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The wiki database includes over 200 columns for info! View toggles: compact, pin, fun. Bigger Big Normal Small Smaller [-] [+] font size. Site & minireviews by xoxomonstergirl. Click a row to expand!

Genre/Control

Specific tags for the title's features

Ranking

Similarity & Review

Review

Multiple Sources

Similarity

Compared to VS. Not a review!

Similarity Scale

Percentage of possible points earned scored -1 to 1 in tenths in 60 categories

Genre Controls Modes Progress Builds Stages Content Aesthetic Vibe
[edit]

Vampire Survivors

DLC Released

The game that sparked the debate! Not the first, but the most influential. Detailed review notes are available for each ranked title!

The numbers in the similarity column measure similarity to Vampire Survivors, not a review. You can also see review scores! A couple extremely different games are included to test the ranking scale - as more games get fully ranked, these will stay near the bottom. Help us improve the wiki by hitting the edit button and filling out or correcting info. You can also submit info via the dev/player surveys linked in the header.

Auto-Shooter Bullet Heaven Content Rich Enemy Hell Horde Survival Mowing Game Roguelite Single Stick Shooter Survivors-like Top Down or Isometric Wave Survival
9.9 Combined Ranking Score
1/72 Ranking Position
1595/1600 Total Points
9.8 Final Review
98% Steam
9.7 Scale
10.0 Vibes
205178 Steam Reviews
395/400 Review Points
10.0 Similarity Score
100% Diagnosis:
Similar
1200/1200 Comparison Points
100% Genre 8/8 genre
100% Simple Controls 7/7 move
100% Survival Modes 4/4 modes
100% Power Progression 4/4 level
100% Buildcrafting Depth 5/5 build
100% Stage Features 7/7 stage
100% Content Breadth 9/9 stuff
100% Aesthetics 6/6 style
100% Gameplay Vibe Check 10/10 vibe vibe

Vampire Survivors Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 92.8

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 11/23/2023

concetta-from_vampire-survivors.webpThe standard to which all other games on this list are held! We recognize that it's not just the basics of gameplay but also the depth of content and collectables that makes it addictive.

It's a simple casual game about moving towards some things and away from other things. And it's a complex hardcore build crafting systems game about over the top screen wiping action. It's a very influential game with an auto-fire design that isn't just replicating how weapons work without it, where as one dev on another game put it "every weapon makes you move in a different way." Many followers don't fully understand what it attempted to deconstruct and many attempt to do their own thing.

poe-from_vampire-survivors.webpAlso I just found out a full symphony orchestra was used for the DLC soundtrack - what the fuck!

We're not considering some more recently added features in our main scale, mainly just because they came out after the game had moved to DLC. The multiplayer is free, but the boom happened before it happened so we're just kind of leaving it in metadata for now. The new adventure mode is also linked to DLC.

It's totally possible, just annoying, to add more categories to the scale, but for now we're going on 'vanilla' Vampire Survivors circa 2023. It's easy to see which categories we are comparing, anyway, on the scale heatmap!

red-death-from_vampire-survivors.webpThere isn't as in depth review notes here, but if you check out the explainer much of it is about breaking down what made Vampire Survivors so successful and seperated it from other similar games that came before. The scoring guide also will walk through how Vampire Survivors works for every category on the scale.

Note on other games: "Many of these games have campaign or dungeon crawling mode, but we're not really scoring that for or against them directly, just if they include the wave survival modes."

Longer reviews are sometimes for worse games: "I just write more when there are issues to note. Some are just more complicated. Just don't think a short review means it's bad, often it means there's little to complain about. Enjoy the scale!" - xoxomonstergirl

Vampire Survivors Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

10.0 Similarity Score
100% Diagnosis:
1200/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 1/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 1/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 1/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 1/1
Move Only 1/1
No Dash 1/1
No Trigger 1/1
No Special Move 1/1
No Aiming 1/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 1/1
Endless Mode 1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 1/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 1/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 1/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 1/1
1/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 1/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 1/1
Explorable Map 1/1
BIG Maps 1/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 1/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 1/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 1/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 1/1
Enemy Variety 1/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters 1/1
Many Challenges 1/1
Multiple Stages 1/1
Difficulty Modifiers 1/1
Bestiary / Lore 1/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 1/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 1/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 1/1
Subtle Humor 1/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 1/1
Over the Top 1/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 1/1
Fun Ramp 1/1
Low Price 1/1
Technical Check 1/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 1/1

Vampire Survivors Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

9.8 Final Review
98% Positive Steam Reviews
205178 Steam Reviews
10.0 Pure Vibes
9.7 Review Scale
395/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 0.9/1
Good UI 0.8/1
Controller and Deck 1/1
Lots of Content 1/1
Good Theme 1/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 1/1

Metacritic Scores

- +

This title has metacritic data! The "fuck the man" score is adjusted so each person's review is equally weighted, regardless of critic or fan status.

Critic

8.7 Converted 10 Point Score
29 Number of Critic Reviews

User

8.3 User Review Average
332 Number of User Reviews

Average

8.5 Direct Average
8.3 "Fuck The Man" Combined Mean

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: Co-Op
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 4
  • Leaderboards: No

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: 190
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: Yes

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: Yes itch.io
  • DLC Available: Yes
  • Soundtrack Available: Steam SoundCloud YouTube

Critic Review Excerpt

- +

Here's another perspective to evaluate the game.

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Mow down thousands of night creatures and survive until dawn! Vampire Survivors is a gothic horror casual game with rogue-lite elements, where your choices can allow you to quickly snowball against the hundreds of monsters that get thrown at you."

"Vampire Survivors is a time survival game with minimalistic gameplay and roguelite elements.
Hell is empty, the devils are here, and there's no place to run or hide. All you can do is survive as long as you can until death inevitably puts an end to your struggles. Gather gold in each run to buy upgrades and help the next survivor.
"

"The supernatural indie phenomenon that lets you be the bullet hell!"

Control Style Notes

- +

Single Stick Shooter: Vampire Survivors has a movement only control scheme, except for selecting upgrades and naivating the menu with one button.

Auto-Shooter: Attacks happen on a cool down timer with no player button or trigger available. They also auto-aim in various ways depending on the weapon.

Mowing Game: Movement is the primary mechanic, you're always charting a path away from some things and towards others. Automated attacks have distinct shapes so "every weapon forces you to move in a different way" as drowsyau, design lead of Sea of Survivors puts it. This is a distinct feature of the subsubgenre of mowing games.

Enemies from maze like patterns.

Automated Features

Auto-Aim
Auto-Fire

Default, no option for manual aim or trigger.

Supported Controls

  • Controller: Full
  • Controller Move Only: Yes
  • Controller One Handed: Yes
  • Mouse Only: Yes
  • Keyboard Only: Yes
  • Keyboard One Handed: Yes

Accessibility & Tutorial

- +

Accessibility Notes

Seizure warning.

Game is highly accessible control-wise out of the box due to the large array of support and simple single stick controls.

Menu FX Toggles: Flashing VFX and screen shake toggle

Legibility/Visibility Toggles: Border Opacity, Pixel Font, Co-Op Outlines, Disable Damage Numbers

Option to disable blood.

Tutorial Notes

Vampire Survivors has no tutorial. On first launch it quickly opens to a menu where you have few options but to simply start a run. Inside a run, you are presented with no prompts, control diagrams or instructions.

It works fine, because there is only one control during play: Joystick, mouse click or touch screen press to move.

Game Modes

- +

Timed Survival
Endless Survival

Campaign / Story
(Adventure DLC)

Difficulty Modes
(Hyper, Hurry, Inverse, Endless)

Difficulty Modifiers
(Via Meta Unlocks)

Multiplayer Co-Op

Game Mode Notes

Starts with 30m survival and opens up other game modes and difficulty options as you progress. Each difficulty mode has a variety of changes and increased rewards, including:

Hyper Mode: Character and enemies move faster, difficulty is increased in a few ways.
Hurry Mode: In Hurry mode, there's 2x Clock Speed and increased XP.
Inverse Mode: In Inverse mode, the map is flipped upside down (literally) and much difficulty is increased
Endless mode: Instead of an unkillable boss spawn at 30m, the enemy waves repeat with increased difficulty

Some meta unlocks also increase or modify difficulty and eventually you can banish some upgrade options pre-run for a "deck construction" style gameplay aspect. Quick streamlined menu directs you into the next run with minimal effort.

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 30m

Run Time Notes

The initial run time is about 30 minutes, later stages are 15 minutes. "Hyper Mode" allows standard stages to take 15m run time.

Run is ended by a near impossible to kill boss. Unlockable endless modes and difficulty modifiers.

Speed Settings

2x
Unlockable
"Hyper Mode"

Hurry mode increases player and enemy speed, but not clock speed.

Player Power Progression

- +

Detailed notes on progression systems.

In Run Progression

During the run the player defeats enemies and gathers xp drops to level up. Level dialog pops up automatically on xp gain event. Leveling is done by selecting random options for ability enhancing items or attacking weapons (kind of like cards, but presented horizontally), eventually with the option of rerolling or banishing options. Items can also be collected off the ground when found around a map.

They can also gather temporary powerups dropped by enemies and open elite enemy treasure chests for items and weapons. In addition, a later game system of "arcana" drops further allows for modification of the run. Weapons and items can combine when fully leveled for "evolved" forms.

When you "run out" of levels in an endless run you can pick gold or health and even set it to auto. The player can hold 6 weapons, but pick up over the limit

Meta Progression

As the game progresses players unlock more stage and difficulty options by accomplishing timed survival goals and find based goals on each stage. They also unlock the option to purchase characters or purchase upgrades, as well as new weapons/items to find in future runs.

Players earn a currency through runs (gold) that can be spent on the in run vendor (eventually unlocked) or saved to get character or upgrades in the menu. Upgrades can be refunded, allowing for some buildcrafting.

Content By The Numbers

- +

58 Characters (16 secret, 16 DLC)

48 Base Weapons (+7 Counterparts)
38 Evolved Weapons and Unions
10 Special / Temporary Weapons
17 Passive Effect Items
(Almost all with upgrade levels)
16 Weapon Stats

19 Pickups
(XP, Gold, Food, Powerups)
22 feature unlocking relics to find
22 Run Modifying Arcana Cards
22 Meta Upgrade Powerups
198 Unique Enemies (58 Bosses)
19 Stages
5 Stage Modes
2 DLC available

In Game Lore & Extras

Collection
- Browse weapons, items,
relics, arcana

Bestiary
- Browse Enemies

Music
- On stage select,
can listen jukebox-style

UI Walkthrough: Main Menus

- +

Any other accessibility or menu options not mentioned already in the game modes. Instead of deciding what to list here, I'm going to just list it all. This should make for a pretty interesting UI study, actually, but probably won't be needed by most players. These are all likely missing late game unlock options! Please comment in corrections! From top left, back or close buttons are assumed. Spoiler Warning! Menu unlocks often happen later in play. See also meta unlock menu walkthrough.

