Discussing the development of the recently released Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse, the head of business at studio Evil Empire, Ben Laulan, has confirmed that the title went through a number of iterations before the team settled on what it ultimately became. In an interview with PCGamesN, Laulan said that one iteration of Belmont’s Curse was even a slower-paced Dark Souls-style game.
Evil Empire is known for its work on fast-paced action platformers like Dead Cells, and Laulan noted that the development team even leaned into that experience for one of the iterations of Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse. Unfortunately, this ended up with the game being too much like Dead Cells, and exploration ended up taking a back seat.
“We had many different versions of the game. We had much slower versions, more like a Dark Souls kind of vibe with even more heavy combat and slow rhythm. Then we realized it wasn’t really Castlevania because it was too slow, too intense, and just too hard. So, we cranked up the speed, and then it was too much Dead Cells because it was too fast-paced, and the exploration wasn’t there as much as it needs to be in Castlevania.”
Eventually, however, Evil Empire decided on a solid middle ground which Laulan describes as a “nice in-between of respect to the IP and a slow pace with the exploration, and yet it’s a modern game that plays really nicely. You take the controller, and it feels good in your hands.”
Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is available on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch. In our review, we gave it a score of 7 out of 10, praising its art direction, soundtrack, and core gameplay with unique hooks. However, we also criticized how the progression of the game forces you to stick to a single weapon type, the jankiness of the whip, and punishing platforming sections, among other things.
The story of Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse takes place 23 years after the events of NES classic Castlevania 3: Dracula’s Curse, in the year 1499. Following the events of Castlevania: Curse of Darkness, Trevor Belmont and his daughter Rose decide to head to Paris to help the battle against hordes of monsters in the city. Eventually, Rose has to decide to carry the vampire-hunting legacy of the Belmont family on her own shoulders as she faces the forces of evil.
As for the future of the Castlevania franchise, Konami has confirmed that it has plans beyond Belmont’s Curse. In an update to its website to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Castlevania, the company said that “the doors of Castlevania open once more.”
“First up is this title: ‘Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse’. We couldn’t think in other studios to work together rather than Evil Empire and Motion Twin, studios brimming with talent and passion, to deliver a new exploration-based 2D action game that captures the essence of Castlevania while bringing fresh innovation.”
“This is the beginning of numerous new products around Castlevania. Look forward to the return of the magnificent ‘nightmare’ lurking in the darkness.”
