Today, during BitSummit 2018 in Japan, Inti Creates unveiled Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon. It is an 8-bit spinoff title of the notable KickStarter game Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, and is releasing on PC, PS4, PS Vita, 3DS, Switch, and Xbox One later this month.
This 8-bit title is reminiscent of the earliest Castlevania games, and stems from a stretch goal achieved during Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night’s 2015 KickStarter campaign. Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon follows Zangetsu, who is on a quest to defeat a powerful demon housed within a perilous castle.
While the game does play like the earlier titles in the Castlevania series, Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon sets itself apart with an intriguing ally system. Every time a player beats a boss, they will run into another character that can be convinced to join Zangetsu on his journey. These characters include the whip-wielding Miriam, the alchemist Alfred, and Gebel, who can transform into a bat.
Each ally has different attacks and most importantly, health bars, so players will be more likely to survive a stage when they have more allies on their side. There are also ally specific shortcuts and items that only certain characters have access to, with the “easiest” path to access usually being the most difficult to navigate through.
The ending of Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon is also determined by players’ choices when recruiting allies, which gives the game a ton of replayability. The game also features Veteran and Casual difficulties. While the Veteran difficulty is much harder and knocks players back every time they get hit by an attack, Casual difficulty is easier, doesn’t feature knockback, and gives players unlimited lives.
You can check out some screenshots and key art below alongside the official trailer for the game, which features Koji Igarashi himself. Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon will release on PC, PS4, PS Vita, 3DS, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One on May 24. In other Inti Creates news, Nintendo Switch exclusive Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX was also announced.