Main Menu

Quit
Options
- "Favorites", Display, Sound, Gameplay,
Co-Op, Account
Start
-> Character Select
--> Enter Co-Op
-- Max Weapons, Eggs, Meta Stat Sidebar,
Map Completion Sidebar
--> Stage Select
--- Stage Stat Sidebar, Music Selection
--- Difficulty Modes (Hyper, Hurry, Arcanas,
Limit Break, Inverse, Endless)
---> Start
Quick Start
Collection (Seal Item)
Power Up (Purchase and refund with gold)
Unlocks (Option to hide completed)
Bestiary
Credits
Secrets (Checklist, Enter Cheat Code "Cast Spell")

Display & Sound

Both under "Options" in main menu.

Display
- Resolution Dropdown
- Vsync
- Border Transparency Dropdown
- Checkboxes: Flashing VFX, Disable Blood,
Weapons ScreenShake, Pixel Font,
Show Defanged Enemies

Sound
- Sounds Slider
- Music Slider
- Option for "Classic" or
"Blast Processed" sound effects

Track / speed options for music available at level select.

Gameplay / Input / Other Options

Under "options" in the main menu.

Gameplay
- Checkboxes: Damage Numbers, Show stage
progression, Visually Invert
Stages, Touch Screen Control Stick
- Option for Legacy or Default Joystick Type

Co-Op
- Player Colour Dropdowns
- Checkboxes: Show Co-OP Indicators,
Co-Op Vibration, Tint UI Selection,
Sequential Chest Mode

Account
- Language Selection (Many Options)
- Twitch Channel Connect
- Data Recovery

UI Walkthrough: Player HUD & Pause

- +

From top left of the screen, persistent UI during play (aka Heads Up Display) and other menus during your run.

Player HUD / Gameplay UI

XP Bar across full screen width, level number in top left corner.

Weapon/Item Slots in top left corner. Timer in middle. Enemy and gold count in top right corner.

Mouse pause button in top right corner, low opacity.

Player health bar below avatar. Optional touch screen joystick on screen, damage numbers, and arrows on edge of screen for pickups and treasure drops.

Pause Menus

Stats Sidebar, Map

- Options
-- Sounds, Music, Touch Screen
Control Stick, Flashing VFX,
Weapons ScreenShake, Damage Numbers
--| Quit
--> Resume
- Hide Pickups / Show Pickups
- Hide Guide / Show Guides
- Open Grimoire
- Resume

UI Walkthrough: Leveling & Progression

- +

Listing UI display as well. "In run" applies to "round end" UI in games with rounds. May use in game terms for complicated concepts. See also metaprogression system notes in the game mode notes.

Level / Power Up / Treasure: In Run and End Menus

XP drops as gems. Gold, powerups and health drop from enemies and breakables. Items sit on map. Enemies drop chests.

On XP Gain Event
- Equipment and Stat Sidebar
- 3-4 Level Options in vertical bordered list
- Reroll, Skip, Banish

If Arcana is Enabled in late game, starts with "Randomazzo" and more can be dropped
- pick from 22 tarot style "cards' with major effects.

Merchant
- when found purchase from unlocked options with gold.
Treasure Pickup Event
- Display gacha style drop and confirm, no options.

End Run Displays Results
-> Done

Meta Unlock Menus

Characters can be purchased from character select, under "Start".

Upgrades, called "powerups" are purchased in a simple UI with checkboxes after the option to purchase them has been unlocked through goals.

Upgrade Options / Unlocks: Might, Armor, Max Health, Recovery, Cooldown Area, Speed, Duration, Amount, Move Speed, Magnet, Luck, Growth, Greed, Curse, Revival, Omni, Defang, Reroll, Skip, Banish, Seal

Meta PowerUps can be Refunded, characters cannot. Meta PowerUps can be individually toggled off after purchase.

[edit]

HoloCure - Save the Fans!

Free Available Released

Very commonly recommended free game for if you want something tight to the Vampire Survivors formula and just as fun. Technically a fan game for Hololive, it's a feature rich game anyone can enjoy. Some features, including fishing, are tucked into a little life sim menu mode. Has aiming and special moves but they can be ignored and still play ok. Many meta notes via Joske and Genki on Discord!

Auto-Shooter Bullet Heaven Content Rich Enemy Hell Female Protagonist Fishing Horde Survival Mowing Game Roguelite Survivors-like Top Down or Isometric Twin Stick Shooter Wave Survival
9.0 Combined Ranking Score
3/72 Ranking Position
1501/1600 Total Points
9.3 Final Review
99% Steam
9.7 Scale
8.3 Vibes
21125 Steam Reviews
379/400 Review Points
8.7 Similarity Score
94% Diagnosis:
Similar
1122/1200 Comparison Points
99% Genre 7.8/8 genre
74% Simple Controls 3.3/7 move
100% Survival Modes 4/4 modes
100% Power Progression 4/4 level
100% Buildcrafting Depth 5/5 build
81% Stage Features 4.4/7 stage
94% Content Breadth 8/9 stuff
99% Aesthetics 5.9/6 style
99% Gameplay Vibe Check 9.8/10 vibe vibe

HoloCure - Save the Fans! Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 6.2

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 11/21/2023

tsukumo-sana-from_holocure-save-the-fans.gifYou might not realize these are all fan representations of HoloLive vtubers as characters, except for the game kind of tells you. Many players including myself have no idea who they are and still enjoy the game a lot. It has a lighter humorous tone that doesn't bog it down into meme game territory and nails the basic VS formula with some subtle twists and upgrades with weapon evolutions.

Adds aiming and a special move button, but some builds you can make work for 1 handed play. Also has a home decoration side game, fishing, and more! On the downside, feels a little 'light' and less immersive for some reason to me, but hey, it's free! I'll be playing more of it!

Did I say it's totally free? It's Free! I'll come back and make real notes later.

smol-ame-from_holocure-save-the-fans.webpFull level/progression notes from Genki: "Leveling up is done like Vampire Survivors. Enemies drop XP, on level up you choose a weapon (or item). Eventually there's an option to reroll or banish a weapon or item. Occasionally, anvils drop on the ground. Anvils allow you to level up a weapon/item without the need for xp, enchant a weapon (apply a random buff) or enhance a weapon beyond it's max level (each enhancement costs coins and every time per weapon the probability of success decreases).

Stamps also drop from time to time. Stamps are buffs that are only applied to the main character-unique weapon. You can equip a max of 3 stamps and level them up to level 3 by sacrificing other stamps. Stamps can also be sold for coins. There's a also a super rare chance for super-items to drop from boxes. Super items are buffed version of normal items without any downside.
"

fubuzilla-from_holocure-save-the-fans.gif"Players can combine certain weapons to make a collab, an evolved version of those two weapon that also frees a slot. When certain requirements are met and the player collects a golden hammer, they have the chance to combine a collab with an item to make a super collab."

HoloCure - Save the Fans! Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

8.7 Similarity Score
94% Diagnosis:
1122/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 0.8/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 1/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 1/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 0/1
Move Only 0/1
No Dash 1/1
No Trigger 1/1
No Special Move 0/1
No Aiming 0.3/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 1/1
Endless Mode 1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 1/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 1/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 1/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 1/1
1/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 1/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 1/1
Explorable Map 0.2/1
BIG Maps 0.2/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 1/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 1/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 1/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 0/1
Enemy Variety 1/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters 1/1
Many Challenges 1/1
Multiple Stages 1/1
Difficulty Modifiers 0.5/1
Bestiary / Lore 0.5/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 1/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 0.9/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 1/1
Subtle Humor 1/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 1/1
Over the Top 1/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 0.8/1
Fun Ramp 1/1
Low Price 1/1
Technical Check 1/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 1/1

HoloCure - Save the Fans! Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

9.3 Final Review
99% Positive Steam Reviews
21125 Steam Reviews
8.3 Pure Vibes
9.7 Review Scale
379/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 1/1
Good UI 1/1
Controller and Deck 1/1
Lots of Content 1/1
Good Theme 1/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 0.7/1
Vibe Check 1/1

Metacritic Scores

- +

This title has metacritic data! The "fuck the man" score is adjusted so each person's review is equally weighted, regardless of critic or fan status.

Critic

8.0 Converted 10 Point Score
1 Number of Critic Reviews

User

8.7 User Review Average
21 Number of User Reviews

Average

8.4 Direct Average
8.7 "Fuck The Man" Combined Mean

HoloCure - Save the Fans! Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

itch.ioSteam DeckWindows PCFree AvailableReleased

Sorting Categories

Similar

Genre and Control Style Tags

Auto-ShooterBullet HeavenContent RichEnemy HellFemale ProtagonistFishingHorde SurvivalMowing GameRogueliteSurvivors-likeTop Down or IsometricTwin Stick ShooterWave Survival

Aesthetic Tags

2DAnimeCutePixel Art

Setting / Story Tags

ComedyContemporaryMeme Game

Control Styles

Auto-FireControllerKeyboard Only

Game Mode Tags

Boss EndedCookingDifficulty ModifiersEndless ModeFishingHub ZoneIgnorable TutorialMinigame MetaprogressionMinigamesRoulette ProgressionTimed SurvivalUnlockable CharactersWave Survival20m

Features and Extras

SoundtrackSteam AchievementsSteam Cloud

Dev/Publisher

KayAnimate

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: In Game and Online Leaderboards Genki: "Finishing a run in Endless mode lets you upload your score to the board"

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: 82
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: No

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: Totally Free
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: YouTube

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Play as your favorite Vtubers from Hololive! Fight, explore, and clear your way through armies of fans and save them from their mind-control in this unofficial free fan-game."

"Free, unofficial fan game featuring the vtuber talents of Hololive and its surrounding community, with gameplay heavily inspired by Vampire Survivors and Magic Survival."

Control Style Notes

- +

Genki: "Twin stick shooter with special skills activated by a button and strafing / aiming lock also toggled by holding a button. Can be played with only keyboard (aiming and strafing will be locked to eight directions), mouse+keyboard or controller (both allow for free aiming 360 degrees)."

Automated Features

Auto-fire. Default, but there is a special move button.

No targeted auto-aiming, but by default all weapons that can be aimed fire in the direction your character moves. You can choose to lock(strafe) the aim in a specific direction or use free aiming with m+k or controller

Supported Controls

  • Controller: Partial
  • Controller Move Only: No
  • Controller One Handed: Partially Genki: "Possible to assign special skill and strafing to the two left triggers. Would be missing the free aim that comes with the right stick, though."
  • Mouse Only: No
  • Keyboard Only: Yes. Genki: "Weapon aiming and strafing will be restricted to only 8 directions, though."
  • Keyboard One Handed: Partially. Genki: "It's possible to play with 1 hand with certain weapon combinations and characters, but not all."

