Bloodstained Ritual of the Night PS4 PlayStation 4

There have been no shortage of Castlevania-inspired works on PlayStation of late, but while the likes of Guacamelee and Axiom Verge owe part of their success to Symphony of the Night director Koji Igarashi, the veteran developer has been out of the spotlight for some time. It was only a matter of time, however, before the luminary took to Kickstarter – and you can now pledge your allegiance to the veteran's next project, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night.

The game, described as an "exploration-focused, side-scrolling platformer featuring RPG and crafting elements", is due out on the PlayStation 4 in 2017 – assuming that the creator can raise a rather modest $500,000. Considering that minutes after the campaign's launch it's already accumulated over half of that, we're going to assume that we may well have another Yooka-Laylee-esque smash on our hands here. Expect it to double its target over the next 24 hours.

The title itself is more or less exactly what you'd expect. You'll play as Miriam, an orphan subject to a curse which causes her skin to slowly crystallize. You'll need to fight your way through a demon-infested castle in order to presumably reverse the affliction, uncovering the setting's darkest secrets as you go. You'll unlock various different weapons and abilities as you progress, while you'll also be able to craft new kit using the items that you collect.

You can read more about the game and the campaign itself over on Kickstarter, but as a quick overview, rewards range from a digital copy of the title for $28 all the way up to a one-on-one with Igarashi himself for $10,000. Perhaps of interest to most of you will be the $60 pledge, which includes a copy of the escapade on Blu-ray, as well as some bonus content and a limited edition slip case. Are you in? Compose your own symphony of the night in the comments section below.

Update (23:15 BST): And the game's already hit its funding target. Well done everyone.

Bloodstained Face Img 1
Bloodstained Screenshots PS4 Concept Art

[source kickstarter.com]