Coming to us from Koji Igarashi, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night Co-Director and “the namesake of ‘Igavania’-style games,” and developer Inti Creates, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night went live on Kickstarter earlier today, seeking $500,000 (it’s already over $115,000). If funded, the game will be released for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, with $60 backers eligible to receive retail copies of the game, otherwise $28 backers receive a digital copy.
A 2.5D exploration-focused, side-scrolling platformer featuring RPG and crafting elements, Bloodstained stars Miriam, “an orphan scarred by an alchemist curse which slowly crystallizes your skin. You must battle your way through a demon-filled castle summoned by Gebel, your old friend whose body has become more crystal than flesh.”
If Bloodstained reaches $850,000 David Hayter (Solid Snake) will join the cast as Gebel.
The development team explained why they went with 2.5D:
IGA decided to go with 2.5D for this project for both financial and artistic reasons. All decisions in game development involve trade-offs, and for Bloodstained a 2.5D world built on Unreal Engine 4 was the right choice to balance development time, graphical fidelity, budget, and scope.
At the same time, IGA is very excited about exploring the paths a 2.5D style opens up within the classic Igavania formula. As he begins a new chapter of his career as a developer, he’s looking forward to trying things that will enhance, rather than detract from, that core gameplay.
Also in the FAQ, it’s said that the images on the page are just concept art as they’re nailing down the visual style, and the map is expected to be “every bit as big as previous Igavania titles, but we wouldn’t be surprised if it ended up even bigger.”
With a scheduled March 2017 release date, the Bloodstained Kickstarter page says delays happen sometimes to games, but “Inti Creates has shipped more than 30 games on eight different platforms, and Koji Igarashi personally oversaw the production and design of one of Japan’s most legendary franchises. Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is the kind of game they love to make, and they’ve got a lot of experience making them.”
Have you backed Bloodstained?
[Source: Kickstarter]
