RF Generation Message Board

October's retro playthrough will be Castlevania II: Simon's Quest for the NES. I know that this game gets a bad rap from some due to the difficulty with the riddles and because some people were initially disappointed that this sequel was not as linear as the first. I've talked to several people over the years about it and there are still a mixed bag of responses. I think that going back, people may find a better appreciation for this game. The game is relatively cheap, usually around $10 or less, and can be found fairly easily. It is also available for download on the Wii. If anyone wants a physical copy, I might be able to work out a deal with my local retro store. Just shoot me a PM.

October is comprised of 5 weeks, and below is how the playthrough will be laid out. Luckily, participants will be able to take advantage of the game's password system in order pick up where they leave off each week. Just be careful that you write the password down correctly  ::) :

Week 1: Enter Berkeley Mansion and obtain Dracula's Rib
Week 2: Enter Rover Mansion and obtain Dracula's Heart
Week 3: Enter Braham's Mansion and obtain Dracula's Eye
Week 4: Enter Bodley Mansion and obtain Dracula's Nail
Week 5: Enter Laruba Mansion  and obtain Dracula's Ring; head to Ruins of Castlevania and defeat Dracula (no ememies in the final castle, so it's just basically walking to the battle)

I'm going to try out a bit of a different achievement system for my playthrough this time. Each achievement will be worth a specific numerical amount, which I have determined based on difficulty of completion. There is a maximum total of 60 points that can be earned for this playthrough and participant point totals will be updated in this initial thread. The achievements are as follows:

Achievements:
1.   Find the Sacred Flame (2 pts.)
2.   Find the Silver Knife (2 pts.)
3.   Find the Silk Bag (2 pts.)
4.   Find the Diamond (2 pts.)
5.   Obtain the Gold Knife (3 pts.)
6.   Upgrade to the Red Crystal and get "blown away" (2 pts.)
7.   Upgrade to the Flame Whip (2 pts.)
8.   Obtain all items in the game (full inventory) (4 pts.)
9.   Obtain all 5 of Dracula's body parts (5 pts.)
10.  Find all 13 hidden clue books (5 pts.)
11.  Obtain the Magic Cross by defeating the Crying Mask (2 pts.); take no damage during this battle (bonus 3 pts.)
12.  Resurrect and defeat Dracula (5 pts.); take no damage while battling Dracula (bonus 3 pts.)
13.  Get the "best ending" by beating the game in under 8 game days (10 pts.) *requires a photo of the end of game screen and a piece of paper with your handle written on it*
14.  Defeat the original Castlevania (8 pts.) - *requires a photo of the end of game screen and a piece of paper with your handle written on it*


The only two achievements that you need to take pics of are the good ending of Castlevania II and the endscreen for the original Castlevania (should you choose to play it). We will just use the "honor system" for the other achievements.

Good luck gamers!!!

Players and achievement totals:

bombatomba = 37
Crabmaster2000 = 28
Dezorian = 42!!!
douglie007 = 31
Duke.Togo = 31
EngineerMike = 28
Fleach = 0
jansolee66 = 0
noiseredux = 0
RetroRage = 37
russlyman = 0
Shadow Kisuragi = 0
singlebanana = 37
SirPsycho = 0
TheSaintOfPain = 31

Ewww, such an awful game.

I'd totally play but my NES is packed away at my parents somewhere.

It's awful......I would  totally play it. Ha! Come on, it's not THAT bad. :)

Count me in on this one.  I'm actually kinda partial to this game, as it was my introduction to the Castlevania series as a kid.  ...Yeah, yeah, I know. :P

Don't be ashamed. Crabby and I were talking the other day and it's our favorite Castlevania title on the NES. We can discuss reasons why during the playthrough. Glad to have you aboard and will add you to the list of participants.

I mean I'm kind of with Saint. It was my first Castlevania and I played it and it was OK. But if I hadn't found an old strategy guide at a yard sale I never would have known what the hell to do. It's just a crazy game.

this is awesome, I'll plan to play Castlevania II as well.

Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeet!

Decided to go with the 3rd best Castlevania game on the NES? I give it a lot of crap, but I'll probably get in on this one. As long as someone does the right thing and puts Castlevania III on the schedule.

Nice Duke. We will certainly consider Castlevania 3 in the future. Castlevania 2 lends itself to a playthrough very well with the password ability, while the original and 3 are more one-sitting games.

There's always Super Castlevania IV as well.

Yes!  Simon may be cursed, but this game has certainly been blessed as THE BEST CASTLEVANIA ON THE NES!  WOOHOO!  And who can forget that classic line:



(http://cache.vevo.com/Content/VevoImages/video/9E09BA737A6ABD122B94F45F4304E119.jpg)


Oops.  Wrong one:


(http://elcuartoplayer.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/castlevania-ii-simons-quest-what-a-horrible-night-to-have-a-curse.jpg)

So can we count you in Sir Psycho and bombatomba?

