Castlevania N64 Changed the Series For Good | CV64 Retrospective Review

[@svdden_dread]

Thank you God !!! my favourite KZbinr uploaded a new Castlevania video

[@MattyStoked]

Thanks for your comments, they really perk me up. I'm glad you like the videos ☺

[@svdden_dread]

@@MattyStoked no man , we have to thank you for your top-notch videos 😉

[@svdden_dread]

Can you please tell me the song's name that starts at 6:35 ??

[@hauntedhotdog]

I am happy to see this game finally getting some of the recognition it deserves. It's a really cool game.

[@MattyStoked]

It really is! Glad you liked the video :)

[@iDarkLinkGraal]

I grew up loving the original NES trilogy and I've replayed the first one at least ten times. Some of my favorite 2D action games. Just this weekend, I saw a copy of Castlevania 64 at a retro store and thought "why the hell not". I had heard from the Internet (and a certain irate gamer man) that this game blew chunks. I wasn't prepared to find a genuinely good game here. The atmosphere, the music, the tight gameplay, the sometimes grueling difficulty, the clock tower, Dracula only taking damage in the face. It's all here. It felt like a proper 2D Castlevania that was molded into this medieval early 3D world that's beyond charming to get lost in. I'm glad we're in an age that this game is getting the respect it deserves.

[@darklinkinfinite]

@@iDarkLinkGraal I feel like one reason that the 64 games got the reputation they did was that it was the first 3D Castlevania, which was good but it clearly had its issues. These first steps were compared to the pinnacle of the series in 2D with SotN. Then after that Koji Igarashi essentially estranged anything after SotN that he didn’t work on. The Igarashi games, I felt, were fine but lacked the creativity this video complimented the series for up to this point. They often just felt like a remix of SotN with a new magic system

[@davidaitken8503]

@@darklinkinfinite Symphony of the Night was not the "pinnacle" of the series. It was dumbed down garbage for the casuals. It lacked all of the expert level design and versatile play mechanics of the previous games. It was a mile wide and an inch deep.

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Beautiful video for a true hidden gem! I always enjoyed this game and thought it was a bit buried because of the weird time it came out in, and I'm glad to see it get the appreciation that it deserves!

[@MattyStoked]

Thank you mate. It genuinely is a hidden gem in my opinion. Konami started getting really risk averse at the turn of the millennium and Castlevania really suffered because of this. Games like Soul Reaver, Shadowman and Resident Evil were eating at the edges of a genre which Konami could have dominated. The next generation really buried them once games like Devil May Cry and Fatal Frame started coming out.

[@orinanime]

4:10 - FUN FACT about that "great big fella" - after the first time you fight him, and he runs off the cliff into the ravine below, if you follow to the edge and look down in 1st Person View, he'll stop and look back up at you before running away.

[@MattyStoked]

That's a good fact!

[@iDarkLinkGraal]

If Castlevania 64 has 640,000 fans, then I'm one of them. If Castlevania 64 has one fan, then I'm THAT ONE. If Castlevania 64 has no fans, that means I'm dead.

[@js100serch]

I'm surprised to see that this game has been getting a lot of attention lately. The guy from What Happun made an entire playthrough with his friend and showed a lot of appreciation for the game, highlighting its strengths and weaknesses, but overall a very positive outlook of the game.

[@MattyStoked]

Matt McMuscles copied me, absolutely zero doubt. Evidently I have a lot of sway on this platform. I'm the Chad Castlevania KZbinr.

[@bucky5869]

It's a brilliant move to build a team with some veterans at the core and some newer/less experienced developers as the veterans will build up the others and you'll have a better overall team in the end. Though you do have outliers like the Goldeneye team that were all new to game development.

[@MattyStoked]

It really is a great move. Konami had followed that practice for 15 years or more at this point, and it was a winning formula. A solid core of expertise, infused with new thoughts and ideas. It's a shame it didn't remain that way! But I'm interested to know where you heard that the Goldeneye team were all new to games? That team was full of Rare veterans! Folks who'd worked on Conker, Killer Instinct, Donkey Kong Country.

