Castlevania Belmont’s Curse Hands-On: A Daunting Balancing Act

I used to be in Paris to see the brand new Castlevania recreation, and with the temperatures holding at near 100 levels Fahrenheit nicely into the night, Paris was burning.

Konami had chosen a deconsecrated church nestled deep within the metropolis to carry its hands-on occasion for Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse, and inside, lengthy banquet tables of pc stations have been watched over by fits of armour drenched in dramatic lights. It positively created a temper.

A gap presentation launched us to Castlevania sequence producer Tsutomu Taniguchi, Konami producer and liaison Hannah Hurst, and Emmanuel Nouaille and Bérenger Dupré of Evil Empire, the French studio liable for 2025’s The Rogue Prince of Persia. Quickly, it was time to play.

Exterior, Paris nonetheless burned.

The vibes, child

We got three hours to discover the sport, which begins as one may count on: Our hero, Rose Belmont, stands on the docks of a besieged Paris together with her father Trevor, the protagonist of 1990’s Castlevania III. Quickly they’re separated, propelling Rose on the journey she’s yearned for all her life.

Behind her, Paris actually burns–flames lick the heavens, silhouetting the Notre Dame cathedral in destroy.

Let me simply get this out of the way in which: The sport fucking guidelines. No shock, contemplating the observe document of Lifeless Cells builders Evil Empire and Movement Twin, collaborating once more on Belmont’s Curse. Lifeless Cells is thought for trendy graphics and an immaculate use of shiny colours,  and the visible design isn’t any much less putting right here. Belmont’s Curse is gorgeous. Its artwork type feels concurrently fashionable and true to Castlevania. Shade abounds. And never within the refined, negative-space-enhancing means of Hole Knight. It’s in all places. This degree of artistry—mixing hand-drawn and 3D environmental belongings and superbly animated character fashions—appears like one thing from a classy, trendsetting indie recreation, far faraway from the Lords of Shadows and Castlevania 64s of the previous.

To drag this off whereas nonetheless retaining the motion on display legible is a tricky job. It might go improper and appear to be the worst model of a Western anime ripoff. However the Lifeless Cells staff has had years to excellent the type, and the payoff is among the most stunning video games of the yr. The identical goes for the music, which builds heavy digital soundscapes out of the sequence’ long-standing motifs. It’s like church organs on acid and dance drums. This ain’t your gramma’s Castlevania.

The Castlevania title brings with it sure expectations. And whereas Evil Empire and co-developer Movement Twin’s fingerprints are throughout Belmont’s Curse, it’s additionally obtained all these important Castlevania parts: vampires, hunters, whips, labyrinthine platform-heavy exploration, and gothic aesthetics. It appears like Castlevania, however, past that, it’s additionally in clear dialog with fashionable classics within the Metroidvania style.

The affect of each Lifeless Cells and Hole Knight will be seen in Belmont’s Curse. Taniguchi confirmed on the occasion that Lifeless Cells’ Castlevania-themed DLC occurred on the situation Movement Twin and Evil Empire would go on to make a standalone Castlevania title.

“It was truly [Motion Twin/Evil Empire] who approached us and stated, ‘Hey, do you wish to create a [Castlevania] collaboration DLC [for Dead Cells]?’” Taniguchi defined by Hurst, who was performing as his interpreter at this occasion. As sequence producer, Taniguchi had been occupied with what a brand new Castlevania title would appear to be, and had his eye on Lifeless Cells, so the proposed collab was a “incredible alternative.”

“It was completely troublesome to refuse this type of proposition as a result of it’s a completely well-known franchise,” recalled Nouaille with fun. Their collaborative course of on the Lifeless Cells DLC—Return to Castlevania—was “fantastic,” he stated, so persevering with the partnership made sense.

How laborious is just too laborious?

The most important shock for me, and several other of the opposite attendees I spoke with, was the sport’s base issue. The purpose of the demo, which can also be the opening of the ultimate launch, is straightforward—defeat three bosses, purchase three keys, and open the locked door to the Catacombs—however getting by the bosses—who embody Joan of Arc—was something however easy.