Put me on the players list. I'll take part in the fun.

Castlevania III has a password feature as well...
[img width=256 height=224]http://multimedia.cx/eggs/images/castlevania3-password-screen.png[/img]

Verily, verily.  But Castlevania 2 has Dracula scattered in pieces all over the landscape!  Plus characters lie to you!  And say things that don't make sense!  Now that is an NES classic.

I just think Simon's Quest is so badass because you killed Dracula in the first game, now you're rebuilding him just to kill him all over again. Just because you're cool like that. ;)

I'm in! Love the music in this game. I'm going to light candles while I play and really get into it. I may need to use some sort of a walk through though. Are we taking screen shots of each achievement ?

Give me a weekend and I'll see how many of the Castlevanias I can knock out. I own 3/4 of the released NTSC titles. ;)

No need for screenshots of each achievement, only need the pic for finishing the original Castlevania, since its point value is the largest and may break a tie if we have one. Happy to have you in russlyman. Shadow, you in as well?

Also, since the weekly goals are fairly short, I'd encourage everyone to attempt to not use a walk through at first. If you get stuck, let me or others here know and we can help you out.

I also want to mention that for those of you who need/want a physical copy of the game, shoot me a PM. I will work with my local store and see if I can get a discounted price on the game.

Ok fair enough no walkthough at first.

Also I can help with copies as well. I get 15% off at my store and can snag a few copies if need be.

i don't have a copy but if i can get one i'll join in for sure! i'll look around locally first to save on shipping, but if the prices don't seem very good i'll send banana or russlyman a PM, thanks for the offers guys :)

Awesome! I'll check on this tomorrow when I swing into the store and see what kind of price I can get. If you can do the same, we'll see which is cheaper.

We had one copy it was $9.99 so prob 8 with tax

Trying to get a copy of Simon's Quest.  Might have to trade but it will be worth it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R32yXgCBI80

Sure count me in. It's the only NES Castlevania I own. I just need to dig through my box o consoles to find my NES.

Yeah, I'm in. Incidentally, I may have a "free" copy of Simon's Quest if I can get it to work that was sent to me.

So I'm broke, but I did remember that I do have the Konami Collector's Series: Contra and Castlevania for PC (which is how I got pics for that Simon's Quest article I wrote a while back), so I'm totally in.  Yay!

I said I would be in on Duck Tales, but I kept missing my eBay auctions. I'm still searching for it....

But, I do own CVII and I love it. I am 100% in this time.

Welcome aboard!

sign me up too Ill try and play it :)

To get everyone pumped here's a awesome cover

Check out this video on YouTube:

http://youtu.be/xnA0niSz-S8

That video is awesome. The first comment under it might be the best comment on YouTube.

Well, I own the game (as well as the other 2 on the NES), but I've probably only logged 3 minutes of Castlevania in my entire life. Still, this seems fun. I will try to follow you guys through it.

That video makes me wish my musical endeavours didn't fail. :(

Personally, I'm partial to this remix of Vampire Killer/Wicked Child (yes, it's a vocal remix):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=umvDK_q4UzE#t=26

That's from Castlevania though. IF we're looking just at Simon's Quest, just take a pick from OCRemix:
http://ocremix.org/game/19/castlevania-ii-simons-quest-nes

Who was the composer for the Castlevania games? The music is really good!

[img width=700 height=937]http://i.imgur.com/6GXq8ea.jpg[/img] first achievement :) so I need to do pics for every one or just the last one

Several: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_in_the_Castlevania_series

[img width=700 height=937]http://i.imgur.com/SwUwP16.jpg[/img] 2 more for me :) so I know I've found some of the books but I don't see in. My inventory where they are

No need to take pics for all of them, just completing the original Castlevania. Also, you're suppose to wait until October to start. :P  ha!

Books do not show in inventory. You'll have to keep up with those manually.

well, if thats the case :) don't post until October :) I got excited I have never finished any of the NES Castlevania's

Ha! Not a problem at all. Pretty excited about going through this one again too. :)

Started working on a painting for a co worker
[img width=478 height=640]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/09/30/8edapuju.jpg[/img]
[img width=478 height=640]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/09/30/equtu6at.jpg[/img]

I don't think it was officially announced yet but Singlebanana invited me to help out with the retro side of our community playthroughs here! He already has October sorted out, so I'll mostly be here just to encourage discussions, but next month I'll be more hands on with the checkpoints and achievements and the rest of it.

So how many of you have gotten started on this now? It's officially October in most parts of the world! Are there many people new to the series like myself, or are you in it for the nostalgia? Loving that art russlyman!

I haven't played any Castlevania since the GBA game, so this is all pretty fresh to me. I know the reputation of the series and this is probably a good game to start with.

Singlebanana hooked me up with a copy of the game. Just waiting for it to come in the mail.

