In the past, 3D Castlevania games have been fairly unpopular. At best, they were boring. At worst, they were Castlevania: Judgement. Today, Konami released some new screenshots and art for the next Castlevania title in development, Castlevania: Lord of Shadows, which is decidedly 3D, yet also decidedly bursting at the seams with potential. What looks so good about it, you ask? It looks like Konami is aping off another game, instead of trying to reinvent the 3D adventure wheel. What game, you ask again because you don't feel like doing your own work? I'll let you figure that out on your own. Let's just say it doesn't look like Super Monkey Ball, that's for sure.

Castlevania: Lord of Shadows might not look like it started off as a Castlevania game, but it's hardly this generation's Doki Doki Panic. It's a full-blown Castlevania game, built from the ground up with Bellmonts in mind, no matter how much it looks like God of War. The screenshots look damn cool, and show off Simon ripping apart all sorts of monsters. However, it still feels a lot like the developer is going far from the roots of the series. As long as it manages to be good, though, I doubt anyone is going to complain. There's no doubt that a great 3D adventure could be just what's necessary to rekindle the excitement over hunting Dracula all over again.

The full gallery is below.