Bullet Hell

VampireSurvivors

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The Game

VampireSurvivors developed by Poncle is a roguelike bullet hell survival type game for mobile, PC and Xbox. Similarly to a lot of the other such games you try and survive against endless waves of enemies (well around 30 minutes of them) and you collect and upgrade various weapons and equipment as you do so. Get a specific weapon and it’s corresponding piece of equipment and you can upgrade the weapon to an ultimate version. There are 5 main levels and as many bonus/challenge ones. As you play the game you can find and rescue other survivors which become characters you can play with. Each character starts out with a specific weapon but will be able to acquire other weapons as they level up.

In each level you can collect gold coins, these will let you get upgrades that apply to all levels and characters. As you work your way through the achievements list more and more of the game will be unlocked. You will find new characters, new weapons with new ultimate versions, new levels and challenges.

colourful bullet hell image with swarms of enemies
colourful bullet hell image with swarms of enemies
colourful bullet hell image with swarms of enemies
colourful bullet hell image with swarms of enemies
character unlock image
colourful bullet hell image with swarms of enemies
colourful bullet hell image with swarms of enemies
loot box opening and awarding prizes
colourful bullet hell image with swarms of enemies
character selection screen

Worth it?

A simple but effective survival bullet-hell game with some really fun and well hidden surprises. There is also a good deal of humour in the naming of weapons and items (like the Candelabrador candelabra). The game is free on mobile and also ad-free (unless you want an additional life when you die). On PC it will set you back around £3.99 and there some DLC which will give you access to new levels and characters.

The collection of characters and the methods by which you unlock them are quite addictive and make you want to try each and every one of them out. The sheer amount of items there are to unlock – from game modes to weapons and additional features give the game a great amount of replay value. Each level usually lasts around 30 mins, which is a touch on the long side and sometimes the game might not save your progress if you close the app if you’ve had to do something else. However, the game works perfectly in offline and also in portrait, making it perfect for time killing. Overall if you’re a fan of bullet-hell survival games then this is a great one to add to your collection.

Tips

  • Learn the weapon evolutions and collect items/weapons accordingly.
  • Destroy torches and braziers for food and coins.
  • Upgrade your permanent upgrades using coins.
  • Some levels will have items on the floor, use these to get your ultimate weapon upgrades right.
  • Find the Milky Way Map in order to unlock the pause menu map which will show you the locations of items in the level.
  • In order to get to the coffin in Gallo Tower, look out for a glowing mirror on the left side of the level (around the area where the arrow points you to) that will get you through to a small room where the coffin is.

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Survivor.io

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The Game

Survivor.io is a game by Habby in which you survive and onslaught of enemies while upgrading your weapons and equipment. Similar to most other survival roguelike bullet-hell type games you kill enemies, collect XP and pick from 3 possible weapons or equipment. You can only carry 6 weapons and 6 pieces of equipment so choose wisely, especially when it comes to the equipment because nearly every weapon is paired with a piece of equipment allowing that weapon to be evolved when it’s reached it’s maximum upgrade level. Evolved weapons are extremely powerful and very useful for beating levels.

The game progresses through levels – each lasting from 6 to 15 minutes of progressively harder enemies and bosses. There are also additional challenge modes that will make past levels even harder and push you to the limit. These will give you evolution points which allow you to unlock some really useful upgrades. As you progress in the game your character will also level up and allow you to upgrade their stats with cash. The gatcha element also comes in with your characters equipment – you open loot boxes and merge duplicates as you try to improve the quality of your equipment from common to legendary. There are unique seasonal and daily challenges and over 50 chapters to the game with more being added.

Worth it?

Overall the game is really addictive at the start with lots to try and quick progress. As you progress through the levels you will also gain access the new weapons giving the game even more variety. The concept is something we’ve seen done plenty of times and Survivor.io does it quite well – limiting the time for levels and regular bosses. The game also throws some challenge levels your way which are a great way to unlock additional abilities and also push yourself a little harder. The game has a variety of elements to keep you logging in regularly – coins, daily challenges, login bonuses etc, although after the initial 7 day bonuses there is a bit less there to keep you coming back. Premium currency gems are fairly easy to gain from achievements and daily tasks which is a nice touch, meaning you don’t need to spend real money. The merging mechanic on gear only really starts to pay dividends after you’ve opened quite a few crates (definitely a worthy investment).

The game is good for slightly longer play sessions with most successful runs lasting 8 to 15 minutes, but the game does do a good job of recovering previous play data should you need to cut your session short. Overall it’s a fun game and quite addictive with a lot of levels to unpack and skills to upgrade, it has a nice difficulty scale. Ultimately it does get a bit repetitive after some time, but will definitely keep you hooked for some considerable time.

Tips

  • Consider what items you will need in order to evolve your weapons
  • The guardian/force barrier is extremely useful early game against enemies with lower health
  • Some weapons share an evolution item, this can allow you to carry extra items that don’t evolve anything
  • Avoid and kite large groups of enemies
  • Look out for bombs and magnets from crates
  • Spend gems on S grade supplies, gems are quite easy to earn through regular play
  • The fully upgraded drill is very good for hard bosses as it will target them non stop
  • You can grind 8min levels for gold as they complete faster and you get good gold from bosses

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Super Clone

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The Game

Super Clone is an early access game by LeftRight. The game is essentially an action RPG set in the distant future where robots have taken over. You start off in the 2100 on a mission to stop the robots, but sadly you don’t manage, 10 years later you are reborn as a clone on a mission to save humanity and stop the robots. The game is bright and colourful, it features very simple controls – movement and action. Shooting happens automatically when within range of an enemy. Enemies vary with various shooting patters or melee attacks. Dodging, moving and shooting is slick and responsive and very fun.

At the end of each stage in a level you are given a choice of various upgrades that will last during this level. Once you have selected an upgrade you may have a choice of various routes to continue on – the route you choose will determine the type of upgrades available at the end of that stage. Look out for secret rooms as well as they will hold special items that can be turned in for various prizes. The game has 5 chapters currently, each featuring 7 levels with a varying amount of stages. For an early access game, there is definitely a lot there to get your teeth into.

Worth it?

The game is fast paced, fun, colourful and has some good audio. There is a lot to it and as it’s early access we can look forward to a lot more in the future like the Arena mode. You generally have 5 clones that take around 15mins to respawn – meaning that if you were to play 5 levels in quick succession you may need to take a break before you jump back in, although if you are really pressed you can watch a video. You can purchase an add free version for £5.99 along with some gems and while it’s not really needed – it’s not that big an amount for what the game has to offer, so definitely worth considering.

There are 3 tiers of chests, essentially the gatcha element, keys for the bottom two tiers are easy to come by, while the top tier costs premium currency and is only available for free once a week. The chests are needed to unlock new armour and weapons.

Overall this game has some serious potential and delivers quite a punch. I am very keen to see where it goes from here. There are some minor bugs, text issues and polish elements like being able to compare weapons or open multiple chests at the same time, but I would expect these and more to all be resolved in future updates.

Tips

  • If you’re short on cash repeat the last level in a world and try and get coin enhancements
  • Use and level up different weapons for different levels
  • Experiment with different upgrades and builds
  • Make sure to turn in lost items for nice prizes

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