Why Our Castlevania Belmont's Curse Review Is Delayed

Castlevania: Belmont's Curse is a side-scrolling Metroidvania action platformer co-developed by Evil Empire and published by Konami, officially releasing on 15th October 2026 for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5 at a retail launch price of $29.99 (~RM135). Serving as the historic vampire-hunting franchise's major revival entry, the game pairs classic gothic platforming with modern genre design, addressing long-standing demand for new mainline entries. For Malaysian and Southeast Asian players tracking regional releases, early critical reception is largely positive on current-generation hardware, though review coverage for the baseline Nintendo Switch edition remains delayed past launch date across major specialist press outlets due to late code distribution.

Key Facts

Castlevania: Belmont's Curse launches globally on 15th October 2026 across Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5, developed by Evil Empire under Konami at an entry price point of $29.99 (~RM135) or £24.98 (~RM140). The launch package targets base hardware with cross-generation playability on newer platforms.

Why Is the Nintendo Switch Review for Belmont's Curse Delayed?

The Nintendo Switch review of Castlevania: Belmont's Curse is delayed past its 15th October 2026 launch date because publisher Konami did not distribute pre-release evaluation code to dedicated Nintendo outlets in time for embargo lifts. Consequently, technical assessments of the handheld port will appear post-launch to ensure thorough hardware evaluation.

While PlayStation 5 review builds were distributed prior to launch, Nintendo specialist outlets such as Nintendo Life confirmed the lack of pre-release review keys, creating an evaluation gap for handheld enthusiasts before release day. Push Square published their verdict on the PlayStation 5 build, noting the title's faithful adherence to traditional genre mechanics:

"A good Metroidvania and a valiant effort to resuscitate Castlevania, although there's little new to see for anyone who's been keeping up with the genre over the last decade."

Push Square Review Evaluation

Editorial teams have confirmed they will evaluate the software on standard retail Switch hardware first, rather than rushing impressions based solely on pre-release demo builds.

How Does Belmont's Curse Perform Across Switch Hardware Generations?

Castlevania: Belmont's Curse was developed natively for the original Nintendo Switch architecture rather than as a dedicated, standalone next-generation SKU. While baseline performance targets original hardware, media outlets plan separate post-launch performance evaluations to measure frame consistency and visual stability when running under backward compatibility on Switch 2.

Addressing community concerns over target platforms and technical parity, Nintendo Life reviewer Ollie Reynolds detailed the technical testing strategy for their upcoming analysis:

"As it's made for the Switch 1, we'll review it there. However, if we're able, we'll add in a Second Opinion exploring the performance on Switch 2."

Ollie Reynolds, Nintendo Life

This staged evaluation ensures players across Malaysia and Southeast Asia know whether baseline Switch hardware encounters framerate drops or visual compromises, or if waiting for upgraded hardware provides a smoother 60 frames-per-second experience.

Southeast Asia & Malaysian Collector Verdict

Malaysian and Southeast Asian players should weigh regional digital availability on the Nintendo eShop and PlayStation Store against physical importing costs from platforms like Play-Asia. The digital standard price of $29.99 translates to approximately RM135 to RM145 depending on regional currency conversion and eShop territory.

Physical cartridge collectors face landed import costs that typically trend higher due to international freight and handling, averaging between RM180 and RM220 per unit. Physical Asian and Japanese multi-language cartridges remain standard preservation choices for regional collectors wanting complete on-cart assets without mandatory digital day-one download dependencies, especially when targeting portable hardware like the Switch or handheld PC alternatives.

Common Questions

Is Castlevania: Belmont's Curse a dedicated Switch 2 release?

No, Castlevania: Belmont's Curse is natively developed for original Nintendo Switch hardware. The software runs on Nintendo Switch 2 via hardware backward compatibility, with technical outlets planning dedicated secondary testing to measure enhanced performance.

What is the official retail price of Castlevania: Belmont's Curse in Malaysia?

The game retails digitally at $29.99 in the United States and £24.98 in the United Kingdom, which converts to approximately RM135 to RM140 on regional storefronts prior to payment platform transaction fees.

When will Nintendo Switch critical reviews go live?

Full Nintendo Switch reviews will publish post-launch following the game's release on 15th October 2026. Reviewers opted against publishing impressions from demo builds to ensure a comprehensive assessment of the complete retail build.

Sources and Methodology

This technical dispatch synthesises reporting from publisher announcements, retail metadata, and specialist editorial notices regarding Konami and Evil Empire's release schedule. Currency calculations reflect spot exchange estimates for USD and GBP against the Malaysian Ringgit as of October 2026.