There is beauty in simplicity. A refreshing notion, picking something up and being able to understand, and grasp the core concepts immediately. In this day and age of gaming, I find that developers will add perceived depth or complexity to games just for the sake of being “hard”. Vampire Survivors from developer poncle throws this notion to the complete opposite side of the spectrum. Here is my game, however simple, master it. Vampire Survivors is a Castlevania-inspired rouge-like that offers the player a single, simplistic concept. Survive. The most basic human instinct, boiled down to pixels as your small but capable 2D sprite mows down thousands upon thousands of incoming enemies. As you are thrust into the sprawling Mad Forest with naught but a whip and fifty bats coming towards you, you must tackle each task as it comes. But what makes Vampire Survivors great is the way it allows the player to learn on the fly. Gems on the ground? I’ll pick those up, and what’s this? I leveled up and received some sort of knife weapon. Sure. And on, and on it goes until you’ve become Death incarnate. Facing hordes upon hordes of enemies with the power of a God.

I can’t explain, truly, what makes Vampire Survivors so fun to play. Each run is unique as your knowledge increases, and you start to passively develop strategies and try new things. Every weapon can be upgraded, some augmented, and you learn exclusively through playing. You are rewarded for playing, for experimenting, for doing what you came to do. There is a built-in progression system too as you unlock new characters and currency, you can start your runs with bonuses, some monumental, some as simple as an increased health pool. It is chaotic, beautiful, and endlessly replayable.

Vampire Survivors, available on Steam right now for three dollars, is a must play. You will experience the highest of highs, as well as some fairly low, lows, but it is an experience you should try at least once. I’ll end my review here as this game should be enjoyed with very little prior knowledge. Grab your whip, and any other weapon you can find and fight off the scores of enemies that await you within Vampire Survivors.