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

[Kingshango]

I don't care which developer takes the series next, I just want them to return to the classic canon. And no, 1999 isn't the only story that's left untold.

I'd like that too but it's ultimately up to Konami to decide and they've made some great decisions so far so im hoping for the best.

[Ahasverus]

Please soft reboot, let IGA or whatever make his 1999 game and close that clusterfuck of timeline, and let's start a new, perhaps an "all stars" timeline with only the most important classic chapters, remade, of course, and I personally am all for a new unexperienced studio.

[crisis]

I can't be the only one that's tired of reboot after reboot, AKA the "easy way out." And personally I'd rather have an experienced studio that knows how to make a good platformer than an inexperienced one.


Games that can be added to the "Akumajo Dracula" canon:
- 1999
- 1897 (Bram Stoker's Castlevania)
- ReBirth 2: Belmont's Revenge
- a game featuring an adult Soleiyu Belmont
- Dracula's Curse Chronicles
- 300 unknown years of vampire slaying Belmonts, or other heroes. This period can have 5 games AT LEAST. Games that wouldn't be restricted to the "100-year rule." Games that don't even have to have a specific year, they could be left ambiguous like OoE.
- a game that has the next Dark Lord Alucard hints at that will emerge at the end of DoS


Stop being so close-minded.

[Nagumo]

Like I mentioned in the Atlus bankruptcy thread, I wouldn't mind if Konami buys them out, and gives them a shot to do something creative with the series. If there's anyone who could produce an unique, challenging Castlevania RPG with an actual decent story, it's them. Plus, they already have a lot of experience with occult related games.

[Dremn]

Games that can be added to the "Akumajo Dracula" canon:
- 1999
- ReBirth 2: Belmont's Revenge
- Dracula's Curse Chronicles
- a game that has the next Dark Lord Alucard hints at that will emerge at the end of DoS

Any of these would be good, especially ReBirth 2.

[Ahasverus]

I can't be the only one that's tired of reboot after reboot, AKA the "easy way out." And personally I'd rather have an experienced studio that knows how to make a good platformer than an inexperienced one.


Games that can be added to the "Akumajo Dracula" canon:
- 1999
- 1897 (Bram Stoker's Castlevania)
- ReBirth 2: Belmont's Revenge
- a game featuring an adult Soleiyu Belmont
- Dracula's Curse Chronicles
- 300 unknown years of vampire slaying Belmonts, or other heroes. This period can have 5 games AT LEAST. Games that wouldn't be restricted to the "100-year rule." Games that don't even have to have a specific year, they could be left ambiguous like OoE.
- a game that has the next Dark Lord Alucard hints at that will emerge at the end of DoS


Stop being so close-minded.

No, you stop. You simply can't get a game with a deep storyline that is preceed with 20 of superficial/holed storyline. And do you think Konami will make a sequel to a game 10? 20 years old? Very unlikely.

[Pfil]

I can't be the only one that's tired of reboot after reboot, AKA the "easy way out." And personally I'd rather have an experienced studio that knows how to make a good platformer than an inexperienced one.

Games that can be added to the "Akumajo Dracula" canon:
- 1999
- 1897 (Bram Stoker's Castlevania)
- ReBirth 2: Belmont's Revenge
- a game featuring an adult Soleiyu Belmont
- Dracula's Curse Chronicles
- 300 unknown years of vampire slaying Belmonts, or other heroes. This period can have 5 games AT LEAST. Games that wouldn't be restricted to the "100-year rule." Games that don't even have to have a specific year, they could be left ambiguous like OoE.
- a game that has the next Dark Lord Alucard hints at that will emerge at the end of DoS

I'm TIRED of reboots, not only in Castlevania, but in everything. They are stupid when compared to what it used to be. I liked it when everything was part of the same thing.
And of course, in CV's particular case, that reboot brought with it some radical changes that maybe changed the future of the franchise for good.

By the way, any of those games from your list would be awesome.

Like I mentioned in the Atlus bankruptcy thread, I wouldn't mind if Konami buys them out, and gives them a shot to do something creative with the series. If there's anyone who could produce an unique, challenging Castlevania RPG with an actual decent story, it's them. Plus, they already have a lot of experience with occult related games.

I'm all for CV RPG! 

I don't care which developer takes the series next, I just want them to return to the classic canon. And no, 1999 isn't the only story that's left untold.

Me too, just let them do what they must do and there will be no complains.

I think that IGA's time to make the 1999 demon castle wars game, and that's it. Mercurysteam is doing a great job with Castlevania and from this time on, ''seriousness'' should be in the games.

Serious, epic and with Hollywood music. That's a bright future for CV.

No, you stop. You simply can't get a game with a deep storyline that is preceed with 20 of superficial/holed storyline. And do you think Konami will make a sequel to a game 10? 20 years old? Very unlikely.

So, when Cox told us to forget everything we knew about Castlevania, he meant forever.

[Ahasverus]

So, when Cox told us to forget everything we knew about Castlevania, he meant forever.

They could remake (not reboot) the old timeline, trimming the fat, this time with actual writers. That's the ideal case, really.

[crisis]

You simply can't get a game with a deep storyline that is preceed with 20 of superficial/holed storyline.

Last I checked most CV fans don't seem to care about a deep storyline, however the LoS sub-series was for those that DID want a deep storyline. Classic canon timeline was doing just fine where storytelling was concerned. As far as I know there's no plotholes, just unanswered questions.

And do you think Konami will make a sequel to a game 10? 20 years old? Very unlikely.

