Castlevania Producer Koji Igarashi Launches Kickstarter For Bloodstained

Former Castlevania producer Koji Igarashi has launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund his next gaming project, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night.

Igarashi served as producer on Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, considered by many to be the pinnacle of Konami's 2D Gothic action/adventure fantasy series. The game spawned its own genre term, "Igavania," used to refer to action platformers that put an emphasis on exploration.

After overseeing several handheld follow-ups to Symphony of the Night for Konami, Igarashi left the company in 2013. Now he's teaming with Mighty No. 9 developer Inti Creates and Castlevania composer Michiru Yamane to create a spiritual successor to the franchise he spent 10 years stewarding.

In Bloodstained, players take control of Miriam, an orphan scarred by an alchemist curse which slowly crystallizes your skin. As Miriam, players must battle their way through a demon-filled castle summoned by Gebel, Miriam's old friend whose body has become more crystal than flesh.

The gameplay is described as an evolution of the Igavania format, combining exploration, platforming, RPG and crafting mechanics.

If funded, the game will be released on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. For the first time ever on Kickstarter, the campaign is offering physical retail copies of the game, with exclusive Kickstarter only content. For more details, visit the campaign page.

Bloodstained has already earned more than $480,00 of its $500,000 goal, with 32 days left to go.