Accessibility & Tutorial

- +

Accessibility Notes

Game is semi-accessible as it can be played with one hand, but it loses the aiming features.

Menu FX Toggles: Attack opacity slider, Visual Effects, Screen Shake, Show Skill Radius

Tutorial Notes

Has a very quick basic tutorial when you start a run for the first time showing basic movement and aiming controls for both keyboard + mouse and controller (twin-stick controls).

Game Modes

- +

Stage Mode
(Timed Survival)

Endless Mode
(Endless Survival)

Time Mode
(Speedrun Mode)

HoloHouse
(Various Minigames: Management Sim, Farming, Fishing, Cooking)

Difficulty Modifiers
(via Meta Unlocks /
HoloHouse)

Game Mode Notes

Stage mode and Endless mode can be selected in all stages. Time mode has an specific stage specifically made for it.

The HoloHouse features various minigames such as fishing, farming, cooking, worker management and house building.

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 20m

Run Time Notes

Stage mode is the default game mode that lasts 20 minutes and the run ends when the player defeats the final boss.

Endless mode lasts 30+ minutes (to upwards of 60 minutes, sometimes more depending on build and strategy), the run ends with a mob horde with exponentially increasing stats that eventually overwhelmed the player.

Time mode lasts 3-10 minutes. The goal is to complete a certain objective as fast as possible.

Speed Settings

None

Player Power Progression

- +

Detailed notes on progression systems.

In Run Progression

Very similar to Vampire Survivors. Enemies drop XP, on dialog pops up on level event, eventual reroll and "banish" options.

Occasionally dropped "anvils" allow you to instantly level, buff or a chance to further enhance a weapon beyond it's max level for coins.

Occasionally dropped "stamps" are also equippable/upgradeable/swappable buffs

Very rare chance of super-items dropped from boxes, which are buffed versions of items without any downside.

Weapons can combine and evolve, called a "collab", freeing an equip slot. In certain conditions they can combine with an item to make a "super collab".

Meta Progression

Players unlock new stages, items and weapons by completing certain goals. They can earn gold (holocoins) through runs that can be spent on upgrades and characters.

The characters can not be purchased directly and are instead obtained through gacha with the in-game currency. Repeat characters in the gacha upgrade the existing character. Repeat characters on a gacha banner also give a secondary currency (a "tear") per repeated character. Tears can be used to directly purchase
characters or outfits without the need for gacha.

Upgrades can be refunded, gold spent on gacha can not be refunded. In the HoloHouse, gold can be spent on farming crops and combined with fish obtained from a fishing minigame. It's cooked into various food items that give effects during gameplay (essentially difficulty modifiers.)

Content By The Numbers

- +

38 Characters, each one with a unique main weapon and 3 unique skills
64 Alternate Outfits in total

16 Base Weapons
23 Collabs
4 Super Collabs
34 Items(16 Super Item variants)
20 Stamps

16 Craftable Modifiers ("Foods")
1 XP pickup, 1 Healing Item (by default. Character skills can add more)
7 Stages (4 Normal, 3 Hard Variants with unique twists)
1 Time Stage
40+ Unique Enemies (and multiple variants)
17 Bosses

3 Levels of "Fandom" Buffs per character
168 In-Game Achievements(some also act as requirements for unlocks)

Multiple additional Features dependant on character skills

In Game Lore & Extras

Armory
- Check weapons, items, collabs and super collabs (super items not visible)

HoloHouse
- House Decoration minigame
- Fishing minigame
- Cooking
- Management minigame
(Fishing, cooking and management minigame required to 100% completion)

UI Walkthrough: Main Menus

- +

Any other accessibility or menu options not mentioned already in the game modes. Instead of deciding what to list here, I'm going to just list it all. This should make for a pretty interesting UI study, actually, but probably won't be needed by most players. These are all likely missing late game unlock options! Please comment in corrections! From top left, back or close buttons are assumed. Spoiler Warning! Menu unlocks often happen later in play. See also meta unlock menu walkthrough.

Main Menu

Play
->Character Select
-->Outfit Select (if extra outfits unlocked)
-> Mode Select (Stage, Endless or Time)
--> Stage Select(Also enable Food from HoloHouse)
HoloHouse
-> Character Select
Shop
-> Character Gacha
--> Banner Selection (Select your number of rolls from 1-10)
-> Tears Menu (Buy Outfits or Characters directly with the secondary currency tears)
-> Buy Upgrades
-> Armory (Collection)
Leaderboard
Achievements
-> Achievements
--> General Achievements
--> Character Specific Achievements
-> Fandoms (Character-based meta-progression based on goals)
Settings
Credits
Quit

Display & Sound

Available on the main menu or the pause menu

Display
- Resolution(720p or 1080p)
- Fullscreen
- Attack Opacity
- Damage Numbers
- Visual Effects
- Screen Shake
- Hud Portrait(Character Portrait)
- Hud HP bar
- Hud HP number
- Show Mini HP(above player)
- Hide HP if full
- Show Skill radius
- Show Stamps

Sound
- Music Volume Slider
- Sound Volume Slider

Gameplay / Input / Other Options

Available on the main menu or the pause menu
Gameplay
- Damage Numbers, Visual Effects, etc under the option "Graphic Settings". See Display and Sound Options column
Input
- Keybinds: Confirm/Strafe, Cancel/Special, Left,Right, Up,Down,SET ALL.
- Controller: Confirm/Strafe,Strafe(Alt),Cancel/Special,Special(Alt),Start,Menu,SET ALL
- Controller Vibration
Other
- Language (English, Indonesian, Japanese)
- HoloHouse Custom Names (randomizes workers names in HoloHouse)
- HoloHouse Custom Messages

UI Walkthrough: Player HUD & Pause

- +

From top left of the screen, persistent UI during play (aka Heads Up Display) and other menus during your run.

Player HUD / Gameplay UI

XP bar runs across the screen. Level is displayed on the top right.

Character Portrait (Size can be selected in settings)

6 weapon slots and 6 item slots below them. All next to character portrait.

Character Skill icon and charging bar below character portrait.

Coins collected and below it, enemies defeated. Both top right close to level.

Timer on display at all times. Shows selected mode and time elapsed.

Pause Menus

Actual Pause Menu on the center. On the left, Character Artwork, name and stats are shown.
-Skills (check character-specific skills and their level)
-Stamps (upgrade, swap or sell stamps)
-Collabs (see a list of already unlocked collabs and super collabs)
-Resume
-Settings
-Quit

UI Walkthrough: Leveling & Progression

- +

Listing UI display as well. "In run" applies to "round end" UI in games with rounds. May use in game terms for complicated concepts. See also metaprogression system notes in the game mode notes.

Level / Power Up / Treasure: In Run and End Menus

XP drops as play buttons of varying color depending on the XP given. Gold drops from enemies. Health items can either drop randomly or be obtained by breaking certain objects. Anvils that let you upgrade your weapon also drop.

On XP Gain Event
- On the left, Character Artwork, name and stats are shown.
- Can bring up a side menu to see all available collabs possible.
- Pick from 4 options. Items/Weapons
- Reroll, Eliminate

On Stamp pickup
-Picked up stamp on left side. Description in the bottom center.
-Select an option to swap/upgrade/sell the stamp with any already placed stamp or place stamp in empty slot

On Collab
- Shows 6 weapons on screen. Weapons that can be collabed in general glow.

On Super Collab
- Shows all weapons and items on screen. Weapons and items that can super collab glow.

On Anvil pickup
- Shows all weapons and items. Maxed out items are greyed out.
- On item select: Level up item for free.
- On weapon select: Level up item for free if not maxed out. Can also "enchant" weapon (apply a buff) for coins.
If weapon already maxed, can choose to level up beyond max level for coins, has a probability to fail enhancement.

On box drop
- Can select to accept the drop or refuse it

Meta Unlock Menus

Characters can be purchased via gacha banners. There's a "tears" sub-menu per banner that also acts as a way to check alt outfit unlocked status.

Upgrades are bought in the shop. Divided in three menus: Enhancements (unlock basic game systems like stamps, rerolls, eliminates),
Stat Upgrades and Others(Game modifiers like weapon limit, banning super items, hardcore mode)

Enhancements: Special Attack, Growth, Reroll, Eliminate, Stamps, Enchantments, Fandom

Stat Upgrades: HP, ATK, Speed,Crit, Pickup Range, Haste, Regen, Defense, Special Cooldown Reduction, Skill Up, EXP Gain Up, Foods Drop Up, Coins Up, Enhancement Rates Up

Others: Marketing, Weapon Limit, Item Limit, Collab Ban, Super Items Ban, G Rank Off, Hardcore Mode, Refund All

All upgrades can be refunded, including the basic system ones (required for some achievements). Characters cannot be refunded, but
repeated characters on a gacha banner grant you a tear. With enough tears you can purchase characters or outfits directly without the need for gacha.

Fandom Menu: Under the Achievements Menu. Provides a list of every character's fandom exp and their conditions to level up. Fandoms grant you bonuses for each character. 3 levels of fandom per character.

[edit]

Void Scrappers

Free Available Released

A fan loved tightly designed little space survivors-like with a really jammin soundtrack that seals the deal. One handed play possible if you map the boost. Definitely faster and much harder than most games here start off. There's a lot of competition among the space games, this is one of the better ones. It manages to straddle the line of simple and complex in many ways, never seeming to suffer from the lack of trappings in some other games, but also hiding a bit of its depth under arcade stylings and unclear unlocks.

Arena Shooter Auto-Shooter Enemy Hell Roguelite Survivors-like Top Down or Isometric
8.8 Combined Ranking Score
7/72 Ranking Position
1471/1600 Total Points
9.3 Final Review
91% Steam
9.6 Scale
9.3 Vibes
404 Steam Reviews
380/400 Review Points
8.2 Similarity Score
91% Diagnosis:
Similar
1091/1200 Comparison Points
94% Genre 7.1/8 genre
87% Simple Controls 5.2/7 move
99% Survival Modes 3.9/4 modes
100% Power Progression 4/4 level
100% Buildcrafting Depth 5/5 build
79% Stage Features 4.1/7 stage
74% Content Breadth 4.4/9 stuff
100% Aesthetics 6/6 style
99% Gameplay Vibe Check 9.7/10 vibe vibe

Void Scrappers Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 5.0

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 11/4/2023

shrapnel-from_void-scrappers.gifAn incredibly satisfying and easy to loop into space survivors-like. The controls remind me of playing the drifty UFO style Arilou in Star Control 2, where you'll keep moving a little bit but it's never annoying because you can zip right back around. It's got what I'd say are bullet hell hitboxes (in the best way) where you can cruise quite close to an enemy and still save your neck at the last second.

