| CGMagazine |
Joe Findlay |
9 / 10 |
03-06-2023 |
Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania is a fun and challenging action-platformer that will stimulate the part of the older gamers’ brains that loves nostalgia, while teaching a new generation that a 2D game can still be great, even in 2023. |
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| Destructoid |
Zoey Handley |
8 / 10 |
03-06-2023 |
What makes Return to Castlevania better is that it essentially allows you to turn Dead Cells into a Castlevania roguelike, and a damned good one. The DLC serves as a fantastic love letter to one of the series that helped inspire Dead Cells, and that love absolutely comes across. I honestly wish that more games would let me just turn them into a Castlevania spin-off. What’s the matter, Mario? Think you’re better than Castlevania? Well, you’re not, so put on this leather cuirass and carry this whip. Wait, that sounded weird. |
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| Everyeye.it |
Lorenzo Mango |
8 / 10 |
03-06-2023 |
Return To Castlevania integrates into Dead Cells without distorting it, revealing itself as a heartfelt tribute and well inserted within the flow of the main game. |
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| Expansive |
Laurie Jones |
9 / 10 |
03-06-2023 |
To put it simply, if you’ve ever been waiting or wanting to find a reason to play Dead Cells, there has definitely never been a better time. And the absolute best outcome from this content? Konami agree to let Motion Twin make a full new Castlevania game. Because this is definitely something we need in the world, like, yesterday. |
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| Gameblog |
Alexandre Le Coq |
7 / 10 |
03-06-2023 |
Return to Castlevania is an obvious and great mix between Dead Cells and Castlevania. This new DLC is a great tribute to the Konami historic video game saga. If you already a Dead Cells player, you will obviously like playing with all the new toys Motion Twin is offering and if you never played Dead Cells but love Castlevania, now it’s now or never to try out this incredible Roguevania! |
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| GameCrate |
Derek Swinhart |
9 / 10 |
03-24-2023 |
Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania may not break new ground, but it is a lovingly made ode to an iconic series that has long remained dormant. The new biomes, bosses, weapons, enemies, and story content are all the highest quality, and Dead Cells remains an essential roguelike that still stands among its peers at the top of the genre. |
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| Gamefa |
Mohammad Reza Nowroozi |
9.5 / 10 |
03-14-2023 |
Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania is the best DLC that has been published for dead cells so far and of the best DLCs of all time. from challenge boss fights to unique atmosphere, it’s almost perfect. The only thing that I found a bit disappointing was its extremely short length that doesn’t justify its price tag. |
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| GameGrin |
Alana Dunitz |
9.5 / 10 |
03-06-2023 |
Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania is a must-buy for any fans of Dead Cells or Castlevania, it’s a breath of fresh air for those who have played the base Dead Cells in the past, plus the music is fantastic! |
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| Gamer Escape |
Grant Dotter |
10 / 10 |
03-08-2023 |
If you’re a Castlevania fan who hasn’t played this game for some reason, you owe it to yourself to buy this now. And even if you’re not, it’s still more super high-quality content for an awesome game that clearly is standing the test of time, made with clear and demonstrated love by independent developers, and you should buy it anyway. |
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| GameSpot |
Steve Watts |
8 / 10 |
03-06-2023 |
The newest expansion to Dead Cells is an action-packed homage that injects Castlevania flavor into Dead Cells’ familiar roguelike structure. |
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| God is a Geek |
Mick Fraser |
9.5 / 10 |
03-06-2023 |
Dead Cells was always compared to Castlevania, and having the two meet in this way with such reverence on the part of Motion Twin is weirdly heartwarming. |
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| Hey Poor Player |
Andrew Thornton |
4 / 5 stars |
03-06-2023 |
Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania is another excellent expansion for the base game. It’s remarkable that nearly five years after its initial release, the development team continues to provide so much additional support, making one of my favorite games of 2018 even better. There’s a ton to like here for fans of both sides of this crossover, but you do have to appreciate both to get much out of it, as the difficulty of this new content will mean its best experienced after gaining some experience with the base game and upgrading your character. |
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| IGN |
Cameron Hawkins |
10 / 10 |
03-09-2023 |
Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania is a shining blueprint of how to do a crossover right, celebrating Castlevania’s history while mixing it with Dead Cells’ own identity to make something that’s more than the sum of its already excellent parts. |
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| Metro GameCentral |
GameCentral |
8 / 10 |
03-07-2023 |
