Vampire Crawlers is the first spin-off to come from hit roguelite Vampire Survivors, and eager fans don’t have to wait much longer to play it. Vampire Survivors made waves as an indie success story when it left early access in 2022. Now that a spin-off is on the way, players will be able to dive deeper into Vampire Survivors‘ world. There are a few major differences with Vampire Crawlers, not least of which is how it plays differently from its predecessor.
This time around, Vampire Crawlers brings players a first-person dungeon-crawling deckbuilder. Vampire Crawlers‘ gameplay still has a focus on roguelite elements, but Vampire Survivors players who have been hoping for more of a sequel than a spin-off may want to curb their expectations. Despite the different gameplay style, this spin-off looks like hours of fun, and its surprising take on the series is teasing a wonderful blend of Vampire Survivors and Balatro. Vampire Crawlers‘ Steam demo has already attracted a lot of attention, which bodes well for the vampire-filled deck builder.
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Vampire Crawlers Puts a Card-Focused Spin on Vampire Survivors’ Fun-Loving Formula
Vampire Survivors‘ developer Poncle creating a deckbuilder makes a lot of sense. The Vampire Survivors and Balatro crossovers that have happened have naturally paved the way for this spin-off to be thought up. Even though Vampire Crawlers probably takes a lot of inspiration from Balatro‘s deck-building approach, this spin-off definitely has its own special flair. This also means that it’s going to feel like a completely different game compared to Vampire Survivors, at least when it comes to mechanics. The same soul is there, but the gameplay may not speak to every Vampire Survivors fan.
Rearrange the covers into the correct US release order.
Rearrange the covers into the correct US release order.
Easy (5)Medium (7)Hard (10)
Vampire Crawlers Gives Players the Chance to Think Before Attacking
One of the reasons that Vampire Survivors can be so addictive is because of how action-packed it is. This is a staple of most roguelite games, so Vampire Survivors can quickly get downright chaotic. Games like Vampire Survivors have been popping up ever since the game’s launch, but Vampire Crawlers presents an option that actually takes place in the same universe. Those who want a more methodical Vampire Survivors-inspired experience will be happy to know that Vampire Crawlers allows gamers to focus more on strategy instead of constant in-your-face action. Players can still play at a faster pace if they wish, but Vampire Crawlers is designed to require more thought than a bullet hell shoot-em-up.
Vampire Crawlers comes out on April 21 for PC, Switch, Xbox Series X/S, and PS5. Ports for iOS and Android are expected to come later in the year.
The Introduction of Turn-Based Mechanics is a Big Departure From Vampire Survivors
Vampire Survivors is fueled by storms of bullets, but Vampire Crawlers has players stepping into a turn-based experience instead. This plays into the game’s goal of asking players to take a moment to think hard about each move. Turn-based games have become a little more popular after Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 reignited interest in the gameplay style. So, gamers who aren’t familiar with Vampire Survivors and simply want more turn-based combat might also get a lot of enjoyment out of Vampire Crawlers.
Vampire Crawlers’ Biggest Differences Are, Obviously, the Deck-Building and Dungeon Crawling
Naturally, deck-building is Vampire Crawlers‘ main focus. Throughout the game, players will work on building their perfect decks in order to become more powerful as the game goes on. This isn’t too different from Vampire Survivors‘ gameplay approach. The main point of Vampire Survivors is to become as powerful as possible to defeat stronger enemies. Vampire Crawlers is doing the same thing, just with cards. When it comes to Vampire Crawlers‘ card gameplay, each card multiplies the next card’s effect in some way. This sets the stage for players to build some seriously strong combos, which are bound to quickly make the gameplay really addicting.
According to Vampire Crawlers‘ Steam page, Poncle already has plans for post-launch updates down the road. Vampire Survivors has included a lot of great expansions since its release, so gamers who are excited about this spin-off will already have extra content to look forward to.
Dungeon Crawling Offers More Exploration
This may be one of the most exciting aspects of Vampire Crawlers, especially for those who have been wanting to discover more about Vampire Survivors‘ world. Exploring is essential for finding special gear, helpful items, and characters in Vampire Survivors, but Vampire Crawlers is taking this concept a step further.
Dungeons mean that even more secrets and hidden gems can be stumbled upon, adding an extra layer of excitement to Vampire Survivors‘ love of discovering upgrades. It not only adds to the fun, but also to the challenge. There’s no telling what will be waiting for players behind walls and around corners. Vampire Survivors-inspired games usually just copy and paste the formula with a fresh twist, but Vampire Crawlers is completely subverting expectations.
Even though Vampire Survivors has no actual narrative, it was announced at the beginning of last year that the game is getting its own movie. It will be interesting to see if Vampire Crawlers experiments with building a narrative that could potentially tie into the film.
Vampire Crawlers sounds perfect for the Vampire Survivors players who have been craving more of the franchise but aren’t necessarily hungry for more fast-paced action. Poncle could have easily just made a sequel that improves upon the original game’s successful formula. Going a completely different route and embracing a spin-off may prove to be the smarter move, though. It allows the Vampire Survivors series to reach a brand-new audience.
There are going to be plenty of Vampire Survivors fans checking out Vampire Crawlers, but there will also be a lot of new gamers who are more drawn to the game’s deck-building and dungeon crawling instead of any attachment to the original roguelite. Vampire Crawlers is Poncle’s first step in building a larger franchise, and seeing how it stacks up against such a successful predecessor is going to be fascinating.
- Released
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2026
- Developer(s)
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Poncle
- Publisher(s)
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Poncle
- Number of Players
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Single-player
