I’m beginning to get sick of all these God of War clones already, and the vast majority haven’t been released yet!


 

Still, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow has more than a few things going for it. The first is of course the star power. Patrick Stewart will play the mysterious Zobek, the lead character Gabriel is voiced by Robert Carlyle, and Natasha McElhone (Californiacation, The Truman Show) and Jason Isaacs (Black Hawk Down, Harry Potter) will lend their vocal talents as well.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow takes place at the end of days. The Earth’s alliance with the Heavens has been threatened by a dark and malevolent force – the mysterious Lords of Shadow – darkness reigns the world. Across this shattered land, the souls of the dead wander unable to find peace, whilst creatures of evil roam free wreaking chaos and death upon the living.

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 realises the horrific truth of what is at stake and guides Gabriel to his destiny – and hopefully salvation for the world… but at what cost?

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 Cross™ – the world’s last hope must encounter the three factions of the Lords of Shadow and end their unholy rule.

The game also looks like it might actually be the first Castlevania to do 3d right. At the expense of giving up everything that made the series unique, perhaps, but at least he’s still got a whip? I love the fact that they’ve trademarked “Combat Cross”, too, as if someone would  want to rip it off.

Honestly, I’m not going to be happy until I see some flying Medusa heads or a gigantic boss comprised of thousands of corpses, but the trailer definitely piques the interest. Expect Lords of Shadow to hit Xbox 360 and PS3 in 2010.