Congratulations, Koji Igarashi and ArtPlay!
As of today, the Kickstarter-backed metroidvania Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night has sold more than 1 million copies. The game was initially released June 18, 2019, for PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStastion 4, and Xbox One.
Former Castlevania series producer Koji Igarashi led the development team at indie studio ArtPlay. In the less than one year since the game’s release, it has garnered critical-acclaim as well as a nomination for Best New Intellectual Property at the 2020 SXSW Gaming Awards.
On the official Bloodstained Youtube channel, Igarashi left a video message thanking fans for their support and the staff at Artplay and publisher 505 Games for their hard work. In the video, Igarashi also reveals that more content will be planned for release throughout the rest of 2020.
On June 23, the first of the upcoming DLC content will drop for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One players, adding a Boss Revenge Mode and expanded character customization options with the salon’s Chroma Wheel feature. Unfortunately, Switch players will have to wait another month for the update.
The inclusion of Boss Revenge Mode was promised in the original Kickstarter campaign for reaching its final $5.5M stretch funding goal. The mode will be accessible via transition rooms and will challenge players to face off against four in-game bosses while trying to achieve the fastest clear time.
The Chroma Wheel features adds a true selector at Todd the Barber’s, where players go for hair, clothing, and skin customization for their character. Previously, only pre-set options were available.
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is largely considered the spiritual successor to the classic Castlevania series. Players fight through the castle of Hellhold as Miriam, a human who was forcibly infused with magic-granting demon crystals but now seeks to undo her curse. As characteristic of metroidvania genre games, gameplay is oriented around exploring a vast series of 2D side-scrolling rooms, and battling monsters and bosses to unlock new weapons and abilities or to progress to new areas.
Source: Press release