Yes, techwizard has decided to accept an invitation to come on board and help with the retro playthroughs. I was planning on announcing it next month and will still do so. Thanks for the help. :)

For me, Castlevania II is one of those titles that I have fond memories of. Yes, fond. I played the original Castlevania for the first time at a soccer team sleepover and was so frustrated with the difficulty (even though my first game was Metroid...). I finally sat down and beat the original Castlevania this year. :)  I really liked Castlevania, but I was a little late to the game in getting an NES system, and could never find it in the stores; we didn't have used game stores at the time, so we were really dependent on the stock of local stores. I was lucky enough to have a friend whose Dad owned a movie (VHS) rental store and they stocked video games as well. He let me borrow Simon's Quest a few weeks after it came out, and I have been a big fan of the game ever since. I guess that having played Metroid and Zelda, I was a big fan of games that allowed you the freedom to explore (Castlevania and to a certain extent, Castlevania 3, are very linear and restrictive games). I love all three titles on the NES, but Castlevania II was the game that really got me into the series.

Very nice artwork russlyman!

Whomever asked about the composers, for Castlevania II it was Kenichi Matsubara and Satoe Terashima.

Found the Diamond !

add the golden Knife to the tally:)

now got me a silk Bag, this game is good times ;)

oops sorry to spoil the surprise!

this will be my very first game in the castlevania series too, like Fleach i know it's reputation but have little experience with it beyond a few minutes here and there. my only experience with this one specifically is through watching AVGN, so hopefully that doesn't taint it for me ;D

also douglie is leaving us in the dust, i've gotta get my hands on a copy soon!

got red Crystal and was blown away, and upgrade Morningstar to flame whip. trying to get this game done so I can do the Wii game :

Glad you are enjoying the game douglie. No worries about the speedy playthrough. We appreciate your participation. :) I'm playing on the modern playthrough as well and will be curious about your thoughts on that game as well.

got the magic cross , but I got hurt so no bonus

Got all 5 pieces of Dracula making my inventory full so having all Items

I have nothing else to do today, the only thing I was going to do was do a LED MOD to my Game Gear and replace the caps

so if I fight the mask again and not get damaged does that count :) I did get another magic cross

Sure, I think it counts. It would be no different than someone dying, fighting her again, and not taking damage in a subsequent battle.

Dracula is dead... but I got hurt doing it. so half of the points

I only found 8 books so not a perfect run through but fun never the less

Yep, a fun and fairly quick game if you know what you are doing.

I'm going to start tonight.  Been so darned busy with home stuff and tired from work.  I need to see if I can get it running on Wine so I can play it on my work laptop.

Glad everyone liked the art.
This came in the video game store today. Maybe I'll do my play through on it. Lol
[img width=478 height=640]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/02/7uqu5y8y.jpg[/img]

the original Castlevania  is pissing me off ;) so im just going to forfeit the last 8 I could get :)

The original Castlevania is a tough game, but is beatable with some patience and enemy memorization.

Glutton for punishment, are we?  ;)

Well, once I got started I didn't stop. Had some fun, and got the 2nd best ending. I'm a little rusty :(
[img width=700 height=937]http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af356/jackcrow2000/null_zps9380a9b5.jpg[/img]

[img width=700 height=937]http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af356/jackcrow2000/null_zps66a8faa9.jpg[/img]

Wow, Duke nice job. Now hop on over to the modern playthrough and enjoy Fragile Dreams with us!

Talley up your points for me Duke and shoot me a PM. I can determine some of them by your screenshot, but some only you would know. Thanks!

Thats a interesting TV there duke. Reminds me of like some hospital TV with the white ha. I played Castlevania classic series on my gba last night for a bit. I didn't get too far, got stuck on the level with all the water jumps and what not. Should have some time to play Simons Quest tomorrow and Friday.

It is a medical monitor. It's where I play my RGB pretties. Composite still looks pretty darn good on it, though.

I've still got a save on my FDS Castlevania at Dracula. I can probably load that back up and finish the jerk. I used to clear Castlevania like crazy as a kid, and even now I can get up to Dracula without issue. Just have to have the patience to run back and forth to load up to do it again.

I guess that makes up for Dracula being super super easy in Simons quest. Ha. Holy water ftw

Laurels really mess up Castlevania II. Being able to turn invincible whenever you want is a little broken IMHO.

I havn't beaten this yet for my channel so I'm gonna try and squeeze it in before the end of the month since I'm having some NES withdrawal lately

You should plow right through it. It's no Silver Surfer. :)

Its more of a matter of finding time these days :/

I just moved and hooked up my NES late last night. Got the Holy Water and White Crystal and then passed out, but I will put a nice dent in this game tonight. I've beaten it a few times and I think I remember everything and can finish it without help. Can't wait!  :D

Put me in!!!  I know I'm a few days late but I'll still jam

Done.

