Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts

From Capcom Database Wiki

Intro and Gameplay

Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts (Chou Makaimura in Japan) is the third official game in the Ghosts 'n Goblins series. It is included in Capcom Classics Collection. It is a platform game, and initially released for the Super NES console in 1991.

It was later ported to the PlayStation, Sega Saturn, Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 2, Xbox, PlayStation Portable, and the Wii Virtual Console. It is the sequel to the arcade games Ghosts 'n Goblins and Ghouls 'n Ghosts. It is perhaps best remembered for possessing immense difficulty and unforgiving gameplay, despite providing a level select cheat.

[edit] Characters

Arthur
Red Arremer
Astaroth
Guinevere
Cockatrice - The Stage 1 Boss, the Cockatrice is a monstrous bird-creature who births hatchlings called Miniwings. The Miniwings will attack anything that comes near its parent. Players must beware its long neck.

Giant Barnacle - The Stage 2 Boss, the Giant Barnacle rides on a whirlpool created with its own tentacles, giving chase to the player while attacking with many hard-shielded calamari that act like torpedoes.

Death Worm - The Stage 3 Boss, the Death Worm is a huge centipede that can levitate and disintegrate itself due to its strange matter. It ensnares its prey, cutting its escape routes, then shoots an array of poisonous, sticky shots that fly back and forth like a boomerang.

Hydra

Freon

Sardius - Responsible for the second kidnapping of the Princess, Sardius is highly resistant to attacks and will shoot multi-directional laser beams and floating platforms from his body. Only Guinevere's ring, a secret weapon left dormant through the ages, has the power to defeat Sardius and return peace to the land.

[edit] Story

The game is set four years after Arthur rescued Princess Guinevere from the demon Lucifer. They are engaged, and are about to get married. While spending a quiet moment Guinevere is suddenly kidnapped by a demon.

Players once again control the Knight Arthur in his effort to save his bride from the Ghoul Realm. This time, the ruler of the Ghoul Realm is the Demon Emperor Sardius (Samael in Japan).

Sardius, along with Lucifer, was one of Satan's co-conspirators against God himself. He and Lucifer were banished from Heaven for supporting Satan during those unstable times. During the Satan-Arthur and Lucifer-Arthur Wars, he was commander of Hell's internal security detachment. He never saw combat, as both previous wars occured in the occupied territories of Camelot. Hell was left intact. Both his predecessors were weakened from their defeats, and he finally saw a chance to rule. He was able to capture Lucifer's remaining power before he imploded, and stripped Satan of his immortality to strengthen his own power. As a token of goodwill, he appointed Satan General Supreme of his armies. Sardius is unaware of Satan's conspiring, but he holds a firm grip on power.

[edit] Gameplay

The game is largely similar to its prequels, though it is based more on Ghouls 'n Ghosts. In Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Arthur can upgrade to the bronze armor which enables him to upgrade his weapons, and the golden one which allows him to unleash a special magic attack by charging the attack button. A new ability of Arthur is the double jump. While he still can't change directions in mid-air, he can while doing the second jump.

Also new this time around is the addition of new weapons. The Bow and Arrow which allows Arthur to shoot two arrows at once and at slightly different angles, and the Scythe, which flies along the ground.

The wizard that hides in treasure chests from Ghosts 'n Goblins is back, and he'll transform Arthur into something different depending on what he is wearing: an infant (no armor), a seal (regular armor), a bee (bronze armor), or a young woman (gold armor).

Sticking with tradition, players have to beat Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts twice in a row with a special weapon (Guinevere's Bracelet) before being treated to the true ending.

[edit] Difficulty

Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts has often been described as the most challenging and difficult game for the SNES. Even the very first level of the game is of extreme difficulty, and can often take countless tries to succeed. Many have described it as being nearly impossible, and have joked about their loss of controllers due to frustration. Those who have overcome it often describe it as a major sense of accomplishment.