Metroidvania has grown and developed so much as a genre since this, so it might seem pretty simple and quaint in retrospect. And sure, it's not as well-designed as a lot of games that followed, but I still loved playing it for the first time some 15 years after it came out.

Really fun, although most of the bosses feel too easy. Fantastic soundtrack and great visuals.

Remember that feeling when you first found that weird lower-left corner of the first castle? I want that feeling from every game. Personal favorite PS-X game.

Medusa Heads in the Clock Tower and Galamoth alone cause this to lose points.

The beginning of Igarashi's long-running re-imagining of the Castlevania formula that stood among the titles proving that 2D platformers abounding in style and substance were far from dead with the arrival of 3D. The direction was never quite as fully "Castlevania goes Metroid" as some might have it, as the action RPG grind for experience, money, and rarer drops to aid combat are very much present, whereas Metroid ignores them in favor of a tighter focus on the "lock and key" nature of abilities

it's not perfect. there are a lot of bizarre vestigial elements left over from the early games (it doesn't make a ton of sense to have pick up and swap sub items when there's an inventory screen) and the level design is fairly bland, especially considering the template Super Metroid left. but while Igavanias would be perfected with the masterpiece that is Aria of Sorrow, Symphony of the Night still holds up quite well in its own right. visually, it might still be the best one, too.

Stood the test of time far better than any other game of that generation, amazing in every way.

Unlike others I don't think this is the inarguable peak of Castlevania (personally I love Aria of Sorrow and Dawn of Sorrow just about as much), but it's one hell of a Metroidvania with such a cool gothic mood and grand musical soundtrack and smooth gameplay and great world to explore to it. Alucard is best bishonen.

Damn, this game is one smooth fucking ride. A side-scroller to end all other side-scrollers. Castle exploration by finding the right gear and powers defines this entire genre. Upgrading weapons, learning new spells, beating the game, only to turn around and do it again... upside down! You feel like a right badass playing this game. So much fun.

This is one of the few games that I can consistently go back to over and over again, a true masterpiece and in my opinion it's the best game that ever did come out on PlayStation. Is the writing bad? Sure! That adds to the charm! I want a game about vampires to have cheesiness because vampires are cheesy. But the game also gets all the mechanical elements right and it never gets boring. I play through it once a year every year and always enjoy it.

The best Castlevania game, I can turn into a fart cloud and the music is great.

Not my favorite among the Igavania's, but a damn solid title. Still maintains a slick as hell presentation (although the voice acting is notoriously cheesy) and the castle itself is still fun to explore. The game can easily be broken, (making it really easy) but the abilities have a lot of nice variety and are fun to use. The inverse Castle thing is neat on paper but it was kind of a cheap way to pad out the game's length and was kind of a chore to play through. Still a great game nonetheless.