Castlevania 2: Simon’s Quest is a game for the NES. It is the sequel to the original Castlevania game. It is one that is different but would be a predecessor to games that would later mimic and tweak the style like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.
Premise
It is a follow-up to the first game. Dracula was destroyed but there is a curse on Simon. He has to find the pieces of Dracula and then ultimately kill him once and for all to remove the curse. You will need to find all of Dracula’s remains to win. You will have to resurrect albeit briefly but then kill Dracula.
Gameplay
The style of play has some RPG elements such as leveling up and there are items to buy. It is not a straightforward linear game. There are five different mansions that you will need to go to. Each contains a piece of Dracula and must be brought to the final area to resurrect and kill finally. There are townsfolk who are very cryptic in the clues and can also be deceptive.
There are day-to-night transitions. The music will be different depending upon the daytime and the night. Not just the villages but also the open areas as well. Enemies are stronger at night so they must be defeated. Time will move on during that but there are moments when it will not move. For example, if in a building, you will not have to worry about the time at all and will simply freeze time.
Making this game unique would be that there are multiple endings. It will come down to conditions. One is the best ending and being able to complete fast without getting a game over. To achieve this ending, you can play it over and over to understand where everything is to find the most optimal route. The second ending would be taking some time to complete but results in the death. The worst ending is completely gray, meaning taking way too long and dying way too many times.
Overall
Castlevania 2: Simon’s Quest is different from the first game. It can be said that it is a style that is later used in other games like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. The game certainly does not follow the same build as the original game but that is fine. There is nothing wrong with being different. You can play this game now as part of the Castlelvania Anniversary Collection. Of course, if you genuinely want the authentic experience of playing the game alone, you will need an NES and the cartridge.
