"Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night," by Artplay / Koji Igarashi (PS4 Pro)

I've spent the last 2 weekends (and approximately 20 hours) with Bloodstained.  In this time, I have beaten the game and seen the, "true ending."  After dumping almost a full day into the game, my views on Bloodstained have not changed much from my initial impressions.  The game is far from perfect, of course; there are technical issues and the story leaves something to be desired.  With that being said, I'm still glad that the game was made, and that I got to play it.

I think there are a number of reasons to like the game.

• It is a Metroidvania in the style of Symphony of the Night.  It has a heavy focus on exploration, filling out a bestiary, and gathering rare and powerful items to access the game's true ending. 
•  While I don't think the game rises to the level of Symphony, especially since Bloodstained is like the "greatest hits" version of the genre, it still ignites my nostalgia to be able to play this kind of game in 2019. 
• The game was funded via Kickstarter.  Given how other revival-style games have crashed and burned after receiving crowd funding (Mighty No. 9 comes to mind), it is nice to see one succeed.  I can also appreciate that future DLC (like more playable characters) is planned.
• As an aside, you can probably skip the "IGA'S BACK PACK," DLC unless you are a Koji super-fan, as it only adds a single boss, shard (spell), and weapon to the game.
• The game offers lots of customization: cosmetic customization via accessories, game-play customization via a variety of weapons and "shards" (or magic spells), and several endings and difficulty levels.  

I said it in my initial impressions and I'll say it again here: Bloodstained is gaming comfort food.  If you are nostalgic for this type of game, there is plenty to do, see, and overcome.  If you don't have nostalgia for this kind of game, it is still easy enough to get into that you may just find yourself sucked in.

It would be an overstatement to call Bloodstained a quintessential game in the genre, but it is a perfectly reasonable entry point for folks who are new to this style of game (or those who want to jump back in).  I wish the game was available on Switch, because this type of game can really shine when you can jump in for a quick exploration session while on the go.  With that being said, I had plenty of fun with the game on PS4, and would recommend it to others looking for this type of game.

Final Score:
7.5 / 10