That's good because it's honestly also very challenging due to the fast movement and generally only 3 or 4 health you've got, with few ways to make yourself more resistant to a hit.

Feels a little slow to unlock things, but also the minimal menu design makes it easy to forget there are also challenge based unlocks and not just the currency ones. Once I got in the habit of finding a challenge to chase I was fully sucked into the "one more run" loop.

It adds a dash but besides that it's mostly an auto shooter. While most space games (and most survivors-likes in general it seems) add twin stick controls, this one happily handles the aiming all on its own. I love that there's a no dashing challenge because I hate dashing.

It's technically an arena shooter but an enjoyable parallax scroll effect and the zippy travel makes it seem like you're in the endless void and not a tiny box, so it doesn't get negative scores in the map size and exploration, even a tiny positive in "big" maps. When you finish the survival/boss mode it just kills you with spawns VS style, but if you make an invincible build it's possible to continue until you break the game. We'll call this full points for both.

Really really good menu music. Great music overall. Like if star control was scored by trent reznor. Accidentally left it paused for a half hour just enjoying it on my phone. Game is considered complete with no updates planned, dev is working now on Bore Blasters, also on this spreadsheet.

Void Scrappers Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

8.2 Similarity Score
91% Diagnosis:
1091/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 0.8/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 0.8/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 0.5/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 0.5/1
Move Only 0.7/1
No Dash 0/1
No Trigger 1/1
No Special Move 1/1
No Aiming 1/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 1/1
Endless Mode 1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 1/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 0.9/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 1/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 1/1
1/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 1/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 1/1
Explorable Map 0/1
BIG Maps 0.1/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 1/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 1/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 1/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 0/1
Enemy Variety 0.4/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters 1/1
Many Challenges 1/1
Multiple Stages 0/1
Difficulty Modifiers 0/1
Bestiary / Lore 0/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 0/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 1/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 1/1
Subtle Humor 1/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 0.7/1
Over the Top 1/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 1/1
Fun Ramp 1/1
Low Price 1/1
Technical Check 1/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 0.7/1

Void Scrappers Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

9.3 Final Review
91% Positive Steam Reviews
404 Steam Reviews
9.3 Pure Vibes
9.6 Review Scale
380/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 1/1
Good UI 0.8/1
Controller and Deck 1/1
Lots of Content 0.8/1
Good Theme 1/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 1/1

Metacritic Scores

- +

This title has metacritic data! The "fuck the man" score is adjusted so each person's review is equally weighted, regardless of critic or fan status.

Critic

7.3 Converted 10 Point Score
2 Number of Critic Reviews

User

9.0 User Review Average
1 Number of User Reviews

Average

8.2 Direct Average
7.9 "Fuck The Man" Combined Mean

Void Scrappers Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

BrowserGOGitch.ioLinuxMacSteam DeckSwitchWindows PCFree AvailableReleased

Sorting Categories

Similar

Genre and Control Style Tags

Arena ShooterAuto-ShooterEnemy HellRogueliteSurvivors-likeTop Down or Isometric

Aesthetic Tags

2DLofiPixel ArtRetro

Setting / Story Tags

ComedySci-fiShip (Air/Space)Space

Control Styles

Auto-AimAuto-FireController

Game Mode Tags

Difficulty ModifiersEndless ModeNo TutorialSpeed UpTimed SurvivalWave Survival30m

Features and Extras

SoundtrackSteam AchievementsSteam Cloud

Dev/Publisher

8BitSkull

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: 11
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: No

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: itch.io
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: Steam YouTube Bandcamp GOG

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

Blast hordes of alien ships into junk. Collect the scrap to upgrade your ship into an unstoppable force of destruction. Unlock new characters and weapons and upgrade your stats between runs.

"Void Scrappers Post Mortem" - dev interview

"I wanted to play into the power fantasy that a lot of these recent horde shooters aspire to by letting the player move fast. I never liked walking around slowly while doing my slaying, so I've put the player in a zippy space ship. Not just that - but the ship has a dash ability which provides a brief turbo boost (with invincibility!). The game is still difficult, just not because you move slowly." Great responsive dev, helped clarify several features in interview.

Control Style Notes

- +

Zippy fast moving single stick shooter. It adds a dash but otherwise limits attack controls.

Automated Features

Auto-Fire
Auto-Aim

There's no way to disable.

Supported Controls

  • Controller: Full
  • Controller Move Only: No
  • Controller One Handed: ?
  • Mouse Only: No
  • Keyboard Only: ?
  • Keyboard One Handed: ?

Game Modes

- +

Timed/Endless Survival

Difficulty Setting
(Enemy Projectiles)

Game Mode Notes

Dev: "Enemy projectiles can be turned off in settings. This slightly increases enemy HP."

Only one mode, but we're considering it both timed and endless - see run time notes.

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 30m

Run Time Notes

Dev: "In-game time, the end stages of a run are triggered at 20 minutes. However time stops for upgrades and weapons, so actual time is longer."

When you finish the survival/boss mode it just kills you with spawns VS style, but if you make an invincible build it's possible to continue until you break the game. We'll call this full points for both.

Speed Settings

0.75x - 1.25x

Game speed can be changed in settings with no other impact to achievements or anything else.

[edit]

Scarlet Tower

EA Free Available

Perhaps the most thematically and directly inspired (non-shovelware) I've played so far, especially with regards to weapons. It tries to do a lot but comes off with the impression a lot of surface level complexity (and annoying if pretty UI) covers for less actual depth / impactful feeling gameplay. Control-wise, it has toggle-able auto-aim and auto-fire and a dash, so that bumps it down a little in the ranking despite it feeling more like VS than almost any other game on the list. Pretty, but felt too derivative vibe-wise to me.

Auto-Shooter Bullet Heaven Enemy Hell Horde Survival Mowing Game Roguelite Single Stick Shooter Survivors-like Top Down or Isometric Twin Stick Shooter Wave Survival
8.2 Combined Ranking Score
18/72 Ranking Position
1463/1600 Total Points
7.5 Final Review
86% Steam
6.9 Scale
6.9 Vibes
799 Steam Reviews
324/400 Review Points
9.0 Similarity Score
95% Diagnosis:
Similar
1139/1200 Comparison Points
99% Genre 7.8/8 genre
88% Simple Controls 5.3/7 move
100% Survival Modes 4/4 modes
100% Power Progression 4/4 level
95% Buildcrafting Depth 4.5/5 build
100% Stage Features 7/7 stage
93% Content Breadth 7.8/9 stuff
85% Aesthetics 4.2/6 style
92% Gameplay Vibe Check 8.4/10 vibe vibe

Scarlet Tower Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 4.3

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 10/20/2023

Feels like a "clone", though it has dash, toggleable auto-aim and menu option for auto-fire. Interesting day/night cycle concept. Aesthetically, from the vampire theme to the characters to the directly ripped off and similarly named weapons, the clone aspect may be hard to get past. Gameplay feels crafted but progression feels slow as I'm several hours in, pretty good at these games now, and still only have the first map. Looks like it has more depth than it feels it has in play. Lots of systems but I am for some reason more confused than interested in them, maybe just because of how they are spread out through different menus for unlocks.

I think there are four separate tabs for currency based unlocks, and each character has their own set of moves? It's a lot of flipping back and forth to try and figure out synergy. I have other UI quibbles, like it looks better but importantly it's annoying to get into a run by having to go use the joystick to click down to the map and then another step etc. Finally, the characters are more fully rendered but somehow also feel more generic. It's not actually bad.

If it was the only game on the market I'd 100% it. As it is, if I want more vampire survivors to the extent I want the same game visually remastered but playwise toned down, I have better options. That sounds a little harsh re-reading it, but I'm probably going to have to learn to be harsh to get through trying 600 of these.

Edit 12/21/2023: New features including Endless Mode and Bestiary bumping it significantly up the similarity scale and overall ranking.

Scarlet Tower Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

9.0 Similarity Score
95% Diagnosis:
1139/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 0.8/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 1/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 1/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 0.8/1
Move Only 0.8/1
No Dash 0/1
No Trigger 0.9/1
No Special Move 1/1
No Aiming 0.8/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 1/1
Endless Mode 1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 1/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 1/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 1/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 1/1
1/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 1/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 0.5/1
Explorable Map 1/1
BIG Maps 1/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 1/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 1/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 1/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 1/1
Enemy Variety 1/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters 0.8/1
Many Challenges 1/1
Multiple Stages 1/1
Difficulty Modifiers 1/1
Bestiary / Lore 1/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 0/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 0.8/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 0.3/1
Subtle Humor 0.1/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 1/1
Over the Top 0.9/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 0.8/1
Fun Ramp 0.8/1
Low Price 1/1
Technical Check 1/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 0.8/1
Feels like VS 1/1

Scarlet Tower Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

7.5 Final Review
86% Positive Steam Reviews
799 Steam Reviews
6.9 Pure Vibes
6.9 Review Scale
324/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 1/1
Good UI 0.6/1
Controller and Deck 1/1
Lots of Content 0.8/1
Good Theme 0.2/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 0.7/1
Unique Twists 0.1/1
Vibe Check 0.5/1

Scarlet Tower Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

itch.ioSteam DeckWindows PCEAFree Available

Sorting Categories

Similar

Genre and Control Style Tags

Auto-ShooterBullet HeavenEnemy HellHorde SurvivalMowing GameRogueliteSingle Stick ShooterSurvivors-likeTop Down or IsometricTwin Stick ShooterWave Survival

Aesthetic Tags

2DPixel ArtSerious

Setting / Story Tags

FantasyHorror ThemedVampires

Control Styles

Controller

Game Mode Tags

Unknown24m

Features and Extras

Steam AchievementsSteam Cloud

Dev/Publisher

Pyxeralia LLC

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: 60
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: No

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: on itch.io
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: No

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Hunt during the day, be hunted during the NIGHT! Scarlet Tower is a gothic horror casual game with roguelike and RPG elements, like talent trees, classes, familiars and more!"

"Look for relics and vendors that only spawn at night.Characters with unique customizable passives. Procedural Map Generation."

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 24m

Run Time Notes

?

Speed Settings

?

[edit]

Nova Drift

EA

Different. A great pick if you you want to pull the trigger in space. Despite not sharing all the features, it can really scratch the "over the top" survivors-like itch with beautiful neon screenwipes. More asteroids influenced than "twin stick" influenced. I personally find the drift physics quite engaging once I've gotten going. Really fun game.

