Not a hidden gem, but I'm gonna say unappreciated. Castlevania: The Adventure is a worthy Game Boy classic, except most don't see it that way. Honestly, even for me when I did beat it for the first time in the 2000s I still didn't like it so much. It wasn't until two years ago that I flat out became engrossed by it, like there's a switch that flipped on in my head.
The slowdown is bad, yeah. Considering the talent behind it, it's hard to say whether it was deliberate to prevent flicker or if there was a rush and they couldn't figure out how to fix it. And there's the complaint of not having subweapons. The lack of subweapons never bothered me because I've always only really cared about the whip.
But like Super Mario Land, the differences that make this game unique due to being downgraded to the Game Boy are what help make it interesting. Some enemies never seen before or since (not counting the sequel). Ingeniously using rope ladders instead of stairs. Upgrading the whip to have a fireball as long as you don't get hit.
The level design is well-made; instead of just going left to right, about half of the levels are going down or up. Level three is a standout with the screen being pulled together, only for the rest of the level have you autoscrolled up and then to the left by instant death spikes. Going through that level without dying felt so good. The pixel-perfect platforming that Castlevania is known for is on full display here, especially in the first level right before the boss where you have to jump on platforms - again, getting the precision right and jumping and landing at the right time is satisfying.
The game is 'only' four levels, but then again this is a Game Boy game from 1989 - I can nearly beat it on my half hour commute. There's so much variety in those four levels that it leaves you wanting to come back to it even after beating it.
Something I also noticed two years ago was the talent that made this game - you've got Masato Maegawa as one of two programmers, Koichi Kimura who went on to Treasure with Masato and Nobuya Nakazato the man who made modern Contra as the two graphic designers, and Norio 'NON' Hanzawa who also went to help start Treasure. Those are four legends in the industry who basically cut their teeth in 1989 making this game. And there was always talk among gamers that Treasure was founded by people who made the Castlevania games, which wasn't really true - except in the case of this game, which could have fooled anyone. But if you pay attention, you can really see that kind of talent in this game.
I know I'm just yelling at the wind now but this is such a great game that people don't like because of slowdown and the checkpoints. A superior sequel that fixed every problem and improved everything came out two years later but there's a place in my heart for this game.
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