Gargoyle's Quest II: The Demon Darkness (NES)

For anyone unfamiliar with the Gargoyle's Quest series, shame on you. Although there are only three games in total, they are all incredible, and the first one is sheer brilliance for a Game Boy game.

Published by Capcom, GQ is technically in the Ghosts 'N Goblins universe; the subtitle of the first game is even "Ghouls 'N Ghosts." Firebrand, the protagonist, is the red devil enemy from the Ghosts 'N Goblins games, and for whatever reason, he got his own series. I don't care why, I'm just happy he did.

At any rate, I was sadly deprived of an NES as a child, so when I saw that that the GQ sequel would not be on Game Boy, a part of me died. Thankfully, ROMs came into existence, but I've always preferred owning the actual cart (especially for games this awesome). And here recently, I managed to score a copy of the game for $6, so I sat down in eager anticipation with a game I've been waiting to play for 16 years.

What I find so awesome about GQ is that, in my opinion, it combines the best elements of both RPGs and action games. All the "levels" all side-scrolling platform-based, but there is an overworld between them and you have to talk to villagers, go on quests for items, and deal with random battles (which are also side-scrolling sequences). There's no leveling, but some villagers will challenge you and give you a reward after you defeat them (increased vitality, higher defense, etc.) You also get increased wingspan as you go along: Firebrand can only fly/hover for a short time in the beginning of the game, but eventually gains infinite wingspan. (True to Capcom form, he cannot duck, although he can cling and climb to walls ala Mega Man X.)

While the gameplay is and always has been solid (aside from the occasional Capcom Cheapness) I have to admit I was confused about the plot for GQ II. It seems to be less of a true sequel and more of a "remixed" version of the first game; either that or some kind of bizarre prequel. Either way, the timeline for these games is completely incomprehensible, and brings to mind the debates over LoZ timelines. Is it the same Firebrand? Is it a parallel universe Firebrand? The world may never know. However, I will give Capcom props and say that the plot for these games is still far better than the majority of "plots" they come up with.

Another thing I absolutely love about this game is its overall feel. It's kind of like the Capcom version of Castlevania in some ways: very gothic, very spooky, and yes, it actually scared me as a child. The enemies are freakish, bizarre, and otherwise unholy monsters; the music almost constantly features a creepy organ. It was awesome seeing the graphics in color on the NES, too; it's very dark, yet also brightly colored in places, so it creates an interesting contrast.

Anyway, because I could ramble about these games forever (the third one is "Demon's Crest" on the Super Nintendo), I'll go ahead and end it here. Ghosts 'N Goblins is one of the most heinous games I have ever played, but thank god it gave me Firebrand!

The badass himself.
Awesome box art.
This game is pretty much the opposite of Mario. Instead of being happy, all the inanimate objects have terrifying facial expressions.