Dave Cox, the producer of Konami’s Castlevania: Lords of Shadow series, recently chatted with IGN about what it’s been like to develop games in such a storied and established franchise. He even sounded-off on what he thinks the future holds for Castlevania now that MercurySteam – the Spanish developer at the reins of the series for several years – is ready to relinquish control.

“ ...rather than just knock out a sequel with more of the same, we wanted to address some of the shortcomings of the previous game.

MercurySteam's time with Castlevania is about to come to an end.

“ In many ways, it feels closer to a traditional Castlevania game, and yet quite different, too.

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“ I honestly don’t know what’s next for Castlevania. Whoever comes after us should feel free to take it forward in any way they see fit.

MercurySteam changed things up with its take on Castlevania, including with the enemies.

Cox talked a lot about Lords of Shadow 2’s camera and its “mastery system” – specifically how it emphasizes a litany of special moves and encourages players to use them – but he also discussed the “confidence” Lords of Shadow’s success gave him and the team as they moved on to the sequel.“It’s been a great ride,” he said. “I must say… I think the success of the original game gave us a bit more confidence to try some new things and take some risks. We wanted to give players a game that felt like a deep adventure game that had longevity, a cool, emotional story, and a deep combat system that was fun to play and rewarded players who invested in it properly.”Indeed, what’s so striking about Lords of Shadow 2 is that it isn’t just a derivative, copy-and-pasted sequel. It’s actually markedly different in many ways from its predecessor. But there’s a method to the madness.“In many ways,” he continued, “it feels closer to a traditional Castlevania game, and yet quite different, too. It’s dark, very dark, but has the atmosphere and haunting beauty of the original. I hope players will enjoy it!”Cox elaborated further. “Our goal was to create an epic adventure, not just a hack-and-slash. We wanted to create something that had longevity and would leave its mark on players… I call it a thinking man’s hack-and-slash! I get a lot of feedback from fans who tell me they overlooked the original upon release, but found it through word-of-mouth. [Lords of Shadow 2] is a game you need to invest time in in order to reap all it has to offer.”Now that Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 is nearing release, and now that MercurySteam is moving on to something else, what does Cox think is next for arguably Konami’s most famous, longest-running series?“One thing I do know: Castlevania will never die, and as long as there are fans out there who want to spend some time with these characters, in this world, then its future is assured.”When asked about some of the indelible marks MercurySteam left on Castlevania, Cox noted that he felt the team “achieved [their] original goal, which was to make Castlevania big again.”“I’m most proud of the story, and how we made a fitting tale for Dracula that feels modern, and yet harks back to those classic vampire tales I grew up with. I like the fact [that] we elevated the series higher than it’s been before, and that people responded to the new direction we took. I hope it’s a great platform for others to come along and tell their stories when we are done.”“I think the team at MercurySteam have brought a unique artistic vision to the series which people have really responded to. It’s respectful of the classic games, and yet has a style all its own. And Oscar [Araujo]’s music, whilst quite different, has given our vision something new and fresh, yet kept the high quality soundtracks that all Castlevania games have had since the beginning.”But if not MercurySteam, who should carry the banner of Castlevania moving forward? “I don’t have anyone specifically in mind,” Cox said. “We are all going to take a long holiday, recharge our batteries, and then look forward to seeing who’s next!”Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 launches on February 25th in North America and February 28th in Europe. It will be available on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC. Keep an eye on IGN in the coming weeks for our full review.

Colin Moriarty is IGN’s Senior Editor. You can follow him on Twitter.