Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

[JustLikeHeaven1]

Castlevania SOTN is probably one of my top three games of all time.  It is quite daunting, but as long as you keep exploring you will find all of the saves (that should help).  Have you ever played the GBA or DS Castlevania games?  They are very similar and if you haven't tried the Metroid-vania style than the experience might be a little jarring.  Stick with it, I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

Sort of a dumb question, but you are constantly checking the map right?  It highlights save rooms, and it shows you were you haven't been already (the map will stop and it will look incomplete). 

I don't remember the difficulty being that hard in the beginning...Actually I felt like SOTN was one of the easiest Castlevanias ever made (compared to the hard NES games).

If you get stuck I would consult Gamefaqs (gamespot or ign might even have a handy walkthrough too).  While there is no right way to go, there are certainly easier paths to follow.  If you enter an area and things are hard to kill...wait until you are a few levels higher before exploring.

SOTN really kinda starts off slow and towards the middle of the game it gets frickin amazing.  There are some really great boss battles and you get sweet abilities.  My favorite thing in the whole game is finding the "familiars" that can assest you.  My personal favorite being the little imp/devil.  When that levels up it gets crazy powerful.

Good luck!  I really don't think SOTN is very overrated, but again it is quite daunting.  Just remember how badass Alucard is at the beginning of the game before he gets stripped of his powers...you will get even more powerful than that when its all said an done. 

[QF]

or you could do that trick to retain all his stuff

[KanYozakura]

[QUOTE=Viper82][b]I can't figure out[/b] where the heck I'm supposed to go and what my goal is. [b]I keep dying before[/b] I find any save slots and the game is far too open for a platformer. Any boss means instant death since there's no way to heal and it seems it's pointless to fight them and they don't lead anywhere. I feel like a mouse trapped in a maze in this game. It also seems to be a step down graphically from Super Castlevania (SNES). Since it's so popular, I keep playing on expecting to find the big secret as to why this game is so popular but clearly I haven't found it.

Am I missing something?


[/QUOTE]

The truth revealed.

Seriously, there's an easy solution to every problem you just stated.

No save points?  Have you looked at the map?  They're all over the place.

No healing?  Kill some monsters/explore to get some food items, or buy some Potions once you get to the librarian.  There's also a spell that lets you gain HP from bloody monsters (hey, Alucard is half vampire after all).  Or just avoid getting hit...that seems to work for me.

Maze like?  Well yeah, it's Dracula's castle.  Not exactly the most inviting place in the world.  I'll admit that at the beginning of the game it seems like you're randomly stumbling around, but once you get to the Library everything falls into place.

Bad graphics?  Compare the games side by side, especially the bosses.

It's easy to blame the game.

[Sut]

After all the recent Castlevania talk it’s prompted me to finally try what is held up as the best in the series.

Well I’m having the same issue as the OP I’ve hit a brick wall and am just traversing around aimlessly. Reading this posts seems like I’ve somehow missed the library and librarian. But for me if I need to refer to a guide the game is not being clear enough.

This may be down to this being my first Metroidvania title and I might get my head round it soon.

[Retro STrife]

After all the recent Castlevania talk it’s prompted me to finally try what is held up as the best in the series.

Well I’m having the same issue as the OP I’ve hit a brick wall and am just traversing around aimlessly. Reading this posts seems like I’ve somehow missed the library and librarian. But for me if I need to refer to a guide the game is not being clear enough.

This may be down to this being my first Metroidvania title and I might get my head round it soon.

Love this game. I played SotN sometime around 2007, when it was re-released on Xbox 360. SotN was my first Metroidvania game and I liked it so much that it's still in my personal top 10 games all-time. It's my favorite Castlevania game by far. It also has one of the best soundtracks ever in an old school game... it's the only game where I actually bought the soundtrack after playing it. Stick with it. I don't remember getting lost all that much when I played it, so it may be one of those "duh" moments once you figure it out or stumble upon whatever you missed before.

[DrLitch]

I love this game, easily in my top 10 of all time. The reverse castle is quite a challenge as well, many times I had to transform into a bat or mist to bypass some pretty tough enemies. My only gripe with it is that the saves take too long to load up and if you forget to save, your last save might be quite a long way back. It is definitely a better game with an emulator and save states. I never had an issue with getting lost but if, like me, you desire to gather absolutely everything, you will definitely spend 30+ hours with it. This is one of the best games of all time and the soundtrack is absolutely spectacular. Hope to see this one on the PS1 classic.