Ok picked up chain whip. White crystal. Blue crystal. Holy water. Garlic. A dagger

Ok just got a oak steak and draculas rib
Also found two of the hint books

Finally got it working in Wine, but I have to ALT-F4 to exit.  Oh, well.  Will keep me honest with the save states.

Grindinggrindinggrinding.  Need more hearts.  It's killing me that I can't remember where the books are.

SLIGHT UPDATE:  When I was teen playing this I made up lyrics to the day time music on the field.  It was a source of jubilation when I remembered it.  I am happy.

You need to marinate oak steaks for a long time (I leave mine overnight), or else they turn out really tough.

Sorry, I had to.

Guess I should have taken a snack break while playing ha

Ok bored while waiting for my friend to come over so I got a few more things.
Got the silver dagger, third book,and fourth book, and Dracula's Heart

I'd like to defend this game for a second, as I feel a lot of gamers think this is a bad game and I think some feel this way just because the AVGN said so. Almost all of his points are trivial. I've felt strongly about this game for a while so allow me to rant :)

- There are 2 bad/inexcusable things about this game. The lack of bosses and the few bosses that exist are the easiest bosses in the history of video games and no enemies in Drac's Castle - although one could argue that the long walk to Drac is eerier this way.
- I like James, but he nitpicks minor things and turns molehills into mountains, like spelling or grammar. A spelling error doesn't affect the quality of a game 1%. Many older games have spelling or grammatical errors. If you recall, Final Fantasy VII has a spelling error.
- "Simon's Quest is too cryptic." Welcome to video games in the 1980's. $1,000 to the person who can say they finished Metal Gear or The Legend of Zelda with some kind of guide or help. Punching a random wall? North, West, South, West? Burning a random bush to unlock a labyrinth? Yeah.
- "Townspeople are useless" This has validity and I'm not sure anyone knows why most of them lie to you, but I do think some of the things people say add creepiness to the game.
- "Grinding for hearts is annoying." It's not that hard and doesn't take a long time.
- "The pause between day and night" It takes 5 seconds and I think, it's a nice transition and lets the gamer mentally prepare. You know what's more annoying than the pause? The loading time for any game on a disc.

Now that I've discussed the "horrible" things about Castlevania II, it's time for the guts of the game which are all good.

Graphics - Among the best on the NES at the time.
Music - Among the best in the history of video games.
Controls - Same as any other Castlevania. Pretty good.
Gameplay - Run around whipping monsters. Awesome. Again, the big flaw is the bosses.
Level design/atmosphere - Amazing atmosphere (I like my Castlevania outdoors), although the dungeons could've had variety.
Challenge - Skill-wise, it's an easy game. Could've been harder. Puzzle solving-wise, it's impossible. Could've been easier.

Sorry, I didn't mean to write a review, but I really needed to get that off my chest. It's been brewing for years and now I feel better.

Just finished customizing a Castlevania NES controller.
I used some stone texture paint with blood splatter. And Got the vinyl over lay Custom Consoles Den Helder. Pretty sweet.

[img width=640 height=478]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/05/y9aqu7ep.jpg[/img]
[img width=640 height=478]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/05/je8atynu.jpg[/img]
[img width=640 height=478]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/05/asupezys.jpg[/img]

@dezorian i agree, popular opinion on a game can often be wrong or at least misguided, no one can really judge anything without trying it themselves.

@russlyman awesome controller!

@dezorian - I concur, valid points all around. The game is definitely not without its flaws. You do a nice job of pointing these out, which is important even if you like the game. I too have never understood the negativity around this title. Sure, it's flawed, but I would be hard pressed to point out a game that isn't.

@russlyman - sweet! Any of those for sale?

I agree as well. I loved this game as a kid and Still do. I think it plays into that you can go any where you want in the game so as a kid I could just explore. In the first one if I got stuck I had to keep playing the same part over and over. With this one I can go wonder around a town or get hearts and come back to it.
I def love the music and atmosphere of the game too. Creepy for the NES.

I could def sell/trade if people want custom NES remotes. I waiting on more vinyl over lays. I have right now ducktales and Little Nemo.
Here's two others I did
[img width=640 height=640]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/05/5uze5u3u.jpg[/img]
[img width=640 height=478]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/05/ura9uqu5.jpg[/img]
[img width=640 height=478]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/05/pu2azyge.jpg[/img]

I agree as well. I loved this game as a kid and Still do. I think it plays into that you can go any where you want in the game so as a kid I could just explore. In the first one if I got stuck I had to keep playing the same part over and over. With this one I can go wonder around a town or get hearts and come back to it.
I def love the music and atmosphere of the game too. Creepy for the NES.

