Tag: Castlevania
Guide Best Castlevania Games On Nintendo Consoles
Far from a miserable pile
Today is Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow's 20th anniversary, so in honour of its two decades of utter magnificence, we're republishing this article rounding up and ranking every game in the series on Nintendo consoles. (Spoilers — Aria rates quite highly in the list below.) Enjoy! The Castlevania series has a rich history...
Review Dead Cells: Return To Castlevania - An Intense, Brilliant Nostalgia Trip To Dracula's Castle
Have at you!
Few games have enjoyed post-launch support as robust and high-quality as Dead Cells has received for the past six(!) years. Motion Twin has produced wave after wave of updates, some free and some paid, which have packed the already awesome base game with a dizzying amount of new biomes, weapons, cosmetics, and more. And all of it feels...
Poll Box Art Brawl: Duel - Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge
Revenge is sweet
Hello folks, welcome to another edition of Box Art Brawl! Last time, we took a look at Metroid Prime: Hunters on the Nintendo DS and the end result was pretty unanimous. The vast majority of you prefered the western design over Japan's, with North America and Europe winning with a whopping 86% of the vote! Clearly, the more...
News Return To Castlevania In The Next Dead Cells DLC, Arriving Q1 2023
"Thank you Konami"
Motion Twin's award-winning roguelite Metroidvania Dead Cells was the first game to receive an announcement at The Game Awards' pre-show this year. In a brief trailer, it was revealed Dead Cells would be collaborating with Konami's long-running Castlevania series with the upcoming Return To Castlevania DLC. Fans can expect a new...
Poll Box Art Brawl: Castlevania: Bloodlines
A new generation
Hi folks, and welcome to another edition of Box Art Brawl! Before we get cracking with this week's brawl, let's cast our minds back to last week. We looked at Sonic CD for the Sega CD and, surprising no one, the more action packed box art for North America won the vote by a decent margin, bringing in 48%. Europe came in second...
News Two Konami Castlevania Characters Join The Fight In Brawlhalla
Simon Belmont and Alucard are ready for battle
Update [Thu 20th Oct, 2022 05:00 BST]: Simon Belmont and Alucard from the Castlevania series have officially joined Brawlhalla today. This includes the new map Dracula's Castle and an inverted version of the same level. Original story [Sun 11th Sep, 2022 02:30 BST]:
Random Halloween Music Album Features New Takes On Classic Metroid, Castlevania Tracks
'Scarlet Moon Halloween' is available now
It's October, so you know what that means: it's time to ditch the colourful get-ups and cheerful demeanor for spooky outfits, schlocky horror films, and a general appreciation for all things dark and sinister. That's right, Halloween is just around the corner, and what better way to celebrate than to lose...
Talking Point It's About Time Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night Came To Switch
Seminal action-RPG celebrates its 25th anniversary
Note: this article contains minor spoilers for Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. "What is a man? A miserable little pile of secrets." These words, uttered by Dracula Vlad Țepeș during the opening exchange with Richter Belmont in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, have become completely...
Random If You Enjoyed 'Hand-Drawn Gaming Guides', This New Magazine Is Just For You
Patreon support now available
Phil Summers, the artist behind 'Hand-Drawn Game Guides', is venturing into the world of print game magazines. Dubbed 'Hand-Drawn Gaming', the magazine will be a bi-monthly release consisting of 8 pages; not a huge amount, you might think, but the great thing about this, of course, is that the entire thing will be...
News Here's Your First Look At Netflix's New Castlevania Series
And it's called 'Castlevania Nocturne'
Netflix has just shown off the first teaser trailer for its upcoming Castlevania series, which is entitled Castlevania Nocturne. The series was confirmed back in 2021, following the conclusion of Netflix's first Castlevania story arc, which ran for four seasons. As previously confirmed, this new serie
News Former Konami Staff Discuss Elusive Castlevania Creator's Work
"I realised he wasn’t fit to be a team leader"
The creator of Castlevania, Hitoshi Akamatsu, is a notoriously difficult person to track down. Despite creating one of Konami's most well-known franchises, the director of the three main NES / Famicom games has all but vanished from the industry. Never prone to interviews even back in the day,...
News Castlevania Season 4 Launches On Blu-ray This July
Get the final season of the Netflix animation
Believe it or not but the Castlevania animated series on Netflix actually came to a conclusion last year. It was a 10-part epic following the first three successful seasons of the show. If you would like to be able to revisit the show whenever you want without the assistance of a streaming service, VIZ...
