GamingCult - Our Gaming Culture

One of the things I've appreciated most about modern gaming is the carryover demo, which allows you to transfer your progress from a game's demo to the full release when you decide to buy it. When developers do them well, they not only end up being the perfect hype tool for a game, but also allow players to get a head start on the full experience without losing the time they've already invested. The first carryover demo I can recall goes back to 2013, when Sony released Soul Sacrifice on the PS Vita. In the PlayStation Blog post announcing the demo , they explained, “The demo is not only a great way to sample the full experience, but also to let you get a head start on that adventure before the game releases.” They also took the opportunity to explain that not only would your save data carry over, but you would receive an exclusive in-game bonus item for doing so. Soul Sacrifice wasn't the last game to offer this type of experience on the PS Vita, either. Koei Tec...

I wasn’t expecting to write about a demo today, and I don’t expect to write about demos too often, but I couldn’t ignore the return of Castlevania to modern consoles in any shape or form. Seeing as we won’t be getting the full Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse for another 15 days or so, I thought I would play through the demo and share my thoughts on the return of one of my favourite franchises of all time. Belmont’s Curse takes place in 1499, 23 years after the events of Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse . It also takes place 20 years after  Castlevania: Curse of Darkness , making it the latest chapter in this particular era of the Castlevania timeline. This time around, you play as Rose Belmont, daughter of Trevor and Sypha Belnades. Rose starts off equipped with a longsword and, unfortunately, does not have her father’s Vampire Killer whip, at least not in the demo. She also has magic in the form of the Cursed Flame, which allows her to launch a fireball. On top of that, she is prov...