Having different endings in a game rewards gameplay choices and consequences; a bad decision can put you on a bad ending, while doing everything unlocks the best ending a game has to offer. Castlevania Belmont’s Curse follows three separate endings, leading us to different conclusions. We have good, bad, and somewhat neutral options; if you are running a normal playthrough of the game, you will easily unlock the Neutral option. The other two endings require a bit of work, especially the true ending, where you must follow all the proper steps to trigger it in the game.
In this guide, I will delve into all the information you need to know to trigger all three (Bad/ Normal/ and True) endings in Castlevania Belmont’s Curse while keeping the spoilers to minimal as possible. Here, I also added the details of the trophy or achievement information regarding the ending unlocks and the boss encounters in the game.
All Three Endings in Castlevania Belmont’s Curse
| Endings | Trophy | Unlock Details |
| Bad Ending | “Belmont’s Fall” | Winning a false victory over Dracula in the Clock Tower by playing into the hands of Death. |
| Normal Ending | “The Hunt Goes On” “Die Monster! You don’t belong in this world!” | Defeat Dracula to Unlock This ending. |
| True Ending | “Curse Lifted” | * Ring Bells of Virtue for Prudence, Justice, Temperance, and Courage. * Defeat Shadow Rose * Face Dracula in the Throne Room. |
The Bad and Normal Endings are going to be easier to unlock through normal story progression, as you can trigger them without doing any side content. The True Ending requires the completion of the major side content, all focused on making Rose triumph over her past self. Again, for this guide, I’ve kept the spoilers to a minimum, especially for the True Ending.
Point of No Return: Once you make it into Castle Keep Sanctuary after defeating the Penultimate boss. You will find a Red Pedestal with a Crimson Chalice; interacting with it, or even coming close to the space around the chalice, triggers an irreversible dialogue that stops you on your narrative path.
Bad Ending
Getting a false victory over Dracula in the Clock Tower by playing into the hands of Death.
Once you are in the Clock Tower, Leon will warn Rose about feeling that something is wrong with the place and advise Rose to turn back before it’s too late. Rose then retaliates by telling Leon that she can feel Dracula being close to her. Medusa will also chime in, asking Rose not to fall for it.
If you want to see the bad ending, ignore their warnings and head inside the room on the left, then go back to the previous room, and then again head to the room on the left. Now Rose will stop in her tracks and start asking questions about the whereabouts of Issac and Medusa, Leon, and Joan.
Now you are left with no choice but to move forward, keep moving to the left, and you will be in Dracula’s Throne Room.
The cutscene will trigger Dracula teleporting from the Throne to the Battle arena. As the battle is about to begin, Rose will instantly take down Dracula without any player input. After thinking she has taken out Dracula, Death will show up and reveal it was all an illusion. As Death slowly moves to the side, revealing Dracula, the real one still sitting on the throne.
Death will reveal that Rose’s father, Trevor Belmont’s blood was used to restore Dracula’s power, leaving the rest of the world doomed in the hands of Dracula. Getting this ending unlocks Belmont’s Fall trophy, as we literally see Rose fall to her knees, turning into a monster. Triggering the Bad ending also unlocks the Cursed Outfit or Skin for Rose.
Normal Ending
The normal ending can be triggered by avoiding the trap laid by Death for the Bad ending and continuing along the journey to finally face Dracula.
Skip the Clock Tower trap by Death, progress in the game, and win the fight against Death, which will lead to the final confrontation with Dracula. Following the series tradition, the fight with Dracula has two phases to trigger the normal ending.
- First Stage: Here you will fight a humanoid form of Dracula.
- Second Stage: The second stage sees the true demonic form of Dracula.
After taking victory over Dracula’s true form, you will be awarded a normal ending. While Dracula is gone, the curse on Paris will remain as it is, indicating another ending for a true conclusion. Rose will also talk about the world’s misery, and evil will only get worse as long as the curse remains in the world. Later saying, Dracula has sown the seeds for his return.
This unfinished task can also be seen in the trophy you unlock by triggering the normal ending “The Hunt Goes On,” and the trophy “Die monster! You don’t belong in this world!” for defeating Dracula.
True Ending
Here we defeat Dracula, but only after completing various tasks. I will keep the ending spoiler to a minimum, so you witness the true ending on your run.
- Step #1: Hunt down four Bells of Virtue and enter their Virtue Encounter for Prudence, Justice, Temperance, and Courage to receive four blessings.
- Step #2: Defeat Shadow Rose.
- Step #3: Face Dracula.
According to The Prophecy:
“Only when the Bells of Virtue ring and humanity overcomes its Self will cursed darkness lift and restore the blessing light.”
So we have our goal: complete the virtue encounters and then deal with Shadow Rose.
Bells of Virtue
The game has a large bell for every one of the virtues that we must ring: Prudence, Justice, Temperance, and Courage. When you find a bell, ring it to start the encounter; completing it will help you get blessings from different characters. Travel to the Gallery of the Four Virtues in Notre-Dame to find all four trials associated with all virtues.
- Prudence: Ring the bell and complete the challenge, and then Eleanor will grant Rose “Blessing of Prudence.” The platforming challenge here can be difficult; make your way to the end by avoiding obstacles, from environmental hazards to falling debris, and ring the bell to receive the blessing. The virtue of prudence is about Rose learning from her mistakes.
- Justice: The story stays much the same here; navigate through enemies and environmental hazards to climb the bell tower. Get to the top to receive the “Blessing of Justice” from Saint Louis. This helps Rose find balance and a new meaning of justice instead of blind revenge.
- Temperance: Complete the water-based platforming trial or challenge to obtain the Temperance “Blessing of Temperance” from the Ferryman. The virtue of temperance helps Rose with self-control, patience, and limiting emotional outbursts.
- Courage: Here we must get into the boss fight against Joan again. It’s a second encounter; the first encounter was on the Roof of the Tower in Prison Tower for the Warrior Tarot quest. Defeat Joan to get the “Blessing of Courage“. The virtue of courage signifies Rose’s strength and determination.
Note: These are not the same blessings as Arcana Blessings. The blessings of Arcana have to do with Arcana abilities, which improve Rose’s combat power. Virtue blessings are to cleanse Rose from within.
Defeat Shadow Rose
After obtaining all four virtues, make your way back to the altar underneath the illuminated rose window. Interact with it to get teleported to a special encounter against Shadow Rose. Shadow Rose is a manifestation of all the evil residing inside the Rose. Defeating Shadow Rose earns you the Self Arcana Card, Absolution Spell, and lastly the “Shadow Work” Trophy.
Rose also sees a spirit of her mother, Sypha Belnades, who tells Rose about completing all the Tarot cards. She is now freed from all the hatred and evil that has been controlling her, which is vastly different from the Rose during the Bad ending scene. Her confrontation against the Shadow Rose and the Virtues made her a better person for the final encounter.
After defeating Shadow Rose, interact with the altar and talk to Sypha’s spirit to return to Dracula’s Throne Room via the Grand Staircase and Master’s Quarters. The route from here becomes simple; just head up to the Throne Room and defeat Dracula’s two phases to trigger the True ending in Castlevania Belmont’s Curse.
Here we see Dracula going down and the curse of Dracula being lifted off the world. This earns you the “Cursed Lifted” trophy or achievement.