Soapbox Dear Konami, Please Do Something Decent With Castlevania
Fangs very much
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they've been chewing over. Today, Damien laments the fact that we've not had a 'proper' new Castlevania game since 2014... Those of you who have visited this site regularly over the past decade or so might be aware...
News Konami Sold This Castlevania Pixel Art For Over $26K In Its 'Memorial' NFT Auction
What a bargain...
Whether you love or hate NFTs in gaming, it seems some companies are intent on monopolising on this new trend. One, in particular, is Konami, who decided to celebrate Castlevania's 35th anniversary with a special 'Konami NFT Memorial Collection' auction. It's now sold off all '14 unique artworks" which consisted of game scenes,...
News At Least Someone Is Celebrating Castlevania's 35th In The Right Way
Limited Run commissions Tom DuBois for new artwork
Earlier today, we brought you the sad news that Konami is choosing to mark Castlevania's 35th with a collection of NFTs, rather than – you know – something decent, like a new game or collection of existing titles. It remains to be seen if that is Konami's only attempt to celebrate the occasion...
News Konami Is 'Celebrating' Castlevania's 35th With An NFT Auction
"KONAMI will continue to explore new developments" in NFT and blockchain, too
This year, Konami's Castlevania series turns 35, which might fill you with the hope that the Japanese veteran has plans to release a new game or a special collection of past titles. However, we're sad to report that – for now, at least – Konami's celebrations consist...
Rumour Konami Reportedly Reviving Castlevania, Metal Gear Solid, And Silent Hill
The game giant pivots back to... games
For a few years now, Konami has been pretty quiet on the premium games front, preferring to focus on their presumably lucrative pachinko content instead. Back in 2015, it all blew up spectacularly with the cancellation of Silent Hills, the removal of spooky and beloved teaser
News Konami Celebrates Castlevania's 35th With A 26-Disc Music Collection That Costs $250
What music they make!
This year marks Castlevania's 35th birthday, and Konami is celebrating the occasion with a lavish 26-disc music collection. The catch? It's exclusive to Japan at present and costs an eye-watering 28,600 Yen ($256 / £190). Comprised of two volumes that span the aforementioned 26 CDs, the collection launches on the 15th of...
News Want A New Castlevania Game? You Need To Make Yourself Heard, Says Konami Director
"I think it depends on what our users say"
Konami's Castlevania series currently has a level of public awareness that is perhaps unprecedented in the franchise's 35-year history. Netflix's popular animated series has given Castlevania a legion of new fans, while re-releases such as Castlevania Advance Collection
News Castlevania Advance Collection Gets Updated Rating In Taiwan, Dracula X A Surprise Addition
Update: Official artwork also spotted
Update: As if it wasn't obvious enough already, the listing for Castlevania Advance Collection spotted in Taiwan now has official artwork associated with it (thanks, Gematsu), as well as more details on what games are included. The newly published description confirms that Castlevania: Circle of the Moon...
Random Even The Mega Drive Might Get Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night Before Switch
"It is not by my hand that I am once again given flesh"
We've made no secret of the fact that we really want to see Castlevania: Symphony of the Night come to Switch. It's arguably one of the greatest games ever made, and, alongside Super Metroid, is one of the true innovators of the 'Metroidva
News Castlevania Netflix Producer Files Lawsuit After Being Excluded From Spin-Off Series
Trouble is brewing...
There appears to be some drama surrounding Netflix's successful animated series Castlevania (again). Following on from the controversy tied to the show's creator Warren Ellis - who was removed from the project last year due to various allegations, the producer Adi Shankar is now making headlines. Shankar seemingly won't be...
News Konami's Castlevania: Grimoire Of Souls Rises From The Dead
Update: Announced in 2018, resurrected in 2021
Update: Well, that was unexpected. Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls was announced in 2018 (see story below), soft-launched in Canada in 2019 and then delisted, but it's now getting resurrected (pardon the pun) on Apple Arcade (thanks, Gematsu). It has been confirmed for iOS, tvOS, and Mac, and the release...
News Castlevania Animated Series Studio Strengthens Netflix Partnership
"Netflix is changing the animation industry"
Anime and animations inspired by that Japanese output have had global fans for years, though with the rise of streaming we've seen more viewers discover the medium. In more recent times Netflix has been jumping on board to bring even more mainstream attention, with Castlevania being its first exclusive...
