The tower defense genre has seen sparse representation, especially in recent years with the largest and most popular games leaning into action or adventure. By contrast, roguelikes have been steadily increasing in popularity throughout the indie space, letting smaller teams produce playtimes similar to those of large studios. Today Digital Sun, the creators of Moonlighter and Cataclismo, announced their newest project, ReVamp, a blending of the two genres set in the castle of Dracula himself.
The new trailer for the game opens with a young Dracula looking unamused as a group of heroes burst into the room to kill him. This leads to him showcasing one of his blood-based abilities as the trailer transitions to gameplay. ReVamp introduces a rare mechanic for the tower defense genre, the ability to control a specific character. Dracula can be seen all throughout the trailer fighting alongside his defenses. Those defenses seem to offer various tactical benefits, such as engaging enemies from a distance or providing a strength boost to nearby allies. Players will also be able to rearrange the castle to make the layout more advantageous to the defense effort.
The Steam page for the game provides additional information about what players can expect from the release. The enemies will provide unique challenges that one would expect from parties of justice. Defenses will have to be varied to account for the abilities of knights with high armor, barbarians with strong attacks, and priests sent to kill Dracula, not to mention any elite enemies that may lead the charge. As is usual for tower defense games, players will earn resources between striking down enemies that can be used to make the fortress even deadlier.
Dracula is no stranger to being the subject of a video game. ReVamp promises to offer many mechanics familiar to modern gamers in conjunction with the lesser-known tower defense elements to offer a unique experience.