Topic: [Brainstorming] Castlevania 3 Remake Ideas

[Inccubus]

I was thinking about it the last couple of days and what I'd really like to see in a well done remake of CV3 is an expansion of the base systems in the game to bring it all closer to more modern standards; item crashes, sub-weapons & spells separated, upgradable main weapons for everyone, and most of all a bonus quest from Hector's point of view of the events he was part of during the time of the original game as represented in the CoD back story and the manga. He would strat out in the castle and the existing levels from the old game would be played backwards like the 2nd part of the clock tower and in reverse order.

Thoughts? How would you direct a remake of this game beyond simply recreating the same stages in higher res?

[VladCT]

Some of the things to do for the main quest would be to revamp the companion system so that all three can join, and the stage route so that it's possible to grab all three in one run without actually being forced to meet any one of them (even though I know you can decline their offer to join). Of course, we shouldn't forget to write the storyline accordingly to account for all possibilities (all three joining, any possible combination of two or just one, or no companions at all).

[X]

I agree with VladCT about having all companions with you. This of course means that the path system of CV 3 would have to be changed up slightly in order to make this possible. The only way that comes to mind is the choice selection that we had in Rondo of Blood. It didn't matter where you were in the game, you could go back to any stage you wanted. This is probably the best course of action. The only thing I disagree with is having CoD melded in with it. It was a terrible sequel and really didn't do anything to help elevate the CV 3 story more then it already was.

I was thinking about it the last couple of days and what I'd really like to see in a well done remake of CV3 is an expansion of the base systems in the game to bring it all closer to more modern standards; item crashes, sub-weapons & spells separated, upgradable main weapons for everyone

I think this is cool too. The only ones to have upgradeable weapons were Trevor and Alucard. Both Grant and Sypha were left without which is kinda weird when you think about it. Sypha's weapon could be a simple stick which upgrades to a wand and finally to a sorcerer's staff. Grant's weapon could still be the tiny dagger which then upgrades to a bowie knife and then finally a pirate's cutlass or scimitar. Trevor's whip obviously. As for Alucard I think his ball of destruction should remain his primary weapon of attack except make them stronger. And as for upgrading them, have it so that he starts out with the tripple shot fireball rather then just one. When he upgrades, the three shots change in look and color and the final upgrade would be the two-shot hellfire spell as we know it from SoTN (you know the one with the two huge black balls of fire? that one).

[Inccubus]

Some of the things to do for the main quest would be to revamp the companion system so that all three can join, and the stage route so that it's possible to grab all three in one run without actually being forced to meet any one of them (even though I know you can decline their offer to join). Of course, we shouldn't forget to write the storyline accordingly to account for all possibilities (all three joining, any possible combination of two or just one, or no companions at all).

I agree with VladCT about having all companions with you. This of course means that the path system of CV 3 would have to be changed up slightly in order to make this possible. The only way that comes to mind is the choice selection that we had in Rondo of Blood. It didn't matter where you were in the game, you could go back to any stage you wanted. This is probably the best course of action.

Great minds think alike! I have all that already in a design document I wrote up this week.
I redesigned the map to allow the player to get grant and then allow the user to branch to the stage where Sypha is and finally allow the player to go to the caves instead of forcing you to go to the ghost ship. That makes a single route that allows you to get all the party members. I also suggest in my document using the same sort of menu system as RoB uses to allow the player to easily access any stage they want after unlocking things. I also go into detail about how the ending sequences for the main quest should be handled so that it changes based on which party members you've collected. This will provide some replay value. I also suggest having alternate endings for second quests where the player will be able to play as Sypha, Grant and Alucard on their own in "what if..." scenarios where they go defeat Dracula on their own. After that is when I came up with the idea of throwing in some CoD back story.

The only thing I disagree with is having CoD melded in with it. It was a terrible sequel and really didn't do anything to help elevate the CV 3 story more then it already was.

That doesn't mean we can't use the content they created in order to make something better. Besides, I'm talking about CoD's back story, not the exact same stuff that was in CoD, but rather what was in the manga which is basically a self contained story that runs parallel to the events of CV3.

I think this is cool too. The only ones to have upgradeable weapons were Trevor and Alucard. Both Grant and Sypha were left without which is kinda weird when you think about it. Sypha's weapon could be a simple stick which upgrades to a wand and finally to a sorcerer's staff. Grant's weapon could still be the tiny dagger which then upgrades to a bowie knife and then finally a pirate's cutlass or scimitar. Trevor's whip obviously. As for Alucard I think his ball of destruction should remain his primary weapon of attack except make them stronger. And as for upgrading them, have it so that he starts out with the tripple shot fireball rather then just one. When he upgrades, the three shots change in look and color and the final upgrade would be the two-shot hellfire spell as we know it from SoTN (you know the one with the two huge black balls of fire? that one).

That was pretty much my idea too, but I thought to limit it some. For instance, Grant and Sypha only get one upgrade since their talents are more in acrobatics and magic respectively. So I was thinking Grant would get his Dagger from the US version and he could get a short sword as an upgrade to increase his range and damage a little bit. For Sypha she's get a holy staff upgrade. The staff itself would be exactly the same except it creates a spark/flash of holy energy when she uses it that lingers in mid-air for 2 or 3 frames. It would extend her range and be a very different way to fight as opposed to all the other characters.

