With Konami currently developing two Castlevania titles, one for the Wii and the other for the Nintendo DS, it seemed obvious that the studio would add some sort of connectivity feature to the two games, especially considering that Shanoa, Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia's protagonist, will be a playable fighter in Castlevania Judgment.
Though Konami hasn't provided any specifics, the company has announced that connecting the two games, presumably through WiFi and not with a string, unlocks "bonus gameplay content." We don't know yet if that extra stuff will be limited to just the Wii, but we're hoping for some added DS perks!
What could that "bonus gameplay content" be? New items/costumes/areas? The original Castlevania games for the NES? A minigame for raising your own pocket Castlevania monsters?!
Konami is showing off Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia at the Interactive & Digital Entertainment Festival in Cannes, leading one Jeuxvideo.tv contributor to show off his ability to hold a camera steady on the DS screen while simultaneously playing. Or he brought a friend. The point is: hey, look!
The backgrounds look more layered and detailed than the last couple of games, and the enemy sprites appear to be a mix of old and new. The skeleton hasn't changed since at leastSymphony of the Night, but that new floating shade (or witch, or whatever the girl in the dress is) is pretty amazing. Of course, we're more than willing to look past the reused sprites because there's a different world map! With non-castle locations!
This segment provides a better look at the Magnes glyph (which creates a powerful magnetic field, allowing Shanoa to pull herself up to certain metallic platforms, then slingshot herself offward) and its in-game tutorial. The glyph will act as a sort of high jump, to allow access to previously inaccessible areas of the castle.
Gamasutra spoke to Koji "IGA" Igarashi, the current steward of the Castlevania franchise, after the Konami Gamers Day announcement of Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia, about his status as one of the last 2D stalwarts. Last year he declared in a defiant PowerPoint slide that "2D games will never die!" This year? "I'm glad that 2D is still somewhat alive. It's been fun."
It looks like IGA might be branching out just a bit in the future -- still in 2D, but he hinted that he had something new on the way. Something ... maybe not on the DS. "This time, I announced a DS title, but I definitely want to grow the franchise. It's something I'm really focused on. You guys will probably be hearing something from me."
It sounds like whatever the project is, it'll still be the "Igavania" style we know, since according to IGA, the more linear Rondo of Blood PSP port was good, but "not something that I can jump up and down and enjoy like I do with the DS titles."
If you've sworn off Igarashi's Castlevania titles, frustrated with rehashes of the same Metroidvania formula, stay away from this Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia video! It might be enough to bring you back! You'll see some reused sprites, and the general format doesn't look too different from previous entries, but the art direction in the first cinematic half is, as we've noted before, all the way live.
As for the in-game clips, there's plenty to keep you interested, like action scenes with the Manges Glyph, a field that envelopes female lead Shanoa and can be used to cling to metal rods or fling the heroine across the screen. One of the boss fights also seems to herald the return of ... Mr. Crabs?! Back from the dead!
Nintendo Power subscriber? Already got your copy? Goody for you -- we haven't! Which is why we're so completely fascinated by the artwork from Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia the magazine has on offer; we haven't seen it yet. Since some of you are probably in the same boat, we thought it might be worth sharing a peek.
If you didn't see our earlier post on the details of the latest from the franchise, go check it out. For a few blurry bits of screens, jump to the ledge past the break. For better screens? See the gallery below.
So it's Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia, which may seem like a disappointment to some (compared to, y'know, Earthbound), but hey: at least we get oodles of new details. According to Nintendo Power, this IGAvania is set in the mid-1800s and stars the series' first ever female protagonist, Shanoa. The magazine that there are "no real weapons in this game," with glyphs that can change form (for example, into a sword) Shanoa's weapon of choice.
There's a mass of other details waiting for you after the break -- don't forget your whip glyphs.
Until that day, though, you can bet we're salivating for every single juicy morsel of Castlevania news we can get our grubby little mitts on. This latest interview with Koji Igarashi is no exception, as he details some of the things about Ecclesia. Like, why did he go with a female protagonist? Hint: it's because the fans wanted it!
Believe us, we've far from ruined the interview for you. It's got some interesting stuff in there, so give it a watch.
Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia was (for real) revealed this week, as was its heroine, a member of the Dracula-hunting (in the absence of a Belmont) sect from which the game gets its title. She seems like a pretty good protagonist, with her imposing boots and ability to equip three attacks at a time, but she is no Belmont. She may kill vampires, but she doesn't have Vampire Killer.
Are you at all disappointed when a Castlevania game features a non-Belmont? Or did Symphony of the Night convince you that switching up the formula is worth the lack of familiarity? Does it still feel like Castlevania if you're not some musclebound dude with a whip?
