Halloween 2021 - What Are You Playing? What Are You Watching?

[DoctorEncore | 3,691]

42 minutes ago, Alder said:

My Halloween tradition is to beat Castlevania on NES. I might play through Simon's Quest too, it's been a while since I played that. I also recently picked up a copy of Kid Dracula on Famicom, so I'm definitely playing that this year.

I need to find a retro gaming tradition for Halloween. For next year's backlog, I'm going with a lot more classic games so maybe I'll finally dig into the original Castlevania.

[Gentlegamer | 217]

Here's a playlist with the AVGN Castlevania retrospectives

 

[Richardhead | 2,925]

13 hours ago, Gloves said:

Halloween 3. Come at me. 

You’re a monster.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,931]

16 hours ago, Gloves said:

Halloween 3. Come at me. 

Correct

[RegularGuyGamer | 2,042]

I play the same couple games every October. 

Castlevania 3

Kid Dracula

Haunted Halloween 85 & 86

 

I wanted to play the GBA Castlevania games since they got released on the eShop so hopefully I'll get around to those this year too. 

[Webhead123 | 753]

On 9/22/2021 at 1:45 PM, DoctorEncore said:

Best Halloween that isn't the original Halloween? Go!

What if I told you that I haven't seen *any* of the sequels and am not sure I want to?

I've been kinda burned by a few too many movie franchises that took a fantastic original film (or sometimes two films) and transformed it into complete toxic waste. Terminator, Aliens, Robocop, Highlander, A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Matrix...the list goes on.

Edited September 26, 2021 by Webhead123

[DoctorEncore | 3,691]

8 hours ago, Webhead123 said:

What if I told you that I haven't seen *any* of the sequels and am not sure I want to?

I've been kinda burned by a few too many movie franchises that took a fantastic original film (or sometimes two films) and transformed it into complete toxic waste. Terminator, Aliens, Robocop, Highlander, A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Matrix...the list goes on.

It's interesting how movie sequels are almost universally worse than their forebears, but video game sequels are almost always better. We could make a list that goes on for pages exploring that topic.

I suppose it makes sense since original ideas and stories are more important in movies while gameplay mechanics are more important in games. You can iterate on mechanics to make an experience smoother but you can't really iterate on story.

Speaking of sequels, I watched Fear Street Part 2: 1978 last night. Both my wife and I enjoyed it quite a bit more than the first movie. There characters are more fleshed out and interesting and the camp vibe makes it a lot more fun. Nothing earth-shaking, but it accomplishes what it sets out to do and furthers the overall narrative. If you're on the fence about these movies because you don't like horror, it's worth noting that they are not scary in the slightest. They are more like violent thrillers with a horror background. They're a good time.

[JamesRobot | 6,027]

Started Spook-o-tron with my VB controller and A Nightmare on Elm Street series. 

Edited September 29, 2021 by JamesRobot

[Gloves | 12,260]

59 minutes ago, JamesRobot said:

Started Spook-o-tron with my VB controller and A Nightmare on Elm Street series. 

Niiiice. I don't have a VB controller but I got the adapter for SNES controllers and it's great!

[JamesRobot | 6,027]

23 minutes ago, Gloves said:

Niiiice. I don't have a VB controller but I got the adapter for SNES controllers and it's great!

I am super rusty.  Haven't played in a couple years and I can't even crack the scoreboard. I'ma have to give it some real attention.  Spook-o-tron is legit Nintendo hard.

[AstralSoul | 522]

I don't really plan these things ahead but I do always try to play some horror games every October. Doesn't always work out. 

Just finished The Last of Us 2 so that's kind of horror? At least survival action with some elements of horror. 

I want to play the original Silent Hill because I just bought it and never played it before.

I'm in the middle of Silent Hill 3 that I started last week so I want to finish that. 

I'll probably play Resident Evil 1 remake again since it's one of my favorites in the franchise. Maybe play RE2 remake as well. 

Not sure what else I'll play.

As far as movies go, I've been watching the Halloween and Friday the 13th series, kind of in random order. I want to see Halloween Kills in the theater too. 

[DoctorEncore | 3,691]

I finished up the Fear Street Trilogy on Netflix this weekend. Unfortunately, the third part is the weakest of the bunch and makes for a pretty lackluster conclusion. The 1666 portion felt shoehorned into the movie and was produced on a noticeably low budget when compared to the other two settings. Also, witchcraft stories are not appealing to me in general as they rarely provide the audience with much to think about. In my opinion, the 1666 story should have been broken into multiple smaller chunks and presented throughout the overarching story with the big reveal coming towards the very end of the third movie. It's clear that the time period motif was mandated to provide some marketing muscle, rather than for true story reasons. In the end, the plot kind of collapses under the weight of its own ambition and we get a run-of-the-mill action scene to end the series. Still, it's a fun little set of movies if you're looking for fast-paced thrills instead of suspenseful terror.

In regards to movies, I've got Let Me In ready to go. I watched the original Swedish film (Let the Right One In) close to release and enjoyed it, but never followed up with the American version. I'm also still looking forward to Old and Malignant later this month.

As for games, I've been too distracted by Halo Infinite multiplayer and Horizon Zero Dawn to dive into RE2 Remake and Dead Space, but I plan to remedy that soon.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,931]

3 minutes ago, DoctorEncore said:

regards to movies, I've got Let Me In ready to go. I watched the original Swedish film (Let the Right One In) close to release and enjoyed it, but never followed up with the American version

They're very, very similar, and both really good.  Though you have to wonder why they even bothered with the remake.

