnG and RE4 and even games like mario bros. and Donkey kong or one of my favorite underdogs of gaming, Evil Within (I don't care what anyone says, that game is a masterpiece!) all have this methodical gameplay where the amazement of gameplay is in knowing how to play the game

[@bulb9970]

Your point about player expression just got proven at EVO Japan lol. Only mirrors or Yuns and Chuns again.

[@Naruxos07]

Sluggish is a bad one, and another review redflag is the phrase "repetitive." It feels like devs try to add gameplay variety in games for the sake of having variety to ensure a higher score from the gaming media. Look at DMC5, it feels like V was added to give the gameplay more variety but he's not fun. I'd rather just play Dante even if it's repetitive. It's always better for games to focus on what they're good at. Bayo 3 would have been better if it focused on Bayo's core moveset instead of introducing many gimmicks.

[@chasepalumbo2929]

It’s always insane to me that people will go out of their way to play hard games to then turn around and say “not only is this game hard, but it is unfair and poorly balanced”. When they don’t even have the skillset, experience or community to properly judge them. They’re essentially going out of their way to say fuck you to the super small community of hardcore arcade gamers when they have the entire market making games for them. Also, random but there is a tribute game to Ghosts and Goblins called Cursed Castilla, I really enjoyed it and I thought the pixel art was done really well for what it is.

[@evan2902]

Is it bad that I feel like Cursed Castilla was the better homage despite not being tied to the IP? I liked that it looked and sounded just like an actual arcade game Capcom might have released as a spiritual successor to GnG.

[@Nerffie15]

You really did a good job of expressing why I feel the Classic series Rockman games are better than the X ones.

[@ElLoGGe]

What game is it at 2:49 ?

[@Egoryotu]

It seems to be Azure Striker GUNVOLT 3! also, a quick tip for finding games from videos like this. take a screenshot and put it in google reverse image search. that’s how how I managed about this one! Happy gaming!

[@chrispeng5502]

This is a really great review not shy away from any issues this game might have. At the end of the day, it was kinda a miracle that a game like this got made and released. The price was a bit steep for most modern gamers and the graphics were quite lackluster. But at least the "burrito enemies" didn't look like a condom now. I personally never enjoyed Super Castlevania 4 not only because it had a stupid name(either Castlevania 4 or Super Castlevania), but the gameplay didn't match the 8 way whip directions. Being versatile and having better control actually made the game less fun for me because the level designs were mostly carried from the NES era.

[@thomasffrench3639]

What is really funny is that the same year Super Castlevania IV was released there was another game released in the SNES called Super Valis IV. And yeah Super Castlevania can be fun, but I would rather play other 2D action platformers like Mega Man X which just feel way smoother to play or Castlevania NES trilogy which are just so well designed

[@SamuraiSam]

Game literally just went on sale on the Switch too

[@gamecentergarou6725]

Mark, what are your thoughts on Contra: Shattered Soldier (or as I call it, Contra: Shattered S***ter)? I feell like it would have been the perfect Contra game if only the Hit Rate mechanic (which isnt about fire/ shots landed ratio at all and more about 100% completion per stage with the destructive elements) wasn't required for S Ranking the game.

[@perguto]

I'd say "bad camera" is even more cliche, but you're absolutely right

[@LeUberTroll]

Great video. Two things though This series rewards your knowledge of it, hence why the chests are hidden. When I had Super GnG, I used the bow to locate the screen the chest was on then started to discover how to make them appear. There’s a logic to it that begins to be apparent. I don’t know how Resurrection does it since I haven’t played it and that’s because of. The visuals of this game look terrible. If they claimed the wanted it to be a storybook look, they should’ve taken inspiration from Rayman. Those are the prettiest 2D games and it would’ve helped this not look like it was a game jam submission.

[@Senumunu]

The eternal endboss of japanese video game design :arbitrariness lul

[@SLAMTUCKER]

When you discuss these broad overarching trends in gaming you are very insightful Mark.

[@jowilson5581]

While I largely agree with most all of your points, I feel I should point out that the random stuff like enemies in chests is ALSO just one more factor you need to take into account. I wouldn't call it "random bullshit", even though it is literally random. It's more like (in my view), the knowledge that sometimes enemies will come out of chests is something you need to also be conscious of when opening those chests. It's just more positioning you need to have in mind. You should NEVER just stand on top of a chest and jump straight up and fire down into it, or open a chest and already be immediately walking or jumping into where you expect an armor or point item or weapon to be. It makes even the act of revealing and opening treasure on repeat playthroughs where you have all the secrets memorized still engaging and interesting, because those magicians can wreck your rhythm and flow and need to be accounted for. GNG is a series, and GNGR is a game, that encourages patience and consideration and holistic knowledge, like you said. And the treasure randomness is absolutely still part of that. Also, your footage absolutely showcases you just like, doing a header directly into a known hazard lol. Those magic projectiles move very slowly, they're not coming out of nowhere.

[@opaljk4835]

I really really don’t appreciate how the conventions of 4:3 games aren’t particularly adapted well to the 16:9 aspect ratio. Agree 1000%. And they tend to make sprites smaller in widescreen mode, but why? It just makes more sense to make things a bit bigger. Metroid Dread made Samus look teeny tiny at times

[@HereticHydra]

This reminds me of what you said about how Pikman 1 was the only good Pikman, coz it had enforced time limit. Unicorn Overlord has a time limit & that's the main thing everyone cries about lol. They even say "Who's heard of a strategy game with a time limit?" When in reality, most strategy games do have time limits, if not time than a turn limit. Modern gamers want to win without trying & cry whenever a rule prevents them from curbstomping.

[@HighLanderPonyYT]

A time limit that creates urgency is good. A time limit that creates fail cases way before the actual fail state or is actually reached commonly and thus acts as punishment is bad. It's more nuanced than "no time limit bad" vs "time limit good".

[@soratheorangejuicemascot5809]

What I love about Gungnir and Yggdra Union is that the fights doesnt want you to milk for who knows how long. Turn limit for me is very important and I wish fire emblem got turn limits in every map, it always turns into arena grinding game which is kinda sad.

[@TheCrewExpendable]

A lot of gamers have an innate desire to turtle up for some baffling reason. Its why tower defense games are so popular.

[@Kni6h7ka1ASMR]

Gunvolt mentioned

[@TheRestartPoint]

My biggest gripe with GnG is the bullshit weapons that you dont want (this is a very "traditional feature" of the franchise though), and the charge mechanic. Maybe im just incompetent but charging is such a hassle to deal with considering how long it takes and how likely it is that you'll get hit mid-charge, it's simply too frustratingly hard to time it effectively in the heat of battle so I rarely bother with it at all. Maybe just shorten the charge time, let the charge build automatically while you are playing, or figure out some other way of paying-for / limiting special attacks which isn't so infuriating. On top of that most of the special attacks are rubbish even if you can get them out when wanted.

[@bizzlezip]

Pixel art today is not a limitation, it's a choice.

[@thomasffrench3639]

Which is why they mostly are annoying.