Castlevania has become more of a "CityVania", as the majority of Lords of Shadow 2 will be taking place in a modern metropolis setting

When you hear the world Castlevania, what comes to mind? A castle right? Not so much the case this time around, as MercurySteam decided to create a more open world setting with Lords of Shadow 2, but also one that mostly takes place within a large city setting. According to Dave Cox in some statements he made recently, about 60% of the game takes place in a city, while the remaining 40% happens within Dracula's castle. Cox recommends that players who purchase LOS2, when they start to play the game that they do so with "an open mind".

"The whole game takes place in one night, the night that Satan is coming back. So playing in this Gothic fantasy city, you can imagine, we've got rain, we've got different weather effects, it still has that Castlevania feeling. We didn't want to make it Gotham City and we didn't want to put Dracula in the middle of Times Square. We thought that would be ridiculous."

"I think it's a really interesting take on the Castlevania universe. If you keep an open-mind and you expect the unexpected I think you can enjoy the game. I think if you approach with a closed mind and you say, Oh, it's not 2D, it's not Metroidvania, you're not going to enjoy the game. If you go into it with an open mind I think we could surprise you. I think it's the surprise that players will really enjoy."

An open world Castlevania, especially one that takes place in a modern times "city type setting" is a welcome addition in my book. You can look forward to a demo of LOS2, if you decide to purchase the Castlevania collection coming out on Halloween day this year. The official release for the US is on February 25th, while Europe gets their copy on the 27th, followed by the UK on the 28th. Originally it was scheduled for a winter release,.....and well, that is just within the confines of winter.

The Castlevania that could have been, yet Konami decided to keep it real with existing generation consoles

With the Lords of Shadow 2 demo just a couple of months away from being in our clutches, something has been brought to light about whether or not it should have made its way onto next generation consoles. The answer was, that it was "considered". Konami had thought of the idea of bringing it the Xbox One and PS4, and yet they did not. The main reason being that Dave Cox was criticized over some issues with the first Lords of Shadow game. The two big factors were frame rate, and a fixed camera issue. When the project had started, was back in 2010.

They didn't know about next generation consoles, and after facing complaints with the first one, they decided to focus on working on an engine that would grant them a rock solid 30FPS, and maintain that even during intense battle scenes. This wasn't the case with the first one, in which the frame rate went up and down all the time. They learned some lessons with the first title, and wanted to fix them in the next one without the sacrifice of quality in the visuals. At the GamesCom event recently, Dave Cox made a few statements on the matter.

"Rather than bang out a sequel cheap as chips and just do more of the same we really wanted to make big changes, and to do that we needed to start with our engine and really think about performance, free camera and keep maintaining the level of detail whilst obtaining a pretty good frame rate."

 "So I think when the next-gen consoles got announced we did think about it, but then we said we don't really have to start again. We'd already gotten so far down the line we just thought, this is the path we've set for ourselves, let's do it."

"We want this to be one of the last great current-gen titles. That's what we wanted to do. We want to go out with a bang. We want to end the Lords of Shadows series with a bang."

Out with a bang? Yes, what you read right there is a fact, as this is the last Castlevania game ever being made again.......by MercurySteam that is. They did express a desire to do a Contra title, but then again that is another story to be told.  One with a fresh new start, or rather.....reboot.

New screen shots of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 are out, thanks to some hands on action at the GamesCom event this week

Can't get enough of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2? Neither can any of us. If you were lucky enough to attend the GamesCom event in Cologne, Germany, which many of us were not, then you might have also been lucky enough to actually gets some hands on experience with the demo being displayed there. Thanks to a few individuals there are some really nice screen shots circulating around out there now. Besides the latest trailer for LOS2 posted below, you can check out some new images below. They look sweet enough to eat.

Lords of Shadow 2 will make its way into your living room next February 25th. The Castlevania Lords of Shadow collection set to launch on Halloween day, October 31st. Imagine that. An HD version of Mirror of Fate will also be included with it, along with a nice demo for Lords of Shadow 2. So being able to play at least some of it isn't too far off in your future. See?, you didn't have to wait until next February to get a taste of it did you?

