Castlevania: Lords of Shadow (OMFG WTF!?)

Visual Novel Community Anime/Otaku Discussions
#1

I’m surprised I’ve overlooked this for so long. :shock:

Castlevania is getting rebooted. They’re starting from scratch. EVERYTHING has changed: No more Belmont. No more Vampire Killer (there’s a whip blade though). No more Iga.

Now here’s the deal. Kojima (yea… that Metal Gear guy) has been given the reigns. It is believed to be one of the most expensive and ambitious projects Konami has undertaken (the voice actors include Hollywood actors like Patrick Stewart, Robert Carlyle, and Jason Isaacs).

Official Trailer on YouTube

OFFICIAL SITE

Now it’s pretty clear Konami has basically stolen the design idea of Devil May Cry and God of War… not that anyone would complain about this. The biggest noise maker is obviously the total rewrite of Castlevania legacy. Makes me wonder why they just couldn’t make this a new series of its own – like how DMC was made it’s own series, rather than just making it another Resident Evil. Some of the game is not the dark gothic imagery that has been the staple of the series for so long.

Rumor has it that Iga will still be in charge of making 2D titles for the DS, and these will continue the “Belmont” Castlevania legacy. After all, we still haven’t seen the 1999 story where Dracula was finally defeated. However he’ll probably only get budget scraps for now. Konami is fairly confident the new Castlevania will be smash success. I think Iga is only their “final emergency plan” if things totally fail.

And yea… I think we all know what that damn mask will do when it “brings back” the dead. :stuck_out_tongue:

#2

Wow, that looks pretty unbelievable. Since I haven’t played a Castlevania since SotN (no DS) I’m pretty excited to see a new gen console version. This looks like an easy purchase to make when it’s available,(2010:( ) even if people are going to scream DMC clone.

The mask kinda makes me believe its gonna have some JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure aspects to it, but I guess I’ll have to wait and see.

#3

I’m surprised you overlooked it for so long as well. Even I heard about it before you, even though I don’t keep up on console only titles since I’m pretty much a PC only guy.

#4

Since so much of this new Castlevania is being developed by Westerners, it would have been awesome if Nox Arcana were hired to compose the soundtrack. They do AWESOME work when it comes to gothic sounding instrumentals. Most of their soundtracks practically sound like something from Castlevania.

#5

Took me awhile to find an example of why, but I think the mask is related to Camilla.

#6

I couldn’t stop laughing: [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uw7SDVin6gU]Moar proof why Vampire Killer is the ultimate weapon[/url]. :stuck_out_tongue:

[url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgtIsTSXzvY]?Simon Belmont, bitch![/url]. :twisted:

#7

Wow, you sure discovered that Robot Chicken sketch awfully fast. That only just aired for the first time this last Sunday.

#8

It seems the Belmont clan has another Simon in their family, likely the clan’s secret shame :twisted:

http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videol … 3-captainn

#9

LOL… it seems Dracula and Alucard had some problems with one of their resurrections during that time frame too.

[attachment=0]alucard.JPG[/attachment]

Compared to them, that Simon Belmont was badass. :stuck_out_tongue:

#10

I wonder if starring in these games had anything to do with that Dracula had to have been having problems if he didn’t know how to f*** something:

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/angry … 9?type=flv

#11

More information on the game, as well as some defending from the developer that this isn’t a new game with the Castlevania label slapped on as an afterthought to boost sales:

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3175699

Guess we’ll know more as the months crawl on.

#12

Has anyone else ever noticed how outrageously HUGE the moon is in Castlevania?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVx_Zs4HHkI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aj46rgf86ko

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYfzDiCxDyA (It’s BIGGER than the Earth in this case)

I mean the Blood Red is easy enough to explain (lunar eclipse), but it’s like the Moon is gonna crash into the Earth each time Dracula arrives. :stuck_out_tongue:

#13

It’s been played on pianos, synths, and guitars out the ying-yang, but Vampire Killer played on a violin? Now that’s something new. :stuck_out_tongue:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phlrgUGpt38

I remember a high school music teacher telling me that violins were the heavy metal instrument of Old World. Guess he was right. :wink:

#14

Speaking of Castlevania, check out this tribute:

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/angry … 3?type=flv

#15

Lookie! Lookie! A better trailer. :smiley:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNswExwyn_I

Also… Dracula + Belmont. About time. :twisted:

Second note: Castlevania: ReBirth

http://www.konami.jp/products/dl_wii_dr … index.html

It’s a WiiWare game that uses SNES-era graphics and sound. Pre-SotN style gameplay (old school, baby). Some claim ultra high difficulty. There’s also a Contra and Gradius release under the same label, but Castlevania is why I worship Konami. 8)

There’s gameplay footage all over YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRqnn8sH7PI

I suggest not looking at too much though… spoilers and all that.

#16

In case anyone’s curious, here’s the conclusion to the Nerd’s review of the Castlevania series. I’m posting this one mainly because he does bring up some interesting points of the old games vs. the new games.

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/angry … tack/59132

#17

Hmm… rather absurd how he brushes over the rest of the series.

Bloodlines was the darkest title at the time of it’s release in the US, for not censoring anything. The music was also divine. The latest DS titles introduced some neat game play mechanics and innovative bosses. Sure they’re SotN clones, but they possess great qualities of their own. Some think Order of Ecclesia is better than SotN. Also his review about the DS titles only taking place in a castle are dead wrong… both Portrait and Ecclesia had stages there were NOT in castles.

Personally my favorite Castlevania are (in no particular order): Castlevania (started it all), Dracula’s Curse (awesome level design and gameplay with the helpers), Rondo of Blood (took the series to new heights), Bloodlines (made everything even more morbid; Elizabeth Bartley is hawt), Symphony of the Night (first Metrovania; epic scope in design), Portrait of Ruin (twincest; dual fighting), and Rebirth (return to the old school format).

#18

I can’t help but wonder for the life of me, why the hell the Wii version of Castlevania was not like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Unrq_ohCpA0

:evil:

Also for $200, you can get every Castlevania soundtrack ever released and not yet released:

http://www.konamistyle.jp/ecitem/item62588.html

Can’t afford that right now. :frowning:

#19

In the Castlevania-verse, male vampires become brooding emo’s who wear a TON of clothing, while female vampires become genki happy girls who wear NO clothing:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNhFjHi-kY4#t=3m5s

I like it. :stuck_out_tongue:

#20

I’m a little late in saying this, but I just thought I’d mention that the music in that trailer reminded me of an NES cover band I hadn’t thought of in some time called The Minibosses (wikipedia article here, official website here). Some years back, the now defunct magazine Computer Gaming World included some of the first pieces they recorded on the bonus CD included with the issue. One of those pieces was a medley of the music you hear in the first Castlevania (you can hear this piece here). (If you are curious, the other pieces were: Contra, Ghost N Goblins, Kraid-Metroid, and Wizards and Warriors.) While I would imagine that that particular theme has been done on electric guitar and such before, the simple reason I think of that cover band first is simple: the most recent game in the Castlevania series that I have ever played is Castlevania III on the NES. :stuck_out_tongue: