Konami is having a resurgent Fall season with a slew of titles coming out in their biggest franchises. None reflects Konami is official back than the return of Castlevania with Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse. The game is out to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the series and is the first new entry in over a decade. With the genre the series helped pioneer becoming a smorgasbord of great titles, Konami had to think outside the box for the series’s return. Thus, they partnered with outside developer Evil Empire and Motion Twin (in an advisory role) who they last worked with to create a DLC based on the series for Dead Cells. Honestly, it was a perfect match as they have brought the series to its highest point in almost two decades.
The first thing you’ll notice about the game is that the developers at Evil Empire really draw you into the world of the game with a stunning and eye catching style. Then, the story is quickly set up with intrigue. Set over two decades following Dracula’s defeat at the hands of Trevor Belmont and friends at the end of Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse, Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse sees Trevor and his daughter Rose Belmont travel to Paris to stop the hordes of demonic creatures that are ravaging the city. The story quickly unfolds as the Belmont duo encounters followers of Dracula and wonder if they have wandered into a trap or as they call it a “mystery waiting to be solved.” Things go from there as a castle springs from the ground and it is up to Rose to stop the return of Dracula.
Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse sees the series return to its most famous iteration with this game being a Metroidvania. Rose explores this new castle as well as the surrounding areas of Paris. Aside from the beginning of the game prior to the rise of the castle, the game can be tackled nonlinearly with players being free to explore all areas at their discretion. However, as is a hallmark in the genre, there will be times where you are unable to progress in a certain direction until they unlock a traversal ability by defeating certain bosses. Traversal mostly consists of platforming through areas with things such as save points and fast travel being confined to their own specific spots on the map. Thus, don’t go in expecting you’ll be able to quickly travel between areas at a moment’s notice. Luckily, there are plenty of shortcuts you unlock throughout each area, and some areas have multiple connecting points to other areas allowing for you to enter an area from different sides.
On the map screen, you are able to place markers, so you can easily remember areas you need to return to. Plus, unlike a lot of modern games in the genre, the map and world of Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is pretty compact and isn’t this giant sprawling area you have to comb every corner of. While the map is not too big, there are still plenty of secrets to find throughout the game. These secrets areas usually contain a health or mana upgrade (finding four of each will increase the corresponding stat), an attack or defense increase, a new weapon or a relic that gives a bonus effect such as Rose doing more damage or faster recharging of mana. Then, the game features a Tarot card system that is tied to the bosses in the game. While exploring, Rose will encounter clues about the bosses which will be noted on their corresponding card that give a hint about where the boss is located and how to find them.
If you’ve played a game from Motion Twin or Evil Empire, you know how good combat feels in their games, and Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is no exception. Combat feels fluid and there are multiple different types of weapons that you can find and equip throughout the game. From swords to spears to whips and more, each weapon type has four different variations you can find with each being stronger than the last. You are freely able to switch between weapons whenever you want which allows you to test out and find which one works best for you. Aside from weapons, Rose can also cast spells in the form of Arcana. Once defeating a boss and sealing their essence in the aforementioned Tarot card, Rose will unlock a spell that relates to that boss. These spells can be upgraded as well as you complete challenges associated with them. Another really cool thing about the Tarot cards is that once you have absorbed a boss’s essence the boss will interact with Rose and comment on the happenings in the game.
When encountering regular enemies, the game isn’t the most challenging. However, since the game features a leveling system, if you do find yourself in a tough spot you can go take on another area and come back once you are stronger. Where combat really shines and difficulty ramps up is with the boss encounters. These encounters feel like they’re pulled straight out a a Soulslike with them being spectacles and you having to remember attack patterns to be able to take the bosses out.
If you still find the game too difficult, it does feature a custom difficulty modifer. This modifer allows you to customize things such as how many health flasks you have, how much damage Rose deals and takes or even turn off dying completely. You can also remove the runback to the bosses with a setting that respawns you right outside the boss room. These can all be turned on and off at your discretion, so if you are struggling for a bit you can set your modifiers and turn them right back off when you want to.
Overall, Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is a wonderful return of one of gaming’s most iconic series. Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is visually stunning to look and even feels even better to play. With a map that isn’t a sprawling maze, you won’t be getting lost or confused on where to go next. Plus, this is easily a game that old and new fans can jump into without issue. The game is the point that shows Konami is truly back to making some absolute gems.
Score: 9 out of 10
Reviewed on PlayStation 5