Posted May 17th 2008 2:00PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: News
A quick word about the new art on Konami's Castlevania: Order of Eccelsia site for Japan -- badical. Several not-so-quick words -- we'd heard from early previews that series producer Koji Igarashi and his team were moving away from the anime character designs employed in the two previous Castlevania DS titles, but we weren't expecting the new art direction to impress us this much. Also -- hooker boots.
As for the "Nintendo Power secret" hinted in the title, look at the glowing satellite behind Order of Ecclesia's protagonist, Shanoa. Notice anything familiar? Doesn't it look like the same mystery moonNintendo Power used as a clue in the latest issue's preview page? Peer into a telescope past the post break to compare!
1UP's preview of the new Castlevania game, Order of Ecclesia, is based on a Konami Gamer's Day demonstration from Koji Igarashi, who revealed the new weapon system at work. One of our favorite parts of any new Castlevania game (at least the 2D ones) is discovering the new weapon or magic system that's going to have us running in and out of the same room for an hour killing Waiter Skeletons.
This time, it's the "Glyph System," which acts as both the main and subweapon systems for new heroine Shanoa, sort of. You equip glyphs to each arm, represented by the Y and X buttons, and her back, represented by R, and a press of the appropriate button will activate the weapon. Pressing multiple buttons will combine attacks. All of these attacks seemed to draw from a self-refilling MP meter, meaning that in essence all the weapons in Order of Ecclesia are subweapons.
When the scans got leaked online showing off a new Castlevania title, we don't have to tell you how exciting it was. Our staff was all kinds of happy, sipping on champagne and even a few were making copies of their butt on the Xerox machine. Now, you have to prepare yourself, because looking at scans is nothing like getting your eyes all up on some direct-feed screens, right? Right.
Well, thanks to a post over at NeoGAF, that's what we're looking at right here. And, we'll do you one more solid. We'll save you the trouble of having to say it: those sprites look utterly fantastic.
Famitsu has revealed the next Castlevania game for the DS, confirming recent speculation over Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia. Judging by the screens in the scan above, those mysterious shots from last month were the real thing. The magazine also divulges the involvement of Koji Igarashi, producer on Portrait of Ruin and Dawn of Sorrow. As in those games, there will be support for two players, though the exact nature of the multiplayer (local play? WFC?) remains a miserable little pile of secrets.
And that's it for now! Leap past the break, whip in hand, to see another snippet of a scan.
This would probably be your everyday Ren-faire quality whip were it not for one important detail: a Castlevania logo on a metal plate right above the handle. With that little detail, this leather whip becomes your own personal Vampire Killer. Though we recommend you take the Jonathan Morris "keep it in your inventory forever but don't bother using it" approach, over the Simon Belmont "hit every single thing you see with it" approach.
Whips like these were sold on Konami's website a couple of years ago, but are no longer available. eBay user hgswells has put one on eBay for sale to Belmonts and non-Belmonts alike. Judging by the apparent condition in the photo, it hasn't been used to whip even one Medusa head.
Fresh off his success placing fourth in Neoflash's Spring Coding Competition, homebrew developer Multiple: Option has followed up his Game Melody Oratorio software with a second volume, packing ten songs and new features into the virtual piano update.
Here's your chance to learn classic melodies from a diverse set of games:
Game Melody Oratorio Volume 2's new features include an extra piano key (C3), a new Practice Stage with hidden notes, a new Recital Challenge mode, improved flashcart support, and the ability to preview melodies on the song selection screen. Wow! All that for free!
Mysterious Castlevania title Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia has just appeared on the ESRB website, where it's been rated as -- huzzah! -- a Nintendo DS title. Obviously, you shouldn't need us to tell you why that's good news -- just the fact that it's moarCastlevania should be enough -- but don't go letting the party poppers off just yet.
See, there's something peculiar going on here. For games to be assessed and classified by the ESRB, they need to be in a more or less complete state. In other words, Konami must have finished Order of Ecclesia already. So either:
The company has made a completely unique DS game and kept every aspect of it under wraps (which we found doubtful).
Order of Ecclesia is (as was suspected in some quarters) a port of last year's mobile title, Order of Shadows.
We could be entirely wrong, of course, and either way some Castlevania is better than no Castlevania. But we'd like it to be exclusive.
With Konami currently developing two Castlevania titles, one for the Wii and the other for the Nintendo DS, it seemed obvious that the studio would add some sort of connectivity feature to the two games, especially considering that Shanoa, Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia's protagonist, will be a playable fighter in Castlevania Judgment.
Gamasutra spoke to Koji "IGA" Igarashi, the current steward of the 
Nintendo Power subscriber? Already got your copy? Goody for you -- we haven't! Which is why we're so completely fascinated by the artwork from 
And we 
1UP's preview of the new Castlevania game, 
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