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Considering it's actually pretty fun, Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest can be pretty aggravating. It takes most of the stuff that made the first game enjoyable and throws in a bunch of new material which is a little too hit and miss for my tastes.

The story is pretty bloody weird (bad pun, that) for a game about vampires. You play as Simon Belmont, the same guy from the first Castlevania game, seven years after he beat Dracula. He's been suffering from bodily problems, and it turns out that he was actually cursed by the famous vampire after their last fight. To counter this curse Simon must travel the land, gather up Dracula's pieces, resurrect him and then kill him AGAIN to get rid of the curse. How this is supposed to do anything but get Simon cursed again is beyond me. Best part is, it might not even work: if you don't beat the game fast enough Simon actually dies. Cheery way to end a life, that.

At any rate, Dracula hasn't been dormant in the seven years since his death. Or whatever you call it. His body was torn apart and scattered to different parts of Transylvania for no apparent reason other than to annoy Simon, and the whipmaster must travel all over the place to gather the pieces up, and then head back to Dracula's castle from the first game, Castlevania, for the final battle. Getting these pieces is where most of the game's aggravation comes from.

Each one, along with one extra item necessary to complete the game, is hidden in some kind of dungeon. These dungeons are what you'd expect of a Castlevania game, and I've no beef with how they're created. Most of my reservations stem from getting IN to these stupid places. Usually you need to find an item that's secreted somewhere else, and often these items are really difficult to find. What's more, you usually have to use said item in a particular way that's not immediately obvious, and the game doesn't help you much in figuring out what needs to be done.

There is a BIT of aid provided. Every now and then as you're travelling you'll come across a town full of NPCs, and generally speaking these NPCs know what needs to be done to progress. Problem is, Simon's Quest suffers from poor translation syndrome, like most NES games. Often the advice you're given is obscure, poorly worded or completely WRONG. You might understand why I find this game a bit annoying at times.

Luckily the side-scrolling combat has been lifted intact from the first game. You have your whip, a slew of magical items and your reflexes against the denizens of the night, and as you progress and kill your enemies you'll gain levels and get progressively stronger. (Simon is pretty spry for a sick guy.) As a neat bonus the game also features a day and night mode which transitions every couple of minutes between, well, day and night. Enemies are far more copious when the sun sets, and zombies will even invade the towns for you to kill while you wait for the NPCs to come back out and start spreading their lies again.

Simon's Quest actually is a decently good game, but the questing ambiguity is an enormous pain. Don't be surprised if you give up on this title and just play another Castlevania game, as they have all the fun stuff and dispose of the extra aggravations.

Learn more about this author, Matt Bird.
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