Arena Shooter Asteroids-like Bullet Heaven Bullet Hell Content Rich Mowing Game Roguelite Top Down or Isometric Wave Shooter Wave Survival
8.2 Combined Ranking Score
21/72 Ranking Position
1386/1600 Total Points
9.8 Final Review
96% Steam
9.7 Scale
10.0 Vibes
9217 Steam Reviews
393/400 Review Points
6.6 Similarity Score
83% Diagnosis:
Different
993/1200 Comparison Points
88% Genre 6.1/8 genre
54% Simple Controls 0.5/7 move
88% Survival Modes 3/4 modes
88% Power Progression 3/4 level
100% Buildcrafting Depth 5/5 build
57% Stage Features 1/7 stage
91% Content Breadth 7.3/9 stuff
88% Aesthetics 4.5/6 style
91% Gameplay Vibe Check 8.2/10 vibe vibe

Nova Drift Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 20.1

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 10/13/2023

This one came out before VS but has been refined throughout the boom. An excellent space shooter (the creator says they're not space ships but biomechanical life) which is themed with leveling like VS and over the top combos, but also does rely on trigger and propulsion and a blink ability which we'll call a dodge in the VS-like rating. The cargo trains essentially fill the treasure chest role. We'll call the ship gears selected on starting the run a "character" select.

So it may satisfy build crafters, but not zen one handed players (though it really got me into its own zone). Not exactly a twin stick shooter - it's a "drift" style game in the vein of Asteroids. Still in early access somehow, will apparently have a campaign too on release. Don't take my lack of notes as a lack of enthusiasm, I don't have many complaints. Try this one!

This is one of my favorite games on the list and unfortunately just doesn't have full review notes because I put in most of my time before it was "research." I fully intend to come back and shove 100 hours into this title, though, so I will make more notes.

I can't believe it's still in Early Access lol but let's let him cook.

Nova Drift Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

6.6 Similarity Score
83% Diagnosis:
993/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 0.1/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 1/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 0/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 0/1
Move Only -0.5/1
No Dash 0/1
No Trigger -0.8/1
No Special Move 0/1
No Aiming 0.8/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival EA/1
Endless Mode 1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 1/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 1/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 1/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 0/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 1/1
1/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 1/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 1/1
Explorable Map -1/1
BIG Maps -1/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 0/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 1/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 1/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 0/1
Enemy Variety 1/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters 1/1
Many Challenges 1/1
Multiple Stages 0/1
Difficulty Modifiers 1/1
Bestiary / Lore 0.3/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 1/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 1/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 0.5/1
Subtle Humor 0/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 1/1
Over the Top 1/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 1/1
Fun Ramp 1/1
Low Price 0.2/1
Technical Check 1/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 0.7/1

Nova Drift Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

9.8 Final Review
96% Positive Steam Reviews
9217 Steam Reviews
10.0 Pure Vibes
9.7 Review Scale
393/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 1/1
Good UI 1/1
Controller and Deck 1/1
Lots of Content 0.8/1
Good Theme 0.9/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 1/1

Metacritic Scores

- +

This title has metacritic data! The "fuck the man" score is adjusted so each person's review is equally weighted, regardless of critic or fan status.

Critic

8.0 Converted 10 Point Score
1 Number of Critic Reviews

User

- User Review Average
- Number of User Reviews

Average

8.0 Direct Average
8.0 "Fuck The Man" Combined Mean

Nova Drift Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

Directitch.ioMacSteam DeckWindows PCEA

Sorting Categories

Different

Genre and Control Style Tags

Arena ShooterAsteroids-likeBullet HeavenBullet HellContent RichMowing GameRogueliteTop Down or IsometricWave ShooterWave Survival

Aesthetic Tags

2DArtyGeometricNeonRaveRetroVector InspiredVivid

Setting / Story Tags

AbstractShip (Air/Space)Space

Control Styles

Controller

Game Mode Tags

Unknown20m

Features and Extras

SoundtrackSteam AchievementsSteam CloudSteam Leaderboards

Dev/Publisher

ChimericPixeljam

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: 40
  • Steam Leaderboards: Yes
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: No

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: No
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: Steam Bandcamp SoundCloud

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Nova Drift distills the mechanical depth and strategy of an ARPG into classic arcade space combat. Control an endlessly evolving bio-mechanical ship, face legions of strange and deadly foes, and ride the wake of a dying star across the void."

"Nova Drift is a 'rogue-lite' space shooter that melds a classic arcade experience with modern action-RPG elements like theory-crafting and deep player choice." "Cunning and creativity are rewarded as you chain upgrade modules for powerful synergies, reminiscent of deck-building games."

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 20m

Run Time Notes

?

Speed Settings

?

[edit]

Bounty of One

Free Available Released

Full release is out now! Western themed survivors-like worth checking out. Interesting mechanic where you only fire when standing still. Auto Aim is very direct and weapons tend to basically just be guns, so with the dash-stand-dash gameplay it feels kind of like a more tactical Brotato, but I think more fun feeling theme wise. However, it doesn't have the build depth of Brotato at this time. You only get one weapon and they aren't very different for most characters, so it's not as over the top as VS either.

Arena Shooter Auto-Shooter Enemy Hell Rogue-lite Single Stick Shooter Survivors-like Top Down or Isometric
8.1 Combined Ranking Score
23/72 Ranking Position
1410/1600 Total Points
8.6 Final Review
89% Steam
8.8 Scale
8.0 Vibes
1778 Steam Reviews
357/400 Review Points
7.6 Similarity Score
88% Diagnosis:
Similar
1053/1200 Comparison Points
93% Genre 6.9/8 genre
67% Simple Controls 2.4/7 move
96% Survival Modes 3.7/4 modes
100% Power Progression 4/4 level
89% Buildcrafting Depth 3.9/5 build
72% Stage Features 3.1/7 stage
89% Content Breadth 7/9 stuff
91% Aesthetics 4.9/6 style
97% Gameplay Vibe Check 9.4/10 vibe vibe

Bounty of One Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 6.0

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 11/4/2023

This western themed game is worth checking out if you want to mix it up a bit and aren't as addicted to mowing. Pretty good music. I checked this out when it first came out and wasn't sure about it, glad I came back for 1.0 thanks to this project! It has a good twist on the movement I didn't originally quite get. You only fire when you are standing still. If you're looking for a game to move around in circles for hours this might turn you off at first. But there are some builds you can make where you do exactly that and just give up on firing your weapon and that won me over on it.

You might find it slower and less exciting or more tactical and interesting, depending on your viewpoint. They intend to do a lot of updates with more characters coming etc as of the time of this review.

Major UI controller issue with unlocks seems fixed now. Something about how the content unlocks is making me feel odd, note to self to check reviews. You can do endless mode after completing a run but you don't get any rewards, dinging it in the category.

Has four player multiplayer which is pretty notable. I kind of wish it was pixel art but the cartoony art style is pretty good overall and I enjoy the goblin main character quite a lot though the others aren't as notable. I wish the weapons were more varied and over the top and the reasons to play more were more clear, but it's not a bad choice to put some time into.

Bounty of One Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

7.6 Similarity Score
88% Diagnosis:
1053/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 0.8/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 0.8/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 0.3/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 0.6/1
Move Only 0.8/1
No Dash -1/1
No Trigger 1/1
No Special Move 1/1
No Aiming 1/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty -1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 1/1
Endless Mode 0.7/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 1/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 1/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 1/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 1/1
0.9/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 0/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 1/1
Explorable Map 0/1
BIG Maps 0.1/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 1/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 0/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 1/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 0/1
Enemy Variety 1/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters 1/1
Many Challenges 1/1
Multiple Stages 0/1
Difficulty Modifiers 1/1
Bestiary / Lore 1/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 0/1
Retro / Pixel Art 0.1/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 0.8/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 1/1
Subtle Humor 1/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 1/1
Over the Top 1/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 1/1
Fun Ramp 1/1
Low Price 1/1
Technical Check 0.7/1
Controls Check 0.7/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 1/1

Bounty of One Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

8.6 Final Review
89% Positive Steam Reviews
1778 Steam Reviews
8.0 Pure Vibes
8.8 Review Scale
357/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 0.8/1
Not Janky 0.7/1
Good UI 0.8/1
Controller and Deck 0.8/1
Lots of Content 0.7/1
Good Theme 1/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 1/1

Metacritic Scores

- +

This title has metacritic data! The "fuck the man" score is adjusted so each person's review is equally weighted, regardless of critic or fan status.

Critic

6.9 Converted 10 Point Score
2 Number of Critic Reviews

User

- User Review Average
- Number of User Reviews

Average

6.9 Direct Average
6.9 "Fuck The Man" Combined Mean

Bounty of One Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

Browseritch.ioLinuxMacSteam DeckWindows PCFree AvailableReleased

Sorting Categories

Similar

Genre and Control Style Tags

Arena ShooterAuto-ShooterEnemy HellRogue-liteSingle Stick ShooterSurvivors-likeTop Down or Isometric

Aesthetic Tags

2DCartoon

Setting / Story Tags

FantasyWestern

Control Styles

Controller

Game Mode Tags

Unknown20m

Features and Extras

SoundtrackSteam AchievementsSteam CloudSteam Leaderboards

Dev/Publisher

OptizOnion

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: Co-Op
  • Online: Co-Op (Remote Play)
  • Player Count: 4
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: 98
  • Steam Leaderboards: Yes
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: No

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: itch.io prototype
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: YouTube

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

Fallen hero of the Wild West, you're wanted and in disgrace! Grab your guns, survive endless hordes of bounty hunters and fight to clear your name! Bounty of One is a fast-paced casual roguelite bullet hell for 1 to 4 players. Dash, Dodge, Shoot, Repeat!


Bounty Of One is a fast-paced casual roguelite bullet hell where mobility is key. Play solo or with your friends up to four players on the same screen or remotely with ‘Steam Play Together.’ Play with a keyboard or a gamepad."

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 20m

Run Time Notes

?

Speed Settings

?

[edit]

Forest Fire

Free Available Released

A Little Different. A fucked up arcade rogue-lite about setting little pixel people and hosptials on fire. Feels esepcially fucked right now but it's just so cute! Maybe this is climate change activism? Interesting twist, not a bullet heaven and perhaps not a horde survival game, but very similar enemy hell with movement focus and how it plays. It's a pretty creative and satisfying arcade game and would have been a huge hit when I was a child in an actual arcade. If you like the dodging, it could be your zone out game. However, without real build depth I feel it's likely most people will enjoy it for a few hours and not a few dozen, unless they just find it comforting. Also feel my money was well spent though. Also feel a little dirty.

