Just want to make a statement that I don't and never did want to hate the new Castlevania. I am a long time fan of 20 years, I love this franchise and wanted to love this game so badly. The game I was playing just didn't feel like it was for me after the 18 year wait though.

Accurate

I beat Belmont's Curse on Friday, I did not go for the true ending, I got the normal ending. I guess my overall is that this game isn't for me, and certainly isn't what Castlevania was before. The combat however was good, and the platforming did improve a bit once you got into Dracula's Castle. Overall its easier than something like Hollow Knight platforming wise, but still is far too fast paced to what my preferences are for Castlevania. Combat is a highlight of the game for me actually. I actually think that if applied to a more RPG forward entry like the IVAVanias then it would be even better as stats would actually matter much more. From what I've learned Bloodstained The Scarlet Engagement will actually feature a 3 hit combo system at the very least as well. But I will say the combat in Belmont's Curse was a definite highlight for me, and reminded me of my other favorite franchise Mega Man Zero. The platforming in this game is not what Castlevania was known for previously. Castlevania was always a slower paced platformer with the difficulty stemming from enemy positioning. Even in ClassicVania this was the case, the positioning of that Skeleton throwing a bone, and the stray Medusa head needing to be observed before you proceeded. But they gave you time to do this, and even towards the end when the raw platforming did speed up a bit. The often mentioned whip swinging from CV4 was also much different, and featured ample time make decisions before you made the next leap. IGAVania overall was a lot easier platforming wise though. There were "spike rooms" but those were moreso just use the bat form or high jump, and even then they were infrequent and certainly never constant. Order of Ecclesia did have some similar rooms in its Training mode, but even then you could stay attached to the magnetic pole and think out your next move. I played modern MetroidVanias, or as I call them IndieVanias, i am okay with a few, but this isn't those. This is Castlevania, and should have stayed truer to what the series was more often than it did not. One bit of praise for the platforming is however that I liked the fluidity of control, and that past Dracula's Castle there would be flickers of old ClassicVania design which was nice to see. In addition the Developers own Dead Cells Castlevania DLC was quite excellent, and the platforming design there was much more in line with ClassicVania and I had a great time with that. I would highly recommend that DLC for any fans like myself. As a 20 year veteran of the franchise its nice to see Castlevania finally at the forefront of discussion once again. Love this new title or if you dislike it, it is good to see it back being talked about regardless. That being said, I think a hard shift to purely appeal to a modern audience wasn't the best move. Now I understand that a lot of Castlevania vets did in fact move on to IndieVanias such as Hollow Knight during this long wait. However for the people like myself none of these ever scratched the same RPG Sidescoller exploration itch that the IGAVania's did. For me only Blasphemous ever scratched the similar itch to ClassicVania, but not quite the IGAVania. Bloodstained Ritual of the Night alongside the Curse of the Moon games made by Inti Creates however scratched these itches perfectly, but alas those were made by some of the very same people who made the games I love including IGA himself. It is clear to me though that despite me seriously wanting to love this game, it simply isnt for me and that is fine. I hope for the new audience that enjoys this style of gameplay a wonderful time truly. I however will be excitedly awaiting Bloodstained The Scarlet Engagement as I believe that may be what I have been waiting for. Overall 6/10 for me. The music was a massive letdown, the ignoring of previous story was also a massive boon, and simply the games platforming wasn't what the series was prior.

Genuinely this is how I feel too.

PEAK REMIXES NOW AVAILABLE OFFICIALLY DONT MIND IF I DO!!!! Seriously the composers COOKED some peak Castlevania music right here.

This song is genuinely one of my favorite songs in the entire series, it's so beautiful and well composed youtube.com/watch?v=HWaesmfD…

In other news I always really liked this version of Bloody Tears because it's different. I hope one day it gets a proper remix! youtube.com/watch?v=D8FH8NI4…

I really didn't intend on this tweet ever going anywhere, I was just tired of the constant gauntlets and this area's really monotonous BGM that loops the same Organ on repeat. I cannot stress enough that I want to love this game so much though, it's just not what I expected.

Its hilarious how people aren't reading or watching my post and immediately calling me a "Tourist" or "Not a real Castlevania fan" it was a criticism of level design, and in case you missed it I aced the area in one go??? Like???

I find the replies that say "Get good" and the like hilarious as in the video I finish the area in question, and have progressed much further than this since then. I'm just criticizing the design in post.

So basically you have to hold down ZL to make the Grey blocks pass through but not too long so you can wall jump but also make sure you hold down ZR to swing but make sure you hold down ZL to make it go through the Grey blocks but go fast because disappearing platforms.

Got it a day early! Let's find out how this is, been waiting 18 years after all. New Castlevania time.