Topic: Seems like Konami has a pretty big presence at E3

[RichterB]

I'm still very curious to see how this pans out given the previous reporting. Nothing may happen, but it's not out of the question that Konami could revisit Castlevania beyond GoS. Here's why:

1.) As reported on numerous sites in June 2017 from Konami rep: "All I can say is that there is lots of internal discussions going on within Konami regarding what games we can bring to the Nintendo Switch, other than Bomberman, a game which we are well aware of its heritage and how loved it and Castlevania is. So much so that Castlevania is getting is getting its own show on Netflix and because of that, we’re hearing a lot of desires from our fans for a new Castlevania series. So we do know there is a demand for a new game, but right now nothing is set in stone as the discussions are still on going." (i.e. http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2017/06/konami_on_super_bomberman_r_support_and_the_possibility_of_producing_more_games_for_switch)

2.) After the previous statements, "Belmont Bomber" Simon skin comes to Super Bomberman R for Switch. (i.e. http://www.siliconera.com/2017/06/29/super-bomberman-r-update-lets-play-simon-belmont-pyramid-head-bombers/)

3.) Netflix announces Season 3 of Castlevania is in the works, with Season 2 launching in Summer 2018. (SEE TWO ARTICLES: https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/daily-briefs/2018-01-19/netflix-castlevania-writer-2nd-season-premieres-this-summer/.126679 & https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2018-06-08/netflix-castlevania-animated-series-gets-3rd-season/.132605)

4.) Curse of the Moon had "100,000 downloads less than a week after it launched...56% of them on Nintendo platform," and Ritual of the Night scored $5,545,991 on Kickstarter and has again recently gotten buzz as a replacement for Castlevania.
(https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2018-06-07-half-of-bloodstained-curse-of-the-moons-week-one-sales-were-on-switch & Google search game and Castlevania pops up in headlines).

What we see above is active interest in Switch's market, an apparently successful (and continued) revival of Castlevania's branding to a broader audience via the Netflix series, and what could be seen as "brand-poaching" of sorts with a new franchise getting compared to Castlevania and showing decent sales buzz.

I think we are gradually moving toward Konami doing something, in the same way that Capcom made their move with Mega Man 11. I don't believe it will be a truly bold move (i.e. expanding on the style of Castlevania 64/LoD), but it should be a lateral move that will complement Bloodstained's emergence. I wouldn't be surprised if we get 1.) A Castlevania 1 remake, 2.) A Castlevania III clone, perhaps even tied in to the Netflix series 3.) A mid-level Metroidvania. If any of the rumors are true, I do not believe it will be a return to Lords of Shadow or a straight GoS port, though the latter is the more likely of these two. I'm imagining it will either be done in-house with one of the seemingly newer teams, like the one that did Metal Gear Survive, or have it passed off to a company like WayForward, who I believe expressed their interest in Castlevania in the past. I'm pretty sure it will be either 2D or 2.5D when/if it does happen.

[EstebanT]

@RichterB

Those are my exact thoughts as well. Just too damn lazy to type them. Add to that the fact that it's very likely Simon is coming to Smash.

[Kamirine]

Anyone know what time the information will release?

[Dremn]

Something is definitely coming, I just don't think it's today. There's enough reason to believe Konami is working on Castlevania behind the scenes again right now.

I think we're more likely to get an announcement for something when the 2nd season of the Netflix series airs or at Tokyo Game Show in September.

[Chernabogue]

The embargo was supposed to be lifted today, so it's a matter of hours, I guess.

[Dremn]

I read somewhere (resetera?) the embargo is actually for Hyper Sports R impressions lol

[Jorge D. Fuentes]

Soooo.... did anything happen?

[Dremn]

Nah.

[VladCT]

And so us cynics get to be smug about Konami being a disappointment yet again. :v

[DarkPrinceAlucard]

As my comment earlier in this thread proves there is very good reason to be HIGHLY skeptical of any good news concerning the CV series (and others) from Konami, at this point it just safe to have a set back and wait approach before getting ANY type of expectations up since Konami's has completely hammered it home that they simply do not care much about what their fans want its that simple, pretty much they are completely ruled by whether its a huge cash grab they can churn or their own personal vendettas such as the one against Kojima and Silent Hills.

Sadly anything else from them should always be taken with a grain of salt because there are a lot of fans such as myself who just have lost all respect for them which is a shame because they used to be a truly iconic company in the industry that had their fans undying respect at the end of the day.

[RichterB]

Well, I wouldn't say I have supreme confidence in Konami, but I want to pump the brakes a little, because here's what I'm left wondering...

First: What was the other Nintendo Switch game from Konami at E3? The official E3 site suggests two Switch games were supposed to be at E3 from Konami: "Action/Adventure > Nintendo Switch" and, later down the list, "Compilations > Nintendo Switch" (https://mp1630k065.mapyourshow.com/7_0/exhibitor/exhibitor-details.cfm?ExhID=4XTDjeQv). Hyper Sports R is a next-gen Wii Sports-style compilation game of various sports activities. So, was the E3 listing above suggesting that one game fit two categories--you could make a loose argument there because of the nature of sports in culture--or was the "Action/Adventure" game pulled or shown behind closed doors with some kind of extra restrictions to media? Secondly: The embargo seems to have been about Hyper Sports R, yet Gamekult, if translations were correct, said that the game being shown was not PES or Hyper Sports R and deflected the questioning when asked if it was "horror-related." (You could still make an argument for some sort of development related to Silent Hill or Metal Gear Survive, but Castlevania also fits there.) So, there are some questions there...

If we're speculating a little, besides the trends* posted earlier in this thread that are in favor of an eventual Castlevania return at some level, one has to wonder if it was decided it was too early in development to really showcase it, or if Nintendo changed their Smash reveal plans related to Simon, and therefore the potential tie-in with a Switch Castlevania was pulled for a later showing in a Nintendo Direct. I mean, we had all that alleged evidence of Star Fox Grand Prix existing from Retro and therefore perhaps making a showing, and then nothing. But that doesn't mean that game doesn't exist, either.

Knowing what the Gamekult editor was referring to, and if they can talk about it, would be huge. But if Simon is ever confirmed for Smash from the earlier roster rumors that already turned out to be correct, I think Castlevania for Switch will probably happen in some capacity, because that will be one too many rumors around the alleged game that will have come true when you consider the RE2 Remake confirmation, too.

In closing, sure, Konami is primarily more of a casino- and sports-focused company at this point, but given that they did something like Super Bomberman R (and now Hyper Sports R), I don't think they won't do games under the right conditions--i.e. potential profits to be made from market timing-driven properties.

*In that earlier post, I forgot to add that Solid Snake is back in Smash (and Bomberman was added as an Assist Trophy), which is a licensing deal with Konami, showing some continued partnership on Konami's part with Nintendo Switch.

...Hmm...should I start a video game podcast?

[zangetsu468]

#littlebigpresence

[DragonSlayr81]

So, back to the #FuckKonami stance it is.... FUCK KONAMI!

[zangetsu468]

Soooo.... did anything happen?

There was no inverted castle.. In fact there was no castle

[Kamirine]

There was no inverted castle.. In fact there was no castle

I laughed then cried.