The long running Castlevania series is back for another round - Konami has announced Portrait of Ruin for the DS.

Letting the player take control of two different characters - vampire hunter Jonathan Morris and Charlotte Orlean, a young girl with magical abilities - the game has them working together to thwart a plan to resurrect Dracula’s Castle within a World War II setting.

The new setting captures the chaos and suffering the era, with thousands of lost souls wandering the world in search of salvation. Desperate to escape the limbo within their exist, the misguided spirits seek to rebuild Dracula’s Castle from its ruins, and are lead by a pair of evil Vampire sisters out to resurrect their master’s home for their own nefarious plans. Thrown together, Jonathan and Charlotte must combine their unusual skill sets to defeat the plans and restore harmony.

Retaining the same 2D platform realms for which the series is famed, Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin uses a side-on view to oversee the scrolling stages. Players can switch freely between Jonathan and Charlotte as they progress through the levels, using their skills when appropriate. In addition to Jonathan’s weapon expertise and Charlotte’s spell-casting, both characters can utilise all-new ‘Summon’ attacks to raise demons to assist them against the Vampire sisters’ army. Similarly, more conventional weapons can also be found on route, and saved for use against the hardier monsters that await in the shadows.

The game features all-new locations and over 100 different enemies. More information is set to be revealed during E3.

Hosting a spiffy color layout and a spiffier name, Orange Lounge Radio carries a list of games that Konami will release later this year.

As expected, DDR titles are present in the list - in fact, three of them. DDR Supernova is said to be scheduled for release on September 13 on the PS2; DDR Ultramix 4 for the Xbox on November 14; and the first next-gen title in the series - DDR Universe for the Xbox 360 on November 10. Karaoke Revolution: American Idol will also be hitting stores on November 15 for the PS2.

The list also reveals a new Castlevania sequel for the DS. Titled Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, the game is due on November 15. On the portable side, a sequel to Death Jr. is listed for release on the PSP on October 18, with a DS version being released one week earlier. The Silent Hill remake that was previously announced was also mentioned: it will feature the original storyline with a few twists and will be dubbed Silent Hill: Original Sin.

Last, but not least, Bomberman Act Zero will be released on the PSP and Xbox 360 on July 12.

These titles are expected to be shown at E3 next month.