Skeletons on Motorcycles! A Castlevania 64/Legacy of Darkness Retrospective

[@orinanime]

My FAVORITE little detail about this game: If you follow the Giant Skeleton Boss to the edge, after it jumps over the cliff, and look down in First-Person View, it'll stop and look back up at you before running away.

[@TheTrenternet]

The first time I saw that I thought it was so neat. Little details like that are hidden everywhere in these games.

[@billsmoke4198]

My brother and I would pretend we were Reinhardt or Cornell when playing on the beach. 🥲 Thank you, Trenternet. It was worth the wait. ❤️

[@TheTrenternet]

Glad you enjoyed it. I'm imagining Henry hanging out with them on the beach and he's wearing his helmet still.

[@billsmoke4198]

*Henry only moves when we get close* 😂 That boy ain't right.

[@TheDominator-uh4fz]

So if anyone is wondering the crash that happens at 23:37 in the video happens if you fight this boss but never allow the boss to use a fireball attack. Also you are correct in the fact that the holy water is great against immobile enemies or enemies that don't move much with it's damage calculation depending on if hit the enemy directly or not with it dealing 60 damage per second if you directly hit them. Holy water is best used against the vampire bosses in the large rooms because if you get out of their range fast enough they will just stand still. So one thing I found interesting in the castle center level is that it in the elevator room there is an enemy that only appears in that room. To encounter the enemy you have to move towards the angel statue then a cutscene plays where the statue starts bleeding and you fight a monster made entirely of blood. And for the bad ending you have to spend more than 15 in game days. The renon boss fight happens when you spend 30,000 or more gold in his shop.

[@MichaelSD91]

This is one of the best Castlevania retrospectives I've ever watched. I do like Cornells version of Duel Tower. Fighting the behemoth is one of my favorite boss battles ever. Beating CV64 for the first time will always stick with me. Ive been playing Legacy of Darkness for 20 years. This was a great retrospective.

[@TheTrenternet]

I'm glad you enjoyed it. I had a lot of fun making and it and part of the most fun I had making this was playing both games again with a fine toothed comb.

[@MichaelSD91]

@@TheTrenternet Awesome. Seeing a Castlevania 64 and Legacy of Darkness boss ranking would be cool.

[@RedSpade37]

This work deserves a boost! I hope lots of people find this! Algorithm go!

[@byg4299]

I haven't seen anyone here comment this yet, but its been discovered that Legacy of Darkness does contain a variation of the Konami Code that unlocks everything, including Reinhardt and Carries campaigns, right from the start of the game

[@Tom-V]

I've always loved the 64 Castlevania games. And the DS games were just re released so I think they'll re release these. I'd pay full price too. And they could release them with the PS2 ones in a collection.

[@ty2358]

80+ minutes of CV64 HOLYYYY! Well done though! I had a lot of random outbursts of laughter to some of the silly jokes or memes that were thrown in. Was a very enjoyable time and I too hope that many people will catch this in the algorithm.

[@TheTrenternet]

Thanks ty! I appreciate the comments and your contributions as well!

[@iwannabethecollector]

Didn't think there were still so many lil secret I didn't know about. Things I learned about - Gek disappearance trick - the healing kit hidden inside the crates where Malus reappears - enemies have less health during the day PS: I approve of the Tempest Shadow reference

[@lowgun1466]

I watched probably every Castlevana 64 Retrospective here on YT. Yours was the most complete, informative and fun to watch, by a mile.

[@TheTrenternet]

Thank you for that. I really wanted to give the game the look it deserved and I think I for the most part succeeded although I cut out alot to keep it from being 3 hours long. Directors cut one day?

[@orinanime]

1) Dude! I'm definitely one of those "Castlevania freaks" that plays both of these games back to back as one complete experience. 2) I'd love to see a remaster/remake of these games. Preferably another Frankensteined situation where the best bits of both games are combined into one whole package. And finally add in Coller.

[@sgt.badhombre9173]

The other castlevania games WISH they could have the CV 64 Atmosphere. So far it remains my favorite one to this day.