[@andresf.cardenas2637]

@@MattyStoked I read in retrogamer that the goldeneye team was form with people that never worked before in a game

[@TheKonamiMan]

Damn fine video that really gives great perspective and context for Castlevania 64. It has always been the most underrated game in the series in my opinion.

[@pafoneto1275]

No, Castlevania most underrated game is “Castlevania legacy of darkness”

[@austinmckee2484]

Son of a Belmont ! Glad this game is getting attention. This was an underrated classic and one of my favorite games in the Nintendo 64 library.

[@AlderanZ]

People have nit picked on this game for years, so it's a great change of pace to see it getting the praise it deserves. The opposite never happens though -- the technical aspects and engineering solutions the devs had to come up with is something that is always overlooked in game reviews and analysis, so I'm very happy to hear you talk about them here. Great video, keep up the good work!

[@MattyStoked]

Thank you so much. Glad you enjoyed the vid!

[@jmn327]

Always had a soft spot for these games given the sheer ambition behind them, plus being the first time a game genuinely creeped me out (namely the Villa level). The soundtrack is very under-appreciated since it doesn't sound like most of the rest of the series, but the use of percussion instruments in the main/Castle Center theme really gives the vibe of a dark, primeval force you're up against, just really nails the atmosphere. Does make me wonder how the series might be different today if they'd had more time to fine tune this and add more features. No knock on Iga games, but I miss the classic Castlevania format, the kind where the castle itself felt like a living enemy out to get you, and the Metroidvanias just don't quite capture that sense of challenge.

[@MattyStoked]

Thanks for the comment! I really like these games and like you, I often wonder what the Castlevania franchise would have looked like if IGA hadn't made every game conform to the SotN template.

[@HeyBlondieGamer]

The platforming and climbing was amazingly solid for a first iteration. In many cases it was the camera that let the platforming down.

[@MattyStoked]

The camera is often cited as something which makes this game harder. It's definitely not as intuitive as Mario 64, but the camera is pretty intelligent and has multiple settings. I didn't find it that much of an obstacle at all!

[@TheT3rr0rMask]

"Drac invented the motorbike" old CV manuals and guidebooks do explain Drac was a wizard/scientist before a vampire, SOTN and LOI play with this idea too and I love them continuing old lore, then Netflixvania perfected that detail. Will sound silly but having the bikes early on, the zeplin and building models in the Castle Center and then the modern tech in the Tower of Science later is honestly great subtle buildup and as a kid I realized they were saying Drac invented the bikes earlier on. Never thought I'd make a long comment about this XD

[@MattyStoked]

There's always been that steampunk technological element, and I love it. I've not seen any of the manuals before the N64 explicitly say that Dracula was a scientist. It's been a purely diegetic detail for me. Which is so much better. You're absolutely dead on that the animated series does a great job of pulling that all together.

[@Tom-V]

I hope the N64 games are rereleased on modern consoles soon.

[@geraq0]

Dialogue is surprisingly good in this game too, the bit about Rosa and Reinhardt comes to my mind. Belmonts didn't talk much before this game and it was nice to see Reinhardt like the pious holy warrior he is meant to be.

[@MattyStoked]

Yeah agreed - Reinhardt is a real hero and his little monologues are more thoughtful than the translated dialogue in SoN in my opinion. Also, sick pfp.

[@geraq0]

@@MattyStoked localization and voice acting in SotN might be a little dodgy but nothing can beat "What is a man? A miserable little pile of secrets!"

[@MattyStoked]

@@geraq0

[@Meatmarbles]

This was one of the biggest games of my childhood. The intro music, oh my god, the violin always gets me. Castlevania 64 and The Unholy War are, in my opinion, the most underrated games I've ever played. You cannot change my mind how beautiful this game is, and whenever someone asks me what is that one game I would play again without knowing anything of it, this gem has to be it.

