The sequel to the spiritual-successor to Castlevania: Symphony of the Night will hopefully satiate those rabid fans desperate to explore more 2D castles.

And here…we…go! E3 week has officially kicked off, with an indie showcase from the lovely chaps over at the Guerrilla Collective that focused on smaller games with big hearts. This was just the first part of the showcase though, as part two will take place on June 12. There was no shortage of games and updates on display, with dozens of trailers playing out over the course of a 90-minute show.

Developer ArtPlay confirmed that despite the game reaching the $5 million stretch goal, the rougelike mode for the game has been binned.

I’m busy playing Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, a game for which I’ve been waiting for ages, on the Switch. It is not a good port. It’s more than just a little rough; the framerate is appalling, the visuals are several steps down from the other versions, it’s sluggish and the whole experience is detracting from an otherwise great experience. The Switch port, then, is a miserable pile of disappointment.

Much like the games that influenced it, the latest Bloodstained game also has plenty of secrets up its sleeves. Hidden rooms, mystical mysteries and powerful bosses who hide items of great power within the walls of your current locale. Some are obvious, whereas others require you to do a little bit of digging to get to the good stuff. Here’s how you can lay your hands on the keys needed to open these locked rooms, if you’re brave enough to take down the monsters waiting inside that is.

There was a lot riding on Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, more than I think many people realise. Kickstarted back in 2015 and being helmed by Koji Igarashi, creative director of one of the greatest games of all time (Ever heard of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night?) expectations for this game’s release…well, I can imagine how daunting it must have …

In a new trailer, the game’s new look has been shown off, showing off the much improved art, better lightning, more vibrant colours and cleaner lines. The trailer also revealed that the game is set for a 18 June release on PlayStation 4, PC and Xbox. The Switch version is coming on 25 June

Bloodstained has reached the end of its Kickstarter. People contributed over $5,500,000 to see the game come to life!