[@TheTrenternet]

Atmosphere is a very hard thing to get right even if you're aiming at it. I don't know that any of the cvs after it were even going for the same feel. The DS and GBA titles certainly were not imo.

[@orinanime]

I'm so happy you covered this subject. Castlevania 64 and Legacy of Darkness are my favorite games in the franchise. CV64 and LoD are one big game in my eyes. With LoD being more polished but changing some levels and missing the others voice acting. It's also my favorite CV entry in the franchise. It's way more well received than a lot of detractors would have you believe. People often forget that. AllGame 4/5 stars GamePro 4.5/5 stars GameSpot 8.2 out of 10 IGN 8.2 out of 10 Nintendo Power 7.9 out of 10 Gaming Maxx 7.1 out of 10 Archive 64 3.9 out of 5 EGM 8.75 out of 10 Game Rankings 73% Metacritic 78/100

[@NearLife4life]

i like how cornell's spam-jump animation makes him look like he just had a spot o' tea and now he's going frolicking through the garden, la-dee-da-dee-dee!!

[@TheTrenternet]

His jump is quite frolicky isn't it?

[@polyemphis]

man, theres so much in the games story that was left to the imagination. Friendly Lizard Man was around for a second, but he's cool with me. Imagine Friendly Lizard Man teaming up with Rein and Carrie to destroy Dracula.

[@TheTrenternet]

I think he probably had something to do with Coller and his monstrous origins since that stage is full of references to creation of monsters and re animation.

[@YamiVT]

An absolute banger of a video! I love CV64, and a 1+ hour video retrospective is a treat!

[@TheTrenternet]

Thank you ! I did it for all the CV64 lovers out there.

[@pondzischeme6430]

Great video... one of my all time favorites. The first games my family bought with the N64 was CV64 and Zelda OOT. I'm telling you, we were blown away. As huge fans of both franchises, some of my fondest memories are playing castlevania 64 at night with my brother. The villa level scared us shitless! Lmao

[@TheTrenternet]

Villa was just a whole mood back in 98 when this thing hit. The music and the way the camera goes into first person when opening a door has lived in my head rent free ever since.

[@matttrent946]

cheers to you OP you're one of only a handful of people ive heard who acknowledges this games soundtrack and even mentioned the track by name: INVISIBLE SORROW

[@TheTrenternet]

That snare drum tho

[@ruminator3570]

The intro of that violin at the beginning is bangerz. Totally nails the vibe of the series.

[@collin2401]

Woo, I love CV64! Please Konami, I need my Castlevania 3D Collection!

[@TheTrenternet]

We can only dream!

[@TerraFuu]

That was an interesting ride. Definitely see the merits of this game mostly marred by AVGN review.

[@TheTrenternet]

I wanted to stay positive as others have already picked apart that review, but yes If you don't forget how to use the C-Right button when you get to Castle Center the game is pretty good tbh.

[@kitestar]

SKELETONS ON MOTORCYCLES!!!!

[@CV64LoDMods]

Thank you for the video! It was worth the wait :) I'm glad I've contributed a bit to the community with all the research I've done. 8 months ago I could not believe I would even be able to code my own actors from absolute scratch and even less to figure out how to import custom maps haha My focus ever since I started was to document engine stuff (how to play an animation, play music, display 3D models, load files, allocate memory, etc). Hopefully somebody in the future with enough interest can look at the spreadsheets or the Ghidra project and use that as a base for their own research or for decompilation. Also watching your video I noticed even more instances of the game reusing Reinhardt's idle pose (Gille de Rais in the post-credit cutscene in LoD, Henry when starting a new file with him)

[@TheTrenternet]

I appreciate the kind feedback and the work you've done for the CV64 community as well. I'm always excited to check in the discord and see whats being discovered now.