Arcade Dodge Em Up Enemy Hell Roguelite Single Stick Shooter
7.8 Combined Ranking Score
28/72 Ranking Position
1366/1600 Total Points
8.8 Final Review
88% Steam
9.2 Scale
8.5 Vibes
53 Steam Reviews
365/400 Review Points
6.7 Similarity Score
83% Diagnosis:
A Little Different
1001/1200 Comparison Points
89% Genre 6.2/8 genre
84% Simple Controls 4.7/7 move
90% Survival Modes 3.2/4 modes
100% Power Progression 4/4 level
59% Buildcrafting Depth 0.9/5 build
81% Stage Features 4.4/7 stage
73% Content Breadth 4.1/9 stuff
91% Aesthetics 4.9/6 style
90% Gameplay Vibe Check 8/10 vibe vibe

Forest Fire Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 1.2

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 11/9/2023

Totally fucked up cute little game about burning tiny pixel people alive. Great twist on the movement only formula so far, where you start burnign things just by staying still for a second (though there is a special move button.) As you level up there are some skills that technically shoot, so we can call this movement focused game a single stick shooter if we want to.

We're giving it a 0 for the No Movement Penalty column since you need to stop to light things on fire, which is basically a movement penalty in terms of gameplay. But it doesn't feel bad, since the main challenge of the game is moving! You don't collect XP on the ground (you get it by setting things on fire as they burn) so it gives you a reason to balance avoiding enemies with another objecitve (like moving towards xp in other survivors-likes)

It feel Vampire Survivors influenced so I'm going to call it a survivors-like, but it doesn't really feel like wave survival just because of how it's aesthetically presented. You dodge a lot of clouds (that actually do have similar formations to many survivors-likes enemy formations) but you usually can't kill them. I think we can also call it a dodge em up. It's also certainly an "enemy hell" since there aren't really bullets, which is a term we don't use for tags but is defined in the key.

It's cute as hell and actually does some kind of cool stuff in terms of pixel simulating the fire (not really necessary and it's no Noita, but it's fun!) The main mode is based on points, not time, but it's pretty similar in play so we give it a high partial score for timed survival. You get powerups through your run but they really are just power ups and don't interact with each other for builds or change the play style much. Primary healing is by starting fire.. on ground.. but there's also heals so "heal on ground" is a full point either way.

It has the presentation of a game with a lot of unlocks, and I think it's there to keep you going if you really like the gameplay and want a reason to, but at the same time I don't think it actually has the build depth or variety in gameplay or build reasons to really chase the unlocks. It's more just like challenges with small rewards to keep you playing a generally enjoyable gameplay loop. It doesn't really feel cheap or like it's trying to trick you into seeing more depth that isn't there, but some people may be disappointed. I think it's enough to give it high scores in those categories though.

The gameplay at the start is, I think for the most part, what you get, from what I've seen of anyone playing. Which is fine for an arcade game, but means you have to like it and not expect a ramp.

I'm giving it high scores on the review, but honestly it's a little hard to review this because it's like if playing pacman made me feel like a war criminal. I think that's good? It's certainly unique. It's a fun little arcade game, but without the build depth I imagine most people will be happy with it but only play for a few hours and not a few hundred.

Forest Fire Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

6.7 Similarity Score
83% Diagnosis:
1001/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 1/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) -0.8/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 1/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 1/1
Move Only 0.8/1
No Dash 1/1
No Trigger 1/1
No Special Move 0/1
No Aiming 1/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty -0.1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 0.4/1
Endless Mode 1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 1/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 0.8/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 1/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 0.1/1
0.8/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 0/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 0/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 0/1
Explorable Map 1/1
BIG Maps 1/1
XP on Ground 0.4/1
Health on Ground 1/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 1/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 0/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 0/1
Enemy Variety 0/1
Bosses / Elites 0.5/1
Many Interesting Characters 0.6/1
Many Challenges 0.1/1
Multiple Stages 0.8/1
Difficulty Modifiers 0.1/1
Bestiary / Lore 0/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 1/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 0/1
Lofi Charm 1/1
Bumpin Music 0.9/1
Fun Writing 1/1
Subtle Humor 1/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 1/1
Over the Top 0.8/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 0.2/1
Fun Ramp 0.2/1
Low Price 0.9/1
Technical Check 1/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 0.9/1
Feels like VS 0.7/1

Forest Fire Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

8.8 Final Review
88% Positive Steam Reviews
53 Steam Reviews
8.5 Pure Vibes
9.2 Review Scale
365/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 1/1
Good UI 0.9/1
Controller and Deck 1/1
Lots of Content 0.5/1
Good Theme 1/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 0.8/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 1/1

Forest Fire Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

itch.ioLinuxMacSteam DeckWindows PCFree AvailableReleased

Sorting Categories

A Little Different

Genre and Control Style Tags

ArcadeDodge Em UpEnemy HellRogueliteSingle Stick Shooter

Aesthetic Tags

2DCutePixel ArtUglycute

Setting / Story Tags

AbstractComedyContemporaryMeme Game

Control Styles

Controller

Game Mode Tags

Unknown20m

Features and Extras

Steam AchievementsSteam Cloud

Dev/Publisher

Chute Apps

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: 34
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: No

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: itch.io
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: No

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Be the Forest Fire and burn everything in sight! A Rogue-lite destruction-fest where every pixel is physically simulated. Burn trees, buildings, vehicles, and tiny screaming humans. Dodge bullet-hell rain clouds and pissed-off firefighters to stay alive... Only YOU can start Forest Fires."

"Don't think you'll burn unopposed. Mother nature has sent in a bullet-hell array of rain clouds and other obstacles to put an end to your destruction fest. Your flame must weave through the storm to survive. Firefighting helicopters, planes, and little firemen will also be out to get you. The more you burn their buildings the more pissed off they get (and the more combo points you get!)"

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 20m

Run Time Notes

?

Speed Settings

?

[edit]

Disfigure

Free Available Released

A survivors-like for horror fans, if you want to pull the trigger in the dark with a flashlight. And considering it's totally free (with an optional tip for the dev DLC) there's little reason not to try it. Especially if you came way from VS looking for more arcade games. Bare bones in some ways, but it gets you quickly into the next run eager to try a totally new build. Minimalist horror vibe is just right.

Arcade Arena Shooter Bullet Heaven Enemy Hell Roguelite Survivors-like Top Down or Isometric Twin Stick Shooter Wave Survival
7.8 Combined Ranking Score
29/72 Ranking Position
1352/1600 Total Points
9.4 Final Review
96% Steam
9.5 Scale
9.1 Vibes
1803 Steam Reviews
382/400 Review Points
6.2 Similarity Score
81% Diagnosis:
Similar
970/1200 Comparison Points
93% Genre 6.8/8 genre
56% Simple Controls 0.9/7 move
99% Survival Modes 3.9/4 modes
88% Power Progression 3/4 level
98% Buildcrafting Depth 4.8/5 build
50% Stage Features 0/7 stage
62% Content Breadth 2.2/9 stuff
100% Aesthetics 6/6 style
99% Gameplay Vibe Check 9.8/10 vibe vibe

Disfigure Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 2.1

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 10/23/2023

Disfigure is a cool game with an obviously cool dev who put it up for optional donation. Perhaps it's humble due to the lack of surface breadth - characters, skill trees, bestiaries - but the gameplay is tight. Steam reviewers seem to agree. Sometimes you just want an arcade game! It's an arena shooter without exploration and slower and more tense than most survivors-likes. It's got a shadowy minimalist vibe and great shifty beats on the soundtrack.

While it's got a trigger button, I found it totally fine to play with auto fire on - aiming, however, is not optional with the strategy of pointing your light. We're going to count the "switch flashlight" button as a special move button. Rogue-lite aspects are limited to weapon unlocks and not permanent incremental upgrades, so still around the same level of skill (and luck) required each run. Steam cloud would be nice.

I'll be playing more of this one! More notes to come then!

Disfigure Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

6.2 Similarity Score
81% Diagnosis:
970/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 0.4/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 0.8/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 0.6/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 0/1
Move Only -0.5/1
No Dash 1/1
No Trigger 0.4/1
No Special Move 0/1
No Aiming -1/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 1/1
Endless Mode 1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 1/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 0.9/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 1/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 0/1
Build Crafting 1/1
1/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 0.8/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 1/1
Explorable Map -1/1
BIG Maps 0/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 0/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 0/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 0/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 0/1
Enemy Variety 0.7/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters -1/1
Many Challenges 0/1
Multiple Stages 0/1
Difficulty Modifiers 0.5/1
Bestiary / Lore 0/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 0/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 1/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 1/1
Subtle Humor 1/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 1/1
Over the Top 0.8/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 1/1
Fun Ramp 1/1
Low Price 1/1
Technical Check 1/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 0.6/1

Disfigure Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

9.4 Final Review
96% Positive Steam Reviews
1803 Steam Reviews
9.1 Pure Vibes
9.5 Review Scale
382/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 1/1
Good UI 1/1
Controller and Deck 1/1
Lots of Content 0.5/1
Good Theme 1/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 1/1

Metacritic Scores

- +

This title has metacritic data! The "fuck the man" score is adjusted so each person's review is equally weighted, regardless of critic or fan status.

Critic

- Converted 10 Point Score
- Number of Critic Reviews

User

9.0 User Review Average
1 Number of User Reviews

Average

9.0 Direct Average
9.0 "Fuck The Man" Combined Mean

Disfigure Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

itch.ioSteam DeckWindows PCFree AvailableReleased

Sorting Categories

Similar

Genre and Control Style Tags

ArcadeArena ShooterBullet HeavenEnemy HellRogueliteSurvivors-likeTop Down or IsometricTwin Stick ShooterWave Survival

Aesthetic Tags

2DPixel ArtRetroScary

Setting / Story Tags

AbstractHorrorHorror Themed

Control Styles

Controller

Game Mode Tags

Unknown20m

Features and Extras

Steam Achievements

Dev/Publisher

Cold Brew Entertainment

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: No
  • Steam Achievements: 23
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: No

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: Totally Free
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: No

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Disfigure is a top-down shooter rogue-like in which you fight countless grotesque creatures shrouded in darkness. Choose from a variety of weapons and over a hundred upgrades to create unique builds each run and survive."

"In an arena shrouded by darkness, pay keen attention to your surroundings where monsters could be lurking. Choose between circle and cone vision" "Choose from over 100 upgrades and 90 weapon perks"

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 20m

Run Time Notes

?

Speed Settings

?

[edit]

Star Survivor

EA Free Available

A bit janky but ambitious deck building space ship equipping survivors-like, which also has a campaign mode. Metaprogression is available via both purchasable ships and unlockable and upgradeable cards. Has a boost mechanic relying on ship direction to create a high level of challenge - it may be too much to zen out to, but the great degree of customization and variety of game modes here may addict you. It's a little generic looking, starts slow, and some bugs and UI issues bring down the review score.

