Since it hit Early Access on Steam last December, the cult of vampire survivors has grown and spread its gospel far and wide. Over the past year, the seemingly simple game has been expanded with a steady stream of free updates, adding amazing amounts of depth and content. The fantastic gameplay and compelling progression system combined with a ridiculously low price made Vampire Survivors highly recommended. This tradition continues in the game’s full release, bringing over 50 hours of pure gaming pleasure to a larger audience.
Vampire Survivors starts off easy. You only use the left analog stick to move, and your attacks come at regular intervals automatically. Monsters are constantly approaching you from all directions as you dodge through the gaps and make sure they are within your attack radius. The Castlevania influence is evident as you start with a whip and take on chilling creatures from classic gaming horror alongside imaginative original creations. If you can last 30 minutes, death will fall for an instant kill, but expect to “beat” the level.
Each attempt starts you at a base level with only your character’s starting weapon. While they may seem inadequate at first glance, almost all offensive options can be built up to feel amazing. Detonate a fire hose full of knives in front of you to clear a path. Melt a colony of bats while wading through them with the circular garlic patch. Take shelter in a cloud of fighting cats. Every type of weapon I could imagine and some things I never dreamed of were at my disposal.
You’re constantly making decisions, weighing the pros and cons of each random element presented during the leveling process. You can have a maximum of six weapons fired at once, in addition to six attachments that modify weapons and gameplay, such as: B. increase the size of projectiles, decrease the cooldown or increase the rate of experience gained. Additionally, certain weapon and accessory combinations offer ultra-powerful evolutions that can turn the tide in your darkest hour. It’s difficult to convey the supreme satisfaction you feel when your incomprehensible barrage of attacks makes it impossible for enemies to harm you, no matter how hard you try to kick the hornet’s nest. I rarely take screenshots or videos of games I play, but Vampire Survivors puts on such a glorious show based on your wise decisions that I couldn’t help but share it.
Developer Poncle has expertly balanced the introduction of unlocks so you’re never overwhelmed by the mix of weapons and powers, but you never tire either. There’s always a new character, weapon, accessory, or mechanic to look forward to until the end. The initially daunting list of goals gives a sense of direction and pushes you to experiment outside of your comfort zone. One run I’d screw up or shake the level up options badly and die without checking off any objectives, but the next I’d have a perfect run and complete a dozen tasks. The unlocks/achievements rain down in a delightful torrent of dopamine hits. Even if you fail, you’ll learn something and gain more gold to unlock permanent upgrades in the in-game shop.
Almost every rule you learn (including many of the mechanics detailed above) is completely turned on its head or twisted as you delve deeper into the game. Vampire Survivors loves to set your expectations and subvert them completely. At several points I exclaimed, “What the hell happened? Wait so I can do it This now?” Everything is built in such a way that it is impossible to resist the next run. “Well, I’ll have to see how this crazy-looking new character plays.” “What’s this disturbing new phase about?” It can’t wait until tomorrow.”
My only hesitation in recommending it to Xbox players is the unwanted presence of launch bugs that hamper unlocking stages and achievements for some and other odd little things. Patching has helped so far and I hope it will be as relatively trouble free as the PC versions soon.
Despite these early setbacks on console, Vampire Survivors has quickly become one of my all-time favorite games. Imagine me grabbing you by the sides of your head and shouting, “Play vampire survivor, you fool!”
