A new trailer for Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night has arrived in time for the game’s launch. Aside from celebrating the game’s launch, the Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night launch trailer also teases players with the possibility of playing as Shovel Knight.
Of course, Inti Creates announced the crossover with Shovel Knight long ago. Back in 2015, it came to an agreement with Yacht Club games to use their iconic character after Bloodstained artist Yuji Natsume showed off some Shovel Knight fan art.
However, the initial announcement only gave vague hints about how exactly the players would encounter Shovel Knight in the game. Now, the new trailer gives players their first hint of not only how Shovel Knight appears in the game, but also of how they may be able to play as the character.
The launch trailer shows Ritual of the Night main character Miriam actually transforming into Shovel Knight. This seems to indicate that Shovel Knight isn’t a separate playable character like Zangetsu, but rather something Miriam can equip.
Despite this however, the trailer does show that Shovel Knight retains his or her moves. This includes being able to ride the shovel like a pogo stick.
As for the rest of the trailer, it focuses on some of the features that Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night brings to the table, including the ability to customize Miriam. It also mentions that the game is getting 13 pieces of free downloadable content in the future.
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is Koji Igarashi’s return to the style of games like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night that he helped popularize. The game borrows a lot from these titles, especially with its mysterious haunted castle setting. Meanwhile, protagonist Miriam seems to borrow heavily from Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia‘s Shanoa.
All-in-all, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night looks to be a love letter to a series that helped keep 2D platforming alive during the 1990s. It’s fitting, then, that it features a crossover with a series that has done the same in recent years.
