Ok Stupid Rant, But Im Sick Of Looking Up A Game And Only Being Able To Find Guides And Wikis Made By

Ok stupid rant, but I’m sick of looking up a game and only being able to find guides and wikis made by people who obviously hate the game they’re writing information about.

I was looking for guides for the hedge maze portion of Castlevania 64 because I was stuck in it and couldn’t visualize what the layout of maze looks like (turns out, it’s not technically a traditional maze, aka one route to the exit, which helps a lot) and the only guide I can find is one on gamefaqs or something where the person cannot contain themselves from constantly interjecting to say how much they don’t like Malus cause “ugh overdramatic cutscene, his parents are dead who cares, he looks like a girl” or how they hate the game cause it’s too hard and annoying and “oh boy as if this game couldn’t get worse”.

And like dude! Sincerely! Shut up! I don’t care! I just want to know what I’m supposed to do! You are allowed to dislike the game and express your opinions, just please keep those to a little ending opinion section or a review!!! Stop breaking up actual instructions I can’t keep track of what you’re telling me to do!!!!!!!!!!!

And I saw something similar happen on a different smaller wiki-ish sort of website (it might have been the Castlevania Dungeon, I’m not sure. Definitely not Fandom tho.) on the Castlevania: The Adventure page when I was looking for some facts. Again, the person writing was constantly being all “not that this game is important anyway” and like! I literally don’t care if you don’t like the game that’s not what I’m here for!!! Heck the website even had some misinformation on the page too saying that Christopher was Simon’s grandson in that “or whatever, it doesn’t matter” kind of tone! Like!!!!! Shut up!!!!!!!!!!!! I am here for factual information! Not a review!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It’s just absolutely annoying and now I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do in CV64 cause I can barely process what this guy is saying ugh.

I’ve never used Paint 3D before but aaaaaa he came out so cute I afshdkdhahdkdjsjhdjsl (>< ). Tons of angles because it’s important hehe—

Some OC concept doodles, idk if I’ve posted any of these before or not whoops. I feel like I have posted the one with all 4 main characters, but eh whatever. The little girl has a name now, her name is Zarie :3. But yeah some doodles and a nice color reference of Miran :)!

I also think I should uh label this mature for the second to last image, I almost completely forgot about that part. The person in said image is currently an event in the first room, I have a sprite of her and everything… I’ll have to take some screenshots to show progress I’ve made on the game so far (>_< ;). It’s not very finished, but I almost have one whole floor mapped out :D!!!!!!!! Slowly but surely I guess. Augh anyway that’s it.

The land is wrought with terror He roams the countryside They call him vampire killer Wipe the blood from your eyes

I redrew something from 2022 :3! Yippie, now you guys get to see the old one and the new one next to each other heck yeah.

I’m gonna rant like absolutely bonkers length about Simon’s Quest and the endings and story under a cut for anyone interested:

The original version (the last image) had this like long rant about how I see the endings of the game, but it wasn’t as comprehensive cause I was still kinda new to things and well instagram character limit lol.

The endings of the game are a really really cool topic to me because of how ominous and vague they all are. They’re all left pretty open! But I’ve always gotten some sinking dread even when getting the fastest “red sky” ending. The game really sets up the ending with a lot of empty areas and suspense beforehand, especially with the still present but now more pressing clock still ticking ya know, and the final battle is kinda just there, but it ends off all this tense build up with

A eulogy. One definitely written for Simon too. In every ending.

The first ending (grey sky) is really vague, just a general statement that “Simon you will always be remembered for your bravery and courage” and that “Peace and serenity have been restored to Transylvania and the people are free of Dracula’s curse”. Which is really odd for what would be assumed to be a “bad ending”. This generally sounds like a pretty good outcome and it’s primarily the same in the Japanese version just slightly worded differently. Heck, it’s not even stated in the text outright if he died. But the visuals, oh man. Dreary greyscale and Simon doesn’t even appear on screen in front of Dracula’s grave. Did Dracula even get reburried? It’s some really bleak imagery compared to the otherwise pretty unsuspecting text.

And second ending (blue sky) is very interesting. Simon appears on screen with some nice bright generally cheery colors, but the text deliberately mentions his death in both versions. The English version however says something the Japanese version doesn’t: it says the curse wasn’t broken. The original text says “until a young man to fight against evils like him comes again to this world, Transylvanians will keep praying forever.” Which I guess you could assume means that something went wrong and the curse still exists, but it could also be taken as a general “there’s no cool badass vampire hunter guy to kill any other general threats, so we hope another one comes along”. So, again, it’s so extremely vague.

