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The Castlevania Dungeon Forums => General Castlevania Discussion => Topic started by: Draculas Curse on May 29, 2012, 06:47:56 AM

Title: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Draculas Curse on May 29, 2012, 06:47:56 AM
While looking for more news on Mirror of Fate I found these stories. Please tell me this is not true, please tell me that Iga is not doing Castlevania for awhile. How can they make CV games without Iga?

Koji Igarashi will have no involvement with upcoming Castlevania games (http://www.castlevaniacrypt.com/up/2012/5/27)

Why is Koji Igarashi no longer producing Castlevania games? (http://www.castlevaniacrypt.com/up/2012/5/29)
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Nagumo on May 29, 2012, 06:49:39 AM
All we know at this time is that IGA is not going to E3 this year. He might still be working on the series.   
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Chernabogue on May 29, 2012, 06:50:17 AM
How can they make CV games without Iga?
They've done Lords of Shadow without him. New and fresh blood was a bit needed.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Draculas Curse on May 29, 2012, 06:51:23 AM
But why cant he do Mirror of Fate? Everyone knows he is not doing LOS sequel, but why cant Iga be on 3DS games?

Enough of this Mercury Cox takeover crap.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Kingshango on May 29, 2012, 06:52:17 AM
Castlevania did exist before IGA ya know. Maybe IGA wanted to take a break from Castlevania for a bit and let others give it a shot.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Draculas Curse on May 29, 2012, 06:56:09 AM
Castlevania did exist before IGA ya know.

Yeah and didn't the franchise almost die off before Iga and SOTN? The old games were cool, but they were too difficult. Why do you have to die when falling in a pit? Iga fixed this. I sure hope they don't make Mirror of Fate just like Lords of Shadow.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: TheouAegis on May 29, 2012, 07:02:27 AM
Good riddance, I say. Symphony was good but everything after that started going downhill. I like OoE but Iga's cut-and-paste style of game design is lazy and ruined the series. As a producer or designer, he should have made more of an effort to bring excitement to the series whilst retaining its feel or charm. I eagerly await the day they make a Castlevania anime that I can watch on 4Kids Saturday morning cartoons next to Yu-Gi-Oh.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Dengo vlad tepes on May 29, 2012, 07:07:51 AM
Okay lords of shadow and mercury steam were so needed but not forever they need to make a balance for both producers/directors Iga and Cox we do not need someone to overtake the series , believe me it will get boring with time

do you remember the old old days of castlevanias ? when multi producers work on 1 game remember when the game has its golden charm from CV I to SOTN

you know why those games were great ? cuz there is no overtaking on the series ... really
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Nagumo on May 29, 2012, 07:12:26 AM
^ I agree with this. That seems like a pure win-win situation. They could keep innovating the series while preventing that they lose parts of their fanbase.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Sumac on May 29, 2012, 09:00:57 AM
Quote
Yeah and didn't the franchise almost die off before Iga and SOTN? The old games were cool, but they were too difficult. Why do you have to die when falling in a pit? Iga fixed this. I sure hope they don't make Mirror of Fate just like Lords of Shadow.
Franchise was quite alive before SOTN.
You have to die after falling in the pit because it is normal convention in video games. It was removed because of the whiners who couldn't do their jumps properly.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Jorge D. Fuentes on May 29, 2012, 09:30:27 AM
I always get a little chuckle out the concept of death pits being so terrible (they're not, learn to jump).
Though I'm more for 'heavy damage based on height', a death pit sharpens your skills over time.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: beingthehero on May 29, 2012, 11:18:56 AM
People keep forgetting that he produced two games (ReBirth, HoDespair) after Lords was announced. It's been only two years.

Also the only game he actually worked on in person was SotN. He's referenced having to program it before. It is the director that actually makes the games, not the producer. After 12 years, people still keep forgetting this.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: beingthehero on May 29, 2012, 11:25:40 AM
Also IGA has said for some time that he's tired of Castlevania and has wanted to do other games for quite some time now, like that Gradius-type shooter for the Xbox 360.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: DarkPrinceAlucard on May 29, 2012, 11:29:16 AM
The fact is that the series does not need IGA.

I'm a HUGE fan of IGA and his games, but i always knew that the time would come when he would eventually have to hand over the reigns to someone else.

It would appear that Cox and his team will also be handing those reigns over as well.

The only thing I would want IGA to come back for is the make The Battle of 1999 game and afterwards he can leave the series after finally giving us fans a bit of closure.

I like the idea of it going back to how it was in the old days when they had different developers for different CV games and switched it up a lot.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Maedhros on May 29, 2012, 11:33:12 AM
IT DOESN'T NEED TO BE IGA.

They just need someone who can respect or continue the old series, with these standards. LoS by itself isn't a bad thing, just don't forget about the old series and it's fans, not everyone liked the direction LoS took.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Nagumo on May 29, 2012, 11:43:00 AM
Also IGA has said for some time that he's tired of Castlevania and has wanted to do other games for quite some time now, like that Gradius-type shooter for the Xbox 360.

You sure about that? During the time OoE was in development he said quite the opposite actually.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: A-Yty on May 29, 2012, 11:46:14 AM
Also IGA has said for some time that he's tired of Castlevania and has wanted to do other games for quite some time now, like that Gradius-type shooter for the Xbox 360.

