In celebration of the 40th(!!) anniversary of Castlevania, Konami is giving away the original 1986 game for free on the App Store and Google Play.
The original Castlevania, which first released on the original NES in 1986, will be free to download until 24th October 2026, and other games across the series are available with deep discounts as we brace ourselves for the next entry, Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse, next month.
The original Castlevania introduced vampire hunter Simon Belmont and his fight against Dracula while the new mainline entry, Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse, follows the daughter of Castlevania 3’s Trevor Belmont, Rose, as she fights her way through Paris and Dracula’s castle with the Vampire Killer whip in 1499. It’s slated to release on 15th October for Nintendo Switch, PC via Steam, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
Alongside that, a series-wide sale is running across two storefronts. On the PlayStation Store, the Castlevania Anniversary Collection is 80 percent off from now until 7th October, the Dominus Collection is 50 percent off, and the Advance Collection and the Requiem: Symphony of the Night & Rondo of Blood bundle are both 70 percent off.
On Steam, running 24th September to 1st October, the Anniversary Collection is again 80 percent off, the Dominus Collection 50 percent off, the Advance Collection 70 percent off, and the Lords of Shadow games (including the Ultimate Edition, the Lords of Shadow 2 digital bundle and its Revelations DLC, and Mirror of Fate HD) are all 80 percent off.
There’s also a Castlevania 40th Anniversary orchestral concert planned for spring 2027 in London, Tokyo and Los Angeles, but don’t worry if you can’t make it – the soundtrack to Castlevania: Black & Red is now available on most major streaming platforms.
Developer Evil Empire – known for its work on Dead Cells and the similarly styled Rogue Prince of Persia – recently announced its Belmont’s Curse demo arrives on 1st October, coming to Switch, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
Those who choose to download it can play through the entire first chapter, with any progress made carrying over to the game’s full release on the 15th October. Expect 60FPS across all platforms except for the Switch, which runs at 30FPS.