[@Eleven17Studios]

What I thought I was getting: A video about Castlevania What I actually got: The secret history of motorcycles

[@MattyStoked]

Redacted excerpt from the original script: At the very end of the 19th century, Daimler released what most consider to be the first commercial example of the modern motorcycle, which was a superior update to the steampunk gentleman's velocipede. But what you didn’t know was a few decades earlier than that, Dracula has actually already invented the lowrider and gave out these choppers to his raddest bone boys. There was also a bit about the invention of chainsaws. Another thing which Dracula invented.

[@TheMpo1986]

I LOVED this game as a kid. However I do agree about it being too short. After the towers and castle the big boss fight against dracula was exceedingly easy. Honestly,it was as easy as fighting ganondork the first time in OOT. Back then I could sense something was missing. However it was my first Castlevania game and it was awesome. I still like it almost 30 years later.

[@MattyStoked]

Oh I like the length! My favourite Castlevania games are the ones I can bust through in a few short hours :D

[@fripptricky5099]

I didn't really vibe with Castlevania 64 when it first came out. 23 years later, I am trying to get my newborn son to stop crying and I put on a lets play of C64. He was mesmerized and cooed for several hours watching it. It's now a treasured game for me.

[@MattDraper]

This was great! I could watch you talk about Castlevania for hours, and at this point, I think I have.

[@dechangeman]

I really liked it back then. Some passages are a bit unfair, but it's just like you said. A beautiful gem.

[@MattyStoked]

I totally agree!

[@stoozdee]

Very into how much retroactive love this game is starting to get.

[@derek-64]

I know the N64 Castlevania games get a lot of flack but i personally enjoy them, and despite the flaws i think they worked well considering the hardware limitations and 3d gaming was fairly new so it's understandable. Still, i really like these games a lot and am proud to own both, and look forward to playing them again.

[@MattyStoked]

Well said! They are good. Especially for the time! Comparing them to Mario 64 or Ocarina of Time is a bit unfair, considering the resources Nintendo had to pour into first party titles. For a first attempt, this game is a banger.

[@ScottsGameAsylum]

The motorcycle bone boys will always be cool.

[@MattyStoked]

Bone boys forever!

[@donsmith325]

Castlevania 64: Rhombus of Blood

[@FICTiVETRUiSM]

Nice to see a more positive take on this game. I should give this gane a try! I also remember enjoying Lament of Innocence on PS2. It wasnt perfect but I enjoyed it for what it was.

[@MattyStoked]

I love Lament of Innocence. I have two videos on that game on the channel. It's in my top three Castlevania games and is one of my favourite PS2 games. Like this, it was severely undermarketed and was practically forgotten as soon as it was released.

[@crassbandercoot4343]

I remember being super pumped for Castlevania 64. I had a subscription to Nintendo Power magazine and thought it looked amazing... and on an LCD flatscreen, it kind of does. I think this is one of those games thats overall design is great and with solid mechanics but suffers from the technology of its era; not the console, but the CRT screens that were the standard at the time. The edge softening and color bleeding of the CRT didnt do Castlevania64 any favors when paired with semi-fixed camera angles, 30fps, and early 3d platforming. I replayed it a few years ago on an emulator that cleaned up the visuals and with some button remapping, i had a rather fun playthrough that felt challenging but fair. When i died, it felt like it was my own fault and not the muddy visuals making it difficult to line up a jump. Overall, the game and world design are pretty solid. It stands on its own merits, and withstands the test of time. Its a far better game than it was given credit for upon release.

[@peaceboogie]

Ive not played much n64 but this looks like it could be my favorite game for the system

[@MattyStoked]

Honestly I think it's mine. Great framerate, great atmosphere. How many horror games were on N64?

