Kickstarter has become a major funding hub for many indie video games from both new and seasoned developers. Recently, some of these developers have raised hundreds of thousands, and even millions of dollars for their projects.

For two years, Torment: Tides of Numenera held the top spot for funding with just under $4.2 million. This week, the crown was passed to Koji Igarashi’s brainchild, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, which is nearing the $4.5 million mark. Bloodstained is now the most-funded Kickstarter video game campaign ever.

Bloodstained is still half a million dollars away from reaching its last two announced stretch goal of $4.75 million and $5 million, but considering that the final hours of a Kickstarter campaign are usually some of the most fruitful for the projects, it’s very likely Bloodstained will reach that goal. If it does, the developer will develop a “prequel mini-game for portables” and add “roguelike dungeons” to the game.

It’s important to remember that at the beginning of the campaign, Igarashi revealed that he had secured 90 percent of the funding already, and was looking to Kickstarter for the remainder. Given that, it’s likely Igarashi and his partners were more interested in building hype and excitement for Bloodstained through Kickstarter, rather than securing funding.

Despite the fact that Igarashi basically already had enough funding for the game, the success of the Kickstarter campaign and the setting of a new video game funding goal shows that gamers are ready and excited to play Bloodstained. And beyond that, gamers are excited for the numerous additions coming to the game thanks to the campaign reaching its stretch goals. Among the additions coming are two additional playable characters, local co-op, an online challenge mode, a port for Wii U and PlayStation Vita, and a Nightmare difficulty level, among others.

For those who aren’t aware, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is “an exploration-focused side-scrolling platformer with RPG and crafting elements.” Koji Igarashi, best known for his work on the Castlevania series, is leading the project and is the brains behind the game. Those who back the campaign will receive a physical copy of the game for either PC, PS4, Xbox One, Wii U, or PS Vita, depending on their preference. Backers will also receive a few Kickstarter-only extras, including the mighty swordship, a super-powerful hidden boss, and a Kickstarter Edition slipcase.

Are you backing Bloodstained on Kickstarter? Let us know in the comments.

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is set to release early 2017 for PC, PS4, PS Vita, Wii U, and Xbox One.

Source: Kickstarter