Nearly two decades after the last mainline 2D Castlevania game, Evil Empire, the team behind 2023’s Dead Cells’ Return to Castlevania DLC, has developed Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse. This title aims to revitalize the 40-year-old series with a creative blend of traditional and modern concepts. Featuring a new Belmont protagonist, familiar adversaries, and contemporary genre conveniences, the developer has largely succeeded. However, long-time fans expecting a completely faithful revival of early 2000s Castlevania may find it a different experience, for both better and worse.
Belmont’s Curse is set in Paris approximately 23 years after the events of Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse. The protagonist is Rose Belmont, daughter of Trevor Belmont and Sypha Belnades. Rose embarks on a 10-15 hour quest to uncover the mysteries in Paris and ultimately confront Dracula, a narrative consistent with the series' expectations.
The game introduces intriguing narrative twists, many centered around the titular 'curse' and a set of Tarot cards left by Sypha. The overall story is enjoyable, with subtle nods for dedicated fans, though the plot is not the primary appeal of these games for the source reviewer.
Rose Belmont is portrayed as a strong-willed and focused protagonist, determined to uphold her family’s legacy. While occasionally impulsive, she learns from her mistakes, and her tough exterior sometimes reveals a vulnerable side without ever appearing helpless. The source reviewer considers her a strong addition to the line of Belmont heroes.
Rose is joined by a small cast of helpers, similar to other heroes in the series. However, most interactions occur within Rose’s mind with the souls of vanquished bosses, sealed within her Tarot cards. While there are amusing exchanges among the main three — The Fallen, Joan of Arc, and Medusa — the source reviewer wished for more regular input from other bosses.
The game’s map is structured into large, self-contained zones, reminiscent of Super Metroid, each typically overseen by a boss. These zones are interconnected by bridges or pathways, with special ferryman doors enabling quick travel between regions, including parts of Dracula’s castle and other locations. Modern conveniences like percentage trackers for each area and customizable map markers are welcome additions for navigation and tracking blocked paths or collectibles.
A particularly useful, though undocumented, feature allows fast travel between save rooms within a region by crouching in front of a mirror. This transports Rose to a hub where another mirror can be chosen for exit. While highly beneficial for a genre known for backtracking and exploration, the approximately 15-second load time (on PS5) from crouching to regaining control in the hub became repetitive for the source reviewer.
Belmont’s Curse distinguishes itself with a magical whip ability and a protective light shield, complemented by the aforementioned Tarot cards that grant Rose various magic spells, reflecting her heritage as Sypha’s daughter.
The whip allows Rose to swing from objects or pull herself towards them, and can also be used offensively on enemies to close distances and deliver stronger hits when timed with attacks. The fluid movement of zipping between enemies or deftly avoiding charging foes was consistently satisfying. The game also features challenging platforming rooms requiring precision to navigate hazards for rewards.
The light shield serves as a defensive tool, enabling parries and damage reflection when perfectly timed, and allowing Rose to pass through certain walls and floors. Despite its cool effect, the fast-paced combat often favors an offensive approach, a design choice further reinforced by the mechanic of restoring magic by hitting enemies.
Evil Empire has included several adjustable settings, such as damage output, experience gain, and an option to prevent death for story focus. The source reviewer particularly recommended the option to respawn just outside a boss room after dying, which, while not significantly reducing travel time from save points, offered a preferred method for repeated boss attempts.
Many classic Castlevania enemies appear with stunning and imposing refreshed designs, such as towering Axe Knights and flying possessed swords. Bosses, including Death, also feature impressive designs. However, the overall variety of enemies is surprisingly low, with notable omissions of fan favorites like Legion and the wall-mounted skeleton dragon head. The game frequently relies on palette swaps for stronger foes in later areas, which was a point of disappointment compared to other Castlevania bestiaries.
The combat experience is generally satisfying, with Rose having access to seven unique weapon types: sword, sword and shield, spear, fists, great sword, dual swords, and the signature whips. Each type has four tiers of strength, found in hidden chests or as boss rewards. The source reviewer enjoyed the fist weapons particularly, noting the fun of pulling towards an enemy for an uppercut and rapid, escalating punches.
Despite incorporating core Castlevania elements like the castle, Dracula, iconic minions, and ability-gated backtracking, the game increasingly felt less like a traditional Castlevania experience to the source reviewer. Many distinguishing features of the series within the metroidvania genre have been streamlined, making it feel more like a solid metroidvania with a superficial Castlevania theme. For instance, Rose’s combat, while fun, lacks the classic subweapons like spinning bibles, holy water, or axes, and she does not even start with a whip.
Belmont’s Curse adopts elements from soulslike games, such as healing vials that recharge at save points (which also respawn enemies), replacing traditional spam-able potions. Hearts from lanterns are now mana globs, and health/magic bars expand through collecting 'heart piece'-like items. Most RPG systems, including many stats, have been removed, with equipment limited to three relic slots offering useful but not particularly exciting special effects. The source reviewer also noted that load screens, while featuring an 'awesome' static mural, lacked the dynamic transitions seen in games like Symphony of the Night.
Revisiting the Castlevania universe through Belmont’s Curse highlighted the genre’s evolution over the 18 years since Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia. While the series was dormant, numerous excellent action platformers emerged, and Rose’s debut is considered another strong entry in this extensive list. Despite enjoying Belmont’s Curse, the source reviewer concluded that it did not fully satisfy the specific 'Castlevania itch' they had hoped for.
