Business news and discussion on TalkFuse.
Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse – Konami classic rises again from Paris sewers and Joan of Arc is a boss
Konami is reviving its long-dormant Castlevania series with Belmont's Curse, a new side-scrolling instalment launching in October developed in partnership with Dead Cells studio Evil Empire. The move comes as Castlevania's influence has spawned an entire "metroidvania" genre in the years since the last mainline entry, 2014's Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2, meaning many younger players have only experienced games inspired by Konami's originals rather than the series itself.
Set 23 years after 1989's Castlevania 3, in the same era as the Netflix adaptation, the game casts players as Rose, daughter of Trevor Belmont, as she battles demons through 1499 Paris, including its sewers, after a bishop begs the Belmonts for help. Producer Tsutomu Taniguchi and Evil Empire's Bérenger Dupré describe a deliberate balancing act between honouring the original's legacy and meeting modern genre expectations, with particular care given to reworking Rose's whip into a versatile traversal and combat tool. The game also softens the difficulty curve typical of Soulslikes by having regular enemy kills grant XP that boosts stats, easing repeated boss attempts, with Joan of Arc confirmed as one of the bosses players will face.
In short
- Konami reviving Castlevania with new game Belmont's Curse, out October
- Developed with Dead Cells studio Evil Empire; set in 1499 Paris
- Playable character Rose battles demons, faces Joan of Arc as a boss
Explained simply
Castlevania is a classic video game series from the 1980s and 1990s created by Konami, centred around the Belmont family fighting supernatural forces. The franchise has been dormant since 2014, but in the years since, many games have drawn inspiration from its style so successfully that an entire genre has grown up around it, meaning newer players often know the imitators better than the original series.
Konami is now reviving Castlevania with Belmont's Curse, developed with Evil Empire, the studio behind the popular game Dead Cells. The new game is set in 1499 Paris during a period that matches the timeframe of Netflix's recent Castlevania adaptation, and follows Rose, the daughter of the original hero Trevor Belmont, as she battles demons through the city and its sewers.
The revival reflects how influential Castlevania has been on game design over the decades. Many modern games have borrowed elements from the series, and Castlevania helped shape what players now expect from certain types of games. Evil Empire has tried to honour the original games whilst also meeting modern expectations, including softening some of the challenging difficulty that characterised earlier versions.
Business Culture Entertainment Markets Technology TV