Spanish studio MercurySteam will step away from Konami's Castlevania series after it wraps up Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2, series producer David Cox told Destructoid at San Diego Comic Con.

"I've always thought that this was a torch being passed down," Cox said. "Nobody on the team ever felt like we owned Castlevania. We always felt it was our responsibility now but it wouldn't be ours forever. Let's do what we're going to do, tell our story, and move on."

Cox continued: "So we've told Japan headquarters that this is the last one for us... there's nothing worse than when somebody's got something to say, and when they've said it, they just keep talking. We've got a beginning and end, and it's a cool ending and a cool story. Once we've done that, it's time to say to somebody else, 'now it's your turn.' Maybe it will be a young producer in the company looking for his first break. I think you've got to bring in fresh blood."

Cox previously expressed interest in heading up a MercurySteam-developed entry in Konami's Contra series. While a new Contra game was teased at E3 in 2011, Konami has issued no details regarding the project.