The director of God of War: Ragnarok has said that he loves the iconic Castlevania series, which has greatly influenced his PlayStation-exclusive game.

Santa Monica Studio game director Eric Williams wants to make a Castlevania game after the success of God of War: Ragnarok. Among other things, the industry veteran talked about this in a recent interview. During an appearance on the latest episode of Kinda Funny Games’ Spoilercast, Williams revealed that he doesn’t know what his next project will be. But he noted that his team would “love” to make a Castlevania game. That is, of course, if they could somehow get the licence from Konami.

Williams’ comment is another reminder that one of gaming’s most iconic franchises has been in limbo for almost a decade, with the last mainline instalment being 2014’s Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2.

In what seemed to be a good-humoured interview on Monday, Williams hinted that the Spoilercast crew might be able to help Studio Santa Monica secure a Castlevania license because of their global reach. He then jokingly admitted that this statement alone would get him into “so much trouble”. Joke or not, this isn’t the first time the veteran game designer has confessed his passion for the Castlevania franchise. This time last year, Williams cited Castlevania 2: Simon’s Quest as one of the main influences for God of War: Ragnarok.

Williams has been part of every God of War development team, but Ragnarok was the first game he directed. Studio Santa Monica has a long tradition of rotating directors between projects. They aim to maintain a fresh creative perspective. This was previously discussed by Cory Barlog, who led development on the 2018 God of War reboot.

As for the likelihood of Konami ever considering licensing the Castlevania IP to Sony: stranger things have happened in the games industry.

The Japanese entertainment giant has backed away from AAA development. The reason is that it has fallen out with Hideo Kojima during the development of Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain. And, of course, the unsuccessful reception of Metal Gear Survive. However, the recent revival of the Silent Hill franchise shows that the company remains adamant that it can take its gaming IP beyond the world of pachinko.

What’s more, the relative success of Netflix’s Castlevania series and the Apple partnership that led to the revival of Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls demonstrate that Konami is not averse to lending its iconic franchise to third parties. Even if it remains reluctant to commit to a new mainline game.

Source: YouTube