Insane leap in quality over Ghosts 'n Goblins. It's slightly easier, a lot more fair, and most of all actually fun. Not to say it isn't still ruthless though, notoriously so, but you have unlimited continues, difficulty settings, powerups, can set how many lives you have, etc etc. Point is, it's a lot more manageable than it looks at a glance.

There are a couple gripes too, namely having to do it over again, which is a bit of a staple in the series I'm guessing. You do actually have to do it twice to complete it this time, the loops are different bc only the second one lets you reach the final boss. Was not too thrilled about that, but I wasn't particularly upset either because I was mostly enjoying myself. Still, I find it unnecessary. Another more minor thing is the jumping, as funny as it looks, is really awkward sometimes, and there are points with pretty precise jumps you have to make.

Would not recommend Ghosts 'n Goblins probably ever unless jokingly, but if it really does interest you, I'd at least play this instead first. You'll have a notably better time.