Arena Shooter Auto-Shooter Bullet Heaven Deckbuilding Enemy Hell Horde Survival Rogue-lite Survivors-like Top Down or Isometric Wave Survival
7.7 Combined Ranking Score
30/72 Ranking Position
1391/1600 Total Points
7.7 Final Review
74% Steam
7.4 Scale
8.3 Vibes
337 Steam Reviews
331/400 Review Points
7.7 Similarity Score
88% Diagnosis:
Similar
1060/1200 Comparison Points
99% Genre 7.8/8 genre
68% Simple Controls 2.5/7 move
100% Survival Modes 4/4 modes
100% Power Progression 4/4 level
100% Buildcrafting Depth 5/5 build
83% Stage Features 4.6/7 stage
84% Content Breadth 6.2/9 stuff
71% Aesthetics 2.5/6 style
92% Gameplay Vibe Check 8.4/10 vibe vibe

Star Survivor Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 4.1

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 10/23/2023

Space auto-shooter with a deck building aspect. Meta progression includes using currency to unlock new cards. When you pick your level options, you then pick where to put the equipment on your ship, which adds a fun shipbuilding / tower defense feeling mechanic. There is a more Rogue-like campaign mode in addition to the more familiar challenge and endless modes using your unlocked cards, each with their own deck availabilities. The complexity is a big challenge in endless mode, since you don't just disable some items, you have to construct your deck.

Once accidentally started with only one card and tried to stick it out - it gives you some single use events on level until you die. Aim is important because boost pushes you in the direction you are facing, but you can use thrusters to strafe, which can be very challenging. There's speed and zoom options which is cool. Counting "Astrochicken" spawn as ground health. Maps seem endless but mostly empty. I like a lot about this one!

Graphics / vibe is a bit generic, but gameplay is challenging and build variety interesting. Most negative reviews seem to mention technical issues, which may hurt your experience. It could use more enemy variety and maybe interesting exploration on big maps, I would love that. I'm very excited to come back to this one as it evolves.

Star Survivor Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

7.7 Similarity Score
88% Diagnosis:
1060/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 0.8/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 1/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 1/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 0/1
Move Only 0/1
No Dash 0/1
No Trigger 1/1
No Special Move 1/1
No Aiming -0.5/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 1/1
Endless Mode 1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 1/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 1/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 1/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 1/1
1/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 1/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 1/1
Explorable Map 0.1/1
BIG Maps 0.5/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 1/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 1/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 0/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 1/1
Enemy Variety 0.3/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters 1/1
Many Challenges 0.9/1
Multiple Stages 1/1
Difficulty Modifiers 1/1
Bestiary / Lore 0/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 0/1
Retro / Pixel Art 0/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 0.5/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 0/1
Subtle Humor 0/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 0.8/1
Over the Top 0.8/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 1/1
Fun Ramp 1/1
Low Price 1/1
Technical Check 0.8/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 1/1

Star Survivor Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

7.7 Final Review
74% Positive Steam Reviews
337 Steam Reviews
8.3 Pure Vibes
7.4 Review Scale
331/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 0.5/1
Not Janky 0.5/1
Good UI 0.5/1
Controller and Deck 0.8/1
Lots of Content 0.8/1
Good Theme 0.8/1
Good Graphics and Sound 0.8/1
Fun Feel 0.8/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 0.9/1

Star Survivor Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

AndroidiOSitch.ioSteam DeckWindows PCEAFree Available

Sorting Categories

Similar

Genre and Control Style Tags

Arena ShooterAuto-ShooterBullet HeavenDeckbuildingEnemy HellHorde SurvivalRogue-liteSurvivors-likeTop Down or IsometricWave Survival

Aesthetic Tags

3D

Setting / Story Tags

Sci-fiShip (Air/Space)Space

Control Styles

Controller

Game Mode Tags

Branching PathsEndless Mode15m

Features and Extras

Steam AchievementsSteam CloudSteam Trading Cards

Dev/Publisher

ErabitSpaceOwl Games

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: 26
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: Yes

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: Yes
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: No

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Survive the swarm in this rogue-lite + survivors + asteroids mashup! Exterminate as many alien drones as you can. Upgrade your ship from the crafted deck of equipment and power-ups. You are the Last ship against the Endless... Will your choices be enough to overcome the thousands hunting you?"

"Big call for those games I got inspirations from: Vampire Survivor, Brotato, SoulStone Survivors, 20 Minutes Till Dawn, Rogue: Genesia, Spellbook Demonslayers, Void Scrappers, Boneraiser Minions, Nova Drift, Runic Survivor"

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 15m

Run Time Notes

?

Speed Settings

?

[edit]

Brotato

Released

A must play for Newgrounds nostalgic arena shooter fans that also seems to alienate some hardcore Vampire Survivors fans. Featuring 1 handed play and on the surface very similar and often suggested, but missing many exploration features and subtle differences (like leveling at end of waves) might make it not hit the zen mark. Lots of people love this one but I admit I personally couldn't get into it. It was a little disappointing after the many recommendations. Great character ability twists and buildcrafting challenges if it clicks for you. Very popular for a reason!

Arena Shooter Auto-Shooter Brotato-style Bullet Heaven Content Rich Roguelite Single Stick Shooter Survivors-like Top Down or Isometric Wave Survival
7.6 Combined Ranking Score
32/72 Ranking Position
1365/1600 Total Points
8.1 Final Review
96% Steam
7.8 Scale
7.0 Vibes
48003 Steam Reviews
344/400 Review Points
7.0 Similarity Score
85% Diagnosis:
Similar
1021/1200 Comparison Points
95% Genre 7.2/8 genre
99% Simple Controls 6.8/7 move
85% Survival Modes 2.8/4 modes
73% Power Progression 1.8/4 level
93% Buildcrafting Depth 4.3/5 build
68% Stage Features 2.5/7 stage
80% Content Breadth 5.4/9 stuff
69% Aesthetics 2.3/6 style
93% Gameplay Vibe Check 8.6/10 vibe vibe

Brotato Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 2.7

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 10/17/2023

Brotato is a common recommendation and many people love it. It does have pretty satisfying one handed gameplay (with optional aim I imagine most people don't use), but personally it doesn't hit the mark. I don't like how the waves are counted off and you level at the end of the round instead of when you get enough XP, nor that every one minute all the gems are swept up - it interrupts the flow for me and removes the gameplay element of trying to gather the drops.

Every match is in the same small box instead of a vibe of exploring an interesting map with secrets. I also think the characters are ugly and the gun designs boring. But I can see how people sink a lot of time into it - it has many positive steam reviews.

Probably it's popular in a big way because of the excellent variety in character builds and possible run combinations and the challenges created this way.

Thread on steam to check back in on later: As fans, do you think brotato-style games are significantly different than survivors-likes?"

Brotato Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

7.0 Similarity Score
85% Diagnosis:
1021/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 0.9/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 0.9/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 0.4/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 1/1
Move Only 1/1
No Dash 1/1
No Trigger 1/1
No Special Move 1/1
No Aiming 0.8/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 1/1
Endless Mode 1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 0/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 0.8/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 0/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 0.8/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 0/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 1/1
0.8/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 0.5/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 1/1
Explorable Map -1/1
BIG Maps -1/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 1/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 0.7/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 1/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 0.8/1
Enemy Variety 0.4/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters 1/1
Many Challenges 1/1
Multiple Stages 0/1
Difficulty Modifiers 1/1
Bestiary / Lore 0/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 0/1
Retro / Pixel Art 0.2/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 0.2/1
Bumpin Music 0.5/1
Fun Writing 0/1
Subtle Humor 0.4/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 1/1
Over the Top 0.5/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 0.9/1
Fun Ramp 0.8/1
Low Price 1/1
Technical Check 1/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 0.8/1

Brotato Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

8.1 Final Review
96% Positive Steam Reviews
48003 Steam Reviews
7.0 Pure Vibes
7.8 Review Scale
344/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 1/1
Good UI 0.8/1
Controller and Deck 1/1
Lots of Content 0.8/1
Good Theme 0.4/1
Good Graphics and Sound 0.3/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 0.5/1

Metacritic Scores

- +

This title has metacritic data! The "fuck the man" score is adjusted so each person's review is equally weighted, regardless of critic or fan status.

Critic

7.6 Converted 10 Point Score
4 Number of Critic Reviews

User

8.2 User Review Average
14 Number of User Reviews

Average

7.9 Direct Average
8.1 "Fuck The Man" Combined Mean

Brotato Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

AndroidiOSitch.ioSteam DeckSwitchWindows PCReleased

Sorting Categories

Similar

Genre and Control Style Tags

Arena ShooterAuto-ShooterBrotato-styleBullet HeavenContent RichRogueliteSingle Stick ShooterSurvivors-likeTop Down or IsometricWave Survival

Aesthetic Tags

2DBrowser GameCartoonLofiUglycute

Setting / Story Tags

ComedyFlying Saucer AliensMeme GameSci-fi

Control Styles

ControllerController 1 HandedController Move OnlyKeyboard 1 HandedKeyboard OnlyMouse Only

Game Mode Tags

Advance on Round EndShort RoundsVacuum Collectables at Round End20m

Features and Extras

SoundtrackSteam AchievementsSteam CloudSteam Workshop

Dev/Publisher

Blobfish

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: 83
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: Yes
  • Steam Trading Cards: No

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: Legacy Demo on itch.io
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: YouTube

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Brotato is a top-down arena shooter roguelite where you play a potato wielding up to 6 weapons at a time to fight off hordes of aliens. Choose from a variety of traits and items to create unique builds and survive until help arrives."

"Auto-firing weapons by default with a manual aiming option" "Hundreds of items and weapons to choose from" "Accessibility options: tweak the health, damage and speed of enemies so the difficulty is right for you"

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 20m

Run Time Notes

?

Speed Settings

?

[edit]

Heretic's Fork

DLC Free Available Released

Pretty Different. A great pick if you never want to move and want a game to play without having to stare at the screen. Excellent music. Recently released deckbuilding tower defense rogue-lite which ditches the movement mechanics and adds on drawing new "cards" on level up instead of an RPG style or item collecting system. So far feels like a really enjoyable throwback to old browser or freeware games - which it seems to acknowledge with the menu user interface - and has impeccable style. Seems like more content will be added, which is good, could use more card interactions and weird stuff.

Auto-Battler Bullet Heaven Deckbuilding Roguelite Survivors-like Tower Defense Turn Based Hybrid
7.5 Combined Ranking Score
34/72 Ranking Position
1343/1600 Total Points
8.6 Final Review
84% Steam
8.2 Scale
9.3 Vibes
1070 Steam Reviews
359/400 Review Points
6.4 Similarity Score
82% Diagnosis:
Pretty Different
984/1200 Comparison Points
84% Genre 5.5/8 genre
75% Simple Controls 3.5/7 move
98% Survival Modes 3.8/4 modes
99% Power Progression 3.9/4 level
90% Buildcrafting Depth 4/5 build
44% Stage Features -0.9/7 stage
76% Content Breadth 4.7/9 stuff
100% Aesthetics 6/6 style
92% Gameplay Vibe Check 8.3/10 vibe vibe

Heretic's Fork Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 8.5

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 11/4/2023

This is a cool one and feels like it could easily have existed if Vampire Survivors never did. Excellent music. While it's an endless horde survival game, it's also a classic tower defense game. Just one big tower in the middle, troops or weapons arrayed around it, and endless waves of baddies.