People thought Capcom making a side-scrolling Strider 3 was not just unlikely, but near-impossible. Anything can happen, no one here has the right to say "they'll NEVER do that," because you just flat-out don't know. Kid Dracula ReBirth could be revealed next year. Anything's possible. The games I listed were just a few possibilities they can use, right off the top of my head, so there's no excuse from anybody to say "there's nomore room in the timeline though!!" Konami even toyed around with the idea of supporting both the LoS & Akumajo Dracula timelines concurrently. They also thought about doing yet ANOTHER reboot, then reboot it again & again with each game, like Final Fantasy. Which may or may not be a good thing.


And I disagree that the timeline is too cluttered. If we had a timeline that had a minimum of 5 Dracula resurrections in each century leading up to 1999, that's when I'll call it a "clusterfuck." Even so, Dracula IS immortal, so it wouldn't be that long of a stretch to have him keep coming back over & over, if that was the case. But for the most part, he stays dead, or dormant, for at least 50 years give or take before he returns between games.

[Ahasverus]

Strider HD isn't Strider 3, is it? It's a reboot, actually. So yeah.

Also we don't know for sure if most Castlevania fans like story or don't. I like the old timeline but it feels a little.. old, and every new game in that timeline must carry that burden, and it willl feel old.

I say the timeline is a clusterfuck because

- they lessened the belmonts
- it's not clear if the 100 years rule exist or not
- even if it did the times don't match up
- No one has a consistent personality.
- anachronisms ahoy.
- every game with "a premise" has the same story "hero must avenge/save his wife/lover/brother" and ends having the power to kill EVIL DARK LORD OF DARKNESS DRACULA (that hasn't done a single thing ever) after getting betrayed.
- Even IGA said it was a mistake to release the timeline because he doesn't care about story and ran out of places to making more games (read: SOTN clones).
- IGA doesn't have idea how to make that 1999 game.

It's a nice, hold dear and missed clusterfuck, but still a clusterfuck.

[Thomas Belmont]

Was a video to the follow up of Lords of Shadow 2 shown? IGN says that the game was teased.

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/07/22/konami-hints-at-next-castlevania-game

[Ahasverus]

Was a video to the follow up of Lords of Shadow 2 shown? IGN says that the game was teased.

http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/07/22/konami-hints-at-next-castlevania-game

Apparently. So Cox will act as an executive producer a la Kojima in LOS1?

[Thomas Belmont]

Apparently. So Cox will act as an executive producer a la Kojima in LOS1?

I can't tell if they mean there was an actual trailer or if it was just talked about. I think it was just briefly mentioned. However, I got really excited for a minute.

[crisis]

Strider HD isn't Strider 3, is it? It's a reboot, actually. So yeah.

That's not the point. You're saying it's unlikely for a company (in this case, Konami) to revisit old games/stories. Strider HD is proof that it's possible, not just for Capcom, but for most other gaming companies. There are many other examples of this.

Also we don't know for sure if most Castlevania fans like story or don't.

Of course we like story, but I just don't think it's a dominating make-or-break deal for most of us. Of course I can't speak for everbody, so this is just my opinion. It's the gameplay, classicvania or metroidvania

I like the old timeline but it feels a little.. old, and every new game in that timeline must carry that burden, and it willl feel old.

I don't understand. Are you saying the canon games "feel old" because they take place centuries in the past, or "feel old" graphics-wise, or story-wise, or it's been continuous from 1986 to 2008? A rebooted timeline would prolly take place centuries in the past too. Can I ask, what would be the difference if a new team develops a canon game that takes place in the year 1597, or a new team that makes a non-canon/rebooted timeline game in the year 1597? Using your logic, would one feel "older" than the other to you, just because it belongs to a legacy? Would you automatically like the "new timeline" 1597 game over the "canon timeline" 1597 game just because it doesn't have the burden of fitting into that legacy?

If they were to remake Dracula's Curse into a Chronicles-style game via DXC, would it still "feel old" since it's a canon game?

[Ahasverus]

That's not the point. You're saying it's unlikely for a company (in this case, Konami) to revisit old games/stories. Strider HD is proof that it's possible, not just for Capcom, but for most other gaming companies. There are many other examples of this.

But... they are not revisiting the old story.. they are doing exactly what I'm suggesting, a soft reboot, a refinement/remake of the old stories. Actually, I can think of an example of what you're saying.. Curse of Darkness. And Portrait of Ruin. You know how that turned out.

I don't understand. Are you saying the canon games "feel old" because they take place centuries in the past, or "feel old" graphics-wise, or story-wise, or it's been continuous from 1986 to 2008? A rebooted timeline would prolly take place centuries in the past too. Can I ask, what would be the difference if a new team develops a canon game that takes place in the year 1597, or a new team that makes a non-canon/rebooted timeline game in the year 1597? Using your logic, would one feel "older" than the other to you, just because it belongs to a legacy? Would you automatically like the "new timeline" 1597 game over the "canon timeline" 1597 game just because it doesn't have the burden of fitting into that legacy?

Simple, the old games were made ina  different time with the spirit of that time. Say, someone makes a sequel to harmony of Dissonance, hardcore fans sure, will be impressed, but the other 80% of game sales public what? They would be scratching their minds, whi is juste belmont, who is simon belmont, etc. They just won't bother. And tell me that if said story was ultra deep serious wouldn't feel forced knowing which kind of game it comes from? it will. Now, if someone makes a remake of HoD with expanded story and stuff, say, it's the fourth game on a series that starts with a Cv3 remake that has a prologue telling the LoI story, people will feel better and the games less "heavy" on old knowledge and most importantly, modern, as like it or not "story driven" is the present.

To put it simple for you, a game in the old canon will relegate the franchise to its pre 2008 niche again. Because those are the only ones who know the other 25 games of that canon, made worse by the achronological order.