I’d brute-forced my means by Darkish Souls and Hole Knight, abusing the wealth of information obtainable on-line. However there was no Belmont’s Curse wiki I might flip to for recommendation, and although the builders would offer hints, they have been coy and wanting to see how I’d overcome the problem by myself.

About 45 minutes into my time with Belmont’s Curse, I obtained caught on the sport’s first actual boss: “The Fallen.” Consider a punished Ben Starr pumped stuffed with steroids and My Chemical Romance. I died, again and again, making a little bit little bit of progress every time. It’s a sample constructed into this style: Errors are yours to personal, however so is hard-fought victory.

However nonetheless, after a number of makes an attempt, and longing for me to see extra of the demo, one of many builders quietly steered I do one thing forbidden to us in the beginning of the occasion: fiddle with the issue modifiers.

I made some small tweaks and returned to the fray. Rapidly, I triumphed and purchased the sport’s most vital weapon: the Arcana Whip, which opens an entire bevy of latest traversal strategies and offers the sport a serious Castlevania enhance.

These issue modifiers—which embody stuff like tweaks to wreck dealt/taken, automated respawns outdoors boss doorways, and so forth—allowed me to search out the best problem for my talent set.

They helped me discover the enjoyable.

The Soulslike affect on Belmont’s Curse can also be plain. Castlevania‘s mirror rooms not solely act as save factors, but additionally replenish well being and reset the world’s enemies and collectables, identical to the Souls sequence’s bonfires and Hole Knight’s benches. Levelling up is extra Symphony of the Evening than Hole Knight, however Belmont’s Curse‘s relics system could be very harking back to Hole Knight‘s charms, and the seven weapon varieties (I used an extended sword, two-handed sword, and cestus knuckles within the demo) present a Darkish Souls-esque degree of selection to fight. 

Evil Empire executes the concepts nicely and, extra importantly, provides a number of tweaks of its personal. Chief amongst these are the Arcana, which basically exchange the Castlevania sequence’ sub-weapons and will be leveled up by conducting numerous in-world duties referred to as “Works of Mercy.” For example, defeating a sure variety of enemies with my fireball granted me a “blessing,” which I might use to unlock an enchancment for the spell. I selected to make the fireball greater whereas including knockback.

It’s too early to inform if these choices will assist maintain Belmont’s Curse balanced and attention-grabbing for its complete playtime, and if the sport will supply the identical replayability as its predecessors, however the degree of customization within the first three hours is promising.

Halfway by my play session, I used to be ushered to the again of the church the place a number of couches waited in an informal, hearth chat-style circle. Seated for our questions already have been Taniguchi, Hannah Hurst, and Evil Empire’s Bérenger Dupré and Emmanuel Nouaille.

Outdated meets new

“It’s been a very long time for the reason that final mainline Castlevania was launched,” I stated when my flip rolled round. 2014’s Lords of Shadow 2, to be precise, a recreation that exemplifies the way in which the sequence had strayed from its previous successes whereas chasing the success of different well-liked sequence like God of Struggle.

“So, why is true now the best time to deliver Castlevania again?”

“Yeah, I ponder why!” laughed Taniguchi and Hurst.

When Taniguchi joined Konami a decade in the past, he puzzled the place Castlevania had gone. He wished to create one thing new, however given how a lot time had handed  for the reason that final main launch, he centered on reintroducing the sequence by multiplatform collections: Castlevania Anniversary Assortment (2019), Castlevania Advance Assortment (2021), and Castlevania Dominus Assortment (2024). However the large success of Netflix and Warren Ellis’s TV adaptation, which follows the adventures of fan favorites Richter Belmont and Maria Renard in the course of the French Revolution, created a brand new wave of curiosity within the sequence and opened doorways beforehand closed.

“We all know there’s individuals who have watched the anime however haven’t performed the sport,” Taniguchi stated. “So, it was time for us to create a brand new and utterly eliminated entry to the sequence.”