[Matchstick]

Open-ended games like this do tend to be a little confusing, but all the exploration is part of the fun! It may feel overwhelming at first, but give it some time and stick with it. As other users have stated, there comes a point when playing the game where it all just "clicks."

I hated this game when I first played it. I was a huge Metroid fan as well as a Castlevania purist, and felt that "Castlevania with swords" just felt all wrong. I took some time away from it, came back to it years later, and just got sucked in. One of the few games that I can play for hours on end, and play through and beat over and over again.

Keep in mind that this is officially an "old game," as it's currently old enough to buy cigarettes and beer. Of course games have evolved a bit in the last twenty years! Still, this is a game that set the standard for many games that followed it, and is an important piece of videogaming history. Love it or hate it, at least you're giving it a shot. Stick with it, stranger, and I assure you that you will find the experience a rewarding one.

[Alucard1191]

I am actually going through a bit of a Castlevania kick and find SOTN is still my favorite. The music is absolutely fantastic and the leveling up, auto map, exploration, equipment, etc. is fantastic. I love the shapeshifting and unlocking Richter is a lot of fun. Now playing through with him... that is hard.

If you aren't even finding save points I don't know what to say. They are everywhere and put you to full health and mana. This game isn't nearly as hard as the NES Castlevanias, though I think it is a little more tough than what I've played of Super Castlevania so far.

I'm very, very firmly on "It is a fantastic game. A+ will play again."

[JWK]

Viper, I believe your frustration stems from your complaint that Symphony is “much too open for a platformer.” That’s the thing; this game isn’t a platformer. Sure there’s some platforming *in* the game, but that’s not the same thing. In fact the “openness” and “[having] no idea where to go next” is kind of the point of Symphony and other games like it (Super Metroid, Guacamelee, etc). Before it was dubbed with the sub genre “Metroidvania,” co-director Koji Igarashi (IGA) said the development team called it a non-linear “2D exploration action game.” Notice that the team itself didn’t use the terms RPG or platformer to describe the game. I agree with you about it being too open ended for a platformer... but that’s because exploration and the game’s non-linearity is the POINT of the game. It’s also important to note that Zelda (specifically A Link to the Past, if I remember correctly) was the inspiration for this game, not Super Metroid, like so many believe. Zelda, too, is far too open ended for an action game. But that’s not really the point, is it?

I suggest you stick with it. If you’re unable to, that’s fine. But don’t jump to the conclusion that the game is overrated simply because you were unable to “get it.” You’ve said yourself, you’re ignorant of where to go and what to do and it’s obvious that you’re right at the beginning of the game. I hardly think your relatively short experience with the game justifies you calling it anything; you just don’t like it so far, which is okay but it’s also a world apart from experiencing the whole game and then deciding it hasn’t aged well. The beginning is the most straightforward the game gets, by the way, and I’m unsure how you’ve gotten so lost, as obstacles and blue doors will only allow you to stray so far before it forces you on a pretty specific path toward the first boss..es. Use your shield on the fire projectiles, by the by. If, on the other hand, you are able to stick with it, you are in for one of the most atmospheric 2D games ever created, with stunning animation, attention to detail (wait until you find the confessional in the church), gorgeous pixel art and the single greatest original video game soundtrack of its generation... barring “I am the Wind” in the credits, of course.

And if you end up digging it, you’re on the verge of discovering an embarrassment of gaming riches in similar Metroidvania titles. The follow-up Castlevania titles that use Symphony’s blue print *alone* will keep you busy for a while. Aria of Sorrow, Dawn of Sorrow, Portrait of Ruin... these games are classics. But they all owe their existence to Symphony of the Night which is, in my estimation, a timeless masterpiece. I’ve taken this Halloween season as an excuse to play the game for my 10th (!) time.

[Voor]

I’m hoping it’s on the PS1 Classic, because I’d like to finally try it. I love super Metroid, but it has the same issue. Thankfully, the level design is so great, that traversing through the areas is bearable. Sounds like SOTN is the same.

I prefer “linear but hard” platformers, or games like Mega Man, that are linear, but give you a little room to make decisions.