Dracula, the prince of darkness is here to drain all of your blood with a new GamesCom trailer for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2

For those of you who just can't wait to see what it's like playing the role of Dracula, for the first time in Castlevania history that is, you're in for a treat. Konami has just released a new trailer at the GamesCom event in Cologne, Germany. In the new trailer for Lords of Shadow 2, Dracula's abilities is the main focus. How he fights, builds his strength using the void sword, and the ability of "Sync Block", a move that needs some decent timing to pull off. No orb collecting this time around, instead, you use the void sword to kill enemies, draining their blood and adding to your own life force, provided you don't take any damage in the process.

Dracula's role is a rather sad one. You've had your skills and power stripped from you. You are a vampire without a home, or rather castle. So it's time you get your revenge, blood sucking style, as you make your way through a gigantic world, building your powers and skill levels in the process. Dave Cox, the head cheese of MercurySteam indicated a short while back that most players will only see about 50-60% of the entire game. From that, I'm assuming this time we are looking at one heck of a non linear title.

When can you sink your fangs into Lords of Shadow 2? How about February 25th 2014. I was hoping for an earlier release date, but then again, we don't want to rush perfection do we? The PC, Xbox 360, and PS3 will get their taste of blood by then.

Today is the day for the kickoff at the GamesCom in Cologne, Germany, where Konami will demonstrate demos for PES 2014 and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2

We've all waited for this for a long time, and now it has finally arrived. The GameCom in Cologne, Germany kicks off today, where Konami will be showing demos of the new PES (Pro Evolution Soccer) 2014 and the latest in the Castlevania realm, Lords of Shadow 2. This will also be among a line up of other titles not yet announced, since we are just now in day 1 of all its glory. Personally, among these titles I'm really hoping to hear some more about an upcoming new Metal Gear game, perhaps Ground Zeroes could be on that list? We can only hope and dream at the moment.

Back to PES 2014. Since this is likely the most or at least one of the most popular titles in history, due to its large desire across Europe and other parts of the world, Konami will be showing off some of the special new features of the game, which include of course the UEFA Champions League mode, the "TrueBall" handling system, the emotion driven "heart" concept, among many others being introduced for the first time in Pro Evolution Soccer history. Many a fan can't wait to try it out, as I can't wait to post some new game play footage here for you to see. 

On the Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 front, a demo for it will be displayed as well, involving an even bigger world far above the first LOS. Dave Cox mentioned a while back that most players will only see 50-60% of the game, as it contains many non linear paths to choose from. For the first time, the gamer will get to play as Dracula, a definite first in Castlevania history, drawing blood from your enemies to sustain your own unholy existence. The GamesCom will last the rest of the week, and should yield some new insight as to what will be coming out this year, and next year as well. Stay tuned. 

Dave Cox speaks out about Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 saying that they never wanted to make a game simlar to Symphony of the Night

You would think that would be blasphemy,  but then again it makes perfect sense. With the first Lords of Shadow game being produced for the first time by MercurySteam, even though it was very successful, it did have a few flaws. Mistakes and flaws are often learned from, and is the case this time around with Lords of Shadow 2. Dave Cox has spoken about how they not only wanted to do a whole new engine, but also make sure they never did a game simlilar to Symphony of the Night. Cox explained in an interview recently of how the process of producing the Lords of Shadow series has had its ups and downs.

"Rather than putting our our sequel one year later, we said let's fix the things that we did wrong and let's improve the things that we did well. That's why this has taken so long to come out because we are working on it and we were working on it and we wanted to make something that is really going to satisfy fans. Doing a knock-off sequel is not something we'd really ever consider"

And as far as Symphony of the Night goes, Cox mentioned how he didn't want to intrude into Koji Igarashi's territory for what might be the best Castlevania game in Castlevania history.

"There are certain characters and certain things within his world that we wouldn't bring into our game. Purely out of respect because we think that's his baby and we don't want to do that. But, I think he has always been supportive of the project right from the beginning."

Currently a couple of retail outlets, such as NewEgg and Play-Asia have listed the Castlevania collection for the end of October, while NewEgg has Lords of Shadow 2 listed for February of next year. This has NOT been confirmed by Konami, as the current set time was originally supposed to be later this year. The upcoming GamesCom event might prove otherwise. Stay tuned.

