Editorials
‘Castlevania: Symphony of the Night’ Turns 20!
I’ve always been enamoured with the Castlevania franchise. For a variety of reasons (mostly involving my love of horror and video games), it’s tough to nail down why I enjoy the series. One of my absolute favourite entries in the series, however, is Symphony of the Night. Released on this date in Japan back in 1997, the game is considered by many to be one of the best games ever. The problem, however, with many games being labelled “the best ever” is that they’re often viewed through those damned nostalgia goggles. Shortcomings in things like the graphics, sound and gameplay are often obscured because of that, making a look back rather difficult. The real test is how they hold up all these years later. Fortunately, apart from some existing flaws, and even 20 years after its release, Symphony of the Night still remains excellent.
Probably one of the most fun aspects of SOTN is its open-world exploration and action, colloquially known by fans as “Metroidvania”. This style of gameplay deviated from the mainly left-to-right progression style of the previous games, and was so successful that it influenced the rest of the series. Part of that style includes RPG elements that require you to power up Alucard by defeating enemies for experience in order to survive long into the game, creating an addictive challenge. And yes, it’s still as fun then as it is now! As for the layout of the game, the entire map is built as if it were a castle, with sections of the map devoted to specific areas in a logical sense. All areas are interconnected with each other, though there are a handful of Warp Rooms for faster travel. Despite the presence of these Warp Rooms, the inevitable backtracking is still tiresome when you’re simply trying to make your way to a specific part of the map not found near a Warp Room.
As for controlling Alucard, the game’s control is still smooth and responsive. In comparison with the previous games with their stiff movement and limited jumping control, Alucard is quick and elegant. The player can easily perform one attack, quickly dash backwards out of the reach of an enemy’s response, then quickly move in for a counterattack or defend. Alucard also has several abilities (once you’ve unlocked them), such as a double-jump, as well as bat, wolf and mist forms. Alucard can also learn spells that can be used to attack or regain health, though it takes strategy when to use them appropriately.
Graphically, at a time when the focus was on 3D graphics, Symphony‘s use of 2D was considered a bit of an odd step. Ironically, the art and level of detail in SOTN still hold up from 1997 today better than some of those 3d-based games. Alucard’s animation is detailed and smooth. His walk cycle has him appear determined yet graceful, with his cape billowing behind him. All of his sword slashes have a wonderful flow and follow-through. Likewise, enemy sprites are also detailed, with far more frames of animation than in previous games. Larger bosses that fill the screen do get chunkier in their appearance, but are still impressive. Also impressive are the backgrounds, which make use of highly detailed sprites and parallax scrolling. The game also uses several 3D effects, which despite the limited number of polygons available, were used wisely to great effect.
Of course, one of the big attractions of the series is its music. Forgoing the use of familiar tunes, the soundtrack is a mix of varying styles. Each piece accentuates and brings out the appropriate emotion of each area perfectly. As soon as the castle gates close, and “Dracula’s Castle” begins, the music immerses the player in the game, and compliments every level. From the classically-tinged “Wood Carving Partita” in the Library, to “Festival of Servants” and its metal guitars during a boss fight, it’s a delightful sonic onslaught. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the infamous voicework for the game, which is as memorable as it is cheesy. Some players nowadays might not enjoy the kitsch, but you get used to it.
Apart from the backtracking and cheesy dialogue, the biggest shortcoming of SOTN would be the later part of the game. By this point, Alucard is so well-equipped and powered up that almost nothing stands in your way, muddying the once-challenging game. You can plow through the later bosses with ease if you manage to grab a weapon like the Crissaegrim, which is found so late in the game and is so overpowered, it feels even more out of place.
In spite of the flaws, Symphony of the Night is still one of the best games on the original Playstation, and is still rightfully one of the best games ever. The venture into new territory in terms of revised gameplay paid off, as did showcasing wonderfully detailed and animated 2D graphics that rival many 2D games today. Coupled with a memorable soundtrack that works to enhance the mood and emotions of the game, it’s truly no wonder that the game still holds its value at used game stores and on eBay. If games like Bloodborne and Dark Souls 3 are your niche, and you haven’t played Symphony of the Night, you owe it to yourself to experience Konami’s classic.