As for Alucard, I honestly never liked the balls of destruction. Plus you don't want to over power him. I thought to model him more on his SotN incarnation. Specifically, he get's to use his eponymous sword. It would start as a plain blade and each (of 2) power ups gives it an energy field like the one it has in SotN. I thought to model the animation on the sword attack from "Dragon Fighter". He'd be the only character that can use most of the same sub-weapons as Trevor, and he'd have Hellfire, Summon Spirit, and Dark Metamorphosis as his exclusive spells. He'd still have his bat form, but I'm iffy on including the wolf and mist forms.

Hector would be different, but still molded into the CV3 system. My first idea was to treat his main weapon like sub-weapons, in that instead of upgrades he would be able to pick up a variety of weapons that replace the one he currently has. Instead of sub-weapons he'd have the IDs. They would be picked up like sub-weapons, but they would be upgradable by picking up power ups. They follow you around, but only attack when commanded to. They would give Hector specific abilities to. So having them is made important because Hector won't have any special abilities on his own.

Here's the document (not finished):

[chainsawmidget]

I think Alucard needs some more reworking.  In the game, he can be pretty terrible at times.  Maybe give him the ability to attack while on stairs and possibly alter the way his bat transformation works so it doesn't eat up hearts so quickly.

If there is any references to Curse of Darkness, I'd limit it to just having Hector or Isaac as a boss fight.  Don't give them any more story than the Mummy or Frankenstein's monster gets.  They're just there as a nice bonus for those that might recognize them. 


And of course, more stages and bosses all around.   

[Inccubus]

If there is any references to Curse of Darkness, I'd limit it to just having Hector or Isaac as a boss fight.  Don't give them any more story than the Mummy or Frankenstein's monster gets.  They're just there as a nice bonus for those that might recognize them. 

I wouldn't put them in the main quest at all.

[Kale]

Yea.. something akin to a secret boss, since Neither Hector appeared in the original, but they are supposedly the ones behind the monsters... at least that's how I took CoD's explanation?

I wouldn't give Alucard both forms and sub weapons. That seems so entirely over versatile, when compared to the other characters. Instead, have his forms as the sub weapon, as it were.

[X]

I wouldn't give Alucard both forms and sub weapons. That seems so entirely over versatile, when compared to the other characters. Instead, have his forms as the sub weapon, as it were.

This is imo the best way to handle Alucard's spells from SotN. the only sub-weapon he ever got to use was the stopwatch...rather disappointing really. But remove the stop watch and replace it with some spells and we have a winner.

[Inccubus]

That was my original thought, but then when I thought of modernizing everyone I figured it would make sense for him to be the most versatile one of the bunch.

Plus there's still balance between the characters to consider. Trevor's the powerhouse, Grant is the acrobat, Sypha is the spell caster. So I figured instead of nerfing the vampire he should be ok at everything and retain the uber useful bat form.

The Balls of destruction are the way they are because of Dracula's Hellfire spell and because it makes him stronger than Grant and Sypha, but because it's power is split among 3 sprites it's not as directly powerful as the Vampire Killer. However, the Alucard Sword is just more fun. It would have to be a bit weaker than the VK, and with it's shorter range it would still force the player to get closer to enemies which I think is an important part of Alucard's game play. It's not as elegant as the fireball spread he had from a purely game perspective because it would eliminate his mid-range options, but that's really the part I never found very fun. The sub-weapons would then be the replacement for the loss of a ranged main attack and it would match up with SotN. So maybe a different set of sub-weapons would be in order? Made up mostly of his exclusives from SotN? Rebound Stone, Agunea, Vibuti, and Stopwatch?

I would personally prefer to keep spells and sub-weapons separate. one of the things I hated was draining all of his hearts with the bat form thus rendering his one sub-weapon useless. That's why I'd be totally for having a magic meter for spells/forms.

[VladCT]

After looking at your proposal, Grant seems to be the weakest of the bunch, with his only notable ability aside from the wall crawling being the controllable jump. Would double jumping make him jump straight to OP?

[Inccubus]

That's an interesting idea. Taking into consideration that he has the weakest offensive capabilities that might work well.
I'm also thinking it might be a good idea to give him a better mid-air attack. Instead of stabbing, which is pretty hard to hit with in mid-air, he should should do slash that can cover most of his facing direction. That would make him the best choice for flying enemies. Yes! Indeed! He should be the scourge of Medusa Heads! lol

[chainsawmidget]

Maybe giving Grant an upwards and downwards thrust like Zelda 2 would work for him. 

[Inccubus]

That's a really good idea! One of my favorite things in SCV4 is attacking enemies from above. I can imagine doing that with Grant and watching him bounce from enemy to enemy would be loads of fun.

[TheouAegis]

I wouldn't give Alucard too much power. The whole point of him in CV3 was he was too weak to beat his father on his own. He was still a whelp and learning how to harness his powers. He could turn into bats and use fireballs, but compared to his father his attacks were very much sub-par. Hell, you could even blow on his fireballs and they'd be extinguished. By SotN he'd had plenty of time to build upon and harness his latent powers. I don't mind him having an array of weapons, but he certainly shouldn't have anywhere near the powers he had by SotN. Maybe sword, down = hide behind cape so he can't duck but down+attack = upgradeable fireballs, up+attack = special weapons, and down+jump = bat form, and can attack on stairs. Definitely must be able to attack on stairs. Or go with the spells like Sypha, but only one spell at a time, and let him duck.

[chainsawmidget]

I do kinda wonder how' he'd play if his main weapon was a sword and both the fireballs and bat transformations were both treated as sub-weapons.