Hi! Thanks for the feedback.
I have personally ensured that the game is beat-able without taking any damage or losing any lives. These style of games can sometimes feel frustrating, but once you get a feel for the enemy attack patterns it should become easier and its that much more rewarding when you overcome the challenge.
If you find you are still have trouble, there was a recent update I have released that will allow you to adjust difficulty settings. You can increase the frequency of checkpoints and/or increase damage towards enemies. I hope that helps!
Didn't notice the update - thank you. I've continued playing and the game does get easier with time like you mentioned and being able to farm the first area for the first few upgrades is nice. That being said - I pulled up the original Castlevania to compare since I have a NES and the first three Castlevania cartridges. In thirty minutes I was able to get past the first three bosses vs just being stuck in a starting area for thirty minutes. I'm definitely familiar with difficult games but there's still a difference between difficult and feeling like you've lost time. Only leaving this comment because I see developers make comments along those lines more frequently these days and it's a bit of a pet peeve of mine. Sorry for the mini-rant. Thank you for the game :)