Castlevania Megathread

[TruxtonTatsujin]

It looks like a game trying to be like Castlevania, but not actually Castlevania. It's most likely due to the Indie-like graphics.

This is exactly how I feel. It looks like a generic indie metroidvania that just happened to get the CV licence.

That new 2D GoW though....

 

[Xenocloudarius Xenocloudarius]

Oh Great, Konami. You have A vast history that has never been explored/fully shown Called the battle of 1999
But Instead, we received a Sequel to Castlevania 3 Dead Cell-like

 

[MasterEn]

I'd be happier if they announced a 3d Castlevania collection of the 2 ps2 games and Legacy of Darkness. I hope this doesn't put a damper to that hope.

So it seems like it's not in-house developed and made by an indie developer commissioned by Konami?

The thing is...there are a ton of metroidvanias on Steam and it might just seem like one of those but with an official CV label on it. What makes a game a real Castlevania IMO is the amazing OST that gets stuck in your head and gets your blood pumping. If the developer does not put some high priority on the OST, it'll just seem like an indie clone to me.

And why is he blond with a long braided ponytail? Isn't he supposed to have brown hair?

While it's unlikely, I really hope this does not suggest or establish the Netflix series as canon.

there's always a chance for the 3d games to be ported over to the new systems. could even be made into a set of collections, the n64 games, the ps2/xbox and the lords of shadows games being their own collections.
i'm pretty sure the anime is its own canon.

And it only took us nearly 20 years!

Surprised they took the 2D metroidvania route, but not that surprised. They’re the most popular ones, the most acclaimed ones, and the ones easiest to tie in artstyle wise with the Netflix show.

With all of the popular indie metroidvanias out there I am not surprised. Especially since they just hired the guys behind Dead Cells to make the game. They have a bunch of indie devs to choose from to make a 2d Castlevania which almost all of them would jump at the chance to make an official Castlevania

Oh Great, Konami. You have A vast history that has never been explored/fully shown Called the battle of 1999
But Instead, we received a Sequel to Castlevania 3 Dead Cell-like

they waited far too long to even try and make that game; there's so much anticipation for that installment that it would be considered a failure by everyone if ever got made, it can't in anyway live up to the hype.

this is for the 2d/3d thing: the side scrolling versions of games seem to always sell more than the 3d ones. this has happened for the entirety of the mario series. new super mario bros sold over 30 million units compared to galaxy 1, which sold about almost 13 mil.
and according to this website, dead cells sold twice as much as symphony of the night, which is the one that everyone says is the greatest psx game ever made.

Best-selling Konami games

The following are lists of the best-selling games and franchises developed, published and/or owned by Konami. The list includes games and franchises from the subsidiary Hudson Soft prior to its acquisition by Konami in 2005. Best-selling beat 'em up games Best-selling horror games Best-selling...

vgsales.fandom.com

 

[Aldia Aldia]

Apparently this is an actual Metroidvania and not a Roguelike (idk why people thought that was the case). I understand the artstyle not being everyone's favorite, but honestly, Evil Empire getting the bone is the best case scenario because they know their shit (they made the Castlevania dlc for Dead Cells, after all [the whole of Dead Cells, really]).

 

[bjork]

Dead Cells is one of the best games of the 2010s and its Ode to Castlevania DLC respected the property well enough, so I'll look forward to this one.

 

[SylvanSwordstress]

For everyone wondering about the Trevor or Sonia thing, the official website says:
"Armed with the legendary holy whip, the Vampire Killer, Trevor Belmont’s successor ventures into the burning streets and the looming castle to hunt down the beasts.
Will she succeed in saving Paris from devastation…?"
So it's not Trevor - it's his successor, and given the braid and the fact we know it's a woman, I'd say there's a strong chance it is actually Sonia Belmont.

 

[BrawlMan]

So it's not Trevor - it's his successor, and given the braid and the fact we know it's a woman, I'd say there's a strong chance it is actually Sonia Belmont.

Sonia Belmont is canon once again. I always consider her canon, and I am glad for the deep cut there.

 

[Mei Ling]

So it's not Trevor - it's his successor, and given the braid and the fact we know it's a woman, I'd say there's a strong chance it is actually Sonia Belmont.

It's very clear that you're playing as a female and not Trevor. I think the game looks alright, although I'm not that acquainted with every single Castlevania game.

That music was really good too...

Is anyone familiar with the song used? It sounds like it samples 'Bloody Tears'.

 

[Guinea]

It looks great, I really like how brutal the whip and enemy attacks look, and that music is pure hype.

@Isegrim You may just get that collection, because after the trailer the guy said "the first game celebrating the 40th anniversary" meaning that there's more to come. (i really want those games in a collection too)

 

[BrawlMan]

Game looks good, game look good. I swear though if this is based on the show or is in any way netflix adjacent, I'm out.

I doubt it, but I wouldn't be surprised if they use a few elements from the show. I love both Netflix shows, btw.

A vast history that has never been explored/fully shown Called the battle of 1999
But Instead, we received a Sequel to Castlevania 3 Dead Cell-like

I never gave a damn about the battle of 1999. Plus, it was always one of those epic battles you will never see nor witness cliche you've seen in other media.

