Topic: Konami's Castlevania Moving Forward

[Reinhart77]

So, anyone want to talk about Castlevania?  Or is that old news now?

If they don't make any new real Castlevania games before Bloodstained comes out, I'm hoping we'll at least get to play with some of the DS ports on Wii U before then. 

I wonder if there will be any notable fallout from the Bloodstained thing.  Like Konami deciding to never port another Iga-made Castlevania game.  Or maybe ret-conning all his games?  Or releasing even less CV games in the near future than planned.  Or finding something they think they can file a lawsuit about.  Or maybe Konami will actually take note of the Bloodstained phenomena.  I liked how Iga said he would absolutely work with Konami on another Castlevania game if given a chance.  Maybe there's some roses in the future?

I wonder which direction Castlevania will take next if any.  Maybe we'd get one big scale 3D game every five years if Konami creates one big console game a year while rotating franchises.  Konami did try to assure us they weren't leaving console gaming completely.  Or maybe it'll devolve to phone apps.  Or both.

With all this talk about console games not being as profitable as mobile games, I'm kinda interested to see what happens once Virtual Reality gaming becomes a thing.  I imagine it'll be rather niche at first, but I'd be thrilled if there was ever a point companies feel that "this is where the money is".  I sure hope to see some of the old Japanese gaming companies still capable and willing to participate in this new medium.  I still hope to see Castlevania in the virtual realm at some point, though it seems unlikely with Konami's current direction.

[Neobelmont]

I pray it's not like the Contra slot. I actually cussed in my room very loud when I saw that.

[Shiroi Koumori]

I seriously hope that there is still light at the end of the tunnel for Castlevania.

The most possible thing in the future for us to see are the ports of all old titles which they have already started releasing.
And slot machines. hahaha!

I don't know if there's gonna be fallout since IGA most likely left the company in good enough terms based on his personality that is non confrontational and also by his comment that he would gladly work for another Castlevania if given the chance. However, everything depends on what Konami is planning for all its gaming IPs. If they are really adamant on leaving consoles then the best we can expect is some sort of mobile app that is hopefully not like Encore of the Night's puzzle game. Castlevania's spirit might still live in a few Yu-Gi-Oh cards though.

I am not so sure about this VR thingy, since I for one with really bad eyesight, can't handle 3D glasses.
But if there is demand, then demand side must show the supply side that they really want it.

[Chernabogue]

Konami should re-release a few 2D titles (either Classicvanias or Metroidvanias) in HD w/ better graphics and music (à la DXC/ReBirth). Then maybe work on a new game if the fanbase is responsive.

[Lelygax]

They only need to remake Castlevania 3 and people would buy it instantly, but noooooooo... They prefer to ignore fans begging for this and create a pachislot game about it

Why Konami, why?!

[X]

Why don't they simply give the original NES trilogy of Casltevania the Super Mario All-Stars treatment. Fans would be all over that like flys on s**t!

[Dremn]

I can't help but feel incredibly pessimistic about the future of the IP. I don't see anything but mobile software coming out in the series near future.

I've given up hope on there being a truly good game for the 3DS happening anytime soon or ever as well. I really don't think Konami shares our interests anymore, they're in it for the money now like any business is.

[Rugal]

Castlevania is dead. David Cocks and Konami killed it.

[beingthehero]

There really is an odd irony that Cox-kun was brought in to 'save' the series from IGA, but wound up driving it in the ground. Now IGA's Not-Castlevania is getting so much excitement that it's being treated as a Castlevania title in its own right, more than Lords 2 or MoF.

Still, Cox et al weren't being malicious or anything. They really thought they were doing the right thing in making Castlevania a full mainstream title again rather than a respectable but lower-selling hardcore series. Though Ben Judd did say the handhelds actually sold well and was a selling point to Deep Silver for publishing Bloodstained, and Cox-kun couldn't help but fib if he thought it'd garner more excitement for Lords.

