Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse — announced at Sony’s State of Play showcase last month as part of Konami’s celebration of Castlevania’s 40th(!) anniversary — will play like a classic Castlevania game rather than a roguelike, despite the expertise of the studio making it.

That’s according to Konami, which told The Verge earlier this week that while the game is in development by Dead Cells maker Motion Twin, it will play like a traditional Castlevania game.

“Castlevania Belmont’s Curse is a 2D action-exploration game where players can freely explore vast, elaborately crafted maps,” Konami’s Tommy Williams said. “It is not a roguelike or roguelite game.”

As for why Konami’s making this clear now? Well, the announcement trailer did leave some fans wondering about the gameplay, not least because some thought they spotted a whip card pop-up on screen, as though it was a roguelike power-up.

As one prospective player said on Reddit following Konami’s clarification: “Okay NOW I’m interested. I’m so sick of Metrovania games that are roguelike or roguelite or Soulslike, for that matter.” Another simply said: “I wouldn’t want it any other way, to be honest.”

Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is out later this year on Nintendo Switch, PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S, and is already available to pre-order. The new stylized 2D Castlevania game co-developed by Evil Empire and Motion Twin is set in 1499, where Medieval Paris is engulfed in flames as monstrous creatures suddenly emerge from the shadows. Armed with the legendary holy whip, the Vampire Killer, Trevor Belmont’s successor ventures into the burning streets and the looming castle to hunt down the beasts.

Konami says this is just the first announcement to mark the series’ fourth decade, which started way back on the original Nintendo Entertainment System and has since spawned a hugely successful and critically acclaimed adult animated series on Netflix.

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

The current CEO of Build A Rocket Boy, Mark Gerhard, has announced further layoffs at the struggling UK development studio following the disastrous release of MindsEye, while doubling down on “organised espionage and corporate sabotage” claims.

In July last year, IGN reported that Edinburgh-based BARB had issued at-risk of redundancy emails to its around 300-strong UK workforce after MindsEye flopped at release. Soon after MindsEye came out, BARB said it was “heartbroken” over the issues players had faced with the game, and promised to release a series of patches to fix the significant performance problems, glitches, and AI behavior bugs.

Story-driven action adventure game MindsEye was initially designed to be a part of Everywhere, the ‘Roblox for adults’ creation platform led by former Grand Theft Auto design chief Leslie Benzies. BARB eventually switched to focus on MindsEye, but it has so-far failed to do the business for the company.

Back in July, Benzies told staff that the studio would bounce back and relaunch MindsEye, blaming its struggles on internal and external saboteurs, among other things. Now, in announcing even more layoffs are on the way, CEO Mark Gerhard said the studio had been investigating what he called “criminal activity” that took place around the launch of the game. Apparently that has resulted in “overwhelming evidence” of “organized espionage and corporate sabotage” affecting MindsEye. Gerhard did not share details because, as he put it, “this matter is moving toward prosecution.”

The layoffs announcement was made on Build A Rocket Boy’s LinkedIn page, and the comments from various people in the development community are critical of Gerhard’s statement, with one person calling it “incredibly rude,” and another “delusional.”

In January, Gerhard accused YouTuber Cyber Boi of “media manipulation, espionage, [and] sabotage,” and of “interference targeting” Build a Rocket Boy, as part of a cease and desist demand posted to the MindsEye Discord.

“It is profoundly disappointing to learn that certain BARB employees continue to leak confidential information to you, thereby betraying their colleagues, our studio, and the broader community we serve,” Gerhard said.

“This letter serves as a formal cease and desist demand: You must immediately stop all activities related to receiving, disseminating, or otherwise utilizing any confidential information from BARB, as well as any further involvement in media manipulation, espionage, sabotage, or interference targeting our organization. Failure to comply will result in escalated legal action.

“Rest assured, you and your associates involved in this media manipulation cabal will be served with legal papers imminently, as BARB proceeds with complaints alleging criminal espionage, sabotage, and interference.

“You are all in very serious trouble.”

Gerhard had hit the headlines ahead of MindsEye’s launch for claiming there was a “concerted effort” by some to “trash the game and the studio,” suggesting people were being paid or using spam bots to post negative comments. The boss of publisher IO Interactive, which makes the Hitman games, subsequently issued a denial.

Earlier this year, BARB said Benzies was on “well-earned temporary leave.” A company spokesman told The Times: “He is simply taking a short, planned break following an intense period of work and will return shortly.”

Gerhard, who had been BARB’s co-chief executive, told staff at the time that Benzies was on “well-earned temporary leave to recharge after more than a year of working round the clock.”

“He has our deepest gratitude and, with the leadership team and your support, I will guide us forward,” he added. Gerhard signed the email as “CEO.”

As for MindsEye itself, it’s still struggling for players despite a number of updates. At the time of this article’s publication, just 11 were playing the game on Steam, with a 24-hour peak concurrent player count of just 39.

Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.