A constant drip-drip of unlockables keeps you going, in part because these unlockables apply to all levels. So yes, you’ll unlock several new levels. You’ll also uncover new weapons that you’ll want to try in every single area. — poncle/TNS
On its surface, Vampire Survivors looks like an ultra-simplistic game from the 8-bit era, the kind where you run around and kill things and work not to die. But once you dive in, you realise just how multifaceted this game is. And once you dive in, you can’t stop playing.
I didn’t expect to love Vampire Survivors, to be honest, but the hype train had rolled for long enough without me taking a look. So when it showed up on Xbox Game Pass shortly before Thanksgiving, it was an easy download. Since then, I’ve played the game more than many blockbusters, because it’s simply that good.
The action limits your options, and yet gives you all the options in the world. In real time, you can control exactly one thing about your character: Their movements. Enemies will shoot at you, fly at you, and generally try to kill you, and your only recourse is to move through them, past them, away from them via the left thumbstick. That’s it. Essentially, you’re playing a dual-stick shooter, except the game itself handles the shooting. And it’s tremendously satisfying.
The beauty is in the details, because as you kill baddies and pick up crystals, you’ll level up. And at each level you’re gaining unique weapons and buffs that can bolster your character. And those weapons fly in predictable arcs and patterns (except the unpredictable ones, that is) that give you a chance to kill more baddies. Play your cards right, and by the end of each level, you’re controlling a near-unstoppable tank against screen-filling hordes of the undead relentlessly charging at you. But with the right gear, you can survive.
This core gameplay alone is addictive and loaded with fun, with plenty of addictive qualities in any open level. But then Vampire Survivors takes things up a notch by pushing you to explore each level, courtesy of a variety of things to unlock and unique enemies to beat in certain areas. It’s constantly toying with your curiosity once the action gets familiar – and the familiar action was always good enough to keep you playing too.
A constant drip-drip of unlockables keeps you going, in part because these unlockables apply to all levels. So yes, you’ll unlock several new levels. You’ll also uncover new weapons that you’ll want to try in every single area. Or you’ll find new characters. Or you’ll discover new passive power-ups or find new ways to pair certain weapons with each other. The combinations are endless, especially once you unlock all the arcana, the random cards that are drawn and provide buffs in each level.
The entire formula seems simple on its surface, and maybe it’s been done before? But it’s never been done with this much aplomb and balance, and it’s never stoked gamers’ curiosity quite as much as it does here. Vampire Survivors looks simple, but it’s far more elegant than that, and it contains just one flaw right now: It lacks any sort of survival mode.
Each level ends when it’s supposed to, when Death comes to take you (although there’s fun to be had here, too). And that’s a shame, because I would gladly play each level for hours on end, and I very much want to see how long I’d be able to survive against hordes of undead. Heck, I’d love to see how my true survival times stacked up against, you know, the entire planet.
For now, I can’t do that, which is a hair disappointing. The upside: There’s still plenty to do in the game without simply surviving, anyway.
Vampire Survivors
5 out of 5 stars
Available on Xbox platforms and PC
Reviewed on Xbox Series X – New York Daily News/Tribune News Service
