Castlevania Megathread

[bjork]

But at the end of the day, it doesn't matter if it's canon or not or whatever.
Just please let it be a good game.

This.

All of they coulda/shoulda/woulda in the world doesn't matter, if this is the gateway to more entries, that's a good thing.

 

[fake-chan]

It appears that 2026 will be the year of dormant franchises coming back.

 

[_-_AceDragon_-_]

We haven't seen enough of this game to judge whether or not it's gonna be good or crap. I'm hopeful it's the former.

Given the pitiful state of Konami in the ten years prior to their resurgence, I'm not complaining at all... Silent hill 2 remake, mgs delta, good stuff...

Konami were legendary, I hope the comeback lasts.

 

[thanonyx thanonyx]

I'm just glad we're getting a new CV game that's not a collection, a mobile game, or has the words "Lords of Shadow" in it that also adds to the franchise's lore. Do you know what was the last CV game that fit that criteria? Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia which came out on October 21st, 2008!

No joke, that was almost half of my life ago!

 

[_Axl]

Again, does it actually matter if the new game is canon or not or whatever?

For all I care, it could destroy the timeline entirely.
If it's a good game, then who cares?
I'm just praying that please, please let it be good.

 

[The Vagrant]

They already did with the new Contra, two Silent Hill games, and Haunted Castle Revisited.


Bloodstained did nothing for me. Nodding, it even the 8 bit Curse of the Moon spinoffs that are more like the Classicvania games. Funny enough, Gal Guardians: Demon Purge gave me what I wanted in terms of Classicvania, and the game itself is basically Curse of the Moon 3 in terms of gameplay. The sequel to this game is more of a standard metroidvania, so i've avoided it.


Good thing I avoided a majority of those and have no interests.

No, they did not. They still have to prove they can make a castlevania post-Iga. Sorry but I'm sticking with that til they can prove otherwise

 

[Graw]

Looks kinda neat. Not sure how I feel about the art direction. Some of it looks cool, a lot of it not so much. It's hard to really say much from a short video but something just looks off about everything. Like it doesn't have that Gothic B horror movie vibe of the classic Castlevania or the anime horror vibes of the Igavania games. It just doesn't really look like a Castlevania game of any kind to me. I do like that they didn't go with a full on 3d model look but I'm not sure if the hyper stylised look they went with really suits Castlevania.

 

[Raytheon]

Personally, I'm happy it's the Dead Cells devs who are making this title. Bloodstained was janky and clunky af on my rig. I couldn't enjoy playing through it. It's still something I'm sad about.

Now, admittedly, my rig is somewhat old, but this was never a problem for the vast majority of the other Metroidvanias and platformers that have come out in recent years. And honestly, I don't think the clunky gameplay feel is purely a hardware issue.

If the Dead Cell devs can make this Castlevania game run as buttery smooth as their other games, I'd pick them over the Bloodstained devs every single time. And this is coming from an Igarashi fanboy.

 

[JoueurCitoyen]

I'm just glad we're getting a new CV game that's not a collection, a mobile game, or has the words "Lords of Shadow" in it that also adds to the franchise's lore. Do you know what was the last CV game that fit that criteria? Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia which came out on October 21st, 2008!

No joke, that was almost half of my life ago!

You know, this is exactly why caution is advised at this point. Many Castlevania released since October 21st, 2008. In fact, ten of them! And they almost all disappointed because they did not fit the criterias you mentioned. Of course, it's to early to judge Castlevania: Belmont's Curse, and this is why it's too early to rejoice too.

Again, does it actually matter if the new game is canon or not or whatever?

For all I care, it could destroy the timeline entirely.
If it's a good game, then who cares?
I'm just praying that please, please let it be good.

It absolutely doesn't and Castlevania: Circle of the Moon is still one of my favorites game ever!

Post automatically merged: Feb 14, 2026

As long as it wasn't Lords of Shadow 3 or something completely based on the Netflix shows...

I'm not a huge fan of the Netflix show either, but I was surprised how it influenced the Japanese fanbase. Castlevania: Awakening in the Moonlight by Takarazuka Revue (sorry for the autopromotional link) features an Olrox that looks like the one from the Netflix show and it happens in Paris during French Revolution. That was very surprising and this is why I think Castlevania: Belmont's Curse is inspired by this show too (since it partly happens in Notre-Dame de Paris it seems)

 

[BrawlMan]

No, they did not.

To you. They did to me.

They still have to prove they can make a castlevania post-Iga.

Konami isn't making this game either. Evil Empire Studio is. Konami is just provided the funding, but the effort is still appreciated. Also, M2 did the excellent Haunted Castle Revisited, so that's a yes to me.

 

[Bakuma1997]

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)

ah
ahahaha
hahahaha

Konami...
KONAMI IS BACK TO NORMAL!

 

[Leon]

ah
ahahaha
hahahaha

Konami...
KONAMI IS BACK TO NORMAL!
View attachment 153846

Looked into why konami went nuts around 2015, it appears that their new ceo at the time tried to force a pivot to pachinko and mobile, he's also the one behind kojima and probably iga leaving the company, this all came to a head in 2021 where for some reason (likely shareholders had enough) it appears that the gaming division was revived and the ceo was not able to effect it for some reason (if i was to guess, the ceo is more of a puppet ceo, basically if you know the reassigned to antarctica meme, he's basically still working there but has no power, which is common in japanese corperate culture), the reason why we haven't seen many games in that time frame is games take time to plan and build, it's entirely possible this game has been in the works for 2-3 years before they announced it but yeah, that's likely why konami had like 1 game come out last year and has like 5 coming out this year.

Also it seems that this may not be the only castlevania property to celebrate the 40th anniversary, considering the wording from konami.

 

[Esidemoken]

I'd like to be excited about this new release, but after watching the trailer, all I see is just another run-of-the-mill modern Metroidvania game.

Since Hollow Knight came out, there have been so many Metroidvania games that it's very difficult to stand out, and this new Castlevania release doesn't have its own identity. If they didn't say it was a Castlevania game, it would be just another Metroidvania game.
I hope it's just payment for the cameo in Dead Cells.

 

[BrawlMan]

the reason why we haven't seen many games in that time frame is games take time to plan and build, it's entirely possible this game has been in the works for 2-3 years before they announced it but yeah, that's likely why konami had like 1 game come out last year and has like 5 coming out this year.

You are correct. Silent Hill Townfall got announced back in 2022. That was 4 years ago. I thought it got announced the first time on the most recent State of Play.

 

[NeonKnights]

I have already confirmed for myself that this game will be Netflix adjacent, therefore I rebuke it's existence. I find the merest mention of it to be abominably repellent, so much so that I begin to dread looking at it.
I will not allow any device of mine to be banalized by the irredeemable pollution of it's odious presence.

 

[BrawlMan]

I have already confirmed for myself that this game will be Netflix adjacent, therefore I rebuke it's existence. I find the merest mention of it to be abominably repellent, so much so that I begin to dread looking at it.
I will not allow any device of mine to be banalized by the irredeemable pollution of it's odious presence.

You can just say no and be done. No need for the pretentious word salad sentences. "Netflix adjacent" or not, I am still interested. Love both of those shows too. Except for Season 3 of the first show.

 

[Nickakyoin]

I have already confirmed for myself that this game will be Netflix adjacent, therefore I rebuke it's existence. I find the merest mention of it to be abominably repellent, so much so that I begin to dread looking at it.
I will not allow any device of mine to be banalized by the irredeemable pollution of it's odious presence.

Ok, where did you confirmed yourself from that this game will be related to the Netflix shows? Sources, please, not just based on analysis of the trailer. Because ok then, by the visuals it does remind of those shows, but that's not enough.

You know, this is exactly why caution is advised at this point. Many Castlevania released since October 21st, 2008. In fact, ten of them! And they almost all disappointed because they did not fit the criterias you mentioned. Of course, it's to early to judge Castlevania: Belmont's Curse, and this is why it's too early to rejoice too.


It absolutely doesn't and Castlevania: Circle of the Moon is still one of my favorites game ever!

Post automatically merged: Feb 14, 2026

I'm not a huge fan of the Netflix show either, but I was surprised how it influenced the Japanese fanbase. Castlevania: Awakening in the Moonlight by Takarazuka Revue (sorry for the autopromotional link) features an Olrox that looks like the one from the Netflix show and it happens in Paris during French Revolution. That was very surprising and this is why I think Castlevania: Belmont's Curse is inspired by this show too (since it partly happens in Notre-Dame de Paris it seems)

That many since Order of Ecclesia? Leaving aside the 3 Lords of Shadow, you're definitely counting also collections (and I guess that dead smartphone game). The only game with a little relevance is just that Vampire Killer arcade remake included in the Dominus Collection imo. Only counting 8 even by that, so idk.