[@devilblackdeath]

1:19 "where the tiny hero has to fight big, cheesy monsters"... God, some game journalists were already blabbering idiots back then -_- Did they even realize it was part of Castlevania's DNA ? To the point that, as you said, you fight a giant skeleton within the first hour of the game... and multiple giant bosses. Even back then, probably just a journalist who had no clue about the franchise and was salivating about realistic graphics and gameplay. Other than that, I know I was aware of the multiple endings but I don't remember how. Does the game tell you when you failed and tell you the conditions for the real ending ? I think one of the changes I really liked about that RPG-lite aspect was the "puzzley" exploration at times and interactions with NPCs. Not sure if that's a proper recollection, but I think the garden particularly comes to mind in that respect ! In all cases really having a blast looking at all your Castlevania videos and that Soul Reaver video is next on the list, as well as the 8-bit Castlevania era. The 16-bit Castlevania era was a really cool video as I've played a lot of those but finished very few (definitely on my to-do list though).

[@MattyStoked]

Regarding the endings, there are multiple outcomes. There's a "good" and "bad" ending for each character, and there are also two optional boss battles. All of these events are based on invisible criteria. Mostly it's about how long it takes you to complete the game. This is not apparent to the player. There are also hidden items which unlock costumes for subsequent playthroughs. I love all those hidden options, in a short action game. I love RPG elements, but don't care too much for long games. That's why these types of Castlevania games really intrigue me. Thanks for your support! The next Castlevania video is being worked on right now!

[@devilblackdeath]

@@MattyStoked Hmmm is that fully hidden? If so I admit I've never been a huge fan of fully hidden unlockables and criterias. Not that it lessens the game in my opinion, still a pretty good game :) Cool I'll be looking out for that video :D

[@DiegoReviews]

I love the chill synth vibe of this video! I love the way you edited some segments to go with the beat of the track.

[@MattyStoked]

Thank you so much my friend. I knew this video wasn't going to have a lot of fancy editing, but those timed sections just presented themselves in the edit. And who am I to argue? 😍

[@TheMpo1986]

If you noticed. The skeleton has a hole in his forehead. He's supposed to be Goliath from the biblical story David and Goliath?

[@MattyStoked]

I had assumed it was an eyehole for a spooky third eye, but that's a good point!

[@TheMpo1986]

@@MattyStoked I believe I read that somewhere.

[@SharonisCarin321]

Konami didn't know how to translate it properly but it was an ambitious attempt. Legacy of Darkness succeeded their ideas but sold abysmally

[@MattyStoked]

Exactly this! Thanks for the comment mate

[@SharonisCarin321]

@@MattyStoked you gotta cover Legacy after this :)

[@milkdetrop5506]

just went through these darkness first and then 64 wich turned to be the right way since 64 is so much harder and i loved them Definetly use save states at least at each save point to not lose upgrades reallygood games

[@MattyStoked]

Hey that's awesome! I'm glad you enjoyed them. I've been replaying Legacy this month for fun and it's a great game.

[@milkdetrop5506]

yes they are really fun really neat having 4 campaigns now just doing a final playthrough with reinhardt in hardt to finish @@MattyStoked

[@klxboy9994]

Yeah you get it. Easily my favorite game on the N64.

[@MattyStoked]

It's a great game!

[@Multienderguy37]

6:00 The short sword is extremely useful for the garden maze, where you cannot use the whip if the dogs latch on.

[@dudeman5303]

Thank you for making these castlevania 64 videos, i loved the game as a kid and it always confused me why everyone talked so much trash about it

[@MattyStoked]

Same! I remember seeing those videos trashing it and I almost fell for it myself. Then I played the game and was like "But wait, this is really good?"

[@Artzei]

It's a real shame Konami never really decided to try again with these sandbox-y Vanias after both N64 games. The PS2 games play more something like Devil May Cry (well, i know for a fact that Lament of Innocence does, Curse of Darkness i have no clue)

[@MattyStoked]

Lament is very much a Devil May Cry style game. It's a really good game but a bit like the N64 games, just lacked that edge to keep up with these newer franchises which were nipping at its heels.

