Castlevania: Belmont's Curse whips into stores Thursday for $30

If your Castlevania memories involve a whip, a pork chop hidden in a wall and a Medusa head knocking you into a pit, pay attention. Castlevania: Belmont's Curse launches Thursday, October 15, and it might be the best news the series has had in a long time.

The basics

• Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC (Steam and Microsoft Store). Konami originally said the Switch version would follow later in 2026, so check the eShop before assuming day one on Nintendo hardware.
• Price: $29.99 Standard, $39.99 Midnight Edition
• Publisher: Konami
• Developers: Evil Empire and Motion Twin, the studios behind Dead Cells

The Midnight Edition adds a digital art and sound gallery plus Trevor-style and Sypha-style costumes and a relic. Pre-orders of either edition get an Alucard-style costume. Ten bucks for costumes is your call. The base game is the deal.

The setup

It's 1499, Paris is burning and monsters are pouring out of a castle looming over the city. Trevor Belmont, yes, the Castlevania III Trevor who already beat Dracula once, shows up with his daughter Rose. Rose is the star, and she gets pulled into a conspiracy under the city streets.

It's a 2D action-exploration game, the style fans call Metroidvania, a word that literally exists because of this series. Rose swings the Vampire Killer whip for both fighting and swinging across the map. Familiar bosses like Death, Medusa and Carmilla return, and Joan of Arc shows up as a new one. Beat a boss and it gets sealed into one of Rose's tarot cards as an Arcana, which unlocks spells and special moves. Weapons come in seven categories, and relics let you tune your build.

What people who've played it say

Hands-on previews landed this fall, and they were warm across the board. GamesRadar said it plays like a real Castlevania rather than just wearing the costume. IGN credited the Dead Cells veterans and said it could rank among the series' best if the quality holds. PC Gamer called it a very good Metroidvania after three hours, while hoping for more inventive weapons. Kotaku was, let's say, enthusiastic in language we can't print here.

The first full review came from Japan's Famitsu, which gave it 8, 8, 8 and 8 from four critics, a solid 32 out of 40. More reviews should arrive around launch.

Why it matters

Konami spent years treating Castlevania as a pachinko and collection brand. This is a brand-new game built by a studio that has already proven it can make tight, replayable 2D action. That's the right team for the job.

Thirty dollars is also refreshing in a fall where GTA VI costs $80. If you want something you can finish in reasonable chunks and actually see credits on, this is worth a look once the full reviews confirm what the previews suggest.