This patch features a complete translation, multiple code hacks (8×8 and 8×12 vwf and other fixes for expanding available space on screen and in memory) and several graphical changes, including compressed graphics.

Okay, so the headline is misleading- I never had any problems with the official translation of SotN except for how goofy and weird it was.

This hack makes away with the weirdness of the official translation and makes something much more playable out of Gekka something something Akumajou Dracula X. Forgive me if I butchered that title.

Let me say that I have owned the official English release of this game for several years now. I played it all the way to the doppelganger (first castle) and stopped. Why? It just didn’t feel worth playing. I tried playing that same version on my PSP once, and couldn’t. I even tried the Dracula X Chronicles re-translation and couldn’t. It took this translation to make the game finally enjoyable to me (or maybe I was going through Metroid withdrawal and needed a Metroid-esque). Therefore, you can expect the text in this version to run much, much smoother and read better than ever before and the Japanese voices sound cool to boot.

The game itself is fantastic (and what could make it more fantastic? If Alucard could have a buster on his right arm and could aim diagonally). Any fan of Metroid or of the Castlevanias starring Soma Cruz would be right at home with Symphony of the Night. Heck, action RPG and Zelda II fans might like this game too.

I probably wouldn’t recommend it to fans of the old school Castlevanias, since this game is beyond being easier than its predecessors, but it’s still a really good and challenging game specially since it’s not out to kill you at every instance. That said, this game is not easy (but it isn’t hard either) and you can lose if you don’t know what you’re doing. The game also turns the difficulty on its head once you get to the second castle, but I think that was meant to be that way.

My one beef with this game (and with some of the Metroid games) is that sometimes, it’s not clear what you must do. I got up to… that one good guy who’s not so good right now… and fought (and died) against him thinking “WTF, you’re a good guy!!” If you go to Gamefaqs, turns out you needed two rings or something to find out what was wrong with him. Other than that, the game is perfect.

Recommended - Yes