[@liquidcat8129]

Cool video! Very in-depth. 5:41 Small correction, it was her blood parents who were publicly executed. As stated on the German website, her stepmom was killed by monsters, which is what prompted her to go after the Count. If you ask me, I kinda can't help but wonder how she made it to the stepmom to begin with after her family's execution. 1:20:30 CV64 is not on any of the VC title lists, so uhhhhh...yeah. If Konami wanted to rerelease them nowadays, then the best they could probably do is bundle them in one of their other collections (probably alongside Lament and Curse and call it the "3D collection"). I hope they don't just throw them on N64 NSO and call it a day, since it doesn't have controller pak support that you need to save, and you NEED to be able to save to play as not Cornell in all non-JP versions of Legacy!

[@TheTrenternet]

Oof. I'll save that fix for the directors cut but I think you're right. As for the 3D collection I'll be there to buy it as long as they don't make me play mirror of fate again.

[@AROAH]

I like the idea of a Castlevania-styled roguelite where you gather supplies and XP traveling to Dracula’s Castle, making decisions based around the time of day and what sort of monsters might be around. Then it all finishes with a gauntlet through the castle and fighting Dracula himself.

[@TheTrenternet]

I think they originally wanted this game to feel more like a longer adventure and those elements would help for sure.

[@patyos2]

Castlevania Legacy of Darkness is a masterpiece!

[@shailzeman8027]

Love Castlevania 64!! Cannot believe that there could have been a multiplayer mode! I would have LOVED that!!

[@TheTrenternet]

Me too. I'm not sure what it would have been like but it wouldn't have been boring that's for sure.

[@19Rayzen96]

I owned Legacy of Darkness when I was little (stolen unfortunately), but never made it far as I found it frustrating to control. For years Ive told myself I'd give it another go one day. You did a fantastic job with this video! Your love for the games are clear, but I felt you did a great job showcasing the games on their own merits without much bias. This is the push I needed after all this time to give them a shot again! Here's to hoping we get more Castlevania collections in the future!

[@D3nsity_]

The lock picking belmont line was gold!

[@TheTrenternet]

I almost put another joke about the lock picking lawyer in at the end but restrained myself.

[@rickynotengo7718]

this game is FANTASTIC, not perfect but the best 3d entry by far.

[@TheTrenternet]

Definitely the 3D rendition I'd take to deserted island with me.

[@orinanime]

I have to say this video is amazing! I've probably sought out and seen every video about CV64/LoD available on KZbin. Both good and bad. And THIS is the absolute best one.

[@TheTrenternet]

Thank you I appreciate it !

[@DetectiveGoroAkechi]

It's nice to see an honest and in depth review of this game for a change. As opposed to just hating on it cause it's popular or to gain some clout. Subscription earned! Keep up the great work sir!

[@TheTrenternet]

Glad you enjoyed it ! More content for this game to come!

[@RedSpade37]

Here we go!

[@RedSpade37]

This video should have, at least, 10k views by now. I don't know why the Algorithm isn't working with you on this. We might have to also use the Share function, for more "Algorithm Points". For instance, there's videos just like this one, talking about whichever game, same quality of production, same kind of content covered, and they usually have, at least, 10kish views, and if it's already a bigger channel, I've seen those videos have as many as 100k. You even lampshade this at the end of this video, I think. I will literally hire a consultant haha.

[@TheTrenternet]

The algorithm giveth and the algorithm taketh away. There's a lot of my older videos with much much lower quality that seem to top out around 3 to 5k or somewhere in that range, whereas when I started posting my newer stuff most of it stalls out around 300 views so I'm not sure what the deal is . I think a lot of my content I make is very very niche so the newer YT algorithm doesn't pick it up like it should. I appreciate your sharing and support every bit helps!

[@devong5669]

​@@TheTrenternet At least it's evergreen content.

[@zeroth8217]

Amazing video. You deserve so much more attention for this video.

[@TheTrenternet]

I appreciate it! Its my favorite of all the ones I've done!

[@HeadmasterAutobot]

Very well-put treatise! I just finished CV64 myself and--while I'll admit I wasn't forgiving of the camera and combat (and lament the lacking content)--I liked some of what it was putting down, and it was worthwhile experiencing this firsthand.

