You might not know the name Koji Igarashi, but you’ve definitely played his games. He until recently was a long-time producer at Konami and was responsible for Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Igarashi has announced his first post-Konami game today, titled Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night.
The game’s Kickstarter also launched today, and is already nearing its $500,000 funding goal. “Igavania” is the word used to describe Bloodstained. Judging by Igarashi’s body of work, it will surely live up to the definition of a “gothic, exploration-focused action platformer.”
Bloodstained returns to the familiar gothic roots of Castlevania. The game follows an orphan named Miriam who must fight through a sprawling, 2.5D castle (surprise) filled with all sorts of demons and black magic. This is all somehow tied to the devious Alchemist Guild that disappeared ten years prior. Miriam will collect crystals during the course of her adventure which can be used in a robust crafting system. Players can craft weapons, armor, skills, spells, and more.
Igarashi left Konami last year to work independently. He was inspired by Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune’s crowdfunding of Mighty No. 9, according to an interview with Game Informer. Inafune found success bypassing big publishers as well. In fact, Igarashi will be working with the same studio that developed the Mega Man successor.
Igarashi’s move is the latest in the trend of video game developers going straight to the fans for funding via Kickstarter. Just last week, another seemingly dead genre got resurrected when Playtonic Games’ Yooka-Laylee campaign broke funding records.
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is being developed for the Xbox One, Playstation 4, and PC. Contributing $28 gets you the digital edition and is the cheapest way to get the game.