[@antonmorozenko6348]

Just finished this game with Reinhardt, now playing Carrie campaign. I never expected having so much fun and joy from this game, but the atmosphere, secrets, gameplay, subplots is so good, a can’t have enough. After Carrie wanna replay as Reinhardt on hard difficulty in a second suite, gonna try to get a good ending; an then repeat Carrie) When I played first three games - this is exactly what I wanted from 3D version

[@QMulative]

I can only guess that the people from this era of "Good Konami" are now working at Good Feel and are among the people making Mameda No Bakeru for the Switch at this time.

[@dommoore6180]

CV64 is very much in tone for what it's supposed to be (little known fact these days - Rondo, DracXX, SotN and Legends were all released as non canon spin offs in their own sub series, whilst Bloodlines was also a non canon spin off that was meant to have two sequels it never got, the two 64 games were considered by Konami to be the revival of the main series that had essentially ended with Scv4 in '91, it wouldn't be until 2001/2 that IGA's run started and the whole series got a soft reboot, massively retconning original lore and incorporating most of the 90s spin offs prominently whilst removing much of the original series). I've always loved the 64 games and they both have a lot going for them that CV would never really have again, particularly the horror elements. The story and characters are very memorable, the set pieces equally so. There are various sequences that really stick out (that hedge maze is amazing) and the game is thick with atmosphere and full of imagination. The early IGA era benefited from some very different ideas and a generally new tone and style however over time his era became slightly repetitive (even reusing sprites designed for rondo in '93, as late as 2008), which makes the sheer creativity of the 64 titles that much more appealing in retrospect. They (like cv2) get far more hate than they ever did back in the day largely due to the AVGN videos and the fact that IGA incorrectly called them "gaiden" games that were 'intentionally non canon' (ironic seeing as his era was based on Rondo, a great game, to be clear I'm not making any judgments just pointing out the obvious irony, also this was when he incorrectly labelled Scv4 a remake, something that unfortunately stick with the game to this day, he was right that CotM was meant to be non canon however). Regardless of popular narratives, I think both 64 titles are excellent and some of my favorites in the franchise. As usual, another great video, very well structured and giving genuine opinions as opposed to more general outlines of basic facts or commonly accepted ideas. Always a good time when these are released.

[@MattyStoked]

Thanks Dom. I knew that Bloodlines / The New Generation was a Gaiden game (it's called Vampire Killer in Japan), but Rondo being a spin-off is new to me. I know that IGA's girlfriend worked on Rondo, which might explain why he held it in such high regard! I really like the games where there's creativity and risk. Sometimes it lands, sometimes it whiffs but I just love to see it. I massively agree that some high-profile accounts gave these games an unfair dent into their public image some years ago. It will take an equally big account to try and pivot those opinions round. Try as I might, I'm just a tiny voice 😃

[@derek-64]

Well said

[@dommoore6180]

@Tom Ffrench if you do a bit of research (albeit having to avoid the wildly inaccurate reddit and wikis because the popular narrative of this series really doesn’t reflect its history) you’ll find that rondo actually was a non canon spin off and that SotN being a non canon spin off is the only reason it was allowed to be made. It’s not elitist either I don’t even particularly like Nintendo systems, it’s just historic fact.

[@TheT3rr0rMask]

Curious if you have citations (not accusing, just a fellow CV lore lover). Always took Rondo as canon since DracX states in it's intro that Simon's events were the previous ones (but the game also changed Maria to be Anette's sister and it clearly a retelling rather than a port). I've found info on Bloodlines and SOTN being intended spin offs but they also each reference past events (Alucard remembering Trevor, Bloodlines referencing the Belmonts and Sypha) so instead of spin offs I assumed the devs meant them to be gaidens/side stories: basically Belmont v Drac 100yr cycle games = main series, anything inbetween = gaiden (which most of Iga's run consisted of story wise). Regarding 4 I always took it as a retelling of 1, have heard things it was meant to be taken as a sort of reboot on new hardware now that they could go with way more detailed presentations. It's backstory in Japan has changes, such as Transylvania suffering from a drought before Drac's resurrection (possibly the reason ppl got to the point of reviving him, possible an omen of his eventual rising who knows) but otherwise is depicted as Basically the same, guys revives Drac on Easter and Simon begins. Originally concepts and documents showed they were planning it to be set in the modern day which was scrapped for the Simon story. My guess is it was new hardware, they only had so much time, and decided to go a simpler route rather than overstep. Even though the game gets flack nowadays, with Bloodlines and Rindo becoming more accessible, it's a piece of work that deserves respect for all that it did so well.

