Topic: Lords of Shadow producer believes the days of 2D Castlevania games are gone

[Dark Nemesis]

http://nintendoeverything.com/lords-of-shadow-producer-believes-the-days-of-2d-castlevania-games-are-gone/

David Cox, producer of the Castlevania: Lords of Shadows series, believes that the days of 2D Castlevania games are gone.
Cox told GamesTM this month that even though hardcore gamers would appreciate a new 2D Castlevania, “the reality is that it’s a very niche market and Konami really want this series to be mainstream again.” He wouldn’t rule out a new 2D title completely, though it wouldn’t come from MercurySteam.

You can find Cox’s full comments below.

I think those days are gone, yes. I think hardcore gamers would love to play another 2D Castlevania, but the reality is that it’s a very niche market and Konami really want this series to be mainstream again.
We took this direction in order to reach that bigger audience, otherwise we would have carried on with the 2D approach. That’s not to say I don’t think there will ever be another 2D game in the series, it might happen but just not from MercurySteam.
When you look at the future on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, I don’t think people want to play 2D games on those consoles. Core gamers may still want something like that, but there’s an expectation among the wider public for big, epic games.

And thank god that it will not be from Mercury, since their attempt with Mirror of Fate was a dissaster, as for that 2D games are gone, personally that's a bullshit for me. He only say's that, because he wasn't  and he's not able to make him self a 2D Castlevania game.

[DragonSlayr81]

I always tend to hate "mainstream" talk because I usually don't find myself aligned with mainstream ideals.

I understand the need to make CV mainstream(and in the spotlight), but I think there is no defintive way in doing it. I still think all those who say, "You have to change something to be like THIS!" are short-sighted and have a flawed perspective of actuality. They seem to think, just because you change something means you are guaranteed success. You aren't really guaranteed ANYTHING, to be honest. It really still is just as much a gamble as ever, and there are even a LOT of examples of reboots that are made to be more mainstream that fail to gain an audience. I wish people were more open about THAT kind of thing. It's funny how people can be so sure of themselves that their way is the right way. You can have faith in what you are doing is great, but to come out and say, "This is the way it is, no 'if's, 'and's or 'but's! I know the way of the world and this is a definitive TRUTH that has NEVER failed!".

[beingthehero]

To be fair, in context it seems he was talking about consoles but not handhelds. But it's not like Cox succeeded in reaching that mainstream audience after MoF and LoS2 flopped.

[Viskod]

We can't really say LoS2 is a flop yet, as it hasn't even been out a month. I think the only sales data we have is for the UK, but even considering what we have, it may have sold less than Lords of Shadow 1, but it still sold more than any other Castlevania game, so by your logic all of the games prior to this series have been flops, so its in good company.

Also, console wise, yes I do believe he's correct. When it comes to consoles, the Americas and Europe basically buy them all. Japan as a console market has been and continues to shrink, with focus and interest heading towards handheld and mobile games. Japanese game companies, if they want to continue to make games for consoles, AAA quality or not, basically have no choice but to tailor games to what western audiences will buy if they want to remain profitable.

I believe if we get any more 2D Castlevanias they will be for the 3DS or something akin to Adventure ReBirth, made for download from PSN, XBM, or Nintendos eShop.

[beingthehero]

I think the only sales data we have is for the UK, but even considering what we have, it may have sold less than Lords of Shadow 1, but it still sold more than any other Castlevania game, so by your logic all of the games prior to this series have been flops, so its in good company.

http://metro.co.uk/2014/03/03/thief-sneaks-to-top-of-uk-chart-as-castlevania-lords-of-shadows-2-flops-4390118/

True, we only have the UK numbers to go by. It was outsold by virtually every other game, even Tales Of Symphonia Chronicles. But you seem to be pulling the whole 'i-it still outsold all the other Castlevania games!' thing out of your butt. There are no numbers that indicate that Lords 2 outsold any other Castlevania game. That is, unless you are going by VGchartz which absolutely nobody here or on other forums takes seriously.

Also a multi-million dollar "AAA!" game flopping hard is a lot worse than a handheld game made with a budget of thousands with reused assets underperforming.

