Those of us in the Metroidvania-likers contingent have eaten well of late despite the decade-plus-long drought in the Castlelvania series, which hasn’t seen a new release since 2014. But with Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse, the “-vania” part of the Metroidvania equation is finally making a comeback, and right on time to snap up newcomers attracted by the Netflix animated series.
But Belmont’s Curse isn’t just spinning the Metroidvania block to remind the younguns to respect their genre elders. The game has added some new features to the series, making the game feel like both a throwback to the past and a relevant contender in the genre as it exists today.
You can also see the influence the two Netflix series have had on the development of Belmont’s Curse. The game stars Rose Belmont, daughter of Trevor Belmont and Sypha Belnades, characters first seen in 1989’s Castlevania III: Dracula‘s Curse and two of the three main protagonists in the original animated series. Trevor himself also makes a brief appearance, essentially acting as a bridge between the show and the game before handing over the reins…err, whip…to his daughter Rose. Evil Empire—the game’s developer, known for its work on Dead Cells—even managed to snag some of the voice actors from the Netflix series, with Alejandra Reynoso coming back as Rose’s mother Sypha and Graham McTavish reprising his role as Dracula.
Though Belmont’s Curse seems to pull characters from the original Castlevania series, it seems like there are also elements present from the second series, Castelvania: Nocturne. Belmont’s Curse takes place amidst the burning backdrop of Paris in 1499. Though it takes place a few hundred years later, Nocturne also focused heavily on a Paris in turmoil. None of the previews for the game mention Alucard, the half-vampire son of Dracula and the animated series’ third protagonist. But this is Castlevania and with Belmonts running around, you can bet he’ll show up.
Seems like in light of the games’ long hiatus, punctuated briefly by the release of several collections of older entries in the series, the developers at Evil Empire couldn’t just make another simple Castlevania game. There’s soulslike energy running through Belmont’s Curse, which features tough-as-nails combat as well as difficulty modifiers to adjust the challenge for those having a rough time. There are also regenerating enemies, various weapons beyond the Vampire Killer whip to suit any playstyle, and magical sub-weapons known as Arcana.
That Belmont’s Curse exists at all is a consequence of chutzpah. At a hands-on event in July, Konami series producer Tsutomi Taniguchi told Kotaku, “It was actually [Evil Empire] who approached us and said, ‘Hey, do you want to create a [Castlevania] collaboration DLC [for Dead Cells]?’” As it turned out, Taniguchi had already been pondering what a new Castlevania would look like, and called the proposed collab a “fantastic opportunity.” Bolstered by that “yes,” the dev team decided to just go ahead and ask to make a full game.
While the animated series is long done, with Nocturne ending its second season last year, there’s never been a better time to be a Castlevania fan. Fans of the genre are literally spoiled for choice with games like Hollow Knight and Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon keeping the seat warm long enough for the return of a true-blue Castlevania game. Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse launches on October 15th on PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PC.