[@SheepRaider]

Castlevania 64 is excellent and oddly atmospheric , some of the best music and most memorable characters in the series, and Malus was pure evil ! Great game, dont listen to haters, give it a chance, take your time to dominate the platforming and be prepared to some of the best moments in the entire series

[@justPLEASE_579]

God bless you ❤️

[@TheTrenternet]

Very kind of you. God bless you as well!

[@devong5669]

Keep up the good work!

[@TheTrenternet]

I will try my best!

[@spacepope87]

Despite their flaws, they were great entries into 3D. Though I've enjoyed the other 3D games, what you said is true. Instead of being original they're just copies of other successful games of their time. I'd love to see a Remaster where the best of both are combined into one. Or hell a remake if they have the budget to spare.

[@TheTrenternet]

At this point I'd take just a straight port. Just something anything for the cv64 fans.

[@spacepope87]

@@TheTrenternet I'd take that too.

[@Kakashiownsyou]

This is magnificent; i hope you did more CV. boutta run thru yer channel lol

[@TheTrenternet]

Got a lot of CV stuff and hope to make more soon.

[@ModelJames13]

Well, this was worth the wait!👍

[@TheTrenternet]

Thanks. Glad to see you're still around!

[@ModelJames13]

@@TheTrenternet Well, like Dracula I always return when the right conditions occur.🧛‍♂

[@Lerbia]

This video is great. I adored CV64 despite all the issues. Sadly I never got to play a great deal of LoD.

[@TheTrenternet]

Give it a shot if you get a chance. Its got a lot to love! Thanks for the kind note!

[@mr.e3123]

I feel like Art Tower wouldve been just fine had they made it to where Cornell turns into a Werewolf at night and had created unique challenges centered around playing to strengths and weaknesses of human form vs werewolf form like having different enemies behind different card doorsbut instead the wolf form is an on demand service that requires crystals to stay in said form and no real discernable weaknesses compared to the human form. maybe if they made werewolf mode have you take more damage but also deal more damage like a berserker?

[@TheTrenternet]

That's the first time I've ever heard anyone suggest using the werewolf form for gameplay mechanics and I think it's definitely a missed opportunity . If the game had more of the walk and talk levels using the wolf form could have made them scared or hostile and you could even force it at certain points to design mechanics around it.

[@mr.e3123]

i like to think reinhardt and carrie looking to the right first before looking left is the very human i expected you to be on that side behind me oh wait youre not there turn to look other way. gives them a nod of naivety and kinda foreshadows malus' deceptive nature the tiniest bit. that it isnt there in the rerelease can be explained that its simply a mistake, or it was removed to cut as many corners as possible to save space. note that various voice files in the game were also cut to save space needed for the extra content in the rerelease

[@AdrianFahrenheitTepes]

I enjoyed this game slightly more with emulation than on my original N64 cartridge because the emulation helps make it less skippy at points with the power of a modern PC hardware and software.

[@TheTrenternet]

I know what you mean. On emu you can actually use Hi res mode and it makes the game look ALOT better than whats possible on console

[@RedSpade37]

Wait. Why did Actrise have to sac a child? Is she not a vampire? I don't think I ever put two and two together on that one. So, like, what even is Actrise then? She sac'd her kid to become a Sailor Moon Villain? Would she not keep her powers if she became a vampire, as she implies Carrie will? I think? I don't know why, after decades, I never thought to ask...

[@TheTrenternet]

Its actually an interesting discussion. When she first meets Carrie she says she is what people would call a Witch. When she introduces the vampire Fernandez she says "we took her and made her a vampire," and she does indeed say she sacrificed her own child to obtain "this prize" of eternal life. I personally think she's just a witch who's using other super natural means to extend her life. She doesn't die like the other vampires but instead dies in a magic crystal that blows up rather than setting on fire . I think she was basically one of Dracula's generals because most of the crystal magic that's powering the machinery and in the tower of sorcery is presumably her handiwork. LOD also implies she made the crystal that holds Cornell's wolf power. So I think the most likely scenario is that Death and Gille De Rais needed her crystal magic to power the castle and to trap Cornell's wolf power for the Dracula ritual. In other CV games Dracula has used powerful villains like Shaft, and Elizabeth Bartley before so in this game Actrise is one of the people in that role.

