Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse review: the whip cracks once again
The Dead Cells developers revive Konami’s vampire-hunting series. Early reviews are enthusiastic, with criticism of the story and soundtrack. It launches on 15 October.
Photo: Mapio / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain (cropped and resized)
Trailer: YouTube · Konami · youtube.com
Critics' rating
Scores: OpenCritic 88 · CGMagazine 9.5/10 · Rely on Horror 9.5/10
- Platforms
- PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, Switch
- Studio
- Evil Empire, Motion Twin / Konami
- Release
- 15.10.2026
+ Pros
- Swinging whip enriches combat and exploration
- Interconnected world full of secrets
- Hand-drawn visuals
- Challenging, readable boss fights
– Cons
- Story too po-faced for some critics
- Whip targeting occasionally unreliable
- Electronic soundtrack remixes divide opinion
- Double jump and air dash arrive late
Critics' verdict
For many critics the strongest comeback for the vampire-hunting series in years – with minor flaws in story and music.
Summary of published reviews – sources below.
Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse launches on 15 October for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PC and Switch. The 2D action game was developed for Konami by French studio Evil Empire together with Motion Twin, the makers of Dead Cells. According to Konami, the story is set in Paris in 1499, 23 years after Castlevania III. The main character is Rose Belmont, daughter of Trevor Belmont. A free demo is already available, and save data can be carried over on the same platform.
The first reviews arrived on 12 October. CGMagazine awards 9.5 out of 10 and calls the whip – which strikes in eight directions and lets players swing through levels – the best in the series’ history. It also praises the level design and the interconnected world without roguelike restarts. Rely on Horror likewise gives 9.5 out of 10, highlighting the hand-drawn art, balanced weapon classes and challenging bosses.
The game is not without criticism: Rely on Horror dislikes the electronic remixes of classic tracks in the soundtrack, the initially weak English voice acting and the late unlocking of abilities such as the double jump. Slant Magazine, by contrast, praises the music but finds the story too po-faced and the whip’s targeting occasionally unreliable. The OpenCritic average currently stands at 88.