I could def sell/trade if people want custom NES remotes. I waiting on more vinyl over lays. I have right now ducktales and Little Nemo.
Here's two others I did
[img width=640 height=640]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/05/5uze5u3u.jpg[/img]
[img width=640 height=478]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/05/ura9uqu5.jpg[/img]
[img width=640 height=478]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/05/pu2azyge.jpg[/img]

this just came in the mail for me:

[img width=700 height=933]http://i.imgur.com/eOgEB4X.jpg[/img]

Had a little time this weeked and ran through the game in a few hours. Unable to find all of the books, but managed to take care of all the other achievements in the game.

1.   Find the Sacred Flame (2 pts.)
2.   Find the Silver Knife (2 pts.)
3.   Find the Silk Bag (2 pts.)
4.   Find the Diamond (2 pts.)
5.   Obtain the Gold Knife (3 pts.)
6.   Upgrade to the Red Crystal and get "blown away" (2 pts.)
7.   Upgrade to the Flame Whip (2 pts.)
8.   Obtain all items in the game (full inventory) (4 pts.)
9.   Obtain all 5 of Dracula's body parts (5 pts.)
11.  Obtain the Magic Cross by defeating the Crying Mask (2 pts.); take no damage during this battle (bonus 3 pts.)
12.  Resurrect and defeat Dracula (5 pts.); take no damage while battling Dracula (bonus 3 pts.)

I believe Duke mentioned that there were two different endings, can anyone shead some light on this? I had no idea.

Actually, there are 3 different endings. From: http://www.gamefaqs.com/nes/587179-castlevania-ii-simons-quest/faqs/52245

I'm going to respectfully disagree for several reasons. It's almost like saying being able to hold a star in SMB3 is broken.

- They only last about 7 seconds
- You can only hold 8 at once (iirc), that's about 1 or 2 screens worth.
- They have no real purpose other than to cross the long marsh.
- Dying means almost nothing in this game because you have unlimited continues that allow you to restart from the exact point where you died - unless you drowned or died in the marsh. That's basically an invincibility code already built-into the game.
- This game is extremely easy. No one should ever need to use a Laurel except to pass through a marsh.

Sorry for double post.

I'm officially declaring this game one of the best games on the NES and a masterpiece. As far as I'm concerned, the townspeople speak in hard to comprehend poetry. The town theme should've won a grammy. This game is literally art IMO.

I skipped ahead because in my new place I don't have TV or internet yet. I'm done with everything except killing Dracula.

Yeah, I have to agree with the others that the laurels are a bit overpowered for one reason.

**DO NOT HOVER OVER THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE COMPLETED THE GAME**

Spoiler (hover to show)

You can use them during your final battle with Dracula

If this wasn't the case, I would agree that their only purpose is to cross the poison marshes. Also, comparing them to the stars in SMB is also an apples to oranges comparison. While you can use laurels at any time, stars are strategically placed throughout the levels and can only be used for a short spurt in a specific environment. Truly, their only similarity is that they both offer invincibility.

With that said, I still LOVE Castlevania 2 and think it's one of the best games on the NES.  I agree, the game is extremely easy once you know all of the secrets, but it's still a great play.

Thanks for the clarification on the endings Duke. Wish I would have know earlier and I would have added it to the achievements........hmmm......there's enough of the month left and it's a pretty quick game, why not???  :)

UPDATE: I have added the achievement to beat the game in less than 8 game days and earn the "best ending". This achievement is worth 10 points and will increase the maximum obtainable points to 60.

I would also like to point out that I am in the points lead......naner, naner, naner. :P  :banana:

I'm gonna get my NES hooked up tonight and get started!

That is freakin' awesome.  Also, I love your custom game covers.  What are they made of?


That's the version I am playing.  At first I was disappointed that this didn't contain the DOS ports, but now that I'm actually playing them I'm glad they are the NES versions.

Now for my score:

1.   Find the Sacred Flame (2 pts.)
2.   Find the Silver Knife (2 pts.)
3.   Find the Silk Bag (2 pts.)
4.   Find the Diamond (2 pts.)
5.   Obtain the Gold Knife (3 pts.)
6.   Upgrade to the Red Crystal and get "blown away" (2 pts.)
7.   Upgrade to the Flame Whip (2 pts.)
8.   Obtain all items in the game (full inventory) (4 pts.)
9.   Obtain all 5 of Dracula's body parts (5 pts.)
11.  Obtain the Magic Cross by defeating the Crying Mask (2 pts.); take no damage during this battle (bonus 3 pts.)
12.  Resurrect and defeat Dracula (5 pts.); take no damage while battling Dracula (bonus 3 pts.)

Cannot find all the books to save my life, but to be fair I never could.  Plus, I can't seem to get anything but the worst ending (too much time spent grinding?).  Though after this I plan on going over the NES Game Atlas to find all of them.  Anyhoo, three play throughs is enough for me.  I'm going to try for the first Castlevania.

Yeah, yeah, rub it in. ;)

Looks like we're tied at the top bomba. For those seeking the books, there is an item you can equip to help find them.

