Topic: A Multiverse of Castlevania?

[KaZudra]

Y'know I've been trying to explain the multiverse thing to so many Stupid Fans when LoS first came out I thought I'd never see something like this.

[Flame]

Lords of Shadow is the future.

Not quite. Just one of many possibilities when it comes to other studios being involved.

[DingusBelmondo]

These are the possibilities I see. 3D castlevanias catch their stride and become the new and popular image of the series, Konami continues traditional 2D as well as 3D games, or the series fails and lays dormant for several years before being rebooted in a more neo-retro format.

[Munchy]

Cox said he doesn't want to be "Mr. Castlevania", so I imagine we'll see one or two more games of his kind, then perhaps something from another developer besides MercurySteam? (We all know it's not going to be Konami making them.)

Or Konami might milk Cox and MS for all they're worth (like they did with IGA and the handheld games) and force Cox into being Mr. Castlevania and we'll see tons. Who knows what the future will bring; IGA said for a while that he desperately wanted to work on something other than Castlevania. I hope with at least one game Cox decides to go a non-linear Simon's Quest route, because a non-linear game in the vein of LoS would be sex.

If we count the "gaiden" games, there already is something of a multiverse.

[Sumac]

As Much as I'd prefer multiverse approach (more experiments and various ideas - the better), most likely LOS will be the main direction of the Castlevania series. At least for the few next years.

[Reinhart77]

I'm expecting one of two things to happen, but am not sure which of the two will happen.

1. There will be one or more Lords of Shadow sequels/spin-offs.  Then they'll pick up where they left off with the original timeline and work with it going forwards, occasionally producing a gaiden here or there that's loosely connected to the main timeline (like Order of Shadows), but not necessarily acknowledged by that timeline.

2. One or two Lords of Shadow games will be created.  Then Castlevania will be passed to a new development team unrelated to Iga or Mercury Steam, which will then create its own "reboot".  This could continue so that there are three or more timelines that aren't really connected to each other.  The original timeline might then be only occasionally revisited.

I will be saddened if #2 is the outcome though.  Over the years, it has been great how all these different games created by different folks all connect to each other in some fashion.  It would be a shame if new teams feel the need to start from scratch all the time.

Edit:  I think the Neo-Retro scenario posted by LordsOfShadows is also a possibility.  Kind of reminds me of the Transformers cartoon franchise, where you start with a long series of connected shows (Seasons 1, 2, movie, 3, Japanese seasons, Beast Wars/Beast Machines tangentially), then end up re-creating the franchise several times over with separate timelines (Unicron Trilogy, Transformers Animated, live action movies, others), and then eventually create a new "modern" timeline that combines fan favorite elements from all the past unconnected franchises and moves forward with it (Transformers Prime).

[Flame]

1. There will be one or more Lords of Shadow sequels/spin-offs.  Then they'll pick up where they left off with the original timeline and work with it going forwards, occasionally producing a gaiden here or there that's loosely connected to the main timeline (like Order of Shadows), but not necessarily acknowledged by that timeline.

theres really not much left to work with... gaidens sure, but actual timeline and story relevant games? Very little are possible. And while I love the idea of a Sorrow sequel WITHOUT corny cults, and maybe a REAL threat uninterested in bringing Dracula back, (EG Olrox or other all powerful being, maybe even Galamoth) Aria of Sorrow was good enough as an ending to the Castlevania series. (ruined by Dawn, but you can look past it.) Not many long running game series can say they have an actual ending. the Mega Man franchise comes very close, but never will actually end until Legends is finished and the story comes full circle. Theres also a time gap between ZX and Legends of possibly thousands of years, if not more.

but Castlevania?

1999 war, some insight into the Belmonts activities in between Lament and CV3, aaaand thats about it.

Eventually, they will need another reboot. and then we are going to have this conversation aaaall over again. because something or other "wont be castlevania enough". Or "wont feel like the castlevania I know" "it isnt classic/and/or/IGA it sux". and the cycle will repeat. bad sales? another try. and again and again.