Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2

Genre: Action-Platformer

Players: 1-2 Co-Op (Local)

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Review:

Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2, like its direct predecessor, is an Action-Platformer that was clearly inspired by the classic Nintendo Entertainment System game Castlevania 3, with similar gameplay, a similar character-swapping mechanic, and a similarly macabre theme. Its announcement in early 2020 was a surprise, especially with the game seeing release only a few short weeks afterward, and fans of the first game can celebrate, because this game does a good job of following in the footsteps of its predecessor while also growing and taking steps in new directions.

As with the first game, this game’s presentation is designed to evoke the imagery of the classic NES game it was styled after, albeit cheating a little by making its visuals better than anything the NES could have done. This time around, while maintaining this style, the game goes a bit more in its own direction, such as one early boss fight where players take on a demonic moth-woman in a room filled with Chinese-style paper lanterns, something that wouldn’t quite have fit into the more European fantasy settings the Castlevania games took place in. Oh, and thankfully, this time around the game doesn’t feel the need to do the sprite-flickering thing.

The gameplay is similar this time around, but that’s not to say that this is a mere copy of the prior game. While this game brings back swordsman Zangetsu and the first game’s character-swapping mechanic, work has clearly been done to make this a whole new experience, because the other characters you recruit here are all new, including a high-jumping spear-woman, a wall-jumping sniper, and a… er… dog in a robot suit. As in the first game, the characters are all unique, and bring their unique talents not only to the battle but also to traversal. And while I honestly preferred the characters of the first game, I will admit that the characters in this game are far more original. Also, this game addresses one of the biggest complaints I had about the first game – where the first game was tragically short, this game is roughly 50-100% longer.

In terms of new features, this game now gives players the ability to play in 2-player co-op, which is an excellent and unexpected addition… er, but only if you have a skilled friend to play with. While this game still isn’t quite as tough as the old Castlevania games, it’s a good deal tougher than the first game, to the point where I suspect that less-skilled players might find themselves discouraged. Still, it never feels unfair, just challenging.

Overall, I think I still like prefer the original Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon over its successor, although only just slightly. I enjoyed playing those characters more, and found the challenge level to be just about right for my tastes. However, I could easily see other players preferring these newer characters and the higher challenge level, and the new additions that have been made to this game are definitely marked improvements. In either case, if you’re a fan of challenging classic-style Action-Platformers and especially if you like the old-school Castlevania games, this game is not to be missed.

tl;dr – Like its predecessor, Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2 is an Action-Platformer designed to look and feel like Castlevania 3, with this sequel bringing a new cast of characters, a longer campaign, a higher difficulty, and a new co-op mode. While I still prefer some of the qualities of the first game, the sequel is about on-par with it in terms of quality and brings enough new stuff that it doesn’t feel like a retread. If you’re a fan of the classic Castlevania games or just enjoy challenging old-school Action-Platformers, this game is well worth checking out.

Grade: B+

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