Nintendo Media | First Screens / Details of New Castlevania DS

Dawn of Sorrow, the direct sequel to the GBA's superb Aria of Sorrow was received with critical acclaim and retail success, making a follow-up somewhat of an inevitability. This time, though, the scenario is completely different.

Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin takes players on a rollercoaster ride, controlling a vampire hunter by the name of Jonathan Morris and his comprade Charlotte Orlean, who is a young girl whose magical abilities are second to none.

During the tragic event of World War II, many souls were sent out into the dark world, left to simply wander around in search of salvation after the horrible conflict. In an effort to rid themselves of their troublesome plight, they set out to resurrect Dracula's Castle, albeit with some strong help in the form of two mysterious vampire sisters.

So it is your task, controlling Jonathan and Charlotte, to ensure this work of evil is not unleashed on the world once more, thus preventing the ultimate catastrophe.

Believe it or not, the series has been developing for the past 20 years at a rate that would make many other franchises blush. The action-adventure game, which has recently been likened the 2D side-scrolling Metroid games from Nintendo, allows gamers to quickly and easily switch between both Jonathan and Charlotte through the entirety of the journey, using each ones specific skills and talents to progress as smoothly as possible. There is now the chance to use devastating Summon Attacks where both characters unleash the full extent of their combat capabilities in order to completely annihilate the game's monsters and enemies, of which there are more than 100 different kinds spread across varying locations such as dry deserts and Misty Town. And, as usual, the extent of weapons, equipment and items is as vast as ever as Jonathan and Charlotte attempt to prevent the resurrection of Dracula. Can their skill and abilities save the world from a major disaster? Only you can lead them in the right direction...

Expect more details later in the year, most likely at E3 in May ahead of the game's November launch across the US.

Stick with C3 for further updates...