Castlevania is a title that demands respect as one of the strongest franchises in gaming history and has been seen on many consoles over the years. Unfortunately for me, the only title I’ve played was Castlevania 64 for, you guessed it, the Nintendo 64. Now, years later, Konami was awesome enough to allow me to check out the latest entry in the series, Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse!
Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is set 23 years after the events of Castlevania III and the Netflix animated series. Tevor Belmont and his daughter Rose are in Paris after a demonic outbreak occurred and is painting the city red. The duo split up to fight monsters and find the source of the evil, which may actually be caused by an old nemesis.
Now, onto the game itself!
When it comes to the controls, they are very responsive and simple, almost like an old-school arcade. The game’s art is what shines the brightest for me! I’ve heard the praises for years about the sprites in the old games, and I’ll admit, I was not sure how they could capture that with this, but the modern 2d style sprites are amazing! The animation of the enemies is well done; I would say my favorite are the skeletons that throw their heads and run to retrieve them. I love that kind of humor.
The backdrop art for the levels is on…well…another level! I love them and would love to have them as a background on my computer!
The game’s soundtrack is great on the ears, modern yet keeping with the aesthetic of the earlier game’s 8bit tone. Surprisingly, it works here; while other games I’ve played that try this fail, the songs just loop and it’s noticeable, but the music mixing in Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is great!
The voice acting is worthy of praise! Liam O’Brian reprises his role as Isaac from Castlevania: Curse of Darkness (which came out 20 years ago!). Abby Trott, as our protagonist Rose, delivers an excellent performance, and Graham McTavish as Dracula?! That’s a chef’s kiss!
Gameplay-wise, oh man, this is the most fun I’ve had with a side-scrolling game in a long time! Rose uses a variety of weapons and power-ups that she finds in the world, as well as unlocking powerful spells in her mother’s tarot deck by defeating legendary monsters (bosses). Rose also unlocks abilities that will help her traverse the world, meaning you can go back to other parts of the world to explore farther than before. Difficulty can be adjusted, as well as other elements of the game, so you can enjoy the game the way you wish.
Overall, I love this game! Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse has amazing voice talent, gorgeous art and animations, addictive gameplay, and a gripping story. I’ve not played many side-scrolling games in my time, but I will say that I love this one! With Halloween approaching, this game will put you in the mood for the season! I didn’t encounter anything truly negative, so it feels strange to say that this game is one of those rare perfect ones! On my scale of 1-10, Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is a 10 and a must for fans of the Castlevania games.
Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse comes out October 15th for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
