/vr/ - Retro Games

>>10331021
They apparently cobbled it from leftover boss sprite assets that are probably lost forever. Also, if you look closely right before her Saturn battle starts, she disappears for a frame or few as her reinserted sprites are loaded in.
I think IGA should've just cut his losses and improved upon Saturn Maria, and if he really wanted to incorporate a more Rondo-ized Maria, add THAT as a surprise extra. PSP's redone boss/playable graphics look out of place with the rest of the game, which is ironically the same issue people had with the rest of the Saturn content. At least Saturn Maria tries to blend in, even if her walk cycle is uncanny (because it's probably a holdover of her possessed version).

>>10285970
There's two versions of SOTN Maria since she didn't exist in playable/boss form in the original release. The Saturn version is loosely based on unseen assets for the cut bad-end boss dubbed "Black Maria". When IGA revisted Symphony of the Night for the unlockable port in The Dracula X Chronicles, by popular demand, he made his own version of Maria from scratch that acts more like her Rondo self, which is also in the Requiem compilation.
SatMaria is a LOT better as a boss per her roots, but PSP/PS4Maria actually plays more like you'd expect, so both have a place in the game's history.

>>10170492
Maria boss fight was the big highlight of the Saturn version, and I'm convinced it was a fluke because the Satdevs were privy to assets of the actual fight meant for the OG PSX.