So far the first and the second don’t really have all that much different as far as implications go: Simon beat Dracula but he died.

So what about the third ending (red sky)? Would it shock you if I said there’s not much difference from the text of the first ending? It’s essentially just another eulogy text with nice things to say about him. It says “Simmon Belmont put an eternal period to the legend of Dracula” (yes the Japanese version says Simmon lol it happens), which is something we know isn’t true because well more games got made later. Also because Dracula’s hand pops out of the ground afterwards! Which is hard to say the meaning of, is it just a teaser like “to be continued” or is it actually meaning that Dracula wasn’t put down properly and will be back really soon? Because that still is in line with things since yeah Drac did kinda sorta come back early in Harmony of Dissonance. Anyway— But it’s just another way of saying “he killed Dracula” and probably “he ended the curse”. The last section is just “his blood and sweat have penetrated into the ground of Transylvania and will bring us full-blown flowers with happiness in next spring”. Which is, again, just a really pretty, poetic way of saying “we’re never gonna forget this guy”. And again, this ending never outright says if he lives or dies!

Which is so!!!!! Weird!!!!!!!!!!! Why have multiple endings in a game if they’re all so vague that they’re almost completely interchangeable and can all be argued to be the ending of the game? You could genuinely make an argument for each of the endings being the canon ending and it would affect essentially nothing. They’re so vague to the point that a lot of people assume that they were mixed up at some point in development, which I find unlikely coming from the dev team of the guy said to want his games to be a cinematic experience. But it’s so strange! Why!?!?!

But I think that this vagueness and sense of idk how to put it— um ya know when something builds something up to get you all excited and convinced it’ll go one way and then it pulls the rug out from under you? Like when it’s set up to where it feels like the protagonist is finally going to get something and then it just doesn’t happen completely unceremoniously? Like a hope crushing twist?

Idk what I mean is, to me, it feels completely intentional. It feels to me like the game is just ramping up the tension and the suspense and the dread just to cut it off with vague, bittersweet endings that just seem to imply sad things and don’t sit right. It’s like as if the game wants you to get the first ending, see that it’s really gloomy, try to figure out the game more and get the second ending, see that that one outright says he’s dead, then try to get something better only to run into another awkward seemingly negative ending and a realization that you can’t do anything about it.

And I was thinking about this again a bit ago and realized that it really fits with the rest of Simon’s story. Simon kinda has this general “hero goes to save the day” plot in the first one with some slight mention of Christopher before him and the fact that this is a clan and a repeating 100 year Dracula cycle right? But things go wrong and he gets cursed and presumably either struggles to figure out what to do or just puts it off for like 6 ish years. Add the general vibes of “will I ever be as good as my ancestors?” and repeating themes of being alone and then compare that with Dracula’s Curse that comes out not long later and this game is suddenly the most “power of friendship” “seeing the good in people” “together we can overcome this” kind of story in the whole series and it hit me: Simon feels like a subversion of the lone hero trope. Like this super uplifting, unlikely band of heroes story coming out right after the solitude if it were personified as a 1600s vampire hunter story feels so so so so important to me. And then The Adventure and Belmont’s Revenge come out and what are they about? Christopher goes into the castle alone and something goes wrong! And I’ve noticed how other Belmonts and protagonists in later games get companions or friends or helpers or somebody else, and oh boy does that make how alone Simon is that much more noticeable.

It just all comes together in a messed up way. I really feel like Simon dies in all of these endings. And I didn’t even get into weird symbolism discussion lol—

And maybe this is just me looking too hard into an old game from a modern used to stories in games being detailed perspective, but idk man, I love the Simon’s Quest because it never fails to baffle me. Honestly so much of Simon’s Quest genuinely haunts me (affectionate), like I’ll just be sitting around and think of another possible answer to something and it’ll end up just as vague and full of holes as any other speculation, it’s wild. This game will have you sitting around looking for answers only to consistently run into dead ends with sad or nonexistent implications. I hope any of this makes sense, this game drives me insane I love it debating replaying and overthinking it again hmmmmmmm—

I wrote a silly Castlevania ficlet about Christmas traditions. It's under the cut. I'll probably delete this later, but I hope it makes you smile. I've never shared my writing before so I'm quite nervous about sharing it here. I beg your kindness. Q_Q Happy Holidays. Characters: Simon Belmont, Selena Belmont, and Gabriel (a character I've added who is like a brother to Simon and an ally of the Belmont family) Context: Pre-Castlevania 1. Simon and Selena are recently married (it was arranged, and they are not terribly attached yet.) Rating: Appropriate for all audiences

“I’m not familiar with the traditions of Christmas,” Selena begins, draping her shawl over her body as they exit the hold. The cold winter air greets them with its now-familiar burn on her cheeks.

“Thank you for taking the time to explain it to me.” She adds, shuddering from the change in temperature, and bundling herself tighter still.

Gabriel smiles in reply, closing the heavy door firmly behind them.

“There’s no expectation for you to participate, of course.” Gabriel adds quickly.

“Does Simon celebrate?” She asks as they begin their walk across the yard of the hold.

“I don’t get the sense that he cares much for the family’s festivities. But, there’s a certain… expectation for him to participate. It’s significant to the family’s faith.”

Selena hums with understanding. Duly noted.

“Have you seen him?” Gabriel asks.

“Not for some time, no.” Selena replies, looking off into the distance. It is the afternoon, and snow is beginning to fall. She hopes that Simon may return home soon, before it gets dark.

As if on cue, as the pair approaches Simon’s home, Simon does, too.

Behind him, he’s dragging a large pine tree through the snow. It’s fastened by ropes slung over his shoulder. Despite his strength, he’s visibly tired from dragging it around.

Gabriel’s face lights up at the sight, and Simon gives a sheepish smile before raising a hand in greeting to the pair.

“I was just telling her you’re not one for festivities!” Gabriel calls out as they approach.

Selena blinks, not immediately understanding the significance of a felled tree in Christmas festivities, but she follows closely behind Gabriel.

“I thought a change of pace might be nice.” Simon replies breathily, looking between Gabriel and Selena.

Selena, meanwhile, is examining the tree behind him.

“You felled it yourself?” She inquires.

“Yes.” Simon nods in reply, revealing the axe strapped at his hip.

A moment passes before a smirk creeps onto his lips. “Care to help me bring it inside, Gabriel?”

Gabriel groans—making a dramatic show of it—before approaching, conceding. “I’m not as strong as you are!” He complains as he moves to grab the top of the tree.

Inside?

Selena merely watches as the men wrestle the foliage into Simon’s home. It’s disorderly, and the pair quickly erupt in laughter at the realization that it is simply too big to fit through the doorway.

Selena watches, and can’t help but smile at the absurdity of it all. Still, it was nice to witness this change in behaviour. To listen to laughter in an otherwise taciturn person. Gabriel brings out the best in him.

“Do you want to go inside first?” Simon asks, taking too long to realize that poor Selena was out in the cold.

“And miss out on the show? No, that’s quite alright.” Selena has quirked a brow, smirking. “I’m learning so much about Christmas from here.”

Another breathy laugh from Simon as he nods, looking to Gabriel.

“What if we turn it around?” Simon asks.

“You’re kidding me, Simon.” Gabriel groans before inevitably doing just that. The men struggle to turn the massive evergreen around, and without meaning to, Simon moves it in such a way that sends Gabriel to the ground. He whines disapprovingly.

“Oh! I’m sorry,” Simon moves around the tree to help Gabriel up.

But not before getting a snowball to his face.

Simon blinks before wiping the snow from his eyes, his gaze landing on Gabriel, still leaning on the ground, hands busy with preparing another ball.

Selena doesn’t know what’s happening. A game, maybe?

Simon moves quickly to duck the next ball that aims for his face again. Gabriel is granted a moment to recover onto his knees.

Both full-grown men are occupied making snowballs, some distance away from each other, before moving to fling them at each other. Selena steps back to not get caught in the crossfire.

That is, until Gabriel clamours behind her, Simon’s onslaught of snowballs following closely behind him. Selena stiffens, bracing herself for the impact that never comes.

Simon halts as Selena is used as a shield.

“That’s underhanded, Gabriel, you know I cannot hit her!” Simon reprimands lightheartedly. Selena has relaxed a little bit, her hands returning to her sides. Gabriel covertly hands her a snowball, and she takes it.