[@RedSpade37]

@@TheTrenternet Awesome! Thank you!

[@Graymage69420]

I think going through mechanics before story makes a lot more sense for a video layout

[@TheTrenternet]

I think it depends on the game alot of the time. This video was a bit of an odd one for me because I had the full playthrough shoved in there which went over a few mechanics but not in depth. For the mechanics sections I originally wanted to go more in depth with stuff that affects gameplay but the video probably would have been pushing 2 hours had I put everything I wanted to.

[@retrog97]

I really enjoyed this one. Havn't played it myself but I am looking forward to it. Unfortunately??? haha we'll see!

[@TheTrenternet]

Go into it with an open mind and maybe start with legacy if you get frustrated by old style controls. I think you'll enjoy it.

[@nesbeatzpowerhouse1487]

Best game ever💯👊

[@occupantvillainyoutbreak]

Nice! I made my eldenring character based off of Henry because I miss 3D Castlevania 😂

[@TheTrenternet]

Try shotgun but pistol

[@dantedecastrolichi2987]

Good video

[@nonapplicable4795]

Even though it spoiled me on the plot, this video got me to play both the vanilla CV64 and Legacy of Darkness, and I thoroughly enjoyed my time with both even with the clunk and jank.

[@TheTrenternet]

I'm glad you enjoyed it. They have some issues but they're super fun when you master their quirks.

[@fatenabu1]

says the CV64 Discord Link is invalid :(

[@TheTrenternet]

Try this discord.com/invite/6tNMkrtJ6z

[@jaymilligan9628]

Thank you for this video. I had been a Castlevania fan from the very first one on NES and I really loved both of these games. They get a lot of hate, but I thought they felt like what Castlevania should feel like; platforming, tense combat in tight situations, and full of exploration, adventure, and secrets. It could be a bit rough and unforgiving, and yes, even glitchy, but this was early 3D and I thought it was very well done with what they had to work with. I really liked both versions because there were things in the first one that Legacy left out. And I also really liked the whip upgrades for Reinhardt in Legacy that was missing from "vanilla". Many people argue that "Castlevania is meant to be a 2D side-scroller" but I disagree. Side-scrollers were used in early games because it was the best way to offer more exploration adventure and exciting combat, but even as a kid I knew one day games would be 3D and this was a dream game for me. The only beef I had is the shift in tone from classic horror to a more anime style that started before this, but that's just my personal preference.

[@TheTrenternet]

I think its hard to say any game should be 2D or 3D. In the case of Castlevania I think Castlevania should be Castlevania. The n64 games tried to be that just in 3D. LOI, COD, and the LOS games both tried but they just went too far in another direction. You mention the exploration aspect of it and I think you're spot on. The early games were level based experience but you got rewarded for poking around and whipping strange walls and searching odd places. The 3D games enabled you to do that on a much bigger scale.

[@MamyShmerman]

I'm a purist. I think the OG Castlevania 64 version is better. They're both great, though.

[@TheTrenternet]

It definitely has its own appeal to it vs legacy. It will sound odd but despite all the differences the biggest thing 64 has over Legacy is the font. I absolutely adore the font and the vibe it gives OG 64. The more standard font in LOD changes too much of the mood.

[@SheepRaider]

@@TheTrenternetI think Cornell quest is not as good as Carrie's but I love how each character has its own gameplay and unique stages and bosses

[@joshuagorman2191]

I loved this game!! But couldn't beat it with reignhart it was way too hard. Carrie was easy mode imo

[@TheTrenternet]

He has it harder for sure but if you grab all the hidden healing items and keep an axe handy it's not so bad.

[@mharrisona]

Oddly I hated this game as a kid….but have enjoyed it in my later years

[@TheTrenternet]

It's good to hear people come around to it and it's not just a nostalgia thing.

[@wishmasterbrazen]

I thought this game was some dream.i had as a kid...I saw it so early in life I didn't actually "remember it" but watching it it's nice knowing that it was real. Looks awesome. Great retrospective. Although I disagree with your religious statement I think religion should stay out of video games unless it's. Game specifically about religion .. I don't want to be playing a game and have god pop into it. Takes me right out of the immersion and makes it silly for me.