I made the dust covers just out of cardstock,and printed art from the coverproject.net  here is a youtube video I did explaining it
http://youtu.be/3jZH7lCk5Xo

ok, so every time I try to start up Castlevania II... I have no idea where to "start" the game. I just feel I'm wandering aimlessly. Someone gimme a few pointers to start off?

Sure, before you leave town, be sure to pick up the 3 items located there. You will have to grind a little for hearts, but the screen to the east of town is perfect for this. Hearts are more valuable at night, since monsters are twice as hard to kill. Next, proceed due east without going down any steps to reach the first mansion. Good luck and let me know if you need any other tips. :)

ah thx dude. I started a playthrough last night but only got the White Crystal before I left town. I'll start fresh tonight...

Yeah, best to start fresh, since you are not too far in. Good rule of thumb is to pick up all items before you leave each town. You'll have to do a small amount of grinding sometimes, unless you're good at staying alive. Deaths cause you to lose all of your hearts.... :(

Completed CVII in one sitting.  Got all items and upgrades, and found 8 of the books.  Took my time and got the "bad" ending, taking a bit over 23 days in-game time.  This reminded me how long it's actually been since I actually played this game.  I think I'm gonna have to play it again and see how much faster and better a second playthrough will be. :)

I did make it to the first mansion last night. Fucking invisible blocks, really? Thank goodness for game-saves in the PC port.

It's funny,  it's been a tradition of mine to play CVII every October.  Even so, I still have trouble getting around for some reason.   I don't think I'll be in AGDQ any time soon

There's a way to detect invisible blocks, you will encounter them again.

Spoiler (hover to show)

Throw holy water, it falls through them

Saint, count up your achievement points and send them to me. Thanks.

Got through the second castle tonight.  I think I'll do one castle a night and finish by the end of the week.  Why rush?

Haven't played since Monday but I'll have some free time tomorrow and Saturday.

Found this sweet map at work today. Must have been in a Nintendo Power
[img width=640 height=478]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/13/y9e9a4e9.jpg[/img]

[img width=478 height=640]http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/13/une3y4yv.jpg[/img]

Yes, it was in Nintendo Power. I used to have that one on my wall as kid.

Wow.  Haven't seen that one in a coon's age.  That was my first issue of NP.  Really brings me back, it does.

That might be the least helpful map ever.....

lol yeah I dont think it will help in the game. Would look cool on the wall though.
I have to get some more game time in tonight with this one.
I have been side tracked with some other Halloweenish games I wanted to play.
Playing through Silent Hill 2 right now as well

Finally got a chance to play some NES today so I made sure Castlevania II was on the docket since I still havn't beaten it for my youtube channel. Not sure if I was gonna get another chance to play this month so I had to slam it out over a few hours. I've beaten it before so I decided to go ahead and play from memory and not use any maps or guides. Spent some time wandering around trying to remember what to do a few times (couldnt remember how to get the Ferryman to take me to the castle for a while). Eventually got my bearings and destroyed Dracula though!

Here is what I got for achievements:
Achievements:
1.   Find the Sacred Flame (2 pts.)
3.   Find the Silk Bag (2 pts.)
4.   Find the Diamond (2 pts.)
5.   Obtain the Gold Knife (3 pts.)
6.   Upgrade to the Red Crystal and get "blown away" (2 pts.)
7.   Upgrade to the Flame Whip (2 pts.)
9.   Obtain all 5 of Dracula's body parts (5 pts.)
11.  Obtain the Magic Cross by defeating the Crying Mask (2 pts.); take no damage during this battle (bonus 3 pts.)
12.  Resurrect and defeat Dracula (5 pts.)

Thanks for playing Crabby. Multiple runthroughs encouraged if you guys want to earn more points.....maybe I'll send something to the winner. :)

Ok a update to what I found. Got me Draculas nail and found another book

Finished!  Got the good but not best ending.  Maybe I'll try to get the last few achievements later this week.

[img width=700 height=933]http://i1072.photobucket.com/albums/w365/adsanislo/20131012_200208_zps91f507b7.jpg[/img]

Achievements:
1.   Find the Sacred Flame (2 pts.)
2.   Find the Silver Knife (2 pts.)
3.   Find the Silk Bag (2 pts.)
4.   Find the Diamond (2 pts.)
5.   Obtain the Gold Knife (3 pts.)
6.   Upgrade to the Red Crystal and get "blown away" (2 pts.)
7.   Upgrade to the Flame Whip (2 pts.)
8.   Obtain all items in the game (full inventory) (4 pts.)
9.   Obtain all 5 of Dracula's body parts (5 pts.)
11.  Obtain the Magic Cross by defeating the Crying Mask (2 pts.); take no damage during this battle (bonus 3 pts.)
12.  Resurrect and defeat Dracula (5 pts.); take no damage while battling Dracula (bonus 3 pts.)

