Bandai Namco had people all excited last week when they release a teaser trailer carrying the tagline 'Prepare to Dine.' The latest issue of Weekly Famitsu has revealed that this is not, as many had anticipated, the next From Software game. Ahead of the official 20th of April reveal, information from Japanese blogger Hachima Kikou reported by Gematsu has confirmed that the project is titled Code Vein and will be a “dungeon exploration-type, hard action RPG” from developer Shift. You may know Shift as Bandai Namco's in-house developer behind the God Eater series.

Further information from Weekly Famitsu also goes into the setting and premise of the game. Players will take on the role of Vampires known as Revenants and will use supernatural abilities to 'take on the truth of the world while working together with allies.' Revenants are described as having transcended humanity but at the cost of their memory. It also seems they will be reliant on blood to survive, as those who are short on blood become monsters known as 'Lost.'

Being a game about vampires, it wouldn't be surprising to see blood drinking play a key role in the game. Some shakily translated further information suggests that it could actually form a major part of the battle system in Code Vein. The description of an item known as the 'Blood Veil' reads like this,

The Blood Veil is a Revenant-original piece of equipment that sucks up the blood of Losts. It’s usually shaped like clothing and functions as armor. A dedicated mechanism appears at the time of blood sucking, and the user’s mask sees an ominous change.

This seems to imply some kind of active system involving draining blood from enemies, further supported by the other key term that has been translated in the Gematsu article. The term 'Tempered Blood' refers to a special ability that can be triggered after a successful blood-sucking via the Blood Veil and can be used to strengthen the character, weaken enemies, and launch special attacks.

It's likely that we'll have more information and a trailer when the game is officially announced on April 20th but for now, some additional details from blogger Hachima Kikou constitute all we know about the title: The game will be running in Unreal Engine 4, development is around 35% complete, players can use AI partners in dungeons (no information yet on whether this will extend to online co-op), AI partners will act on their own but can be aided by the player, the game is not related to God Eater, and the game's genre is described as “Dramatic exploration action RPG.”

Platforms for the game have not yet been finalized but it has been described as "coming to console". Code Vein is set for release in 2018 with the developer expecting that the first glimpse of gameplay to arrive sometime next month. You can be sure we'll be bringing you further information on the title as it emerges.

Are you excited by what's been teased for Code Vein? Or are you too disappointed that this isn't the next From Software game to celebrate just yet? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments!