KONAMI has announced that Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is now available for Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system. The newest title in the highly successful franchise is developed by Madrid-based Mercury Steam in association with KONAMI's legendary Kojima Productions studio. The result is a new Castlevania experience delivered through rich storytelling, innovative gameplay and amazing detail.
KONAMI has created a new era for the Castlevania franchise by taking a fearless and original direction topped with a fresh and radical re-imagining approach. The result is an epic tale of love and loss that befits the series with intense combat action, powerful magic and imaginative gameplay that utilizes the full power of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow offers a rich, open world that traverses snowy mountain ranges, gothic castles, and frozen wastelands in a devastated Southern Europe during the Middle Ages. To fully set the tone of the epic saga, the story of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is told through the voices of some of the world's most recognizable voices including Patrick Stewart, Robert Carlyle, Natasha McElhone and Jason Isaacs.
"Castlevania: Lords of Shadow takes an innovative turn in the Castlevania series, while still staying true to the franchise," said Shinji Hirano, President of KONAMI (Americas). "Gamers will be impressed with a breath-taking adventure title that immerses players into a picturesque and dark cinematic experience. Combining those beautiful visuals with the help of Kojima Productions, has delivered the gripping Castlevania game that fans both old and new will come to love."
In Castlevania: Lords of Shadow players take on the role of Gabriel Belmont, voiced by Robert Carlyle, the hero of the game and part of the legendary Belmont clan from Castlevania lore. Gabriel is a member of the Brotherhood of Light, an elite group of holy knights who protect and defend the innocent against the supernatural. His beloved wife was brutally murdered by the evil forces of darkness and her soul trapped for eternity. Neither living nor dead she realizes the horrific truth of what is at stake and guides her husband to his destiny – and hopefully salvation for the world. While demonic creatures of the night wreak havoc on the land, the souls of the dead are trapped on Earth and unable to find peace. Gabriel must track down the mysterious Lords of Shadow in order to unite the pieces of a relic called "The God Mask" that can purify the world and has the power to bring the dead back to life. Thus, Gabriel must travel the destroyed world, defeating the evil tyrants in order to use their powers to bring balance back to the world. Armed with the versatile Combat CrossTM – the world's last hope must encounter the three factions of the Lords of Shadow and end their unholy rule.
Along Gabriel's journey, gamers will traverse over 50 diverse and beautifully realized 3D stages, come up against over 45 enemies, and defeat adversaries that scale to the size of the complete environment with skill, power and timing. In total, the game boasts over 40 possible combo attacks that can be added to Gabriel's arsenal, as players must use secondary weapons like daggers and holy water and combine them with light and dark magic for a wealth of powerful attacks to unleash upon your foes. Castevania: Lords of Shadow offers a wide range of puzzles with larger adversaries that require a specific means to exploit weaknesses, or object-related puzzles that will open doors or give access to previously unreachable areas.
Castevania: Lords of Shadow is rated "M" for mature by the ESRB and is now available for purchase at retailers nationwide for an MSRP of $59.99 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. As well as free demos to download on both platforms.