505 Games confirms Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night sequel is in "very early planning stages"
But first game content remains priority.
Following its surprise appearance during a fiscal year financial presentation last week, publisher 505 Games has confirmed that Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, the acclaimed 2019 Castlevania spiritual successor from Koji Igarashi and developer ArtPlay, is getting a sequel.
Word of a sequel originally surfaced after keen-eyed internet sorts spotted a bullet point inserted into 505 Games' latest fiscal year financial results, stating a "second version" of Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night was in development.
Although the term "second version" left a certain ambiguity as to whether this was referring to a sequel or something else, 505 has now offered clarity in a development update on Reddit. "Regarding recent reports," it wrote, "[505 Games and Artplay] are in very early planning stages for a Bloodstained sequel".
However, the publisher was keen to note that work would not impinge on the remaining content promised for the current game. "Current development resources are focused on completing Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night's upcoming content," it continued. "We have a lot planned for you."
A roadmap update shared in November last year pointed to a Chaos Mode, VS Mode, new playable character and special crossover event coming in the first quarter of 2021 - although these have yet to materialise - with more to follow.
While it might still be some way off, a Bloodstained follow-up is an exciting proposition; the first game, despite a few rough edges, was an enormously entertaining affair, particularly for fans of Konami's long-dormant Castlevania series. Eurogamer even gave it a Recommended badge, calling it a "gorgeous, accessible 2D platformer stuffed with nostalgia".
