Demon's Crest, a kind of sequel to Gargoyle's Quest II on the NES, was not a commercial success. According to Nintendo Power, it even recorded negative sales one week due to people returning it! I understand why, despite the fact the game is good: it's too short, especially if you don't search for all the crests.
Demon's Crest is cryptic in a way that reminds me of games from the 80's. To beat the game properly, you need to gather the other four pieces of the fire crest, plus five other crests hidden across seven stages. However—and this is where the designers crucially erred—the most common outcome is to prematurely encounter the final boss, Phalanx, after the fourth stage (he mentions how he didn't expect to see Firebrand so soon), beat him, and get the "bad" ending. The credits roll, and you think, wow, my hour of playing wasn't worth $60.
Now, a video-game nerd, such as yours truly, might object and say, "Wait! Can't you see that the text about the power vacuum created in the demon-realm by Phalanx's fall implies that you actually made things worse? Play again and this time find all the crests like you were supposed to!" But you're talking to a kid, remember? They don't know why you're gibbering about this dumb game that obviously sucks. This problem could have been circumvented if the designers had either made it so you can't encounter Phalanx until you've beaten the first six levels or made him unbeatable if you don't have all the crests. Alternately, instead of playing end credits, beating Phalanx should have played the text and then said "Game Over" to make it clear Firebrand actually failed.
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| If you beat Phalanx without all the crests, you get the bad ending. |
Anyway, the main character, Firebrand, is a fire demon. He begins with one piece of the fire crest, which is a weak fire attack. Three of the other pieces give him more powerful attacks. One creates whirlwind platforms that let Firebrand get higher up. If you press B while he's in mid-air, he begins flying (hovering). Press B again to land. Flying is both helpful and fun. As a fire demon, Firebrand can also headbutt statues (destroying them) by pressing A. He can also cling to walls (like Mega Man X). Your currently equipped crest (or piece of fire crest) is shown in the leftmost box at the top of the screen.
The other five crests belong to the other elements, namely earth, air, water, time, and heaven. Each of these transforms him into a different type of gargoyle. The "ground" (earth) gargoyle can smash heavy objects but can't fly. The aerial (air) gargoyle can gain altitude (press A while flying), which Firebrand can't normally do. The tidal (water) gargoyle can't fly, but he can go underwater (the other gargoyle-forms take damage while underwater). The legendary (time) gargoyle receives half damage from enemy attacks and has a strong attack himself! Lastly, the crest of heaven is only a plot device. Phalanx has it, so getting it from him is the final goal. It would be nice if you could change crests without having to open the sub-menu (press START) every time. The L and R buttons aren't even used—what a waste!
You need to find the five crests to get your money's worth from Demon's Crest. Getting the air crest from the demon Arma (with whom Firebrand fights multiple times) opens up levels 5 and 6. If you enter Phalanx's castle without the first four crests, the game cuts straight to the final fight, skipping the whole level. Searching for secrets instead of making a beeline for Phalanx also gives you a chance to explore the world. Stages contain multiple areas, including hidden areas that can be accessed only after you've obtained certain crests, as well as several hidden bosses.
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| The aerial gargoyle |
In addition to the crests, there are five hidden talismans. Like crests, Firebrand can equip one at a time (shown in the rightmost box at the top of the screen). Each has its own power. The crown increases money drops. The skull increases health drops. The armor reduces damage by half (combine with the time crest to reduce damage by 75%!). The fang increases Firebrand's attack strength. Lastly, hand lets him attack twice as quickly, which is quite handy.
If that weren't enough collectibles, there are also five urns (to hold magic potions), five pieces of vellum (to record magic spells), and fourteen health upgrades! Firebrand begins the game (like a certain famous Hylian swordsman) with just three hearts of health. If you can find all 33 items, you acquire a sixth crest—the infinity crest, which combines all the crests' abilities!—and unlock a secret, eighth stage! At the end of this stage is the ultimate, secret, true boss, the Dark Demon. I haven't done this myself (yet), but I have read that beating this boss is extremely hard.
Like similar games (e.g., Mega Man X and Super Metroid), Demon's Crest has excellent and varied boss fights. Some are easy, some are hard. As with all platformers, beating them is just a matter of learning and practicing their patterns. Something that shows the game's age is that you have to replay a short segment before retrying a boss each time (unless you use save states). Fortunately, the designers dispensed with lives for Firebrand. When he expires, you can retry, return to the map, or get a password. This causes a slight problem: if you beat the game without recording a password first, you'll have to start over next time! It should give you a password after the credits. Better yet, the game should have included a battery backup. The password system is another aspect of the game that makes it feel like it's from the 80's.
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| Be sure to record a password before beating the game! |
The game has other flaws, too: there's a dumb mini-game in which Firebrand headbutts skulls. It has three difficulties at three locations. If you can master it, you earn a health upgrade (the only one I haven't gotten). In addition, the spells are mostly pointless. One spell summons an imp companion, which is neat, but he also drains your money because you have to pay him! The strongest spell, death, damages all enemies on screen, including even some bosses. The potions are better, particularly the most expensive one, ginseng, which fully heals Firebrand. He can equip one potion or spell at a time, shown in the middle box at the top of the screen. Press X to consume it.
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| Filling this sub-screen and getting all the health upgrades unlocks the secret 8th level. |
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| Phalanx's fortress |
When you add all this together, Demon's Crest is packed (though still not long). The thing I most enjoyed was that the main character can fly (or at least hover). I'm not sure I've ever played a video game in which that's the case. I've heard someone say it makes some of the platforming pointless, but that was not my experience. I think the levels were well designed with the flying ability in mind. I liked that you don't have to keep tapping B to fly; you press it once to start flying and again to deactivate. I like Metroidvania games, so this was a good fit for me. Getting new powers and health upgrades is so satisfying.
Demon's Crest is a mixed bag, but the good outweighs the bad. The graphics and audio are strong. As with other Ghosts 'n Goblins games, they have a fantastic, spooky, dark vibe that sets them apart from the competition. If the game is too confusing, a person nowadays can easily check YouTube or an old GameFAQ to find out where the items are. I recommend Demon's Crest for all SNES fans.
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| Grade: A- |
Linked Reviews
"The ability to play the levels in different orders, not to mention the free-roaming feel of the game make it seem like an RPG at times. That it's also chock-full of gameplay elements just further makes the title endearing and enjoyable."
— Corbie Dillard, Nintendo Life, 9/10
"Not that it was a bad game – we wouldn't be honoring it if it were. But, for whatever reason, it bombed in sales. Maybe parents took offense to the creepy demonic art on its box? Maybe the game was too tough for players to handle?"
— IGN, #44 of Top 100
"The moody organ music is simply amazing, and the gothic visuals are downright gorgeous. Between the monstrous enemies and goop-filled bosses, everything about this title screams horror. Some may dislike the game's cryptic nature and lack of direction, though."
– Mike Vito, Ultimate Nintendo: Guide to the SNES Library, 4.5/5
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