Castlevania II: Simon's Quest — Ambitious, Cryptic, Unforgettable
The divisive RPG-flavored sequel that's equal parts vision and jank.
Castlevania II: Simon's Quest (1987/88) ripped up the linear original and tried something wild for 1987: an open, RPG-flavored adventure with towns, NPCs, a day/night cycle, and money to spend.
It's also infamous: the clues are cryptic, a couple are flat wrong thanks to rough localization ("a mistranslation away from impossible"), and you'll get stuck without a guide. The internet era turned its jank into legend.
But play it on its own terms and there's real atmosphere here: the creeping dread when night falls and the zombies come out, the melancholy towns, that haunting "Bloody Tears" theme. A flawed swing for the fences, and I love it for trying.