[@dommoore6180]

@@TheT3rr0rMask 4 was a sequel at a time when the series timeline was never intended to be linear. Simon was at once an actor in the 50s and a hunter in the middle aged (1690s was IGA’s invention). It was a sequel but to quote it’s devs a “back to basics sequel”, thus the similarities to Cv1. It even maintained some continuity through the grave in the intro being the ending grave from Cv2 and the first stage being loosely based on one of the mansions from Cv2 just in ruins now. In any case, the idea of 4 being a remake is the invention of western fans thinking they were being smart because of the similar story and the same title in Japan. Rondo may have referred to what was the series’ core narrative but it was never meant to be part of it. It is intentionally quite jokey and that’s likely (this is guess work) one of the reasons it was a non canon game. But it’s whole line we’re non canon spin offs, this being the reason Sotn was allowed to change so much in the first place. Anyway, I can’t give you links because quite honestly I don’t want to go looking for them again. It’s lesser known as (like most fandoms) the cv fandom spews a load of simplistic inaccurate info around 24/7 and treats it as fact, but you can find this stuff for yourself if you want to. Interviews, old Docs, that’s where you want to look.

[@TIDbitRETRO]

I didn’t play either of the 64 Castlevanias when they initially came out. For years I heard nothing but awful things about them. Then I finally played them for myself. They are GREAT. The haters are crazy.

[@MattyStoked]

YES!

[@dudeman5303]

Straight up dude, I still gotta play the 2nd one but I love castlevania 64, it's a great game.

[@MrGatonegroish]

That Dune reference at 7:10 really sent me. Gamedev teaches you the attitude of the knife...

[@MattyStoked]

I work in software development, and I regularly endorse the attitude of the knife! Well done for picking up the reference :)

[@MrGatonegroish]

@@MattyStoked Ahh, yes. Agile was created to test the faithful, and all that

[@MattyStoked]

Nearly every review of Castlevania N64 says the game is bad. I'm not the only person who think this game is rad, am I?

[@Grogeous_Maximus]

I don't quite understand. The reviews are bad, or they review the game as bad?

[@michelegambierazzi]

I think that you are in a minority at least. I remember when this came out and I tried it back then and absolutely hated it. Bad graphics, bad controls, everything just felt off. It was so hard to like something about it when other games on the N64 did almost every aspect better i some way and even that Konami themselves released better looking and better controlling games on other platforms (MGS on PS1). But on the other hand, I'm glad that you like this game and made this video, because even though I myself don't like the game, I still enjoy your videos. 🙂

[@HYDRAdude]

SotN = Overrated 64 = Underrated

[@fernandotorres2169]

what a horrible michele to say that castlevania 64 is bad, especially in terms of graphic castlevania 64 is much better than legend of zelda ocarina of time if you have eyes, there is no way that legend of zelda ocarina of time could graphically look better than castlevania 64

[@michelegambierazzi]

@@fernandotorres2169 What a horrible night to have a curse ;)

[@joshuaallen1340]

its one of the few n64 titles that held up well. suprisingly. thats why i dont get the hate. the jumping was floaty but i manage fine. only castlevania i could beat so i dont get the difficulty complaints. theres alot of material. symphony is more iconic sure but the 64 had good castlevania.

[@virgogaming6488]

I rather enjoyed CV64 and wish the 3D games continued going in that direction, could've become a 3D Metroidvania series like Shadow Man or Banjo-Tooie were.

