Konami recently revealed a new trailer for the upcoming Castlevania mobile game, Grimoire of Souls. This will mark the first Castlevania game in over five years since the release of Lord of Shadows 2 in 2014.
The game will feature a new story taking place after the final defeat of Count Dracula. A new evil known as the Grimoires have risen and started to consume the world. Everything is being plunged into darkness! When Genya Arikado receives word of this he ventures forth. Genya Arikado had originally only appeared in Aria of Sorrows and Dawn of Sorrows for the Gameboy Advance and Nintendo DS in 2003 and 2005, respectively. This will be his first appearance in the franchise in nearly fifteen years.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXqzoga3-O4
New characters include Lucy Westenra, a powerful mage researcher with reanimation abilities. While she fights alongside the player, Lucy wishes to preserve Dracula’s castle and all his belongings, seeing it as a monument of knowledge. This may come into play during the story if the grimoire threat is linked to Dracula.
Classic characters from the whole series will be returning, and playable. Each character will feature a unique playstyle. Simon returns with ranged melee attacks using his whip. Alucard has his sword and vampire abilities. Charlotte has an array of magics. Shanoa deals primarily with aerial combos using a scythe and magic. Maria Renard casts enchantments and summons familiars.
Interesting enough, tho Soma Cruz appears in key visuals, he is not stated to be returning as a playable character.
Customization will allow characters to play in an assortment of skins paying homage to titles from the whole series.
Other characters such as Trevor Belmont and Albus are confirmed to be in the game, but only as assist characters. This could change in future updates for the game to include new characters in all play options.
New features include Co-Op Mode, allowing friends to team up together in Story Mode.
Bounty Hunter Mode will be a PvP style mini-game. During this, players will have to explore Dacula’s castle and vanquish as many foes possible within a time limit. A single game allows up to four players.
Graphically speaking, the game will feature a combination of 3D models and 2D portrait work. Overall, Grimoire of Souls appears very polished. However, it should be noted that beta testing reports showed that the iPhone 6 (the lowest hardware support for the game) had slow processing speed and several glitches that caused the game to either crash or immediate reset back to the start screen. Whether or not the game has either been patched to continue support on older devices is unknown.
Grimoire of Souls saw a Canadian exclusive in September on iOS. Previous press statements assured the game will be released this year, however, the official website still lists everything as TBD. On a plus side, updated information has listed the game for support on Android devices.
