Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon

About this game

<h2>Overview</h2><p>Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon is a 2D <a href="/deliberately-retro/3015-996/" data-ref-id="3015-996">deliberately-retro</a> horror-fantasy action-platformer developed and published digitally by <a href="/inti-creates-co-ltd/3010-5970/" data-ref-id="3010-5970">Inti Creates</a> for the <a href="/xbox-one/3045-145/" data-ref-id="3045-145">Xbox One</a>, <a href="/playstation-4/3045-146/" data-ref-id="3045-146">PlayStation 4</a>, <a href="/nintendo-switch/3045-157/" data-ref-id="3045-157">Nintendo Switch</a>, <a href="/playstation-vita/3045-129/" data-ref-id="3045-129">PlayStation Vita</a>, <a href="/nintendo-3ds/3045-117/" data-ref-id="3045-117">Nintendo 3DS</a>, and <a href="/pc/3045-94/" data-ref-id="3045-94">PC</a> on May 24, 2018.</p><p>A companion game to <a href="/bloodstained-ritual-of-the-night/3030-49633/" data-ref-id="3030-49633">Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night</a> (and developed as a "stretch goal" for Ritual of the Night's <a href="/kickstarter-funded/3015-7378/" data-ref-id="3015-7378">Kickstarter</a> campaign), Curse of the Moon hearkens back to <a href="/castlevania/3025-86/" data-ref-id="3025-86">Castlevania</a> games dating back to the <a href="/nintendo-entertainment-system/3045-21/" data-ref-id="3045-21">Nintendo Entertainment System</a> and features the system's <a href="/8-bit/3015-5951/" data-ref-id="3015-5951">"8-bit"</a> aesthetic (similar to <a href="/mega-man-9/3030-20975/" data-ref-id="3030-20975">Mega Man 9</a> and <a href="/blaster-master-zero/3030-56909/" data-ref-id="3030-56909">Blaster Master Zero</a>, both also developed by Inti Creates). This is in contrast to Ritual of the Night hearkening back to the <a href="/metroidvania/3015-2440/" data-ref-id="3015-2440">exploration-heavy</a> Castlevania games after that era.</p><p>The game's plot serves as a prelude to Ritual of the Night (set ten years prior), telling the story of the cursed swordsman <a href="/zangetsu/3005-36995/" data-ref-id="3005-36995">Zangetsu</a> as he searches the whereabouts of a great demon spreading darkness throughout the land. Along the way, he rescues two mysterious Shardbinders (<a href="/miriam/3005-31959/" data-ref-id="3005-31959">Miriam</a> and <a href="/gebel/3005-31960/" data-ref-id="3005-31960">Gebel</a>, the main protagonist and antagonist of Ritual of the Night) and the <a href="/alchemist/3015-4266/" data-ref-id="3015-4266">alchemist</a> <a href="/alfred/3005-36996/" data-ref-id="3005-36996">Alfred</a>. Zangetsu can choose to recruit them as playable allies or sacrifice them to gain new abilities.</p><p>The gameplay strongly resembles that of <a href="/castlevania-iii-draculas-curse/3030-19328/" data-ref-id="3030-19328">Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse</a>, with a revamped character-switching mechanic (allowing the player to switch between anyone in the party instantaneously) and multiple branching paths (with most paths requiring the abilities of particular party members).</p>