Another rumor regarding Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 being pushed back until February of next year has surfaced

If I had a dollar for every unconfirmed rumor that comes out these days, I'd be a millionaire it seems. Another one has just taken the stage, and this time it involves Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2. NewEgg has done the same thing as play-asia did, and posted not only a Castlevania collection on their site, but also an exact listed date for Lords of Shadow 2. The date they have set is February 17th 2014. How can that be? What kind of sorcery is this you say? That's just the thing my friend, they have it listed for that date, but Konami hasn't said anything in regards to a set date for LOS2. So if I were you, just treat this as a rumor, one that just might be true that is. The GamesCom is coming up soon, and a smorgasbord of new information always dawns from it each year. Not to mention some sweet footage to share amongst ourselves.

Here is the listing information for the Castlevania Collection. Along with the box art for Lords of Shadow 2, which by the way is not in any way shape or form the "final" artwork for it. It does look nice though. What do you think of it?

KONAMI

Name

Castlevania Lord of Shadow: The Collection

Model

CLOSTC PS3

Spec

ESRB Rating

M - Mature

Genre

Action

Features

Features

Contents:
Castlevania Lords of Shadow 1
Castlevania Lords of Shadow 1 DLC #1 - Reverie
Castlevania Lords of Shadow 1 DLC #2 - Resurrection
Castlevania Lords of Shadow Mirror of Fate HD
Castlevania Lords of Shadow 2 Demo

Dave Cox and Enric Alvarez talk about the challenge that was outlined for them in taking the Castlevania game series into a new direction

It seems that Castlevania has been such a long running series, that a lot of fans have probably thought at one time or another that it's run out of ideas. When Order of Ecclesia came out, after finishing it myself, I wondered if there would ever be another title like it. I enjoyed it, but at the same time I also saw the gaming industry doing everything it could to push a lot of past titles into a new 3D realm.

Sure Castlevania faired pretty well with Lament of Innocence and Curse of Darkness, but what after that? That's where Konami decided to turn the steering wheel over to MercurySteam, letting them take the series into a new direction, and praying that the fans were accepting enough to give it a shot.

Recently in an interview with Dave Cox and director Enric Alvarez were asked about the challenges that they were faced in taking Castlevania in the direction they felt it should go. Here are a few of the statements they had to say on the issue.

ALVAREZ: "At the end of the day, we (at MercurySteam) are a Western developer. If we did the same type of game (as the classic Nintendo games) it'd be a failure. This is our philosophy, the way we see things. After all, the vampire mythology we are depicting in this game belongs to the European culture. We handle this a different way than a Japanese developer. It's not better or worse. It's just different."

Dave Cox also weighed in by adding....

COX: "We always knew it would be a difficult task to bring everyone along with us. Once we got our heads around that, we were able to do what we wanted. I think that gave us a lot of confidence to develop Lords of Shadow 2 again in our own way. We almost felt vindicated in a way. We accept that some people aren't going to like what we're doing. And there's nothing you can do about that."

Also adding....

"We felt more confident in the second one that we could do more risky things. We really love to surprise people. It would have been very easy for us to knock out a sequel (in 2012) after one year. But we just didn't want to do that."

What was also helpful was the fact they received some help and advice from none other than Hideo Kojima himself, whose role was simply to advise, and to not interfere. He knew it was a bit of a risk. It always is when you change the direction of a project to something that's never been done before. But after seeing the success of the first Lords of Shadow game, if was pretty much on automatic pilot with the next Lords of Shadow title.

LOS2 will however be the last Castlevania game ever created by MercurySteam again. This marks the end of the series in terms of what they will produce. Cox in a few statements at the GamesCom round table had this to say about the future of the series.

"I think if you've got something to say, you should just say it, and when you're done, just shut up, and we've got something to say. Once it's out there, think it's time for somebody else, somebody younger, a younger producer to come in and take up the mantle and do what they think would be right for Castlevania and for us to move on to something else."

Something else indeed, let me just add that whoever that somebody else is, I hope they can also embrace Castlevania the way the rest of us have over the last 26 years, and if they too decide to take it in another new direction, let's hope the results are similar to those that MercurySteam has so well delivered to us.