PS3 Informer

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow Announcement and Trailer

East is West, up is down, and Patrick Stewart is a voice actor in the latest installment of the Castlevania series, coming to the PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2010. Dubbed Lords of Shadow, the game will be a 3D action-adventure title in development by European development team Mercury Steam with Hideo Kojima consulting.

Konami says that it will take this long-running series in a bold new direction with a fresh and radical re-imagining, and the result is an epic tale of love and loss that befits the series.

Shown previously as Lords of Shadow in the summer of 2008, Konami has kept under wraps its intention to make the game part of the Castlevania canon until now. However, at their E3 press conference, the publisher revealed the game to much applause. Check out the first public trailer of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow below.

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) and darkness reigns over 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. Hello, giant spiders.

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 realizes the horrific truth of what is at stake and guides Gabriel to his destiny - and hopefully salvation for the world... but at what cost?

The game will also feature a star-studded voice acting cast, with Gabriel voiced by Robert Carlyle (28 Weeks Later, Trainspotting, The Full Monty), and Patrick Stewart (X-Men, Star Trek: Next Generation) as the mysterious Zobek. Natasha McElhone (The Other Boleyn Girl, Californication, The Truman Show) and Jason Isaacs (Black Hawk Down, The Patriot, Harry Potter series) round out the acting talent.

"Kojima Productions had learned the differences of western development teams and Japanese studios" added Ken Imaizumi, Senior Producer of Kojima Productions. "Mercury Steam is definitely one of the most talented studios in the world. We quickly agreed that we should work together and exchange ideas and know-how across the board. We have full trust that the next generation Castlevania experience will deliver a high quality intense experience worthy of the Kojima Productions name and we are proud that this title will mark a new global direction for Konami as a company dedicated to breaking new ground in digital entertainment."