Topic: "The Dragon Returns" - Castlevania Lords of Shadow Sequel (HERE BE SPOILER INFO)

[Maedhros]

I can't watch the trailer on youtube from work, can someone upload to vimeo?

EDIT: Or http://rghost.net/

[TheFly22284]

It's a stretch and would involve some kind of wonky time travel element, but did anyone else think that *possibly* Alucard in this continuity is actually also Gabriel. I'm thinking in particular of the reflection in the sword and how much older it looks than I realized, and how much it reminds me of Dracula at the end of LoS. If the plot is going to be centered on Gabriel regaining his Drac-power, and the castle holds the key, then might there be some sort of Light/Enlightened/Penitent Gabriel vs. Full-on Dracula Gabriel happening?

Edit: There is also the question of the sword Gabe/Dracula is holding in the promo art, which may be indicative of something.

[whitedragon_nall]

I don't have sound on my crappy work PC, but I thought the trailer *looked* nice.

[shelverton.]

I don't have sound on my crappy work PC, but I thought the trailer *looked* nice.

Music sounded pretty much how I expected. This is Oscar Araujo after all. Much like with the original LoS, I wish it had ..dunno... more "notes" maybe? More "melody", sort of. Cause the foundation is really good. Just add another layer of instruments, with a catchier melody. Not just this bombastic, albeit sweeping and epic, mood piece.

[A-Yty]

as for the classic canon, unless IGA, (if he ever gets back to CV that is,) gets a bigger budget with the success of LoS, it wont go very far.

That's one of the reasons I personally hope this trilogy will remain a transition phase, a chance for "Akumajou" to get back on the saddle, improved and rejuvenated. Konami is not going to throw the big bucks on both takes on CV - at least not at the same time.

I would also prefer if there was another producer involved besides IGA, to balance his bad habits.

Agreed. And not just bad habits, also not having him responsible for every damn thing, working on a way too short production schedule.

The story is more or less concluded for the Classic canon, all thats left is possibly some games between LoI and CV3, but they would be "lolnodracula" so they probably wont happen. And the 1999 game is too hyped up and there is just too much personal opinion and too much shit surrounding it for it to actually please anyone, even if it did come out.

There is still details of Dracula accumulating his power, what Galamoth actually is and why he is seemingly a bigger threat than Dracula, why Belmonts had to give up the whip etc. Personally, I disagree on 1999 battle not being able to live up to the hype - especially now that LoS has the spotlight. I think the best way to start building that game would be keeping low profile during its development.

But if you think both continuities in the sense of what was and how it ends, there isn't much to explore in LoS's story either. You know he is gonna air-joust Satan into submission eventually. But you're still interested in the things that happen between and why.

It would take Konami realizing that even though Dracula is pretty much the main character, it doesn't mean he has to be in every game and every story. If they took that perspective, they could do interesting things with the original continuity.

That creates a pons asinorum to what pisses me off about how CV has been handled for so many years. Of course lots of LoS's things look better compared to the classic universe: it's got things like Judgment, bishounen mania and regurgitated sprites. It's not necessarily (just) that they did wrong things, it's (also) the way they did them.

Honestly? id rather different studios get to take their shot at Castlevania games. See which of them do it well. That would be interesting. Give them a 1 or 2 game contract or something.

Agreed (except maybe on letting them have contracts beforehand). Or maybe they could assemble a "Team Vania" to handle things. Constantly getting completely different development groups for the sake of diversity is not something I think is necessary. On the contrary - teams work better when they have cohesion. They should just check out and evaluate their games to determine when it's clearly time to rearrange and think of a different strategy (in order to thwart the "Burton/Depp effect").

[Odile Kuronuma]

I was thinking about how LoS2 is going to be the last game of the saga. I don't think it means it's the last Castlevania done by MS. It could just mean they're putting an end to the LoS saga, to begin a new one called Something of something. And maybe they will focus on other Belmonts besides Gabriel/Dracula.
Because it  seems to me that LoS is focusing mainly on him, if we take into consideration that he might be the main character in this game too.

[Nagumo]

Perhaps it won't be their last game in the series but I do think they will take a break after this. Why else would they limit themselves to a trilogy if they want to make more immediately?

[Thunderbrand]

A couple thoughts this morning...

After watching the teaser last night about 5x and again today I agree with everyone that is most likely Alucard at the end. But is it AT ALL possible it's in fact Zobek? I mean he was blonde with a sword too...maybe he changed his image in the years between? Probably a stretch but just saying...

Also...

Am I the only one who does NOT see a castle? To me that looked just like a big cathedral/church surrounded by an outer wall with some lookout towers. I saw no actual castle whatsoever.

[shelverton.]

Am I the only one who does NOT see a castle? To me that looked just like a big cathedral/church surrounded by an outer wall with some lookout towers. I saw no actual castle whatsoever.

I think it's a castle, but it's hard to tell. The cathedral which Gabriel comes out on the balcony is possibly the same place where he's at in the end of LoS1, in modern times. A city has been built around the remains of his old castle. Maybe. Though I wonder why they didn't tear the whole place down if they were building a city there. Though maybe this place has gone through many different incarnation during the years, but that one tower/cathedral managed to survive all this time.

Doesn't look a lot like Camilla's castle from LoS1 though... Though MAYBE this is set before he takes over Camilla's castle? This place could be someplace else.

[Odile Kuronuma]

No it's a castle.And a gothic one at that.  At 1:28 you can see a zoomed out picture of it and it's huge. It seems to me that all those soldiers were gathered in some kind of arena, or an inner yard or something.As for the music it works pretty well, but maybe they should have added more violins.

[Thunderbrand]

I just don't get "castle" as much as I get "cathedral" from what I saw. I suppose it could be castle ruins, or a smallish castle but I hope it's not THE castle. Too small if it is. We need something on a massive scale like Camilla's in LoS1.

[James Belmont]

I'm not so sure that Alucard = Trevor. I think there's also the possibility that Alucard = Simon. Take a look at his armor. It's more red in color, like Simon's, and the leg armor is incredibly similar. I'm not saying he isn't Trevor, I'm just saying that's not the only possibility. Not to mention the possibility that Alucard is neither of them.

[Reinhart77]

it seems to me that the game will take place in modern times, but that fact would be blunted a bit because it'll also take place in the Castle so Drac can get his powers back.

[James Belmont]

it seems to me that the game will take place in modern times, but that fact would be blunted a bit because it'll also take place in the Castle so Drac can get his powers back.

If it took place in modern times, there would be planes bombing his castle, the soldiers would be carrying grenades and machine guns, and I'd expect a tank or two. There was none of that in the trailer. Sure, one has every right to wonder if this trailer was just a sort of prologue to the new game, but then why tease Alucard like that? It doesn't make much sense.

[Ahasverus]

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