If you’ve read our review on the simple but ultimately fun Vampire Survivors, you’ll know that we loved it. Sure it has very simple gameplay and the graphics are clean enough, however, the number of hours we’ve sunk in beats many more recent releases.
We’ve loved finding the best combinations of power-ups. Cried when our character was overwhelmed at the last second. And wondered why all long-haired men like whips so much.
So you’ve beaten the maps that have been added and you are wondering what next? What are you going to play now? Here are our top 5 retro-styled games to play after you’ve finished Vampire Survivors.
Undermine (2020)
When you want a dungeon crawler that looks as good as it plays, Undermine is the game for you. Playing as a treasure hunting miner, you have to delve deeper and deeper into the mines below a tavern to investigate growing tremors.
Most of the fun in Undermine is collecting more and more items and the curse/blessing element is incredibly fun. You can have so many different playthroughs and still find new combinations of items to surprise and delight.
“Most of the fun in Undermine is collecting more and more items”
Undermine is available now on Steam, Nintendo Switch, Playstation and Xbox.
Enter the Gungeon (2016)
First released in 2016, Enter the Gungeon is one of the few modern roguelikes with a good storyline. Playing as one of four initial characters with unique starting abilities, you enter each dungeon with nothing more than your starter pistol. Each character has committed a wrong in their life they seek to right, and that is where the gungeon depths come in.
“you enter each dungeon with nothing more than your starter pistol.”
The enemies lack a lot of variety but the ways in which you can fight them are endless. Explosive barrels, mine carts, falling chandeliers – simply plan your attack and get going.
Enter the Gungeon is available on Steam, Nintendo Switch, Playstation and XBox.
The Binding of Isaac : Rebirth (2014)
Acting as a remake to the original Binding of Isaac back in 2011, BoI : Rebirth takes you back to the basement. Seeking to evade the wrath of Mother and Isaacs fallen brothers and sisters, the main aim is to escape the family.
Skirting around the details so as not to spoil the story, the gameplay is similar to many other roguelikes. The enemies are grim, ugly and everything has a horror flavour to it. In fact, we’ve never finished the Binding of Isaac but have found the gameplay to be similar to Enter the Gungeon at times.
One for the hardcore gamers, the Binding of Isaac : Rebirth is available on Steam now.
Conan Chop Chop (2022)
The newest entry in this list, Conan Chop Chop, is a crisply animated adventure made for co-op play. You can play with up to three friends as you hack and slash across the Conan universe.
You can quite literally build the exact character to fit your play style in the game. Finding weapons and creating endless amounts of combinations to fight the many bosses of this game is all part of the fun.
Conan Chop Chop is available now on Steam.
Neon Abyss (2020)
One of our favourite entries on this list is probably one of its most visually impressive and extensive. Item combinations are endless, customisation is key and the guns – oh the guns. Every weapon you encounter in the game feels powerful and can be customised to your liking.
Minigames, pets, boss fights, the content of Neon Abyss is absolutely astounding. Playing as a member of “Grim Squad”, you are tasked with defeating the New Gods of the Neon Abyss – A procedurally generated dungeon below a nightclub. And as we’ve previously mentioned, the game is absolutely stunning.
Neon Abyss is available now on Steam.
So there you have it, our favourite retro-style games like Vampire Survivors. Do you have any that you prefer or maybe some true retro games that match the same gameplay? Let us know in the comments below!
What is a Roguelike?
Essentially, a roguelike is a genre of RPG that typically includes procedurally generated dungeon maps, player development and permanent death. They are not quintessentially retro games by heart, yet many carry the same retro visuals that we know and love.
