We've all seen this plot type in cartoon episodes where the main characters have to traverse through a real-life video game to escape and/or succeed in their mission, so it's no surprise to see Glitch Techs - a show heavily centered around gaming culture - to offer their own take on the concept. However, because of how knowledgeable and passionate the crew members are about the medium, they weren't content to just give us a generic platformer or action adventure or whatever - instead, we get a full-blown parody of the NES classic Castlevania in "Castlestein".
Now, I have never played a Castlevania game and only know very basic details about the games (generating items from candles, cryptic puzzles, etc.), but many of these are portrayed pretty close to accurately as far as I can tell. However, I understand that it borrows many elements that aren't necessarily from Castlevania but are still very much in-line with the genre, which I think only allows more creative freedom on the crew's part. It definitely makes fun of the game in many places, like the cheesy dialogue and how goofy/overdramatic the boss gets, but it still comes across as a loving tribute with the level of visual detail throughout and how it's portrayed as a serious - but not impossible - challenge.
But even taking the parody completely out of it, Miko and Five's characters lend themselves extremely well to this concept, even beyond the obvious reasons. Five gets a solid arc about his self-conscious over not having beat the game, with him not wanting to be seen as inferior to Miko who claimed to beat every game she's played. While it's somewhat obvious where this will go, it's surprisingly relatable in how it's executed, especially since the part where he got stuck was somewhat justified given his mindset. But even Miko shows a considerable amount of weakness. After she guides Five through the front half of the game, she realizes that she prematurely assumed the game was over when it wasn't, and through the rest of the adventure she becomes legitimately afraid of her surroundings, allowing the roles to be partly reversed by the end.
Studio 100's work on the character animation is pretty standard for this show (meaning there are some real shining moments, but it can get a little inconsistent). However, where the visuals really excel are the backgrounds and overall immersion. They made a good, conscious choice to make most of the rooms look less like retro video games, which would've gotten old fast, and instead translate that exact style into the modern world. This leads to a very wide mix of color palettes and there being a new attractive backdrop virtually every minute, not to mention the effects and designs - while not being perfectly loyal to the source - are just plain pretty to look at. Overall, "Castle Crawl" is an incredibly fun journey taking the show's themes to new heights, while still serving as a relatable, empowering story in its own right.
Nix and Bergy open this episode, and as someone who admittedly has gotten these names mixed up from time to time (I might've done so at one point in this very blog), the curly-haired one is Bergy and the one with facial hair is Nix.
The layout of the game case is quite simplistic, but the logo is really well done. Also, I confused the C (for the published "Classic Jane") as an ESRB rating at first.
This is probably one of the coolest displays of a glitch being unleashed, spraying this mist permeating the entire house, slowly turning real objects into game objects, with a mysterious figure absorbing Nix and Bergy into this digitized static effect. Great stuff.
I'm not entirely sure of where this is in the Hinobi store, but it's another sleek, modern enviroment that contrasts well with the setting we'll be seeing for the rest of the episode. Also, there's Simi again.
I really like the subtle pink glow going on at the house, getting more opaque the further you deep you go. Really sets the stage for what's exactly happening.
Not only does the first room we see inside the house-turned-castle do a great job immediately establishing the atmosphere, but Miko's initial fangirling moments are illustrated quite well by her zipping between statues, as seen here.
I like how we get a brief reminder that they're traversing through a normal house early on with Five's gauntlet light before the action really starts to kick in. And just the idea of a mapper glitch making the captured environment literally larger than life is pretty damn cool
The first two of many, many images that combine excellent contrast and simplified colored palettes to create truly beautiful backdrops that would look great on any computer wallpaper.
Check out THIS low-angle shot, whoo. The detail and perspective are downright dizzying, and is probably the single best illustrator of just how huge this area has become.
These book monsters aren't particularly unique in design, but this is the first time we see the "XP" come up when an enemy is defeated with that nice medieval font. Good motif that carries throughout the entire adventure.
Three images from the first montage of Five and Miko traversing through various rooms. The constant 'flat' look is what I mean by translating the style of these old games into more modern aesthetics. The enemies don't fill the screen like an actual Castlevania game would, but the designs are still pretty cool. Special mention to that exchange in the second image by the way, a very funny nod at people judging others' play styles. Five's "Yes I do" is said in such a humorously low, candid way.
We don't get too many bits of awesome, dynamic animation, but this one particularly stands out with Five jumping on a hoverboard and prepping to swing his sword at the mini-boss. You can just sense the motion from these stills alone.
I like the brief touch of this spotlight appearing below Miko for this one pose. There's no reason for it to be there, and you may miss it, but the tone sells it.
Apart from Count Nogrog's comical yet sinister design, this contrast and overuse of lens flairs is both attractive and pretty humorous with how overdramatic he's being portrayed.
This battle is pretty simplistic in concept, but Five struggling with Nogrog's pattern in the first loop, then catching on with the second loop (per Miko's advice) is some good attention to detail, and another nice bit displaying the crew's knowledge of games like this.
I love the atmosphere here. As what really happened with Miko starts to settle in, all the background sound we get is the clock ticking in the background. So mysterious.
I can't make out the character on the far right (which Five refers to as the 'C'-tech), but Zahra and Haneesh make another early-bird cameo on the left. Only one more episode before we really get to know them, folks.
This quick shot goes a little too far with the brightness and color saturation, but it's still a solid angle with the black space only further conveying the danger.
The second montage is partly more of the same 2D look we got in the first, but they decide to break away from that every so often. These shots are really well directed in general.
More unnamed techs are seen in the final boss's lair. These designs are just odd, to be honest. What's up with the guy on the right?
The early part of the final battle with Count Nogrog's true form has a lot of good impact shots, as they try and fail to leave a dent on him with their weapons. This is probably one of the best ones thanks to it being a dynamic still.
I like how Miko's pose as she whines about being a pathetic-looking statue almost exactly matches the petrified tech in the background.
Here's another excellent, action-packed piece of animation as Five and Miko wind up their finishing blow. Their profiles do a near-360 before the camera zooms out, and it only makes the action all the more exciting.
Probably one of the most earned, celebratory glitch captures, period. "We're the D-team, Crum Bum!"
And we go right back to groundedness with the house returning to normal and all the techs just kind of resting. Little disappointed that Nix didn't find a torch in his butt as he was left though.
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