[@MattyStoked]

It's sad how basically the late 90s was SO GOOD for early 3D horror games. CV just got bodied by all the new competition.

[@One-ct3xe]

It might interest you to know that the Villa has a couple shout outs to the 80s vampire classic Fright Night. Charlie Vincent the mightiest vampire hunter is a reference to Peter Vincent and Charlie Brewster the two protagonists of the movie. The musical chimes in the villa in the background music also borrow heavily from the incidental music in Jerry Dandridge’s house, and there are a few more maybe that I didn’t find music wise. Don’t you think it also kind of mirrors the Overlook hotel in a few areas?

[@MattyStoked]

Mate that's brilliant. I'm going to check that out now.

[@wobzee]

Always wanted to try it but never got round to it

[@MattyStoked]

Give it a go! It's not too long, and you can emulate is really nicely.

[@SheepRaider]

Excelent game and should have been the pattern for every Castlevania game, it was more alligned with Resident Evil and Tomb Raider (massive success at the time) and of course, the old classic Castlevanias. It renewed Castlevania for good. The big mistake was to use SOTN metroid structure for subsequent sequels relegated to handheld market, SOTN was a commercial failure and every single 2D Metroidvania failed commercially, as they were made for a small yet very vocal fan base of SOTN... the series died as a whole because nothing was good enough for this particular group of people, so Konami just stopped making games, the same happened to Silent Hill after SH2 , but in this case the hate happened with SH4

[@zandernewson9933]

Me is all excited cos I just found a brand new gaming channel !

[@MattyStoked]

Welcome to the fold, buddy.

[@SheepRaider]

Curious fact: The japanese version is more polished, it had extra months of development and features extra voice acting, better frame rates and it saves in the cartridge (doesnt require a memory pak)

[@marcelo20xxxx]

Not this game but its next follow up is the true gem. Castlevania Legacy of Darkness added a ton of cut content, polished the game play and fixed the camera, it was near perfect... I play it regularly until this day...

[@MattyStoked]

They're both good!

[@sunshinecarnivores1919]

I don't understand all the hate this game had. I LOVED this game when it came out and I played it nonstop back in the day.

[@cuppedcup]

hey i was wondering if you knew about the new timesplitters being in development!

[@MattyStoked]

I did! Doak and Ellis back in the driving seat! I really hope they manage to navigate this. There'll be a lot of unfair expectations on them, and I hope they stick to their convictions and deliver something colourful and fun.

[@LordSiravant]

I honestly feel like CV64 is what Castlevania should ALWAYS have been, with how it leans more into gothic horror and atmosphere. That's something platformers just...intrinsically lack. It remains my favorite Castlevania game of all time.

[@MattyStoked]

I'm inclined to agree. The PS2 follow-ups feel like they follow the template laid down by this game. But the handheld games followed SotN. And I prefer the former to the latter!

[@ToEjaMxD]

Good job mate. Have my upvote!

[@backup_account_1]

N64 videos = subscription

[@davidaitken8503]

The N64 was absolutely amazing at delivering music! What the hell are you talking about? Some of the best music of that entire generation was on N64. Legend of the Mystical Ninja 64 Two: Goemon's Great Adventure has one of the best soundtracks Konami ever made. Everything from Rare sounded absolutely amazing, particularly Jet Force Gemini. Some of the best music on the Playstation (Final Fantasy 7 and Metal Gear Solid) actually wasn't CD audio, but similar to the way most music was done on N64.

[@MattyStoked]

I mean you make a couple of good points, especially that some PS1 games were still using MIDI. But a great many PS1 games *were* using CD audio. And those ones have infinitely better music!