News 'Castlevania Advance Collection' Possibly Revealed By Rating In Australia
Update: Second rating appears in South Korea
Update: The Game Rating and Administration Committee of Korea has rated Castlevania Advance Collection for PC (thanks, Gematsu), which is another pretty solid indication that it's coming. Original Story [Fri 18th Jun, 2021 21:00 BST]: 2021 may just be the year of the Metroidvania, and
Feature Castlevania Season 4 Review - An Epic Ending To Netflix's Hugely Satisfying Series
Netflix's adaptation comes to its dramatic conclusion
And so it ends. After four seasons which have defied expectations of what a long-form episodic adaptation of a video game series can really be, Netflix's macabre vision of Konami's Castlevania comes to a close in a 10-part epic which does a better job than you might expect of tying up all those...
News 505 Publishing New Game From Metroid And Castlevania Developer MercurySteam
What could it be?
It has been discovered the Spanish-based developer MercurySteam is working on a "brand-new" game for consoles and PC. This information was found within a Digital Bros. financial results PR - with its subsidiary 505 Games acting as the publisher. Digital Bros S.p.A. announces the contract between its subsidiary 505 Games and...
News Editor On Netflix's Castlevania Discusses The Potential For A Legend Of Zelda Anime
"Anyone would chomp at the bit to make a show like this”
There have been plenty of rumours and mumblings over the past few years suggesting that The Legend of Zelda might end up getting its very own TV series – remember the live-action Netflix show that was going to be like a friendlier Game of Thrones? – but no such thing has materialised...
News Netflix Releases Official Trailer For Fourth And Final Season Of Castlevania
"Everything has led us here"
Netflix has released its official trailer for the fourth season of the Castlevania animated series (warning - contains swearing). The story continues with Trevor Belmont and Sypha as they investigate plans to resurrect Dracula, while Alucard struggles to embrace his humanity. As reported by Deadline earlier this month,...
News Limited Run Reveals Four Castlevania Anniversary Collection Physical Editions
Standard, Classic, Bloodlines and Ultimate
Last July, Limited Run Games announced it would be releasing a physical version of Konami's Castlevania Anniversary Collection for the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4. There'll be a total of four different versions up for grabs. This includes the standard edition ($34.99 USD), classic edition ($59.99),...
News Konami Has Trademarked 'Castlevania' And 'Metal Gear Rising' In Japan
(Well, it's Akumajou Dracula, technically)
It's fair to say that Konami isn't the force it once was in the world of video games. Not so long ago it was competing with the likes of Capcom, Sega and Nintendo at the top of the market, but these days it is more content pushing out moderately successful titles like Super Bomberman R and less profitable...
Rumour Netflix Will End Castlevania After Season Four, But Has Plans For A Spin-Off With A New Cast
Series goes live on May 13th
Update: Deadline is reporting that the fourth season of Castlevania, comprised of 10 episodes and starting on May 13th, will be the last. However, it has also heard that Netflix has plans to create a new series set in the same universe with an "entirely new cast of characters". Deadline also understands that writer and...
News The Absolute Worst Castlevania Is Coming To Arcade Archives On Switch
"We would have liked to make it a better game if we had the time"
Konami's Castlevania series is one of video gaming's all-time greats, with some amazing entries under its blood-soaked belt – Castlevania III, Super Castlevania IV, Dracula X and Symphony of the Night being notable
News The Konami Code Unlocks A Hidden Castlevania Tribute In Bloodstained: Ritual Of The Night
Taking us back to 1986
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night has witnessed significant post-launch support since arriving in 2019. It's most recent update was rather hefty, bringing us a crossover with Kingdom: Two Crowns alongside Classic Mode, the latter featuring an 8-bit retro aesthetic
News Wallachia: Reign Of Dracula Might Be The Closest We Get To A New Castlevania On Switch
Bloodstained aside, of course
Love Castlevania, but sad that Konami doesn't seem interested in making a new one (unless it's on a smartphone)? Had your fill of the excellent Bloodstained titles currently available on Nintendo's console? Then you might be interested to learn that PixelHeart is bringing Migami Games'
News Koji Igarashi Explains How Zelda Influenced His Work On Castlevania And Bloodstained
A link to the future
While Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is the game which is credited as fusing the non-linear approach of Super Metroid and the gothic stylings of Konami's famous vampire-hunting series, Koji Igarashi has been quite firm on the fact that it was in fact
Rumour Warren Ellis Might Not Return To Netflix's Castlevania Beyond Series 4
Writer has been accused of abuse by multiple women
Netflix's Castlevania series has been something of a pleasant surprise; not only is it entertaining to watch, it also does justice to Konami's gothic gaming franchise with a mature storyline and plenty of callbacks to the original games. Much of the series' appeal is down to famed comic book writer...
News There's A Whole Host Of Castlevania Soundtracks On Spotify Now
Listen to them - children of the night. What music they make!