I don't remember IGA saying anything like that. Not that I find it hard to believe, though.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: shelverton. on May 29, 2012, 11:51:45 AM
First of all, I love death pits. It keeps me on my toes! I want them back.

Second, I honestly think that IGA himself wanted to back away from the series and instead do other things. Maybe he really didn't want to make another Castlevania? I know he likes shooters for example. Maybe he'll even return with a new IP that isn't... you know... Nanobreaker. As a video game designer I think that at some point you want to create something new, something that is truly YOURS. And as someone within Konami put it once: "Castlevania is like a torch that is being passed on from time to time". That time has come. Again.

Is Cox the "saviour" of Castlevania? Maybe, maybe not. He's probably not the last producer for the franchise though, that's for sure. One day people will be crying out for him, much like some of us are crying out for IGA right now. And then someone new steps up to the plate. UNLESS the series dies altogether, but it seems that Konami actually - dare I say it? - CARES about the series and wants it to do well. I think they're unhappy with the fact that Castlevania isn't up there with the likes of God of War and Devil May Cry, but at least they're trying really hard to make it happen. I doubt it's ever gonna be a multi-million seller though.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: GuyStarwind on May 29, 2012, 12:50:53 PM
I like death pits too. However, I hate instant death spikes. Anywho no pits really bugged me in the Iga games. More holes!!!
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: A-Yty on May 29, 2012, 12:57:41 PM
With all the accumulated praise and hate IGA has gotten over the years, he's a Castlevania veteran and has acted accordingly. Not all the games were great, but he addressed criticism in a way that acknowledged he was paying attention to what fans of this series were saying. He was the face of the series for some time, like it or not. Cox doesn't even want that, so I'd say he is unlikely to be cried after, at least not in the way IGA is.

I wouldn't want him completely out of the picture. I'd like it if he focused on the strong points of his work and maybe acted as an advisor, mentor-kind of figure to someone who would continue the Akumajou (*sigh* I hate having to resort to this franchise branching crap, but under the circumstances it's the prudent way of talking about the original timeline..) series. Preferrably someone Japanese. That way he could focus more on what ever he feels like doing now, but still pass his experience on and contribute to the future of Castlevania.

I know he really cares about Castlevania - especially since he respected the work of those before him (*cough* which is an attitude certain people could take a lesson from *cough*) and he has experience. Those are good enough reasons for me to like the idea of him still working on the series. That, and he procuced some great Castlevanias. If he personally does not like the idea, I can't really blame him.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Munchy on May 29, 2012, 03:38:52 PM
For a long time it seems like IGA's been kinda burned out with Castlevania, and has been requesting to do other things. I can't say I'd blame him, especially working for, what, nine series games in a row with only Nanobreaker for a breather? I'll miss his stuff but if he wants a break it's his prerogative.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: knightmere on May 29, 2012, 04:40:05 PM
Looks like Castevania fans are going to be getting Coxavania for awhile.   At least IGA respected the traditions that were set before he took over.  He built on the established canon instead of rebooting the series.   He kept the series awesome musical style alive and expanded upon it. It is true that after awhile his offerings started becoming stale, with OoE he started to address some of his critics who complained his games had become to formulalic.  Honestly his games were successful so I can see why he didn't mess with them too much until OoE.   Its a shame we will not see (at least for awhile) what he could have brought us next.

Oh and there is nothing wrong with death pits unless they cheaply placed like in the Dracula X final boss fight  :P
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Ratty on May 29, 2012, 05:51:29 PM
Yeah and didn't the franchise almost die off before Iga and SOTN? The old games were cool, but they were too difficult. Why do you have to die when falling in a pit? Iga fixed this. I sure hope they don't make Mirror of Fate just like Lords of Shadow.

You're kidding right? The majority of old school side scrolling games have instant death pits. And the challenge of the Classicvanias is part of what makes them so fun.
Most Classicvanias were extremely well designed in that they were hard but fair. If you died it was your fault, not sloppy or unfair level design or enemy placement/behavior like so many other difficult games. The exhilaration of finally beating "that level"/"that boss" after countless tries is hard to top in the world of gaming.

Also IGA has said for some time that he's tired of Castlevania and has wanted to do other games for quite some time now, like that Gradius-type shooter for the Xbox 360.

Yeah seems like I recall him saying that in an early magazine interview for the Dracula X Chronicles, and that the interview ended with him saying something (presumably at least half-jokingly) to the effect of "I just play the lottery and count my days to retirement."

Personally I think IGA's vania game design fell victim to not only series fatigue on his part but Konami's insane development schedule. To the point that "cut, paste and reuse" became the only viable option to meet the release dates.
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: crisis on May 29, 2012, 06:19:55 PM
In one of his youtube videos the guy asks him if he ever "yearns to create a new game or franchise separate from Castlevania?" IGA responded "well it certainly crossed my mind, but for now I'm focused on [current CV game] (laughs)"
Title: Re: Iga not doing Castlevania for awhile? Say it ain't so
Post by: Lumas on May 29, 2012, 06:22:08 PM
The way I see it this, IGA did some good and some bad and he did it for a long time. I think what it comes down to is... he did his best but it was time for konami and iga to move on. Not saying he was fired but konami needed a new take on the series and by that i mean more money from the series and IGA may have just got burned out on it and wanted to do other projects. Did he ruin castlevania? No he managed to deliver just about every year or so a new game albeit some weren't as good as other and some I think just really congested the time line but he did deliver new games to the fans.