Nice work! Hmmm.....several locked at the top with 37 points. Still a lot of October to go.

I still have time. Hoping to at least finish the game. Got stuck last time I played. I got "blown away" beat the next mansion than couldn't go any father right because of a big wall and left was a lake and I don't have a blue crystal.
I didn't save the password so I might go get more items before going to the blown away part again.

I've completed everything (a week ago, I thought I made a post about it) except for beating the original Castlevania. I don't own it and I've never beaten the Grim Reaper so I don't think I'll be able to complete the entire CV challenge.

Had tons of fun playing CVII. It's a top 5 NES game for me. It IS Nintendo.

I see where you mentioned doing everything except killing Dracula several pages back. Sorry, I think it got lost in the rant. :)   Did you find all 13 clue books? Nice work, thanks for participating!

It took me awhile to get started but I have the heart and rib now as well as a couple clue books and all available items at that point. I have more play time planned for the weekend.

Oh, yeah, sorry about that:

1.   Find the Sacred Flame (2 pts.)
2.   Find the Silver Knife (2 pts.)
3.   Find the Silk Bag (2 pts.)
4.   Find the Diamond (2 pts.)
5.   Obtain the Gold Knife (3 pts.)
6.   Upgrade to the Red Crystal and get "blown away" (2 pts.)
7.   Upgrade to the Flame Whip (2 pts.)
8.   Obtain all items in the game (full inventory) (4 pts.)
9.   Obtain all 5 of Dracula's body parts (5 pts.)
11.  Obtain the Magic Cross by defeating the Crying Mask (2 pts.)
12.  Resurrect and defeat Dracula (5 pts.)

Oh, and also sorry about taking so long to reply.  I've been having some sort of internet issues the past week and a half or so.  Charter doesn't have the greatest customer service, so it's been kinda spotty.  That, on top of other real life stuff.  I hate having to be a "responsible adult." :P

Wow. I got this game when I was 9, and remember disliking it quite a bit, because I could never make progress in it. As an adult, doing my first ever playthrough, I found this game to be very fun and not as much of a challenge as it was for my 9 year-old self. This is my tally:

   Find the Sacred Flame (2 pts.)
   Find the Silver Knife (2 pts.)
   Find the Diamond (2 pts.)
   Obtain the Gold Knife (3 pts.)
   Upgrade to the Red Crystal and get "blown away" (2 pts.)
   Upgrade to the Flame Whip (2 pts.)
   Obtain all 5 of Dracula's body parts (5 pts.)
   Obtain the Magic Cross by defeating the Crying Mask (2 pts.); take no damage during this battle (bonus 3 pts.)
   Resurrect and defeat Dracula (5 pts.)

                                                   28 pts

Sorry guys, I was out-of-town for the weekend and was unable to respond to the thread. I will make adjustments to the achievements soon. Thanks for joining us "EngineerMike" and welcome to RFGeneration.

FYI - The revealing of next month's playthrough should be posted some time this week, so be on the lookout. Hope you all will join us again.

Yeah, I ranted, but it was a rant out of love :) 

Yes, all clue books. I made sense out of 12 of them. 1 of them I couldn't figure out.

Thank for so much for the clarification. I was just typing up a message to you regarding it. Nice work! We'll see if someone can overtake your new high score with a Castlevania run by the end of the month. Thanks for participating. :)

AHH!  I've got some work to do this weekend...

I still have to complete this. I got lost playing Resident Evil:Revaltions. And than Batman Origins:Blackgate came out for the 3Ds as well.

I'm bowing out.  I just can't beat Dracula's form in Castlevania I.  Since I'm refusing to use a FAQ for the hint books and also refusing to use save states to get back up the end it's just taking too much effort.  My score will have to stand as it is.

That's a tough last battle that requires quite a lot of precise jumps. Getting there with a double or triple shot of holy water is key for the 2nd form, sometimes those shots will randomly drop during that battle. At least you start right at Dracula's room, just annoying recollecting hearts each time.

I go for triple-shot cross on Dracula, not too bad with those since you can throw, then just whip the fireballs on the first form every time. Then just go nuts with crosses on the second form. The real drag is just the back and forth to get load up on hearts.

It's been a bit since the last time I beat it, but I have a game save on the FDS version at Dracula. Maybe I'll give it a crack if I find a few.

It's the first form that ends up kicking my tush, then when I get to the second form I don't have enough hearts to "holy-water lock" him down.  The grind isn't so bad (not after playing Castlevania II), it's just the precise jumps over Dracula's fireballs that end up getting me.  I'm going to bring my controller to work tomorrow and give it a try one more time at lunch.  You know what they say?  One hundred-fiftieth times the charm, right?

2 more days.....

Still a few more hours to knock off some of those achievements. :)

Let's go ahead and discuss the game a little. Thoughts? Likes/Dislikes? Surprises?

