Line #16 NightmareFuel/BloodstainedRitualOfTheNight


1	!Per wiki policy, Administrivia/SpoilersOff applies here and all spoilers are unmarked. Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned.
2
3	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kunekune_4.png]]
4	[[caption-width-right:350:Gotcha!]]
5
6	It's not surprising that a CreatorDrivenSuccessor to the ''NightmareFuel/{{Castlevania}}'' series would have plenty of Nightmare Fuel of its own.
7	----
8	* How does Miriam gain new powers? By killing her foes and absorbing abilities as shards — shards that ''[[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice jam straight through her torso]]'', which she has to forcibly aid with visible stress in the process. And as of the E3 2018 Demo, she ''screams'' in pain when she absorbs one. Apparently it's even more uncomfortable than it looks, with Miriam describing shard absorption as claws scraping against her bones.
9	* Valac, the double-headed demon serpent boss from ''VideoGame/BloodstainedCurseOfTheMoon'''s stage 4, makes a return. Those who didn't know, or those who weren't paying attention to his design in ''Curse of the Moon'', might get jolted by [[https://youtu.be/UAeAJDX9DZ8?t=48 the bloody corpse under his chin]], and that's before he properly greets you with his many, many teeth and centipede-like bodies, along with a rather claustrophobic boss arena.
10	* The lengths the Alchemist's Guild went to in the name of sheer, naked greed. They infected children with a blight that crystallized their bodies, then ritualistically sacrificed them to summon demons, resulting in a HellOnEarth that is plainly stated to have killed millions. All because [[ForScience scientific progress]] and the UsefulNotes/IndustrialRevolution were drawing away their wealthy patrons. There's no suggestion that TheExtremistWasRight, either; this was entirely done out of pure avarice and fear of change.
11	** Arguably making things worse is the classic ultimate goal of alchemy -- the Philosopher's Stone needed to create the Elixir of Life, which would grant ''total immortality''. Never mind just avarice -- they were arguably ''so determined'' to cheat death outright that they were willing to risk killing everything ''else'' off.
12	** To make things even worse? This most likely inspired Dominique to instigate her RageAgainstTheHeavens plan (explained below), which is in a different regard, just about as amoral as what they were trying to do. The Guild is effectively a monster who gave way to ''another monster''.
13	* The EasterEgg found in the runaway train, now pictured. There's a chair within the train that players can take a seat in during subsequent visits, which triggers a scene reminiscent to Alucard peering into the telescope of the Outer Wall in ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaSymphonyOfTheNight Symphony of the Night]]'' as Miriam looks out the window of the train. However, if you have her sit still long enough, players will witness Miriam's vision dozing off during the ride, only for a strange entity to appear in the distance. If the player lets the scene play out, the entity steadily gets closer and closer between her blinks, only to suddenly vanish from the scene and ''[[JumpScare WHAM!]]'' The monster suddenly jumps right into the player's face and screams at them, and if the player didn't have Miriam run away from the chair as they would from their console/PC in real life, they are treated to a fight with the Kunekune, a BossInMookClothing that can also inflict Curse on Miriam, causing her HP and MP to be cut in half, and the Kunekune is a very strong enemy that will likely send unsuspecting players to a GameOver screen, being able to deal damage and Curse Miriam just by having her be facing towards it. To make matters worse for completionists, they'd have to trigger this fight many times over if they plan to get the shard it possesses and upgrade it. [[ThisIsGonnaSuck Have fun.]]
14	* Den Of Behemoths, which is the beginning of the endgame. At first you think, great, we've ratted out Gremory and found the way to the final dungeon! And then you arrive at Den of Behemoths only to be greeted with glaring crimson background, and as you go further, you then learn why the place is called Den of '''Behemoths''': The enemies have been [[GiantMook significantly upsized]], and even your formerly frail mocos and mortes become gigantic with tons of health. Imagine being in Miriam's shoes; she has gotten used to foot-sized frogs, Morte Cannons about her size, and suddenly she sees these demons dwarfing her (especially that giant moco which [[JumpScare bursts out of a giant boulder]] she is merely climbing). [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIfM7vfL5A0 The oppressive music]] doesn't help matters.
15	* The "Usurper" ending, the second of two bad endings. If you get the Zangetsuto, but kill Gebel without attacking the moon when it turns red, Miriam will [[NotQuiteTheRightThing wonder if she did the right thing]], the screen fades to black, and then you hear... ''this'':
16	-->'''Gremory:''' ''(EvilLaugh)'' With that many shards bound to you, you will be all too easy to [[DemonicPossession possess]].
17	** To cap it off, the Game Over screen is displayed afterwards, complete with music.
18	* Dominique's true nature. After having spent her entire life devoted to God, only to watch Him remain utterly silent as mankind suffered and died to the Demons, she decided that if God refuses to do anything, she will [[KillTheGod usurp Him]] and take His place. This new mindset led her to become obsessed with amassing as much power as possible, driving her to form a pact with [[TheDragon Gremory]] and instigating the entire plot, being willing to unleash Bael upon the world all for the sake of obtaining even greater power so she can create a CrapsackWorld.
19	* The Unnamed Alchemist's journals. They detail the original creator of the Crystal Curse's attempts to summon demons to the world, in hopes of keeping the Alchemist's Guild afloat and their coffers flowing. It details how he went about with his crystal project, how he found out that using children would hasten the curse's progression. After being given children to experiment on by the Guild, he then forces them to bind shards, of which Miriam had said [[TraumaticSuperpowerAwakening "it felt like claws scraping against her bones"]]. At the end of it all, he expects them all to be sacrificed to summon demons en masse to the world. How does this fit into Nightmare Fuel? Simple: the entire journal volumes are like reading from the perspective of a MadScientist who doesn't care how many people he has to kill and hurt so long as he and the guild profits, up to and including [[PoweredByAForsakenChild children]]. He has absolutely no remorse for his actions, and only seems to feel regret when Gebel is back to finish off the Alchemist's Guild (which is likely less MyGodWhatHaveIDone [[VillainousBreakdown and]] [[VillainsWantMercy more]] OhCrap). Perhaps the worst part is that it can paint some unsettling real life connotations on how some institutions make use of child labour without caring about them, and only using them as a means to an end.

Context NightmareFuel / BloodstainedRitualOfTheNight