Konami has been in the news a lot lately, and this latest bit is just as weird as usual: Their new line of Castlevania pachinko machines will feature "erotic violence." The trailer is filled with cheap, sexualized action. There are skimpy outfits, women moaning, a creepy o-face, and breast jiggling out of the way of an oncoming projectile. (Needless to say, it may be NSFW.) Pretty trashy stuff.
One can't help but wonder at the timing, though. Castlevania has been going downhill in the eyes of many fans, and the Iconic Koji Igarashi has left Konami. Just recently, Igarashi's spiritual successor to Castlevania, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, was a massive success on Kickstarter, and he has since called Konami out for bullying its employees when speaking on the Kojima debacle.
Is this just a coincidental instance of "sex sells" fitting into Konami's latest batch of restructuring and branding, or is it a petty attack on Igarashi's legacy? With all of the childish stories revolving around Konami's behavior, it's not hard to imagine then turning Castlevania into a smutty series to spite someone that outshined and spoke out about them.
What do you think about Castlevania's new focus on "erotic violence" in its newest iteration?