(also, really, Circle of the Moon isn't part of the timeline? )

I think the Netflix shows thanks to fanservice hype a lot, just like the DMC did for example with the very briefs Lucia appearance, the bad guy coming from the DMC 3 manga and Cindy from the 2007 anime. Then you see the main plot points and you immediately remember "oh yeah, these are Netflix products alright...". For absolutely worse. Never any of these games gave so much importance with parallels to irl politics. And why caring when all we want is seeing demon/vampire hunters just slicing and beat the crap out to, well, other demons with related drama that ties respectfully the games and franchise?

 

[NeonKnights]

The comment was so facetious and over the top I thought it would be obvious it was a joke post referring to the titular curse. I am kicking myself for not adding the goblin emoji as I was originally to do. In reality I really am completely indifferent to the game and whether or not various individuals are going to play it or like it at all. It exists and stuff, I like that it exists. I am not interested in it due to my massive backlog.

 

[JoueurCitoyen]

That many since Order of Ecclesia? Leaving aside the 3 Lords of Shadow, you're definitely counting also collections (and I guess that dead smartphone game). The only game with a little relevance is just that Vampire Killer arcade remake included in the Dominus Collection imo. Only counting 8 even by that, so idk.

Since Order of Ecclesia, Konami released:
1. Castlevania Judgment
2. Castlevania: The Arcade
3. Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth
4. Castlevania Puzzle: Encore of the Night
5. Castlevania: Harmony of Despair
6. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow
7. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate
8. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2
9. Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls
10. Haunted Castle Revisited (which is part of Castlevania Dominus Collection)

This makes 10 of them, withount counting the Collections! Yes, Castlevania Puzzle: Encore of the Night is a dead smartphone game, but Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls is still part of Apple Arcade.

 

[Raytheon]

Good ol Lord of Shadows. I used to hate that trilogy for having such a wildly different divergent take on the setting. But after experiencing the butchery that was the Netflix Castlevania series

Lord of Shadows stuff doesn't feel as bad anymore. Compared to the Netflixvania, it's super tame.

 

[Badseed Badseed]

Good ol Lord of Shadows. I used to hate that trilogy for having such a wildly different take on the setting. But after experiencing the butchery that was the Netflix Castlevania series

The Lord of Shdows doesn't feel as bad anymore. Compared to the Netflixvania, it's super tame.

I haven't seen the Castlevania cartoon in a long time, since I canceled my Netflix.
I miss Delicious in Dungeon but not so much this one. Is It worth getting Netflix
and watching Castlevania again?

 

[thanonyx thanonyx]

The Netflix series isn't so bad, you just have to remember it's not the same timeline as the games. It's its own thing. Yes it's inspired by the games but as far as story goes it forges its own path.

 

[MasterEn]

(also, really, Circle of the Moon isn't part of the timeline? )

many years ago, the creator of the series had announced which games were canon with one specific condition that the game had to meet: the game was canon only if it stared a male belmont only.
so games like circle of the moon [my favorite in the series] and castlevania legends were made not canon. i don't think he thought that idea through, since that makes other games like symphony of the night, portrait of ruin, order of ecclesia, aria and dawn of sorrow not canon as well.
koniami has walked back a lot of that, so nearly every game is canon or if it clashes with another game on the timeline, it gets its own canon timeline.

 

[_Axl]

Shutaro, also known as Curry the Kid, who worked on so many of the IGAvanias we love (Aria, Dawn, Portrait, Ecclesia, Harmony of Despair, Bloodstained and others as one of the main programmers), passed away on the 10th.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2023200658544083439

Rough translation from Google Translate:
"SHUTARO, also known as Curry Sennin, who had been battling an illness for some time, passed away on February 10th due to pancreatic cancer. I would like to express my deepest gratitude for your kindness during my lifetime and humbly report this. SHUTARO's adventure in this world has ended, but his works will continue to remain. We hope that you will continue to enjoy the games created by SHUTARO."

...Thank you for working on the games that gave me so many hours of enjoyment. Rest in peace.

 

[JoueurCitoyen]

RIP SHUTARO