10 Video Games That Only Exist Because Of Nostalgia
3. Bloodstained: Ritual Of The Night
Renowned for his work on Castlevania: Symphony of the
Night, Koji Igarashi departed from Konami in order to pursue other
opportunities. Prompted by numerous requests, he started a Kickstarter campaign
in order to fund his latest project: Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night. The
game was successfully crowdfunded in 2015, and raised a staggering $5.5 million in a
remarkably short amount of time, making it the second highest-funded video game
in Kickstarter history, the first being Shenmue III.
Due for release in 2017, Bloodstained is the spiritual successor to Castlevania, and will likely take several cues from Igarashi’s previous work, including Symphony of the Night. In the game, players take on the role of Miriam, an orphan afflicted with a terrible curse who must explore a dangerous and mysterious castle in order to find a cure. The game will feature 3D environments depicted in 2.5D, and will function similarly to other 'Metroidvania' games. Combat will be varied and dynamic, and will revolve around power-ups that gradually become available as the player progresses through the game.
If you’re noticing a pattern, try not to be alarmed. In fairness, Igarashi himself has stated that Bloodstained is all about recapturing “that classic style” that made Symphony of the Night such an undeniable classic. In fact, right from the start, Igarashi made his intentions crystal clear: he wanted to make his style of game, the same style that he’s been making since 1997. If anything, the success of his crowdfunding campaign only proves how popular that style continues to be, and how fondly people remember Igarashi’s earlier work.
In this instance, we may all be suffering from nostalgia, but perhaps for good reason. After all, Symphony of the Night.