I absolutely loved this game, and I'd call it my new favorite game on the NES.
I think to really talk about why this game is special, you need to talk about the artistry that went into this game. In my opinion, this is one of the earliest examples of video games being an art form. The visuals are simply phenomenal. Each level has gorgeous backgrounds and tilesets. Level 3 in particular, when you get to the end and see Dracula's tower off in the distance against a dark sky illuminated by the moon... it's just fantastic. The enemy designs are also amazing. It's a weird hodgepodge of classic movie monsters all realized in amazing sprites, many with lots of animation. And the SOUNDTRACK. Every single track is an absolute banger, no exceptions. The music never gets old, never gets stale, which is especially impressive given how much you're going to hear each one. Every piece of music is extremely upbeat with surprisingly complicated rhythms and melodies that just perfectly evoke the haunted castle motif. The visuals and soundtrack come together to impeccably form the classic cheesy horror movie vibes. Absolutely incredible.
The gameplay is less fantastic, but still very good. Simon is extremely limited at all times. You walk fairly slowly, and you can only jump straight up or forward with fixed momentum, unable to move in midair. Your whip has decent range but using it stops you and leaves you vulnerable. You have access to a variety of subweapons (the holy water is insanely broken) but you have to find those in the level, and if you die, you lose it. Enemies meanwhile take no knockback, often move quickly and have weird patterns or have ranged attacks that take off a huge chunk of health or throw you directly into a bottomless pit. The odds are stacked against you, and while the limited options can be frustrating, it also allows for greater control and precision. You always know exactly how far your whip will go, how far you'll jump, if you can move out of the way in time. This puts far more of the responsibility for deaths on the player.
That's not to say there isn't some classic NES unfairness to be seen. The hit detection on platforms is really weird, and you'll often fall off of one when it really looks like you should have made it. Enemies can have weird spawn patterns that they deviate from and make it hard to predict when they'll show up. Worst of all, some enemies have different attack patterns that they seem to switch between randomly, making some of them a roll of the dice if you can get past them easily or lose half your health trying to beat them. However, unlike a lot of games, these difficulty imbalances are pretty infrequent. Levels 2 and 4 are the worst offenders, but even they aren't that bad once you get the hang of things.
Overall, I really really liked this game. Definitely one of the best games on the NES.
I think to really talk about why this game is special, you need to talk about the artistry that went into this game. In my opinion, this is one of the earliest examples of video games being an art form. The visuals are simply phenomenal. Each level has gorgeous backgrounds and tilesets. Level 3 in particular, when you get to the end and see Dracula's tower off in the distance against a dark sky illuminated by the moon... it's just fantastic. The enemy designs are also amazing. It's a weird hodgepodge of classic movie monsters all realized in amazing sprites, many with lots of animation. And the SOUNDTRACK. Every single track is an absolute banger, no exceptions. The music never gets old, never gets stale, which is especially impressive given how much you're going to hear each one. Every piece of music is extremely upbeat with surprisingly complicated rhythms and melodies that just perfectly evoke the haunted castle motif. The visuals and soundtrack come together to impeccably form the classic cheesy horror movie vibes. Absolutely incredible.
The gameplay is less fantastic, but still very good. Simon is extremely limited at all times. You walk fairly slowly, and you can only jump straight up or forward with fixed momentum, unable to move in midair. Your whip has decent range but using it stops you and leaves you vulnerable. You have access to a variety of subweapons (the holy water is insanely broken) but you have to find those in the level, and if you die, you lose it. Enemies meanwhile take no knockback, often move quickly and have weird patterns or have ranged attacks that take off a huge chunk of health or throw you directly into a bottomless pit. The odds are stacked against you, and while the limited options can be frustrating, it also allows for greater control and precision. You always know exactly how far your whip will go, how far you'll jump, if you can move out of the way in time. This puts far more of the responsibility for deaths on the player.
That's not to say there isn't some classic NES unfairness to be seen. The hit detection on platforms is really weird, and you'll often fall off of one when it really looks like you should have made it. Enemies can have weird spawn patterns that they deviate from and make it hard to predict when they'll show up. Worst of all, some enemies have different attack patterns that they seem to switch between randomly, making some of them a roll of the dice if you can get past them easily or lose half your health trying to beat them. However, unlike a lot of games, these difficulty imbalances are pretty infrequent. Levels 2 and 4 are the worst offenders, but even they aren't that bad once you get the hang of things.
Overall, I really really liked this game. Definitely one of the best games on the NES.