Horror was permanently changed in 1984 when Wes Craven’s A Nightmare on Elm Street unleashed Freddy Krueger on the world. This brutal boogeyman pushed horror to exciting new places, but so much of the character’s impact is the result of Robert Englund’s quintessential performance.
Englund has a long and storied career as a performer that’s covered far more than horror alone. However, there’s such a sublime, sinister synergy between Englund and this heightened genre that’s made him one of horror’s most revered names.
Englund is set to scare audiences again as a malevolent reimagining of Jiminy Cricket in Pinocchio Unstrung, but he’s also been responsible for many more macabre monsters.
The Cricket (Pinocchio Unstrung)
Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey has somehow spun a morbid experiment in public domain exploitation into its own cinematic universe, the Twisted Childhood Universe. There’s been increasing promise in the TCU’s various films, which has also led to a growing list of capable horror guest stars, such as Roger L. Jackson, Richard Brake, and now Robert Englund. Englund is by far the most impressive name to attach himself to one of these movies, and Pinocchio Unstrung certainly doesn’t squander the opportunity to have him on board as its terrifying take on Jiminy Cricket. Englund’s performance as “The Cricket” in Pinocchio Unstrung becomes a sinister subversion of the classic character who is meant to function as Pinocchio’s conscience and moral compass.
Englund’s Cricket is instead the ultimate instigator who perpetually pushes Pinocchio into greater violence that condemns humanity and its many misgivings, rather than idolizing all the “real boys” in the world. Pinocchio Unstrung is a love letter to practical effects and old-fashioned animatronics and puppetry. This means that Englund just provides the voice for Cricket, but it’s still a deeply sinister performance and one of the most unnerving characters to appear in the Twisted Childhood Universe. Once again, Englund is careful not to just repurpose his Freddy Krueger persona, and he instead develops an original voice that plays into past renditions of the character. There’s a palpable rage and disdain in Englund’s Cricket that turns him into a threatening loose cannon and makes the audience forget that he’s only a few inches tall.
The Phantom of the Opera (The Phantom of the Opera)
The Phantom of the Opera is a foundational horror story that’s still being explored over a century later. 1989’s cinematic adaptation of Gaston Leroux’s 1910 classic doesn’t always get the respect that it deserves, despite it containing one of Englund’s most nuanced horror performances. Directed by Dwight H. Little, who previously helmed the underrated Halloween 4, The Phantom of the Opera operates as a gorier take on Leroux’s source material that feels like a lost Hammer Film picture. The titular Phantom is the perfect role for Englund following A Nightmare on Elm Street, and his participation in the picture was initiated by Englund promising his agent that he’d do another horror project after Elm Street’s success.
Englund was excited to tackle an iconic character who had previously been portrayed by formative horror legends like Herbert Lom, Claude Rains, and Lon Chaney. Englund beautifully fits the mold and is sublime casting for this ‘80s take on the character. Englund taps into a powerful dichotomy between the Phantom’s brutal and tragically sympathetic nature. It’s a role that’s significantly deeper than Freddy Krueger and better explores Englund’s range as an actor, which helps get him away from cheesy one-liners. It also doesn’t hurt that Little concocts a uniquely twisted take on the Phantom’s disfigurement, which was achieved by sewing human skin onto Englund’s face. The modern-day sequences that bookend the film were meant to tie into a planned sequel, The Phantom of the Opera 2: Terror in Manhattan, which unfortunately never came to fruition.
Victor Creel (Stranger Things)
Love it or hate it, Stranger Things assembled some impressive guest stars that took advantage of their respective legacies as ‘80s genre legends, such as Linda Hamilton, Matthew Modine, Cary Elwes, and Robert Englund. Englund’s turn as Victor Creel in the streaming hit’s fourth season is one of the series’ best performances and a role that rises above the mediocrity around it. Victor Creel is an opportunity for Englund to actually subvert expectations and play against type. It’s brilliant casting that initially conditions the audience to be wary of Creel and view him as a frightening threat. This perception is reinforced when Creel is encountered in a psychiatric ward and horrifically blinded.