“We are attempting to maintain the spirit of the franchise and to modernize the system,” stated Nouaille. Belmont’s Revenge is the primary Castlevania in a very long time to concentrate on issue as a core gameplay factor. However, Nouaille defined, making certain the sport stays accessible to Castlevania followers unused to the excessive diploma of issue popularized in a post-Hole Knight world stays vital.

“It’s about balancing the brand new viewers with the outdated followers, as a result of we wish to actually take care of each of them,” Taniguchi expanded.

Nailing the texture of Castlevania is about extra than simply gameplay, although. The long-running sequence has a posh timeline spanning almost a millennium. Balancing accessibility and lore growth with the brand new story was like threading a needle, however Nouaille is satisfied Rose Belmont’s journey, set between 2005’s Curse of Darkness and 1989’s Castlevania: The Journey, will fulfill each teams, and from what I’ve seen, I feel he’s proper.

Nouaille laughed once I requested how they settled on a narrative for Belmont’s Curse. “It takes a very long time.”

Castlevania is so large and wealthy that the chance to inform a brand new story was, to paraphrase Nouaille’s reply, each a blessing and a *ahem* curse. Interesting to newcomers meant creating one thing that didn’t require a number of homework, whereas satisfying longtime followers is the place many sequence revivals stumble.

Set in 1499, Belmont’s Curse follows Dracula’s defeat by the hands of Trevor Belmont and Sypha Belnades 23 years earlier in Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse. As a substitute of continuous their story immediately, Nouaille and his staff dipped their pen into outdated ink, and drew up a narrative for his or her daughter, Rose Belmont.

“We thought it was the perfect entry for the brand new and former gamers to hyperlink between the previous and the brand new entry of the sequence,” he stated.

Rose Belmont is younger and snarky, wanting to step out from inside her dad and mom’ lengthy shadow. In a sequence predominated by brooding, hardened vampire hunters, Rose’s naivety and earnest thrill for journey is a welcome change. Her verbose, bustling persona—so totally different from what we normally see in Souls-inspired video games (shoutout to One other Crab’s Treasure, although)—creates an urgency that’s usually lacking in related video games as a result of their reticent, cautious protagonists.

Simply as Rose appears to be like to earn her spot within the familial legacy, so too does Belmont’s Curse wish to show that it’s not simply impressed by the greats, however that it belongs alongside Hole Knight and Darkish Souls.

Rise from the ashes

This occasion was about placing a promising recreation in entrance of a bunch of early eyes, and goosing up the hype practice. But it surely was additionally about folks connecting. As reporters, these of us in attendance wished to know extra in regards to the recreation and the folks making it. However as we performed, members of the event staff stood at a quiet distance behind us, observing our struggles and successes—something to offer them a headstart on last bits of refinement.

With the Fallen defeated, his whip now serving as my fundamental traversal instrument, Paris opened up. In true Metroidvania trend, every defeated boss offers you with technique of accessing new areas of the map, turning the tight early-game expertise into the sprawling explorationfest that so many fashionable players know and love. So I stored exploring, and I stored operating into highway blocks: powerful enemies and labyrinthine areas.

There’s one notably cool sequence wherein you must climb an enormous tower in a non-linear trend, transferring out and in of the construction as you increase drawbridges, break down locked doorways, and swing throughout large gaps. There’s cleverness and creativity on show in spades, and the world is filled with optionally available, Hole Knight-style platforming challenges with genuinely helpful rewards ready for individuals who can navigate the risks.

I climbed, I fought, I died, and died once more. However, ultimately, the sport’s second boss, holder of one other key, and a brand new defensive Arcana, Joan of Arc fell, and I had two of the three needed keys to the catacombs.

It wasn’t sufficient.

Earlier than I knew it, although, and earlier than I might receive the third and last key, the occasion was over, and one other group of vampire hunters have been slated to quickly arrive for their very own journey by the burning Paris.