Welcome welcome once again to the column that attempts to pair video games and craft beer together. What started as a simple writing challenge has morphed into a space to chat about two of my favorite things, video games and good beer. Sometimes retro, sometimes modern, sometimes local, sometimes national, there is something here for every gamer and every drinker. I hope you’ll subscribe, comment, and share.
The original Castlevania for the NES is an important game not just for the medium as a whole but for me personally. That game, with its homage to the classic Universal Monsters and gentle easing into “horror” shaped my interests in ways I didn’t realize until much later. It also made me a huge fan of the series in general. Following through with a few sequels on the NES, some adventures on the Game Boy, and a dabbling here and there on other platforms (most notably the Genesis with a few killer titles), Castlevania retained the action-platforming, sub weapon using, vampire killing it became best known for. Sure there were a few proverbial toe dips into branching paths and RPG-like elements but at its core, it remained an action title. Until 1997. Until the Playstation. Until Symphony.
Simply put, this game is a masterpiece. Originally directed by Toru Hagihara, who was promoted during the game’s development, and finished by the man who would go on to become synonymous with the title, Koji Igarashi, Symphony started life as a 32X side story to the main series. During early development the decision was made to move to the Playstation console. Inspired by The Legend of Zelda and, according to IGA himself, bargain bins filled with Castlevania games, Symphony was pitched as an adventure game with areas that could only be reached once the player had powered up enough. Similar in design to Metroid in that respect, Symphony of the Night heralded the Metroidvania school of game design that is alive and well today. That design coupled with incredible music, graphics, and controls added up to one of the best games of all time. In a world awash in 3D gaming at the time, the decidedly 2D Symphony of the Night proved that the classics could be reinvented and thrive.
The history of the Russian Imperial Stout, RIS, is as complicated as it gets in the annals of craft beer. And while it makes for a good story, it deserves a far lengthier post than this series to do it justice. Suffice it to say that a RIS is a big, bold beer heavy on alcohol and hops. And while there are many versions available in the states, North Coast Old Rasputin being perhaps the standard bearer for the style itself, few, if any, engender the reaction 3 Floyd’s Dark Lord receives. First brewed in 2004, Dark Lord released to minimal fanfare. But, as is often the case, the legend grew. Through word of mouth in Muenster Indiana and the surrounding areas, Dark Lord became a name to watch. And then 2006 happened. Dark Lord Day became a destination date as the available product sold out for the first time on the day of release. The release date, the last Saturday in April, has only grown in popularity and myth as the years have gone on. Guest taps, tons of food, and metal bands galore have combined to make Dark Lord Day a proper festival. 3 Floyd’s has churned out countless variants of the base beer to keep the hype train going but the original remains a star. Brewed with coffee, Mexican vanilla, and Indian sugar, Dark Lord is a dangerously drinkable RIS that has paved the way for many of the popular “BIG” stout releases every year on the craft beer calendar.
So why these two together? Both beer and game took what came before, refined the experience, and produced game changing, long lasting experiences. The indie game landscape is filled with metroidvanias that owe their very existence to Symphony of the Night. Some of the best, or at the very least my favorite, games of the last 20 years have Symphony in their DNA. Games like Hollow Knight, Guacamelee, Blasphemous, Shadow Complex, and Chasm all show that influence. Likewise, the craft beer landscape has big event releases littered throughout the calendar year. Goose Island’s Bourbon County, Russian River’s Pliny the Younger, Cigar City’s Hunahpu, and Toppling Goliath’s Assassin all evoke the spirit of Dark Lord Day. The community surrounding these events, sharing beer in lines, bringing rare bottles, etc., is a carryover from the spirit 3 Floyds brought to the world. So grab a controller and raise a glass to these road pavers and their influence.
Prost!