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/OffscreenMomentOfAwesome

 

[Guinea]

Oh Great, Konami. You have A vast history that has never been explored/fully shown Called the battle of 1999

Koei Tecmo and Konami bout to team up and make Castlevania Warriors just for the 1999 battle. Don't give them any ideas

 

[Frickinfrik]

Holy shit, Konami finally remembered Castlevania!

 

[Morgan Katarn]

nice that Castelvania is remeber and the game is not a full on 3D game like lords of shadow.

It ´s looks kind of neat but man im not fan of the graphical style at all. But that´s just a matter of taste.

 

[The Regulus Blue]

Man, I don't know if it's because there are too many games with graphics like that, but it just looks like any other random indie metroidvania. I guess we reached to a point where the only games that still carry unique aesthetics are hand drawn and pixelart games. Even Resident Evil 9, when I first looked at it, I thought "it just looks like any random", maybe that's why they decided to bring Leon Kennedy into it, or else the game wouldn't look like a Resident Evil at all. I feel like most of 3D games in general are lacking in personality.

 

[NOTthatHARD]

Looks nice enough I guess, just hope it's not going to be a roguelike.

 

[gwardojones]

It looks like a game trying to be like Castlevania, but not actually Castlevania. It's most likely due to the Indie-like graphics.

Not trying to be cynical about it since we haven't had Castlevania in ages, but yeah, man, this looks pretty bland. Everything about it screams "we made the art style so that Geoff Keighley puts our trailer on The Game Awards!" It looks completely fine, but nothing about it screams Castlevania aside from the name drops.

I still play Iga's games to this day, but I doubt I'll bother with this one.

 

[BrawlMan]

Doesn't look bland to me. Art shift aside, this is a Castlevania game.

 

[Zerohour2k12]

Nice! For a second there I thought it was Sonia Belmont.

 

[Nickakyoin]

HOLY SH*T.

The series is back.

(is she Sonia Belmont? At least she looks like her but since the game is in 1499 and Sonia isn't exactly canon, then it's very unlikely)

 

[Raytheon]

Seems like Sonia is canon again. This time, as a relative/descendant of Trevor. Hopefully, it follows the game's setting rather than any of the abominable Netflix show canon.

 

[ThunderBoy]

 

[Nickakyoin]

I'd be happier if they announced a 3d Castlevania collection of the 2 ps2 games and Legacy of Darkness. I hope this doesn't put a damper to that hope.

So it seems like it's not in-house developed and made by an indie developer commissioned by Konami?

The thing is...there are a ton of metroidvanias on Steam and it might just seem like one of those but with an official CV label on it. What makes a game a real Castlevania IMO is the amazing OST that gets stuck in your head and gets your blood pumping. If the developer does not put some high priority on the OST, it'll just seem like an indie clone to me.

And why is he blond with a long braided ponytail? Isn't he supposed to have brown hair?

While it's unlikely, I really hope this does not suggest or establish the Netflix series as canon.

Give them time. They just announced the Metal Gear Solid collection (even if poor in contents), so we can expect a 3D Castlevania one soon enough. I wonder if they'll put both the N64 versions of Castlevania or just put Legacy of Darkness directly since it's mostly the same game.

I share some of your fears btw, but I highly doubt they will ever imply to canonize the Netflix shows (thank god).

Post automatically merged: Feb 13, 2026

Not trying to be cynical about it since we haven't had Castlevania in ages, but yeah, man, this looks pretty bland. Everything about it screams "we made the art style so that Geoff Keighley puts our trailer on The Game Awards!" It looks completely fine, but nothing about it screams Castlevania aside from the name drops.

I still play Iga's games to this day, but I doubt I'll bother with this one.

As bad as it is to say: it's already a miracle we're finally getting a new Castlevania. So just for that we should be grateful. Sure, we can criticize and hoped for better. But again: could always be worse.

I would have been much more disappointed if we would have got a Lords of Shadow 3 or another Mercury System game. After 3 games from them I'll trust them more on Metroid over Castlevania.

 

[Leon]

Cool.
But... thats supposed to be Trevor? Looks more like Sonya Belmont

It's definitely sonia, look at her vampire survivors model:

I mean it's literally the exact same character just in a higher resolution so if it's not sonia, they ripped off her model.
Cautiously optimistic, since konami seems to be taking this more seriously.

 

[Ikagura]

HOLY SH*T.

The series is back.

(is she Sonia Belmont? At least she looks like her but since the game is in 1499 and Sonia isn't exactly canon, then it's very unlikely)

2.5D? Aw darn...

Also I hope it won't be a Roguelite.

(is she Sonia Belmont? At least she looks like her but since the game is in 1499 and Sonia isn't exactly canon, then it's very unlikely)

Making Sonia non canon was a stab to the fans imo.

A female Belmont is still possible.

 

[thanonyx thanonyx]

HOLY SH*T.

The series is back.

(is she Sonia Belmont? At least she looks like her but since the game is in 1499 and Sonia isn't exactly canon, then it's very unlikely)