Konami's Castlevania series isn't just famous for its tight gameplay, sprawling fortresses and inventive boss battles – it's also a series with some of the best music in the history of video games, and while Konami doesn't seem to have plans for any new entries right now (that's a...
News With Konami Refusing To Do A New Castlevania, Lords Of Exile Might Be The Next Best Thing
And it's the work of one man
Konami's Castlevania franchise is a video gaming classic. With acclaimed entries on multiple systems – including the NES, SNES and Game Boy – the vampire-killing franchise has legions of fans all over the world, but Konami has neglected it of late. Sure, we were lucky enough to get a Castlevania Collection recently,...
Video Castlevania's 16-Bit Entries Explored In Splash Wave's Latest Retrospective
Fangs for the memories
Konami certainly made an impression with the Castlevania games on NES, so it was a given that the beloved vampire-hunting series would make the leap to the 16-bit consoles that followed. If you'd like to learn a bit more about the series' 16-bit entries, we'd highly recommend checking out the new retrospective history video...
News The Third Season Of Castlevania On Netflix Was More Popular Than Season Two
"season 3 did, really, shockingly well"
At the end of last month, Netflix confirmed season four of the Castlevania animated series was happening. It seemingly confirmed the third season had done well, but just how well? According to the writer and producer, Warren Ellis, it's managed to outperform the previous season – with the number of viewers...
News Netflix Confirms Fourth Season Of The Castlevania Animated Series
"Season four is coming"
Good news Castlevania fans, Netflix's successful animated series of the same name will be receiving a fourth season. This announcement, which included a brief clip from the third season, was made on Netflix's official NX Twitter account. Here it is: At the moment, no other details about the fourth season have been...
Rumour Sony Could Be Raiding Konami For Castlevania, Metal Gear And Silent Hill IP
Smash and grab
Konami and Nintendo go back a long way. It's highly debatable whether the former would have enjoyed the success it has had over the years without the NES, as titles such as Castlevania, Gradius and Contra all found a receptive audience on the system. Likewise, you could argue that the NES (not to mention the SNES and Game Boy)...
Poll Box Art Brawl #33 - Castlevania (Nintendo 64)
Got its Reinhardt in the right place
Welcome back to Box Art Brawl, the weekly contest where retro video game box art variants duke it out for your approval. Last week we broke the 'rules' and featured a non-Nintendo platform example in the spiky blue form of Sonic the Hedgehog for the SEGA Mega Drive / Genesis. The hedgehog's first game cover is...
Feature Castlevania Season 3 Review - Netflix Ups The Ante With A Darker, Raunchier Series
Did anyone order burning devil goat turds from the sky?
Warning: The following review contains outright spoilers for the first two seasons of Castlevania, as well as slight spoilers for the third season. Consider yourselves warned! After enduring a development period that stretches back an entire decade, Warren Ellis' vision of the Castlevania...
News Please Konami, Stop Trolling Us And Release Castlevania: SotN On Switch Already
iOS and Android are getting it, so where's the Switch version?
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is unquestionably one of the best games of the '90s, and arguably one of the most influential titles of the past few decades. Along with Super Metroid, it sired the Metroidvania genre which continues to see new additions up to this very day. It also...
News Netflix Raises Hell With Castlevania's Season 3 Trailer
"Evil never stays buried"
After a false call by Netflix Nordic last November, earlier this week the third season of the animated adaptation of Castlevania was officially dated. It's arriving next month, on 5th March, and will reportedly be comprised of a total of 10 episodes. If the release date alone wasn't enough, Netflix has now shared its first...
News Netflix's Blood-Sucking Animated Series Castlevania Returns For A Third Season On 5th March
Trevor Belmont is back
The release date for the third season of Netflix's Castlevania animated series has finally been revealed. After a false call by Netflix Nordic in November – claiming it would be out by 1st December 2019, the new season will officially go live on the digital streaming service next month, on 5th March. Here's what you can...
News Here's Your First Look At The Third Season Of Castlevania On Netflix
But there's still no release date
One surprisingly good animated series released by Netflix in recent years is Castlevania. It's based on the video game series of the same name and stars the one and only Trevor Belmont who must save the world from Dracula's army of demons. The show was developed by Adi Shankar and a third season was previously...
Poll Box Art Brawl #26 - Castlevania: Dracula X
Whip it good
Welcome back for another edition of Box Art Brawl, the weekly vote to see who triumphs over the first and second losers in a box art beauty pageant. Three regional versions of the same game cover battle it out to see who is the sharpest looker. Last week we had a returning series in the form of Resident Evil 2. We looked at the N64...