I'm surprised more people haven't beat my score. I assumed someone would've beaten Castlevania. I thought all the other achievements were fairly easy, but maybe I just love this game too much.

Thoughts - Game is awesome

Likes - Everything

Dislikes - Not enough cryptic messages

Surprises - I was surprised when I looked into the Death Star and did NOT die.

EDIT - I could write more, but I think I wrote enough on page 6 or 7  ;)

Yeah, finding the books is a fairly daunting task, that you undertook. Most of them are easily discovered in the castles by breaking bricks with the holy water, but one rarely uses the holy water in the outer world. For those of you who don't know, you can see hidden items by equipping Dracula's eye once you have it. I think that most people tend to equip the rib, which acts as a shield, and is by far the most useful of the body parts. I really wish that they would have incorporated using the body parts a little more into the game. Here is what I know about equipping the parts (please add to it if you can):

Rib - reflects fireballs
Heart - allows ferryman to take you to Brahm's Mansion
Eye - see  hidden objects in walls
Nail - allows whip to break certain walls
Ring - allows entrance into Drac's castle (but doesn't have to be equipped to enter)

Of course, I love Simon's Quest and that was the big reason I picked it for the playthrough. I think it is definitely easier than the original and part III (once you know the secrets), and this aided in my enjoyment when I was a younger gamer.

Been busy trying to get the show together, so I didn't get time to take a crack at it. If you are going the holy water route, on the first form you can time it where you jump towards Dracula and whip late so that you will hit him and also destroy all the fireballs right as they spawn. Takes some practice, but once you have the timing down you can work it easily unless he appears on top of you. When that happens turn around and just get rid of the fireballs and wait for another shot.

My thoughts:

This is the weakest entry in the NES trilogy. It tries hard to do some interesting things, but it really doesn't come together in the end. The bosses (when there are any) are weak, and the laurels make it simple to not get touched by them. The only challenge is to try to beat the game quickly in order to get the best ending.

I didn't find the need to use many of the secondary weapons, and the need to hoard hearts works against their utility. The body parts don't add compelling gameplay elements, and the rib is the only useful one. Using a shield in Castlevania feels very strange, and I'm glad that it went away for the most part.

The experience system is underdeveloped and can be completely ignored.

The music is fantastic. The traditional parts of the gameplay are solid, and fun. This game aspires to be something else, but I am really glad the team went back to tradition for Castlevania III.

Yes, I just used the Eye the entire game. And I'm 99% sure that I've found them all in a previous playthrough because I was obsessed with the text in this game.

I agree that some parts you mentioned were poorly executed, but one could argue that it's a precursor to SoTN. I know SoTN is closer to Super Metroid, but the general theme of running around gathering items to progress is the same.

I think they just tried to make a different style of game like Nintendo did when they made Zelda II. Clearly, the biggest mistake Konami made was making the game extremely easy skill-wise. I'm pretty confident I could finish the entire game with one hand. The only hard part would be killing a slime or anything that flies.

Yeah, even though I love Simon's Quest, I agree with a lot of what Duke said. I would like more (in quantity) and more difficult boss battles.  I think the game would have been a classic had there been a "mandatory" boss battle before each body part. I think with this simple addition, more people would be praising this game as one of the best on the system.

Duke is also right about the secondary items. Other than the holy water, laurels, and the rib, I never find myself using any of the other items (other than those that are essential to progressing: the crystals and the heart). Tracking down these items is fun and interesting, but unless you are a completionist, it's really a waste of time.

I agree that Castlevania III is a great game, but I think it owes a lot to its predecessors. Though it takes the majority of its gameplay style from the original, it is much less linear in that you are able to choose a specific paths to get to Dracula. 

It really boggles my mind how they whiffed so badly on the bosses. It's not like this came out in 1985 when having bosses in a game was still a rarity. Not only that, but they could've at least had a temporary wall in the boss room so you are forced to fight them. I have a theory on why they did it the way they did, but it's pretty far-fetched. Simply put, they made a poor decision.

The items are pretty weak, but I suppose it's better than no items. I found myself using daggers just as a change of pace. The diamond is especially useless. The items in Zelda II (and other games) are just as bad/useless. Sure, you NEED the items in Zelda II, but you can't really USE them. They just grant access to the next area. How about Mega Man games? From the 46 boss weapons in the NES series, I use about 6 or 7 of them during stage-play.

I need to give Castlevania III a chance. I've never owned it and have barely played it.

Actually the diamond is useful in the boss fights. Just throw those puppies around the room 3-4 at a time and they will bounce around until they make contact. Use these in combination with the whip and bosses go down a little faster. Useless in the outer world though.

came across this today and thought the castlevania players would get a kick out of it:

(https://scontent-a-sea.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/1504140_10152116130139717_1842522994_n.png)

Ha! That's great.