It is just as much a deckbuilder as a survivors-like so it's probably also Slay the Spire inspired. So far this is a favorite of mine on the steam deck and to have up while I'm doing other stuff since it can be essentially turn based.

You move through "stages" in the main mode but it doesn't really feel like multiple stages in the classic sense and feels a bit more like a timed survival mode so we give partial points there.

You can improve your weapons but I'm not sure evolve them. There are "torment" modes but not complex difficulty modifiers for challenges, I think. I have some quibbles. Not a ton of content, build diversity or enemy variety encountered yet, but I'm not as far in as I'd like to be. Works on steam deck (if hard to read) but not controller, really it just makes you use the controller as a mouse. Does include aimed special moves if you decide to use them in your build.

Hard to read on steam deck and TV. Would like to be able to see what I have equipped while adding cards to deck (damage type etc). Can't read locked cards on steam deck since they don’t get bigger. Thanks to that, I would also like an undo button while I'm in my turn haha.

There's a lot to unlock and dig into so I sent some questions to the dev/community and will revise scores when I know more. And I'll be playing a lot more later too. The soundtrack alone makes me want to have the game on and I have to remind myself to not just hang out listening to it.

Heretic's Fork Similarity Scale Heatmap

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Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

6.4 Similarity Score
82% Diagnosis:
984/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle 1/1
Real Time 0.5/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar -1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 1/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 1/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 0/1
Move Only 0/1
No Dash 1/1
No Trigger 1/1
No Special Move 0/1
No Aiming 0.5/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 1/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 0.8/1
Endless Mode 1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 1/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 1/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 0.9/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 1/1
0.7/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 0.3/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 1/1
Explorable Map -1/1
BIG Maps -1/1
XP on Ground 0.1/1
Health on Ground 0/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 0/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 0/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 1/1
Enemy Variety 0.4/1
Bosses / Elites 0/1
Many Interesting Characters 1/1
Many Challenges 0.5/1
Multiple Stages 0.5/1
Difficulty Modifiers 0.3/1
Bestiary / Lore 0/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 1/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 1/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 1/1
Subtle Humor 1/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 0.5/1
Over the Top 0.7/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 1/1
Fun Ramp 1/1
Low Price 0.8/1
Technical Check 0.8/1
Controls Check 0.5/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 0.6/1

Heretic's Fork Review Scale Heatmap

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The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

8.6 Final Review
84% Positive Steam Reviews
1070 Steam Reviews
9.3 Pure Vibes
8.2 Review Scale
359/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 0.9/1
Not Janky 0.7/1
Good UI 0.5/1
Controller and Deck 0.4/1
Lots of Content 0.7/1
Good Theme 1/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 1/1

Metacritic Scores

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This title has metacritic data! The "fuck the man" score is adjusted so each person's review is equally weighted, regardless of critic or fan status.

Critic

7.3 Converted 10 Point Score
3 Number of Critic Reviews

User

- User Review Average
- Number of User Reviews

Average

7.3 Direct Average
7.3 "Fuck The Man" Combined Mean

Heretic's Fork Tag Cloud

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More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

itch.ioSteam DeckWindows PCDLCFree AvailableReleased

Sorting Categories

Pretty Different

Genre and Control Style Tags

Auto-BattlerBullet HeavenDeckbuildingRogueliteSurvivors-likeTower DefenseTurn Based Hybrid

Aesthetic Tags

2DArtyBrowser GameLofiMetalPixel ArtRetro

Setting / Story Tags

ComedyHorror ThemedUnderworld

Control Styles

Controller

Game Mode Tags

Currency MetaprogressionDeck ConstructionDeckbuildingGoal Based AdvancementNo MovingRoulette AdvancementSingle Tower45m

Features and Extras

SoundtrackSteam AchievementsSteam Cloud

Dev/Publisher

9FingerGamesRavenage Games

Game Features

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Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: 28
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: No

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: itch.io Prototype
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: Steam YouTube Bandcamp

Marketing Blurb

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Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Dear candidate, we are pleased to invite you to take up the position of manager of Hell. You will punish sinners by using our deck-building computer system to construct hellish towers capable of keeping the endless hordes of the underworld in check. Best of luck!"

Run Times & Speedups

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Average Run Time: 45m

Run Time Notes

?

Speed Settings

?

[edit]

Dead Cells

DLC Released

Very Different. Metroidvania Sidescroller Rouge-lite with Souls inspired combat, it shares some elements with other Rogue-lites. Perhaps you want to jump and slash and don't like currency based meta power creep, preferring to develop your skills and find in-game discoveries to progress. Very Hard! Want it to feel more like Vampire Survivors? Get the Castlevania crossover DLC. That kind of makes it worth including.

Content Rich Dungeon Crawler Hack and Slash Metroidvania Roguelite Roguevania Sidescroller
6.8 Combined Ranking Score
45/72 Ranking Position
1223/1600 Total Points
9.6 Final Review
97% Steam
10.0 Scale
9.1 Vibes
119571 Steam Reviews
388/400 Review Points
3.9 Similarity Score
70% Diagnosis:
Very Different
835/1200 Comparison Points
66% Genre 2.6/8 genre
11% Simple Controls -5.5/7 move
26% Survival Modes -1.9/4 modes
50% Power Progression 0/4 level
71% Buildcrafting Depth 2.1/5 build
93% Stage Features 6/7 stage
96% Content Breadth 8.2/9 stuff
100% Aesthetics 6/6 style
85% Gameplay Vibe Check 6.9/10 vibe vibe

Dead Cells Ranking Notes

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Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 8.0

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 10/23/2023

Played a fair amount on Switch as well. Very skill based sidescrolling Rogue-lite. Deep combat system inspired by Dark Souls but with a lot of mechanics of its own. It's another great game I'm not very good at. You may love the One More Run pull of it, but if you aren't good at jumping and juggling a lot of buttons, it won't be able to draw you past that. Gameplay wise it feels very different, but it shares some genre conventions with Vampire Survivors.

Many buttons to keep track of and high challenge from smaller amounts of enemies. Currency drops during runs to be used during runs, there's only goal/find based meta-unlocks (and stuff passed to your next run.)

This was be an interesting one to rate. I was inspired to pull it onto this sheet by the Castlevania DLC which not only includes some characters and weapons but a whole fucking castle and soundtrack, so it does have some neo-castlevania vibes which obviously also heavily influenced VS.

A lot of people say it's their "favorite game like vampire survivors" in reddit threads from a while ago, and at that time they just meant.. an action game with meta progression.

Dead Cells Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

3.9 Similarity Score
70% Diagnosis:
835/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle -1/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric -1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 0.9/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 0/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) 0.7/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) -1/1
Move Only -1/1
No Dash -1/1
No Trigger -1/1
No Special Move -1/1
No Aiming 0/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty -0.5/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival -1/1
Endless Mode -1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 0/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 0.1/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event -1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 0/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 0/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 0.4/1
0.7/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 0/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 0/1
Explorable Map 1/1
BIG Maps 1/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 0/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 1/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 1/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 1/1
Enemy Variety 1/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters 0.2/1
Many Challenges 1/1
Multiple Stages 1/1
Difficulty Modifiers 1/1
Bestiary / Lore 1/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 1/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 1/1
Lofi Charm 1/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 1/1
Subtle Humor 1/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 0.2/1
Over the Top 0.3/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 0.6/1
Fun Ramp 0.8/1
Low Price 0/1
Technical Check 1/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 0.1/1

Dead Cells Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

9.6 Final Review
97% Positive Steam Reviews
119571 Steam Reviews
9.1 Pure Vibes
10.0 Review Scale
388/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 1/1
Good UI 1/1
Controller and Deck 1/1
Lots of Content 1/1
Good Theme 1/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 1/1

Metacritic Scores

- +

This title has metacritic data! The "fuck the man" score is adjusted so each person's review is equally weighted, regardless of critic or fan status.

Critic

8.9 Converted 10 Point Score
35 Number of Critic Reviews

User

8.2 User Review Average
742 Number of User Reviews

Average

8.6 Direct Average
8.2 "Fuck The Man" Combined Mean

Dead Cells Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

AndroidEpiciOSitch.ioLinuxMacPS4PS5Steam DeckSwitchWindows PCXboxDLCReleased

Sorting Categories

Very Different

Genre and Control Style Tags

Content RichDungeon CrawlerHack and SlashMetroidvaniaRogueliteRoguevaniaSidescroller

Aesthetic Tags

2DPixel Art

Setting / Story Tags

DungeonsFantasy

Control Styles

Controller

Game Mode Tags

Find Based Metaprogression30m

Features and Extras

SoundtrackSteam AchievementsSteam CloudSteam Trading CardsSteam Workshop

Dev/Publisher

Motion Twin

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: Yes
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: Yes
  • Steam Trading Cards: Yes

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: No
  • DLC Available: Yes
  • Soundtrack Available: Steam YouTube Bandcamp Spotify

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Dead Cells is a rogue-lite, metroidvania inspired, action-platformer. You'll explore a sprawling, ever-changing castle... assuming you're able to fight your way past its keepers in 2D souls-lite combat. No checkpoints. Kill, die, learn, repeat. Regular free content updates!"

"RogueVania: The progressive exploration of an interconnected world, with the replayability of a rogue-lite and the adrenaline pumping threat of permadeath."

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 30m

Run Time Notes

?

Speed Settings

?

[edit]

Loop Hero

Free Available Released

Extremely Different. It's hard to have a better pick if you want a rogue-lite auto-battler with really unique map-building non-direct control of the main character. But chances are you didn't know you were looking for that. Included to test the scale but also because it's a great game that might scratch your itch if it's about exploring a new system with great progression and interesting synergies, along with tense action that's not reflex based even if it doesn't have stick movement focus. It's above 5.0 so it might be recommended to appeal to VS fans, but only with major disclaimers about differences.

Auto-Battler Content Rich Deckbuilding Roguelite Story Rich Strategy
6.3 Combined Ranking Score
49/72 Ranking Position
1168/1600 Total Points
9.6 Final Review
93% Steam
9.4 Scale
10.0 Vibes
29569 Steam Reviews
387/400 Review Points
3.0 Similarity Score
65% Diagnosis:
Extremely Different
781/1200 Comparison Points
59% Genre 1.5/8 genre
21% Simple Controls -4/7 move
44% Survival Modes -0.5/4 mo