The book is great too, and even darker.

[Code Monkey | 2,131]

I bought the Castlevania Collection on Switch so I'm playing through them for the first time. I finished Castlevania yesterday and started on Simon's Quest today.

[Hammerfestus | 4,103]

I’ll probably be not playing the same spooky games I didn’t play last year.  PS4 Medievil and Luigi’s mansion 3 or 6 or whatever.

[Sumer | 221]

Probably nothing special for video games, though Xbox does have a Castlevania game for Free With Gold...so maybe that.

For watching, Svengoolie (if you don't know, google him!) has a month of Frankenstein movies for this month on Saturday nights on MeTV, so probably that, along with MST3k and MAYBE Rocky Horror, yet again.

[DoctorEncore | 3,691]

4 hours ago, Sumer said:

Probably nothing special for video games, though Xbox does have a Castlevania game for Free With Gold...so maybe that.

For watching, Svengoolie (if you don't know, google him!) has a month of Frankenstein movies for this month on Saturday nights on MeTV, so probably that, along with MST3k and MAYBE Rocky Horror, yet again.

When it comes to Castlevania, I've only every dug into SotN and the GBA games. I was thinking it would be cool to play the Lords of Shadows games, but that may be a goal for next Halloween.

[srbossman79 | 29]

Ahhh..... the Lords of Shadows games.  I thoroughly enjoyed the 1st one on PS3.  Great, quick hitting beat 'em up action akin to God of War.  One of the best beat 'em ups/ action games on the system in my opinion.  The developer really put a lot of polish on the 1st one.  I thought the sequel was trash though.  As much as I liked the developer's take on the Belmont story, where they went with it in the 2nd just seemed rushed and unimaginative. Very disappointing because I was licking my chops for 2 after I beat 1.  Enjoy the 1st and don't waste your time on the 2nd.  Happy Halloween.

[DoctorEncore | 3,691]

4 hours ago, srbossman79 said:

Ahhh..... the Lords of Shadows games.  I thoroughly enjoyed the 1st one on PS3.  Great, quick hitting beat 'em up action akin to God of War.  One of the best beat 'em ups/ action games on the system in my opinion.  The developer really put a lot of polish on the 1st one.  I thought the sequel was trash though.  As much as I liked the developer's take on the Belmont story, where they went with it in the 2nd just seemed rushed and unimaginative. Very disappointing because I was licking my chops for 2 after I beat 1.  Enjoy the 1st and don't waste your time on the 2nd.  Happy Halloween.

These and the other 3D games have been in my backlog for years and years. Maybe I just need to have a Castlevania month someday.

[T-Pac | 7,871]

All the Castlevania love in this thread inspired me to try out Dracula X [PC Engine] for the first time today.

I'm already struggling hard at Stage 3, but it's great so far. I love the classic, methodical mechanics that it retained from the original. And that undead bull chase-section was sick.

But my main concern is - why does the main character look like Ryu from Ninja Gaiden???

-CasualCart

[MegaMan52 | 2,567]

"I got a rock!"

Edited October 18, 2021 by MegaMan52

[DoctorEncore | 3,691]

8 hours ago, MegaMan52 said:

"I got a rock!"

We just noticed this is Apple TV so I definitely need to fire it up.

[DoctorEncore | 3,691]

The wife and I finished off Ted Lasso, so we decided to check out Midnight Mass on Netflix. We loved Hill House and we're big fans of Mike Flanagan, even if Bly Manor was a on the weaker side. We're one episode in and the show is definitely a slow burn. It has good atmosphere and a unique island setting, but it really takes its time (perhaps to reflect the pace of life on the tiny island). I'll check back in later this week if I get through a few more episodes.

Other than that, it looks like I missed Malignant's HBO Max window, so I'll have to save that one for another Halloween. Still planning to watch Old just to see what tricks Shyamalan's up to these days. All I know is that it can't be worse than Glass.

Edited October 25, 2021 by DoctorEncore

[Brickman | 4,208]

2 hours ago, DoctorEncore said:

The wife and I finished off Ted Lasso, so we decided to check out Midnight Mass on Netflix. We loved Hill House and we're big fans of Mike Flanagan, even if Bly Manor was a on the weaker side. We're one episode in and the show is definitely a slow burn. It has good atmosphere and a unique island setting, but it really takes its time (perhaps to reflect the pace of life on the tiny island). I'll check back in later this week if I get through a few more episodes.

Other than that, it looks like I missed Malignant's HBO Max window, so I'll have to save that one for another Halloween. Still planning to watch Old just to see what tricks Shyamalan's up to these days. All I know is that it can't be worse than Glass.

I’m three episodes into midnight mass and it is still a slow burn. A friend insists it is worth it though.

I’m finding it to be ok, but so far it’s nothing special and I would have given up on it if I had just randomly stumbled across it myself.

[DoctorEncore | 3,691]

6 hours ago, Shmup said:

I’m three episodes into midnight mass and it is still a slow burn. A friend insists it is worth it though.

I’m finding it to be ok, but so far it’s nothing special and I would have given up on it if I had just randomly stumbled across it myself.

Just finished episode two and I'm definitely digging it. I like that it's very ambiguous and character driven. It kind of reminds me of Hill House in that way.

I also decided to finally fire up Dead Space for some last minute pre-Halloween gaming scares.