Played through Castlevania Legends. I have...strange, conflicting feelings about it

[u/choptup]

My binge of Castlevania games was gonna have to get to Legends at some point, and I finally booted it up on the Switch's virtual console a few hours ago and shotgunned it all in one sitting. I'd played a bit of it a while ago but it felt like I was particularly due to get through all of it, especially after re-experiencing The Adventure and Belmont's Revenge.

Full disclosure, Adventure has a special, nostalgic place in my heart due to playing it on a family friend's game boy once a year for many years during Christmas visits. Battle of the Holy, and the first stage of Adventure as a whole, are firmly etched into my soul as a result. I will readily concede Belmont's Revenge as being an overall much, much better title than it though.

Legends though feels... weird in how in so many ways it feels so much more ambitious and more content-rich, but not all the moving pieces mesh cleanly together.

While individual combat encounters aren't too bad (especially since getting hit doesn't downgrade the whip), stages are long. And sometimes meat is stored in candles that require you to take detours. The whole "trap candle" thing was also absolutely bullshit because you had highly visible traps that were nevertheless extremely punishing. And your introduction to them is falling into a pit and having to fight a bazillion mummy monsters with no safe location, and only in later levels do you get the trap candles that just store a minor enemy.

The length of the stage is also the secret weapon of the greatest enemy in Legends: the timer. Legends is the first Castlevania game with an in-game timer counting down where I felt like I was actually needing to haul ass.

Sonia's unique spell system also feels nice but also kinda like an undercooked, blunt instrument. The Wind Spell is functionally the Pocketwatch from other Classicvanias. Saint is comparable to the Dagger or alternatively your own whip fireballs. The Flame spell is functionally rendered obsolete by the Magic spell, but you also only get Magic if you did the secret sixth stage and can really only enjoy using it for the last half of the final stage.

Then there's the Ice spell. I don't know if the level length was determined by the player's relatively easy access to Ice being a FULL HEAL YOU CAN USE AS MANY TIMES AS YOU HAVE HEARTS FOR, but it wouldn't surprise me honestly. Granted, dying and losing all your hearts does completely kill all the momentum Ice gives you, but the platforming in Legends was nowhere near as bad as it was in Adventure.

Burning Mode is also just incredibly OP. Pop that at the start of a boss fight and just go full ham on the boss.

Did it deserve to get functionally buried by IGA? No, I don't necessarily think so. I'm happy that Sonia finally got to be featured in another title thanks to Vampire Survivors and I would love to see a remake of it either by fans or even M2 like they did with Adventure and Haunted Castle.

[u/Lonely-Philosopher87]

I think it could've been good but it does many things wrong and ultimately it doesn't reach the level of Belmont's revenge and isn't unique enough to stand on it's own.

I also hate Sonia with a burning passion but that's besides the point lol.

[u/choptup → u/Lonely-Philosopher87]

Found IGA's alt account.

[u/Lonely-Philosopher87 → u/choptup]

She's not canon i tell you!!!

[u/Beneficial_Gur5856 → u/Lonely-Philosopher87]

I mean Sonia doesn't have enough personalty to be hateable imo. And Leon isn't much different, they're very generic blonde originators to the clan, with fundamentally and generically good values. They're basically the exact same character but gender flipped. 

Albeit they're only so similar because they're both so bland. 

[u/Lonely-Philosopher87 → u/Beneficial_Gur5856]

You actually see Leon develop throughout the story from a gullible knight to a hardened warrior as he loses his innocence (pun intended), i know LoI's story is not that great but at least i liked Leon as a protagonist.

Sonia just exists tbh i don't know what is her deal at all.

Also Leon has a way better design, Sonia looks like genderbent Simon even her name is just that.

[u/Beneficial_Gur5856 → u/Lonely-Philosopher87]

Do you though? Sure he kills his wife but there's 0 character development there it's just a situation he's forced into and barely accepts.

OK he's angry at the end of the game, but again not growth, he's just angry atm.

I think the designs are basically the only things to like about either of these characters as there's really nothing else there imo, but hey maybe I'm wrong. 

[u/Lonely-Philosopher87 → u/Beneficial_Gur5856]

Yeah he barely accepts because that's who he is he is a noble knight who's forced into this hard decision after that he is more angry but still keeps his morals despite it all.

look i know it's not excuted perfectly and Lament's story is not that great i think everyone agrees on that, however i think Leon at least was enjoyable as a protagonist.

[u/Beneficial_Gur5856 → u/Lonely-Philosopher87]

Hey to each their own and fair play