The Metroidvania genre has been going through a renaissance as of late, with new games like Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse truly calling back to the genre’s origins while adapting modern sensibilities. However, when a player thinks of a Metroidvania’s pinnacle, they often imagine Castlevania‘s gothic atmospheres, exploring Dracula’s Castle and fighting macabre enemies within the confines of melancholic story telling. This feeling had been lost from the genre for quite some time, until one 2019 title pushed the boundaries of what that vibe represented.
Platforming and action are integral to any Metroidvania, with RPG mechanics or exploration leaning the genre in either the Castlevania or Metroid direction depending on what game you’re playing. For example, Hollow Knight was a 2017 game that strikes a great blend between the two ends of the Metroidvania genre, offering unique build options like an RPG, while also tying ability progression toward a larger map investigation. While balance is great within a Metroidvania, sometimes you want a title that takes a direct approach to one side more than the other.
Blasphemous was a brutal Metroidvania from 2019, developed by The Game Kitchen and published by Team17, the team behind other great titles like Overcooked, Hell Let Loose, and Dredge. This game is bloody, gory, and gothic to its core, reflecting the darker Castlevania titles that no doubt inspired its creation. From the moment you begin your adventure in Blasphemous, you’ll quickly realize that it is set in a grim dark world full of sinister creatures and divine “Miracles” that border on body horror in their presentation.
Although the violence would be over-the-top and garish in a traditional 3D game by some players’ standards, there is an artistic beauty to the brutality of Blasphemous through its 2D sprite work. This game is entirely hand animated through highly detailed sprites, creating the nightmarish world of Cvstodia afflicted by The Miracle curse. This non-linear world allows for true freedom of exploration for players, allowing them to discover new areas in Metroidvania fashion, but without any guard rails to make the adventure feel linear.
The combat of Blasphemous also reflects its dedication to a gothic tone, with players able to perform gnarly executions on enemies they weaken. Multiple attack combos and mobility tools are combined with Prayers that unleash powerful abilities to face down other cursed souls. The bosses of Blasphemous can be truly horrifying, with some having designs that make them instantly memorable in their grotesque nature. Discovering the secrets behind the story of this game feels natural, with a world with plenty of dark corners.
The areas of Cvstodia you explore in Blasphemous are almost as difficult as the bosses themselves, beyond just the enemies that occupy certain locations. Multiple environmental traps present unique challenges, oftentimes with deadly results for failure. Every time you die in Blasphemous, a bit of your maximum health is reduced until you can re-visit the spot where you died, then pray at a shrine to restore your vitality. Although those spots aren’t the only places you’re able to heal, sometimes a tough platforming segment can have you stubbornly dying over and over again.
The same can be said of the bosses in the game, whose attacks are incredibly punishing without the right gear. You are only ever armed with your trusty Mea Culpa sword, which you can upgrade with new combos and abilities over time. Exploring the world also gives you a chance to collect Rosary Beads and Relics, which can be equipped through limited slots for different passive bonuses. By doing this, your customized build makes it easier to take on a variety of threats as you master the combat mechanics of Blasphemous.
All these systems put Blasphemous more confidently into the Castlevania camp of a Metroidvania, even it has elements inspired by the Metroid series too. The RPG elements of this game call back to titles like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, where building your character was just as important as unlocking new skills through exploration and progression. Elements of the previously mentioned Hollow Knight are here too, especially in the combat fluidity you can modify through your build ideas.
The success of Blasphemous was earned through critical and mainstream acclaim, inspiring an equally well-received sequel back in 2023. Blasphemous 2 expanded on the original game’s design, adding new weapons and other ways to diversify your play style as you explored a much larger world. The combination of a gothic atmosphere and intense combat from the Blasphemous games stand strongly on their own, but it’s possible that they also reminded other developers of what made some Metroidvanias so beloved.
Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is the next big Metroidvania to release in 2026, and it seems to bring back all the gothic world building that the franchise is known for. Although definitely not as dark as the brutal gore of Blasphemous and its sequel, it’s not too far of a stretch to say that The Game Kitchen’s innovations and homage to the genre’s origins may have put a legendary series back on a familiar track.
