Konami has announced Castlevania: Belmont's Curse, the first wholly new entry in the series since 2014, launching on Tuesday, October 15, and intended to mark the 40th anniversary of Castlevania (the first game launched on September 26, 1986, in Japan). The announcement came during the February State of Play, 13 months after Castlevania: Nocturne had wrapped up and five years after new games were first rumoured.
From 1986 to Netflix and Beyond
Castlevania debuted in the 1980s alongside Konami titles like Frogger and Gradius, and helped propagate the Metroidvania genre alongside Nintendo's Metroid. While both series debuted the same year, Castlevania was initially a linear action platformer. The first non-linear entry was 1986's Vampire Killer for the MSX2 computer, but 1987's Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest is the first true Metroidvania in the series.
The franchise didn't settle on a signature style until 1997's Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night, which further defined the Metroidvania concept with role-playing elements. Although initially a sales flop, word of mouth helped it find an audience, and it went on to define the future of Castlevania and help coin the Metroidvania portmanteau.
Castlevania has never been a sales juggernaut compared to Konami's other franchises like Metal Gear, Pro Evolution Soccer, and Yu-Gi-Oh, but it maintained a passionate fanbase. With the advent of 3D graphics, Castlevania remained mostly 2D, finding a home on the Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS handhelds throughout the 2000s, though a few 3D games on the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation 2 were let down by low budgets.
The Lords Of Shadow Era and the Netflix Revival
By the 2010s, the franchise had lost steam, leading Konami to commission MercurySteam (the same Spanish studio that would later helm Nintendo's 2D Metroid games) to develop Castlevania: Lords Of Shadow. It eschewed the Metroidvania formula for a God Of War style hack and slash action game, became the best-selling entry in the series, and was followed by the more traditional 2D title Mirror Of Fate.
However, 2014's Lords Of Shadow 2 proved a shockingly poor sequel, with an awful camera and needless stealth sections. MercurySteam insists the sequel sold really well, but Konami shifted its focus to mobile games and pachinko machines, leaving Castlevania dormant for years.
The 2017 Netflix animated adaptation, based on 1989's Castlevania 3: Dracula's Curse, proved successful enough to warrant three further seasons and a sequel show, Castlevania: Nocturne, but Konami did not immediately capitalise on the newfound mainstream popularity. Instead, it elevated the series' profile through re-releases and crossovers with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Vampire Survivors, and Dead Cells. That last one proved especially fruitful, as co-developer Evil Empire impressed Konami enough to be allowed to helm Belmont's Curse.
The Best Castlevania Games
Super Castlevania 4 – A kind of, sort of remake of the very first Castlevania, updated for the SNES. It's the best of the old linear style, thanks to tight controls and great pixel art.
Castlevania: Rondo Of Blood – Enjoyably weird with linear level design but multiple routes that result in different encounters, feeling like a precursor of the series' future. It has a phenomenal soundtrack and is now available in the West via Castlevania Requiem.
Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night – Picking up Castlevania Requiem also nets you the game that has defined the franchise ever since. It has a superb map full of secrets and loads of weapons and powers, though the modern version's voice acting is a serious downgrade from the original's deliciously cheesy performances.
Castlevania: Aria Of Sorrow – The best of the Game Boy Advance era entries, borrowing a lot from Symphony Of The Night but with new ideas like absorbing enemy souls to gain new powers. The near future setting is interestingly unusual.
Castlevania: Dawn Of Sorrow – A direct follow-up to Aria Of Sorrow and the first of several solid DS Castlevania games. It retains the in-depth soul system, which could be fiddly on the touchscreen but that's not a problem in the Dominus Collection re-release.
What Is Belmont's Curse?
Castlevania: Belmont's Curse is a return to the series' standard Metroidvania formula, with an open map and non-linear progression as you acquire new weapons and spells, including the iconic Vampire Killer whip, which can also be used as a grapple for traversal. Rather than continue the Lords Of Shadow timeline, Konami is returning to the original continuity.
The game is set in late 15th century Paris and stars Rose Belmont, the daughter of Trevor and Sypha – two of the playable protagonists from Castlevania 3 – as she faces an army of invading monsters and Dracula, who has returned after being slain by Trevor.
Konami has not said anything about Belmont's Curse being directly based on the Netflix show, and it's clearly adhering to the continuity of the games. That said, it makes for a good jumping on point for newcomers who've only watched the show, thanks to the inclusions of Trevor and Sypha. A couple of the Netflix voice actors have been brought back to reprise their roles, with Alejandra Reynoso as Sypha and Graham McTavish as Dracula.
Fans of the show should note that Belmont's Curse doesn't share the same continuity. While Dracula's backstory is very similar, the tragic elements are often downplayed in the games, where he's mostly depicted as an outright villain. Two other characters from the show, Carmilla and Isaac, will also appear with very different personalities compared to their Netflix counterparts. Especially Isaac, who became something of an anti-hero in the show, whereas Belmont's Curse is sticking to his original design and purely villainous personality from his last game appearance in 2005.