[@davidaitken8503]

@MattyStoked Many were using recorded tracks, but fewer than you may think outside of a few genres like racing were playing Redbook audio directly off of the CD. You literally can't load any data at all while doing so. As someone that played a lot of Turbo Duo games growing up I can tell you right now that many of those Playstation tracks could not match the clarity of a good number of Duo games. Even so, I fail to see how the violin on the title screen of Castlevania 64 sounds inferior to anything on PlayStation. Truth be told though, none of that is even my ultimate point. There was often an extreme lack of sound variety on many Playstation games in general. Ram limitations and slow loading were undoubtedly behind that. There always seemed to be more ambient sound in everything from Turok 1 & 2 to Banjo Kazooie. I always noticed how little variety many Playstation games had in terms of foot steps on different material compared to Super Mario 64. You certainly didn't get much musical interactivity on PlayStation. That is no doubt why they went with Midi in MGS and FF7 as those two games are notable exceptions. Music and ambient sounds switching on the fly was something that was pretty common on N64 though. The sheer variety of speaking lines that could play out during actual gameplay seemed much greater on N64 games like Star Fox 64, Rogue Squadron, and Battle For Naboo. For all of these reasons whenever I analyze what games really had the most impressive audio presentations of that era, most of them are actually N64 and PC, not Playstation. Alas, internet group think is, sadly, alive and well.

[@MattyStoked]

@davidaitken8503 we don't need to bring "groupthink" into this as I'm literally talking about my own personal preference. When I think of great music on PS1 games I'm thinking of Michael Giacchino's award-winning score for Medal of Honour. I'm thinking of licensed soundtracks for THPS, Sled Storm Or GT. Or other great games with CD audio like WipEout or Soul Reaver (which also had insanely good voice acting). But none of that detracts from your personal preference. We all have different opinions and that's a good thing. It's what makes being into this stuff interesting! And yeah, PC is a completely different beast. I was a PC gamer primarily and in that era, PC was far and away superior to console in every way 😁

[@davidaitken8503]

@@MattyStoked Yeah, sorry. You just lost all credibility with praising games that throw a bunch of licenced crap on the disk that never had anything to do with the game to begin with. Any long time gamer that grew up loving video game music despises that crap. It was easily some of the worst stuff from that era and the games you mentioned perfectly encapsulate how limited the soundscape in its entirety was on those games compared to the top N64 games. A comparison between Medal of Honor and Perfect Dark is one I would welcome any day. It just sounds to me like your experience with N64 games is severely lacking and I'll add that PC didn't start to catch up to N64 until about 1998 with a few games like Unreal that were actually built from the ground up to take better advantage of 3D accelerator cards. 3DFX becoming the standard that offered everything and worked properly helped tremendously too. Getting games to work and display everything properly before that was a nightmare. Even then, most of the PC games being released couldn't compete with the best stuff coming out on consoles. Pretty much any genre outside of RTS or FPS was crippled by the lack of any real standard controller to design a PC game around. Everything from arcade fighting games to 3D platformers were objectively a better experience on console. Even a number of FPS were better than what was being made for the PC. While Turok 1 & 2 did have ports on PC they were definitely products of the console world with their refreshing approach. Golden Eye and its' unique, anything can happen, sandbox approach was a revelation and Perfect Dark improved on it further. I'm sorry if I'm getting off topic. I just like talking about all of the great games from this era.😁

[@MattyStoked]

@@davidaitken8503 "no true scotsman" ok mate cheers

[@prototype8137]

I hated the n64 castlevania when it came out. I was so disappointed, it felt awkward and more clunky than other 3d games of the time. Sotn drew me in though. That first play through was amazingly fun.

[@JordansFilms1]

can you tell me stories about the development of castlevania games as i lay in bed at night

[@MattyStoked]

Absolutely.

[@xXxViperGTxXx]

This needs a remake

[@MattyStoked]

Fingers crossed the next Anniversary release from Konami is the N64 games.

[@seasonembrace3624]

I can understand not liking these 64 entries but it just feels like biased bandwagon to use these games a butt of jokes not cool

[@czviktor]

Early 3D games looks so suck. Here is also specific low poly ,low detail 3D look on N64 graphic...It' s way back for me. 2D looks much better and also is more playable Especialy in platformer games .This is my opinion also for modern 3D platformer ...