“Throw it at him.” Gabriel goads, and Selena is already a step ahead as she launches the ball forward, squarely for Simon’s chest.

It connects, and Simon is taken aback with surprise at her participation. Eyes land on her, and she’s smiling. It’s a bit of a hesitant smile, like she was doing something wrong.

Gabriel erupts with a cheer: he and Selena are a team now.

“You’re going down, Simon.” Gabriel taunts, handing Selena another ball. “I found your weakness!”

Simon steps back, trying to find an opening to throw a snowball at Gabriel and evade Selena. The duo is quick to work in tandem, hurling snowballs at Simon in unison. They both connect. Simon steps backwards, and—

suddenly, he’s on the ground. He’s fallen backwards onto the tree that never made it inside his home. Going down was literal. The tumble was softened by the tree branches catching his fall, but it was graceless.

Pushing aside his embarrassment, Simon laughs, and it’s warm and hearty.

Selena and Gabriel flock to his aid, at either side of him.

Gabriel’s expression flashes with realization before he tries to run away. Selena, however, is none the wiser as Simon hurls a snowball (with probably too much force) squarely at the back of Gabriel’s head.

Simon laughs, victorious, he seats himself onto the snow, recovering from his blunder. Selena blinks and looks between them. Gabriel has made a great show of being defeated, rolling onto his back in the snow not far away.

Selena can’t help but laugh, too. And it’s a sound that Simon isn’t familiar with—it’s bright, delightful. He can’t stop himself from looking at her face as she tries to hide her prominent smile behind her hand.

God, she’s pretty.

“Is this a Christmas tradition?” She finally asks, and Gabriel shakes his head from the ground.

“No, this is war!” Gabriel springs back to life, readying snowballs to hurl at Simon. Simon, too, gives in to the banter and participates again. Selena kneels and begins to make snowballs, as well.

“Which side are you on, Selena?” Gabriel groans, noticing that she’s readying to throw a snowball at him.

To everyone’s surprise, Selena instead throws the ball to Simon at her side, on his chest again. Gabriel cheers wildly, and Selena is giggling.

“Forgive me, husband.” And she gives him the sweetest smile, face flush from the cold.

“You wound me, wife.” Simon replies with a laugh.

Gabriel merely observes, happy that the arranged pair was becoming more comfortable with each other.

Hm - maybe he could help.

“Selena!” Gabriel calls, and before she has enough time to react, a snowball is flying straight towards her.

Simon, with expert precision, wraps one arm around Selena to shield her against him, while he grabs the snowball in his free hand, swiftly sending it back to Gabriel.

Selena merely blinks, suddenly against Simon’s chest.

“Which side are you on?” She lightheartedly reprimands Gabriel before looking to Simon, expression grateful. She allows herself to linger, appreciating his firm warmth against her.

“Whichever wins.” Gabriel teases, smirking at Simon. It’s a knowing, “you owe me one” look.

Simon scoffs, holding Selena close to him for a moment before he parts.

“Help me bring the tree inside, Gabriel.” Simon reprimands with a laugh, moving to resume his task. Gabriel hauls himself off of the ground, dusting snow off of himself before moving to help.

The men have managed to turn the tree around so it enters the home from the pointed end, rather than the trunk. It was easier to bring into the home, assuredly, but still made a mess, branches fraying against the threshold.

“You couldn’t have selected a smaller tree?” Gabriel inquires with a groan, colliding with the dining room table as he pulls the tree into the home.

When they finally get the tree inside, and position it upright, it is much too tall for the space. Simon places his hand on his face as he takes in the sight of the tree, whose tip is bowed against the ceiling. To add insult to injury, there is a notable sparseness where he had fallen on the tree earlier.

Simon groans as the hand moves to cover his eyes. What a mess.

Selena enters the home at last, closing the door behind her. Minding the pine needles on the floor, she approaches the men to observe the tree in its full glory.

What an odd tradition.

“It’s… lovely, husband.” Selena smiles, strained.

Gabriel is the first to burst into laughter. Simon can hardly contain himself as he shudders with stifled laughs. His restraint just makes Gabriel howl even louder, and that causes Simon to lose his composure and laugh audibly. Selena, still thoroughly confused, can’t help but join in the infectious laughter.

This could be a new tradition.