Let me get right down to business: Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is the best Castlevania game ever made. Now that we've got that out the way, let’s continue with the review. Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night started out as a kickstarter project, the funds were raised, and development started - that was back in 2015, and while there have been some ups and downs, the game has finally released and all I can say is, it was well worth the wait.



You take control of Miriam, known as a shardbinder, infused with magic crystals that possess demonic power. Miriam has just awoken from a 10-year sleep - during this time the magic within her matured and she now sets her sights on confronting her fellow shardbinder, Gebel. It’s from this point that the player takes control of Miriam and navigates the world, filled with demons and traps. Along you way you run into various NPC’s who provide aid in the form of selling and buying various items you have acquired, and handing out quests with some great rewards. The story is light but good; NPC characters are vastly interesting; and as the story unfolds, more of the truth about what is really going on is revealed.

With Miriam being a shardbinder, she can absorb the powers of the demonic creatures that infest the world. These come in the form of Shards. Killing a demon has a chance to not only drop various types of equipment, items or supplies, but there is also a chance that a shard will be dropped granting you various types of abilities. These abilities came in 6 categories: Conjure Shard, Manipulative Shard, Directional Shard, Passive Shard, Familiar Shard and Skill Shard. While Conjure Shards allow you to fire off a certain type of magic, the Directional Shard allows you to aim the attack. Passive Shards provide buffs to your character such as increasing certain stats, attack damage, defense and various other affects. Familiar Shards allow you to summon that demon as a familiar who will aid you, which can range from attacking enemies, providing healing or blocking incoming attacks. Finally, Manipulative Shards can be activated by toggling them, which can range from speed boosts and transformation, to summoning a doppelganger and more.



The shard system is handled extremely well and never feels overwhelming - something I thought was quite an achievement considering there are over 120 shards to collect, with each having their own ability. These can also be enhanced further in 2 different categories to increase their effectiveness and give you that edge over the demons. Never once did I feel overwhelmed by it as shards have a small drop rate, so it felt like a natural progression through the game and never once felt bombarded with various shards.

A wide array of weapons are available, each providing their own unique gameplay style and can be switched out on the fly.

However, they can’t be your only tool against the demons. A wide array of weapons are available, each providing their own unique gameplay style and can be switched out on the fly. There are 10 different types of weapons ranging from whips and swords to katana’s and even firearms - some can have various unique abilities while others provide bonus elemental attack damage. Weapons are scattered throughout the world and finding that next good upgrade is just as addictive as ever. Each style of weaponry comes with its own unique skills. These can be performed at any time if you know the input, or can be found in books you discover along your travels. Unique skills activate when a certain button sequence is pressed. For example, pressing forward, forward and attack with a katana will activate a parry, allowing you to block and counter attack all physical attacks, even on bosses.



Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is a true Castlevania successor through and through, especially evident in its ingenious level design. With multiple paths to take, some come to a dead end, while others require certain skills to get through and advance in the story. No way is ever the wrong way; no matter where you go, you will be equipped to survive and most likely find better equipment or hidden areas. The world map is scattered with secrets to uncover in almost every room. Some may just be a hidden item, others may lead to a hidden room, while others, to entirely new worlds. Finding everything was addictive and entertaining, and I never once felt lost or frustrated with where to go next. Of course, backtracking always proved useful as enemies constantly drop items that you can use to craft other equipment or supplies. Leaving a room and entering again will respawn all enemies, so expect a bit of good old-fashioned farming here and there along your travels.

No way is ever the wrong way; no matter where you go, you will be equipped to survive and most likely find better equipment or hidden areas.

Miriam herself can also be customized in various ways. While there are only a select few outfits that change the character model, most of the outfits will just provide a state boost instead of a model change. Both headgear and scarfs have their own models as well, which can be seen on the character when you switch them out. Face, skin tone, hair style and colour, as well as eye colour, can be changed. Additionally, each of her weapons has its own unique, attractive look and feel.



The music is a huge positive for Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night. It has that classic feel while also sounding relevant by today's standards. It adds intensity to scenarios where it’s needed, and makes boss fights feel exhilarating. While the world is full of exploration opportunities and gives you the ample chances to explore with it’s checkpoint system, which comes in the form of save rooms, there is no quick save here. If you haven’t saved and you die, you will lose everything you gained from your last save point. This, however, rarely feels intrusive as save points are scattered around the world at great locations. In fact, my only real complaint about Ritual of the Night is a little later into the game, where it feels like 2 or 3 areas desperately needed save rooms in different locations as I found myself wondering around for quite some time before finding refuge and breathing a sigh of relief.

The style and atmosphere of Ritual of the Night is right up my alley - each area of the castle and beyond feels different and unique, from the lavish gothic style of the castle itself, to the underground waterways which eventually lead to magma-filled caves and ice caverns. Every area has its own distinct feel and style to it, which adds even more enjoyment to the exploration as you wonder what the next area will look like. Sometimes I found myself just standing still basking in the grandiose scopes of the environments.



Overall, I enjoyed every minute of my 30-hour adventure through the Bloodstained world once again, and still have plenty more to look forward to. We have confirmation that 13 free DLC’s will be coming via updates to the game, which will include new modes, an offline and online co-op mode, and 2 additional characters - 1 of which has been confirmed to be Zangetsu. If you want to know more about him as well as other characters in Ritual of the Night, be sure to check out our review for Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon, which lets you play as a Miriam, Gebel and Alfred - all of which play a role in Ritual of the Night.

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is one of those masterpieces in gaming that only comes once every generation. With responsive controls, great combat and a massive list of weapons and items, it will keep you coming back for more. I must make a note that there is quite a huge difference between the game on PS4 *reviewed*, Xbox and PC compared to the Switch version. While I have not played the Switch version myself, feedback on it has been less than favourable due to poor performance and graphical downgrades. While the developers have released a statement regarding this and are working on fixes, keep this in mind if you are deciding to purchase that version.