Creel’s disturbing eye-gouged appearance is revealed to actually be a symptom of his tragic life and the psychological torment he received from Vecna. Creel is hard to look at, but there’s nothing to fear about him. He’s led a sad life that’s filled with inescapable guilt. He’s more like one of Freddy Krueger’s victims than Freddy himself. Englund goes above and beyond as Victor Creel, and the emotional monologues that he delivers are among some of the actor’s best work and proof that Englund’s still got it.
Marquis de Sade (Night Terrors)
Tobe Hooper’s Night Terrors is a particularly forgettable ’90s horror film that faced a litany of production problems and changes that certainly didn’t do it any favors. The story is a mess, even for a Cannon Video production, but it provides the novelty of Englund pulling double duty as the cruel Marquis de Sade and his modern day descendant, Paul Chevalier. Night Terrors banked on the novelty of Hooper directing Englund as one of history’s greatest monsters, and his performance is easily the best thing about this movie.
There’s an unabashed glee to Englund’s work as the Marquis de Sade that’s reminiscent of Freddy Krueger’s twisted jubilation over his creative murders, yet it doesn’t just feel like a carbon copy of Englund’s iconic role. There’s an appreciated degree of restraint going on before the film goes off the rails and incorporates supernatural elements and abstract dream sequences. Chevalier and his modern cult worship the Marquis de Sade as a deity of torture and liberation. The nightmare sequences that involve the Marquis de Sade are the most chilling and make this figure look as frightening on the outside as he is on the inside. There’s enough to latch onto here, even if the film as a whole is a mess, and Englund doesn’t squander the opportunity to play two sides of the same creepy coin.
Scarecrow (Injustice 2)
Robert Englund is no stranger to voiceover work, and he’s voiced his share of macabre and memorable characters over the years. That being said, one of his most inspired roles is the work that he did in NetherRealm’s dark DC Comics-based fighter, Injustice 2, where he plays Jonathan Crane, better known as the Scarecrow. There’s a certain tongue-in-cheek brilliance to having Englund voicing the Batman rogue who is the self-appointed “Master of Fear.” There’s certainly a meta quality to Englund’s casting here, right down to how some of his dialogue explicitly references Freddy Krueger one-liners like “Welcome to your nightmare” and “Now I’m playing with power.”
Englund doesn’t just phone in this performance or replicate his work as Freddy. The actor cultivates a unique voice for Scarecrow that cuts to the core of this character in a menacing manner. Englund’s Scarecrow is raspy, erratic, and honestly one of the better takes on Dr. Crane. It makes one wonder what he’d be able to accomplish if he were playing the part in live-action. He takes a simple role and breathes fresh life into it. Curiously, it’s not his first time playing a Batman villain. He does comparably interesting work as The Riddler in The Batman and the more obscure sorcerer, Felix Faust, in Justice League.
Evil Bloodthirsty Brian (The Hughleys)
There’s a surprising relationship between horror icons and sitcoms, with Robert Englund being no stranger to adding a devious dose of terror to a farcical comedy. Englund shows up as a playful take on Lucifer in Married…with Children, but he also provides a genuinely chilling performance in the first season of The Hughleys. Season one’s “Storm O’ the Century” is centered around the Hughleys and Rogerses getting stranded at a seemingly haunted hotel during an intense blizzard.
“Storm O’ the Century” functions as a proper love letter to horror fans, with genre guest stars that include The Addams Family’s John Astin, The Shining’s Shelley Duvall, and Robert Englund as the comically-named Evil Bloodthirsty Brian. The episode certainly prioritizes its comedy, but it manages to also be legitimately creepy thanks to a locked-in performance by Englund. He’s used sparingly, but always to punctuate a particular scene and function as a jump scare. Evil Bloodthirsty Brian sports a ghastly scar and has a look that’s just frightening enough to be included on a ’90s sitcom. Anyone who is curious about Englund’s performance can check it out for free on Tubi.
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