Konami's Castlevania: Belmont's Curse Plays Like.a Dream

The first new Castlevania in more than a decade already seems worth the wait

Konami's welcome revival of its most beloved franchises, including Silent Hill and Metal Gear Solid, is coming for Castlevania. The next game in the franchise, Castlevania: Belmont's Curse, looks to bring back the series' side-scrolling exploration and 2D platforming combat in the style of Symphony of the Night, but with refined, modernized sensibilities, thanks to the developers behind Dead Cells.

Castlevania: Belmont's Curse is the first new mainline game in the franchise in more than a decade — excluding the remade Haunted Castle, that is — and already feels like a worthy successor to the name. After spending 20 minutes with Belmont's Curse at Tokyo Game Show, my enthusiasm for the new Castlevania has skyrocketed. From the first minute, developer Evil Empire delivers a slick, polished, and gorgeous new adventure.

Belmont's Curse is set in 15th-century Paris and stars Rose Belmont, daughter of Trevor Belmont and Sypha Belnades, and the latest in a long line of vampire hunters. Rose boasts the fighting prowess of her father and the arcane abilities of her mother, the latter of which manifests in the form of tarot cards that unlock special abilities and facets of the game's story. Initially, Rose fights with a sword and spells, but after an encounter with the game's first boss, a mysterious brute named The Fallen, she earns Castlevania's signature weapon, a whip that instantly opens up the combat and platforming mechanics of Belmont's Curse's.

Evil Empire's interpretation of the Castlevania whip lets Rose latch onto certain objects in the environment to pull herself up onto platforms or swing like a pendulum across gaps. The game's movement is both fluid and forgiving, and moving through the maze-like map is very satisfying. From the get-go, Rose can wall jump and slide. She can also use her whip to ensnare enemies, rapidly pulling her toward them so she can slash them into submission with her blade. Every action involving the whip during my playtime felt incredibly polished and snappy; Castlevania: Belmont's Curse has perfectly reimagined how the Belmonts' signature weapon works, and I can't wait to see how the developer builds on the mechanic.

Visually, Castlevania: Belmont's Curse doesn't look like anything else in the Castlevania franchise, which feels refreshing rather than sacrilegious. Characters, enemies, and environments are gorgeously animated and full of rich details. Early on in the game, Evil Empire offers ample opportunity to look out upon Paris on fire, as heatwaves warp the backgrounds bathed in red firelight. I only had the opportunity to see one of the game's bosses in action, but The Fallen is nicely animated, and character portraits look full of life. Belmont's Curse is stunning in motion.

Story is doled out in bits; sometimes when speaking to ghosts who seem stuck in haunted Paris and within Rose's mind. After her battle with The Fallen, she seemingly absorbs his consciousness into her own, and the two converse telepathically.

The TGS demo for Belmont's Curse was all too short, offering only a peek at the game's deeper systems and huge map. There appeared to be nods to past games in the series, including Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest and Order of Ecclesia, but Belmont's Curse doesn't seem to be resting on nostalgia. Evil Empire is trying something new to inject new life into Castlevania, and I'm looking forward to trying out the full game when it launches next month.

Castlevania: Belmont's Curse will be released on Oct. 15 on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X.