How Long to Beat Castlevania: Belmont's Curse?
Castlevania: Belmont's Curse takes approximately 12 hours to complete its main story, while players aiming for 100% completion should expect to spend at least 20 hours exploring its secrets and collecting every available item.
According to George Foster's playthrough, reaching the game's normal ending without using a guide took around 12 hours. However, that initial run left numerous weapons, artifacts, and hidden areas undiscovered.
Unlike Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, Belmont's Curse returns to the series' traditional 2D exploration-focused gameplay. Players control Rose Belmont as she explores Dracula's castle and several areas of Paris, defeating powerful enemies and unlocking new abilities along the way.
Reaching the normal ending requires collecting all the Arcana, which encourages players to explore a significant portion of the map. The game's challenging combat can also increase playtime, particularly for newcomers unfamiliar with the series.
Players struggling with difficult encounters can adjust certain settings through Custom Mode. However, discovering hidden routes and solving environmental puzzles still requires exploration.
Completing Castlevania: Belmont's Curse entirely involves defeating all 16 bosses, collecting every tarot card, and unlocking the true ending. Players must also discover 45 artifacts and 28 weapons, fully upgrade their Arcana, obtain all character upgrades, and explore the entire map.
These objectives are also tied to earning the game's Platinum Trophy. Although some requirements are completed naturally during the main story, finding every remaining collectible can take several additional hours.
Foster reported that he was still working toward full completion after 18 hours of gameplay. Based on that experience, players should allow approximately 20 hours or more to finish everything Castlevania: Belmont's Curse has to offer.
Actual completion times will vary depending on player skill, difficulty settings, and how thoroughly each area is explored.