The most maddening thing about the Lords sideshow was that they cloned other, successful titles. That's why it failed in the end, I think - it just seemed like a "God of War, But ___" title in the end. They stripped it of Castlevania's unique aesthetic, rather than use that as a selling point. But I guess Mercury Steam was convinced that Castlevania's look was a hindrance. Oh well.

[13th Street]

I seriously hope that there is still light at the end of the tunnel for Castlevania.

The most possible thing in the future for us to see are the ports of all old titles which they have already started releasing.
And slot machines. hahaha!

I don't know if there's gonna be fallout since IGA most likely left the company in good enough terms based on his personality that is non confrontational and also by his comment that he would gladly work for another Castlevania if given the chance. However, everything depends on what Konami is planning for all its gaming IPs. If they are really adamant on leaving consoles then the best we can expect is some sort of mobile app that is hopefully not like Encore of the Night's puzzle game. Castlevania's spirit might still live in a few Yu-Gi-Oh cards though.

I am not so sure about this VR thingy, since I for one with really bad eyesight, can't handle 3D glasses.
But if there is demand, then demand side must show the supply side that they really want it.

There will be if Konami sells the IP rights to someone who actually cares.

[Shiroi Koumori]

There will be if Konami sells the IP rights to someone who actually cares.

Koji Igarashi. 

[Reinhart77]

For me, the Lords of Shadow thing isn't what has me concerned.  I thought it was a good experiment to try something different, and am pretty pleased with them for what they are, and 3 games was a good run.  Then they'd go back to their roots after that, maybe after a year or two break before the next announcement in the worst case.  We've been awfully spoiled with an almost continuous stream of games and it never took too long before we knew what was coming next.  But the whole "Konami console game implosion" was quite alarming and cast doubts upon what I was expecting to see.  And then at about the same time, here came Iga to save the day!  It'll be a great game playing experience.  I'll lament not being able to see all the throwbacks to earlier games, familiar areas, and familiar enemies.  I expect some anyway, though a bit more genericized for my liking.  Maybe I can tell myself it's just like another reboot.  I'll miss being able to add another game entry for a given item or monster page on the Castlevania Wiki.  Well, maybe I can continue with that pass time at least with whatever derivatives they make for the series on the phones.  I hope they won't all be only available in Japan.

[BLOOD MONKEY]

I pray it's not like the Contra slot. I actually cussed in my room very loud when I saw that.

??

[Sindra]

If Konami is smart and they're keeping their eye on what Capcom's doing....they'll re-release the older games (original Trilogy) as HD remakes, something akin to the Chronicles games. Resident Evil REMake HD sold like hotcakes....to the point that now RE Zero is getting the same treatment.

Granted, what I'm suggesting is probably more akin to Capcom remaking RE2 with updated graphics, ala: REMake....and that might be too much effort for them to bother with. Still, updating Dracula's Curse with 2.5D graphics would definitely be a big draw for not just Castlevania fans...but Konami fans hungry for pretty much anything from the company.

[shelverton.]

Well, if they're gonna really test the water for mobile games, I'm sure we'll see a new Castlevania there sooner rather than later. Konami will probably test many of their IPs and see what happens, including some of the dead ones, like Suikoden, Gradius and Goemon. I don't expect the games to be anything worth playing though but that's another topic right there.

As for console games, I'm sure there will be plenty more MGS, and even Silent Hill some day. But a console Castlevania? Hard to say. The first LoS sold well so maybe Konami remembers that. The two sequels did not perform well but then again they recieved pretty bad reviews (something the first LoS did not).

The success of a console Castlevania is equal parts quality and marketing. I may not like the first LoS (and definitely not MoF or LoS2) but I can appreciate the ambition that clearly went into the project. It may not have been much fun (for me) to play whatsoever, but I can see that it's a quality production. That, combined with marketing + reasonably good press = success for Konami. LoS2 was the complete opposite of all that.