[@thisismyaccount823]

I wonder what the future holds for this game when it comes to hacking and modding. Really wanna see some kickass ROM hacks for this game someday 🤟

[@TheTrenternet]

If the work Liquidcat and Moises are doing keeps up it could be anything since they're literally documenting the games functions and how they work. If you liked Toad's Tool you're gonna love Gille de Edit.

[@DooDoo-f4v]

​@@TheTrenternetGille de Edit is a golden name 😂

[@TheTrenternet]

@@DooDoo-f4v lol I dropped in the discord hopefully they make it happen.

[@robertkovarna8294]

Haven't watched the whole video yet. Just saying the fact this game was meant to have multiplayer is cool. Also that title.

[@TheTrenternet]

I had come up with another title that was a pun off an existing piece of media and a reference to skeletons on motorcycles but fear of copyright shenanigans made me change it at the last minute. I'd share if I could remember it exactly.

[@thomasffrench3639]

Honestly I feel that Castlevania doesn’t really fit being a Souls-like as it is more of an action game like Devil May Cry. I mean look at one of the most well regarded transitions to 3D Ninja Gaiden. Ninja Gaiden is a Castlevania rip off with the same control scheme, but it’s faster. And everyone agrees that Ninja Gaiden Black is excellent.

[@TheTrenternet]

I've never played 3D Ninja Gaiden I'll have to check them out and see . I compare it to Dark Souls mainly because the early CV games were action , but very deliberate action. The combat has a tit for tat approach kind of like Dark Souls. The souls series reliance on big castle set pieces is also reminiscent.

[@OsakaSan]

It's really a tough sell to start the video with a Dark Souls comparision, you know? Castlevania is Castlevania, Dark Souls is Dark Souls.

[@TheTrenternet]

Of course they are both their own series. I just think that some of the reasons people like both games are the same. The tough but fair approach is one they both use but in some ways I think CV does it better than Dark Souls does. Especially with the input reading bosses in From Entries like DS2 and Elden Ring.

[@dommoore6180]

I really regret the direction Castlevania took in the 00s. These two n64 games are still to this day the final entries in the series that feel in any meaningful way like the original titles did back in the 80s and 90s. Instead of continuing with that though, we got a series of games that at best have only the most surface level ideas in common with the original Castlevania titles. The gameplay style totally shifted genres, the idea of classic horror cinema was replaced with dark anime fantasy, the series ignored the memorable and unique level designs of the original series and replaced them with copy/paste corridors filled with enemies to sponge up damage so you can grind gear and levels. I enjoy the later Castlevania titles, but they're Castlevania in name only. And sadly, they've totally replaced the original games as the dominant identity for the series. So we're very unlikely to ever see a Castlevania, in any medium, resemble the concepts themes and ideas that the original games were all about. It's very possible that Castlevania 64 and Legacy of Darkness will forever be the final titles in the whole franchise to even try to stay in line with what the series had been before it's foundational reinvention left it near unrecognisable.

[@TheTrenternet]

I think you and I are on the same wavelength here. There's something we lost in the transition to Metroidvania and the PS2 era. That doesn't mean they're bad games they're just not what we had.

[@thomasffrench3639]

That’s totally fair, but by 1997 they were running out of ideas, at least for 2D. I feel like if these games were better then they could’ve made a transition into 3D much easier. Honestly if they just did what Ninja Gaiden did and make it more of an action game inspired by Devil May Cry with platforming elements, they would’ve worked. But unfortunately they didn’t wait for better hardware and it’s been rough with 3D ever since. As for the Metroidvania games, at least they kept the series alive. I would rather have those than No Castlevania at all.

[@DooDoo-f4v]

I really wished Lament and Curse improved on 64/LoD. Just imagine these intricate and giant levels on the ps2. It'd be insane.

[@TheTrenternet]

I know what you mean. The ps2 could have handled some very intricate and detailed levels and maybe even have improved on the formula of this game but IGA just didn't want to make that kind of game.