Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2 does not hide what it is. Inti Creates built an 8-bit platformer that looks and plays like an early Castlevania game, then shipped it on PlayStation 4, PC, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch on July 10, 2020. It is the third Bloodstained title and a direct sequel to the first Curse of the Moon, itself a spin-off of Ritual of the Night. The retro mask is the point.
Trailer, via INTI CREATES.
Zangetsu and the Tower
The story picks up after the first game. Dominique, an exorcist of the church, discovers a mysterious tower summoning a demon castle and sends the demon slayer Zangetsu to stop the invasion. He fights his way toward the demonic stronghold, and he does not go alone.
Along the route he allies with three new playable characters:
- Dominique, who wields a spear
- Robert, who carries a rifle
- Hachi, a corgi piloting a steampunk mech
Every character from the original Curse of the Moon is playable too, and each addition changes how a stage can be finished. Zangetsu also picks up the Soul Eraser, a powerful sword. After the party beats Episode 1’s final boss, a stronger demonic force tries to consume them. Dominique stops it and is possessed; the others escape. Zangetsu, Robert and Hachi vow to rescue her, which opens Episode 2.
The Zanmatou Choice
Episode 2 hands the player the Zanmatou, a sword weaker than the Soul Eraser that will not harm righteous beings even if swung at them. Near the site of the previous final battle, the party meets Mephisto, a demon holding Dominique inside its body. With the Zanmatou equipped, Zangetsu ends the fight by cleaving Mephisto in half and saving her.
The castle collapses behind them. As the party rests, Dominique works out that the demons are attacking Earth from a base on the Moon. Miriam, Alfred and Gebel — the first game’s playable trio — teleport to the campsite and join the effort to travel there and destroy the threat.
That structure is the game’s best idea. The multiple-scenario format from the first Curse of the Moon returns, and the plot is supervised by Koji Igarashi. It gives the campaign a reason to send you back through stages you already know, and the sword choice gives one of those returns real weight.
Veteran or Casual
The game runs on two difficulty settings, and the difference is not cosmetic. In Veteran, players get a limited number of continues after a defeat, and enemy damage knocks a character back — into more damage, or into an instant death pit. That is classic NES behavior, and it is the version of the game that respects the 8-bit look.
In Casual, the player can retry from the last checkpoint endlessly, enemies do not knock characters back, and characters take less damage and hold more skill points. Two-player local co-op arrives for the first time in the series. Players build demon-hunting duos, mix two characters’ strengths and take on stages in ways a solo run cannot match.
The co-op is the addition that matters most. Pairing Robert’s rifle with Hachi’s mech, or Dominique’s spear with Zangetsu’s blade, changes a stage’s shape rather than just its damage numbers. Inti Creates understands that a retro platformer lives or dies on whether the second pass through a level feels different from the first.
Where the Retro Mask Slips
The 8-bit aesthetic is a deliberate imitation of early Castlevania, and it holds up. The visuals and the moment-to-moment action are what carried this game to largely positive reviews, and they earn it. The sprite work is sharp, the movement is responsive, and the game never mistakes nostalgia for an excuse.
The weak point is the episode structure. Replaying stages in different ways is a fine hook, but it asks the player to supply the variety the design should provide. Veteran’s knockback will read as authentic to some and as punishment to others, and the limited continues make that argument sharper than it needs to be. Casual exists because the developers knew it.
Curse of the Moon 2 knows its audience and does not apologize. It is a tight, handsome throwback with a genuine co-op hook and a story that earns its second episode. It is not trying to be Ritual of the Night, and it should not be judged against it.
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