A loving homage to Castlevania and another great slice of DLC for Dead Cells, with the two games working together in perfect harmony. |
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| MonsterVine |
Diego Escala |
4 / 5 stars |
03-06-2023 |
Return to Castlevania is a lovingly crafted expansion for Dead Cells that fans of both games shouldn’t miss out on. |
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| Niche Gamer |
Augusto A. |
8.5 / 10 |
04-22-2023 |
The DLC has issues trying to accommodate new players, but it’s still worth playing for its fun weapons, fantastic boss fights, and great usage of iconic music. |
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| Nintendo Life |
Mitch Vogel |
9 / 10 |
03-13-2023 |
If you liked Dead Cells, it’s a no-brainer that you must get the Return to Castlevania DLC as soon as possible. It may be brief, but this is a brilliantly intense and nostalgic trip to a spookier world that fits in well with the broader offering of content in the base game. This feels like it’s primarily made for Dead Cells fans who also happen to like Castlevania |
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| Polygon |
Russ Frushtick |
Recommended |
03-06-2023 |
I’ve been enjoying Dead Cells since it first launched, and thus far I’ve been thrilled about Return to Castlevania. It’s one of the most polished and well executed of the game’s post-launch content. Castlevania fans, too, have plenty to swoon over, with numerous series references and large handful of unlockable costumes to discover, letting you explore Dead Cells as mainstays like Alucard, Richter, and Death itself. All we can hope is that this lays the groundwork for Motion Twin to pair up with other long-dormant franchises for similar passion projects. The Bubble Bobble x Dead Cells mashup is just begging to be made. |
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| Prima Games |
Lucas White |
8.5 / 10 |
03-13-2023 |
The best parts of Return to Castlevania are all the times the DLC says, “hell yeah, Castlevania!” The not so best parts are whenever the DLC tries to invoke Castlevania in its gameplay. Chasing the unlockable outfits, listening to the music and exploring the new biomes were all awesome, but most of the new items didn’t feel good and Richter Mode was kind of a bummer. I appreciate the love and scale, and the commitment to the idea of a “Return” to Castlevania. But now I want to put Dead Cells down and play more Castlevania. |
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| Screen Rant |
Christopher Teuton |
5 / 5 stars |
03-06-2023 |
For people who have been playing Dead Cells routinely since launch, Return to Castlevania offers a cathartic experience akin to your favorite author reading you their favorite book. For new players who love games like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night but haven’t yet tried Dead Cells, there has never been a better time. |
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| The Escapist |
Sebastian Ruiz |
Recommended |
03-06-2023 |
Video Review |
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| The Games Machine |
Danilo Dellafrana |
9 / 10 |
03-14-2023 |
The crossover of my dreams is made exactly like Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania, an expansion that embellishes the formula of the base game by incorporating a massive dose of references and content taken from one of the most beloved videogame sagas of all time. |
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| TheSixthAxis |
Jason Coles |
8 / 10 |
03-13-2023 |
Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania is an immaculate love letter to one of its inspirations, but it still retains so much of its own identity and humour as you explore Dracula’s castle as The Beheaded. |
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| Twinfinite |
Zhiqing Wan |
4.5 / 5 stars |
03-06-2023 |
Return to Castlevania is, hands down, Dead Cells’ best expansion yet, and it’s not even close. This isn’t to say that its previous add-ons have been lackluster, as every update to the game has only served to help flesh it out even further. Dead Cells continues to be one of the very best rogue-lite games that have released in the past decade, and this just further cements its place as an outstanding entry in the saturated genre. |
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| VGChartz |
Evan Norris |
7 / 10 |
03-31-2023 |
Dead Cells fans will find a lot of value in the add-on, as will any Castlevania followers willing to tolerate a considerable amount of repetition and randomness. |
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| We Got This Covered |
David James |
4.5 / 5 stars |
03-06-2023 |
I can’t imagine a finer tribute to Castlevania than this incredible DLC. Easily accessible to new Dead Cells players and brimming with content, this left us hoping that Konami will turn Motion Twin loose on a brand new whip-cracking, Drac-smashing adventure. |
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| Worth Playing |
Chris “Atom” DeAngelus |
9 / 10 |
03-06-2023 |
At $9.99, Return to Castlevania is the most expensive DLC for Dead Cells yet, but it is substantial enough to be worth it. The new areas are a ton of fun, and the number of new weapons and costumes is hefty enough to add extra value to the game. It might not hit as hard for those who don’t have nostalgia for Castlevania, but even then, the extra biomes and boss fights are pretty darn great. |
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