[mindbender]

Indeed, people don't want to play 2D games on their PS4/XB1...oh wait...

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2014/03/10/february-2014-playstation-store-top-sellers/

Why is Strider #1 on the February top sellers list then?

[Viskod]

http://metro.co.uk/2014/03/03/thief-sneaks-to-top-of-uk-chart-as-castlevania-lords-of-shadows-2-flops-4390118/

True, we only have the UK numbers to go by. It was outsold by virtually every other game, even Tales Of Symphonia Chronicles. But you seem to be pulling the whole 'i-it still outsold all the other Castlevania games!' thing out of your butt. There are no numbers that indicate that Lords 2 outsold any other Castlevania game. That is, unless you are going by VGchartz which absolutely nobody here or on other forums takes seriously.

Also a multi-million dollar "AAA!" game flopping hard is a lot worse than a handheld game made with a budget of thousands with reused assets underperforming.

I was going by what Ahasverus said. I assumed he had credibility.

And yes, if its a flop that would be bad, I don't believe I ever said otherwise, and I'm sure that Konami had sales expectations for Lords of Shadow 2 that were higher than that of Lords of Shadow 1. I don't expect the game to meet their sales expectations, because oftentimes these expectations are ridiculously inflated.

Square Enix considered the Tomb Raider reboot, to be a failure after all.

Indeed, people don't want to play 2D games on their PS4/XB1...oh wait...

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2014/03/10/february-2014-playstation-store-top-sellers/

Why is Strider #1 on the February top sellers list then?

Because its a very well done game that is only $14.99 and your link is for just the PSN listing of the Playstation 4, a system whose early adopters are dying to have something to play on it. Also, I specifically said if we got another 2D Castlevania game on a console it would be as something you just download from PSN, XBM, or the eShop.

Exactly like this Strider game you linked.

So... I don't even know the point you're trying to make since your post does not contradict anything I said.

[Dremn]

Bergaron says 2D Castlevania is still alive at Konami, I'm hopeful David's words won't come to fruition. 2D Castlevania is the reason I like the brand to begin with.

I don't expect to hear anything more for a few years.

[Viskod]

All he implied was that console games would probably never return to being 2D, which is basically how its been since Castlevania Chronicles. I would be shocked if we didn't get another 2D digital release or handheld release.

[Shinobi]

Ninja Gaiden series never went back on 2d in current generation consoles so I wouldn't be surprised if it's the same case as Castlevania series. Also IGA did the same route as Cox did, 3d on current generation consoles(Lament of innocence and Curse of Darkness) and 2d or 2.5d on handheld/digital downloads.

[Ahasverus]

Are you following some kind of agenda posting old news about the 2D games? This was discussed like three weeks ago. Operation Akumajou is it you?

[e105beta]

True, we only have the UK numbers to go by. It was outsold by virtually every other game, even Tales Of Symphonia Chronicles. But you seem to be pulling the whole 'i-it still outsold all the other Castlevania games!' thing out of your butt. There are no numbers that indicate that Lords 2 outsold any other Castlevania game. That is, unless you are going by VGchartz which absolutely nobody here or on other forums takes seriously.

We have Cox, and for all his lies, this is the one subject I really tend to trust him on.

He's tweeted both:

CVLOS2 was the number one selling game on both PS3 & XBox360 in France according to latest GFK figures! Tres bien! Merci!!

And:

Eurogamer on UK charts..."Mind you, LOS2 still recorded the second best week-one sales in the entire Castlevania franchise (behind LOS1)"

So it's not exactly coming out of anyone's butts. We don't know if it's flopped until all is said and done, regardless of what one headline proclaims.

[Intersection]

And that's what happens when the sales argument is brought up: we start talking about other people's butts.

In other words, this discussion is going nowhere -- especially since we don't have any actual numbers to go by. Let's wait until we have at least some inkling of how well LoS2 sold before musing on how much of a flop it is.

Also, declaring that "LoS2 sold better than any other Castlevania game" is just asking for trouble. It may be statistically true, but it's entirely devoid of meaning. So let's not go down that path again.

[crisis]

can i say cv1 is the most successful game in teh franchise cuz it spawned hundreds of sequels?

[Flame]

This is the oldest news... Seriously.