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Completing the campaign opens up additional new play options as well.

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Even before you apply modifiers, there are a lot of ways to tackle Curse of the Moon's eight stages, and each level contain multiple routes to the end. The variety created by these branching paths and play options, and the bone-breaking old-school challenge available in certain formats, give Curse of the Moon far more replayability than its brief, two-hour length would suggest. The term "Curse of the Moon" appears in-game as a cryptic menu option, and selecting it allows you to jump back to previous stages.


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This permanently resets your progress to that earlier point in your adventure, erasing all your saved accomplishments beyond the stage you select. In return for permanently sacrificing your progress, though, you gain the opportunity to poke around the different pathways through a level in search of better acquisitions.

Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon review | PC Gamer

Each stage contains hidden items that permanently boost your heroes' stats that you'll want to seek out. On top of that, gathering collectibles to rack up extra points is essential to earning additional lives in the more advanced difficulty modes. In other words, it's not enough to simply complete a stage, challenging as that can be at times; what you really need is to master it inside and out.

Developer Inti Creates has done an excellent job of capturing the look and feel of NES games without being slavish to the limitations of the platform. Your characters are a little less stiff than the NES heroes of old, a little faster to react, a little more fluid in motion.

Moon Curse: Beneath the Waves

And although the widescreen format creates larger rooms to navigate than in the days of 4: Fans of Shovel Knight will likely be reminded of that game's outstanding approach to recapturing the look and feel of the NES era. Curse of the Moon doesn't quite reach that remarkably high bar; it lacks Shovel Knight's meticulous level design and surprising variants on standard enemies. The basic foes you face here never stray far from the Castlevania mold, relying on familiar concepts like Medusa heads flying in tricky sine patterns and armored knights tossing axes.

They look different, sure, but this is the standard Castlevania bestiary with swapped sprites. On the other hand, the bosses feel nothing like Castlevania. Curse of the Moon is the 8-bit style game promised as a stretch goal of the Kickstarter campaign for "Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night. Inti Creates Genre s: Action Adventure , Open-World of players: No Online Multiplayer Cheats: All this publication's reviews Read full review. Aside from the repetition, which is, in retrospect, how many gamers got longevity out of old Castlevania games, Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon is a superb game.

It is ideal for gamers who want an old-school challenge as well as an old-school game in both aesthetic and design.

'Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon' summons 8-bit 'Castlevania' charm

Classicvanias and retro action games fans can give a chance to Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon on blind faith. This game is a beautiful, really enjoyable - even if it can considered a bit short - and vibrant tribute to Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse with some great action and platforming, beautiful 8-Bit graphics and musics, in a new setting that we hope will fulfill its potential with Ritual of the Night. Made with affection and artistry, this retro appetiser is a very pleasant surprise. While I was initially swooned by this Castlevania doppelganger, its nostalgic spell was broken once I realized its 8-bit beauty was only skin deep.

As far as throwbacks go, Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon is a worthwhile venture. It captures the essence of yesteryear's classics, while offering numerous options to comfort an audience that might be unfamiliar with that time period.

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The game is also quite entertaining, and the replay-value is quite high. Still, it is not possible to shake the feeling that something is missing. It's as if the developer decided the safe choice was the right one, and left all of the risk-taking up to the player. Will this game be remembered in thirty years? Only time will tell.

Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon

Hopefully, its big brother, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, will not try to only repeat Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, but it will be a true spiritual successor, advancing further the genre of metroidvania. Or you can even blank them entirely if you fancy finish the game without any assistance whatsoever. Some enemies are not so much a challenge as a nuisance: Where the likes of Shovel Knight use classic games as a foundation to build upon, Inti Creates is often content to merely walk in the footsteps of those 8-bit favourites. As such, those with the deepest affection for retro games are the most likely to find it just a touch too familiar.

For a game that originated as a nice little extra, it sets a surprisingly high bar for Igarashi and his team to clear. Made with affection and artistry, this retro appetiser is a very pleasant surprise. Our Verdict Made with affection and artistry, this retro appetiser is a very pleasant surprise.

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