Nobody expected this. Poncle, the studio behind the runaway indie hit Vampire Survivors, dropped a bombshell during the Xbox Partner Preview on November 20, 2025, revealing Vampire Crawlers: The Turbo Wildcard, a completely new spin-off that transforms their reverse bullet hell formula into a first-person roguelite deckbuilding dungeon crawler. Launching early-to-mid 2026 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC via Steam and Microsoft Store, iOS, and Android, the game retains Vampire Survivors’ chaotic snowballing power fantasy while swapping endless waves of enemies for turn-based card battles and dungeon exploration. With day one Xbox Game Pass availability and Xbox Play Anywhere support, Vampire Crawlers represents Poncle’s ambitious attempt to apply their signature design philosophy to an entirely different genre.
The Vampire Survivors Phenomenon
Understanding why Vampire Crawlers matters requires context about Vampire Survivors’ unlikely success story. The original game launched in Early Access in December 2021 as a five-dollar experiment built by solo developer Luca Galante. Its simple premise had players controlling characters who automatically attack while moving through endless hordes of enemies, collecting experience to level up and choose increasingly powerful upgrades until the screen filled with absurd visual chaos.
What started as a niche indie darling exploded into mainstream success through word-of-mouth and content creator coverage. The addictive just one more run loop, combined with constant updates adding new characters, stages, weapons, and crossovers with properties like Contra and Castlevania, built a passionate community. Vampire Survivors won multiple BAFTA awards despite its intentionally lo-fi graphics and minimalist design, proving that compelling gameplay loops matter more than production values.
By 2025, Vampire Survivors had grown from a solo project into a small studio operation with cooperative multiplayer, mobile ports, and numerous DLC expansions. The game defined the reverse bullet hell or horde survival genre, inspiring countless imitators trying to capture its magic. Now Poncle is expanding the universe into an entirely different genre rather than simply making Vampire Survivors 2.
What Is Vampire Crawlers
Vampire Crawlers is what Poncle calls a turbo turn-based deckbuilder with roguelite elements, though the studio playfully insists in the trailer that it’s definitely not a roguelite deckbuilder. The key distinction lies in dungeon exploration between battles, transforming the experience from pure menu-driven card combat into a first-person crawling adventure reminiscent of classic blobbers from the 1980s.
Players select a Crawler, each a returning Vampire Survivors character with distinct abilities and starting decks. You explore dungeons from a first-person perspective, discovering treasures, encountering monsters, and building your deck through card rewards. When combat begins, turn-based card battles unfold where you play cards in ascending mana order to create combo chains that multiply effects exponentially.
The combo stacking mechanic represents the core innovation translating Vampire Survivors’ snowballing power fantasy into deckbuilding. Playing cards in sequence creates multiplicative effects where each step amplifies the next card’s impact. Wild cards extend combos beyond their natural limits, allowing skilled players to reach absurd damage numbers reminiscent of Vampire Survivors’ late-game screen-clearing chaos. Poncle asks whether players can reach infinite combos, challenging the community to break the game in creative ways.
Returning items and weapons from Vampire Survivors appear as cards, including the Bible that orbits and damages enemies, the whip for direct attacks, and of course the iconic garlic that creates protective barriers. These familiar upgrades function differently in card form but retain their essential character, creating continuity between the two games.
The Design Philosophy
Poncle founder Luca Galante explained the creative direction in an Xbox Wire interview. His goal involves taking existing genres and eliminating elements he typically finds frustrating. For deckbuilders, he identified two pain points: waiting on animations and minimalist choice structures that funnel players through menus rather than creating exploration agency.
The solution came through implementing variable pacing. Players can take their time and be tactical, carefully planning each turn’s card sequence to optimize combos. Alternatively, they can play turns as fast as humanly possible, blitzing through battles at breakneck speed. The game guarantees accurate outcomes regardless of pace, allowing both methodical strategists and ADHD speedrunners to enjoy the same content differently.
The dungeon crawling element addresses Galante’s frustration with pure menu navigation. Rather than selecting next encounter from a branching path visualization, you physically navigate dungeons from first-person perspective, discovering secrets, backtracking through interconnected rooms, and feeling like you’re journeying through an actual world. This creates spatial awareness and exploration satisfaction that abstract node-based progression can’t replicate.
Galante described Vampire Crawlers as being about mowing down hordes of enemies using cards while exploring dungeons, playing as slowly or as fast as you prefer. This elevator pitch captures how the game translates Vampire Survivors’ core appeal into deckbuilding format while adding exploration layers.
The Blobber Comparison
Galante compared Vampire Crawlers to blobbers, a genre term referring to first-person dungeon crawlers popular in the 1980s. The name derives from how your party appears as a single blob rather than individual character sprites, with classics like Wizardry, Might and Magic, and Eye of the Beholder defining the template.
Traditional blobbers featured grid-based movement through dungeons, turn-based combat, party management, and emphasis on mapping complex multi-level labyrinths. Modern revivals like Legend of Grimrock and Etrian Odyssey updated the formula with quality of life improvements while retaining the methodical exploration that made the genre appealing.
Vampire Crawlers embraces the first-person dungeon exploration while replacing traditional RPG combat with deckbuilding card battles. This fusion creates something unique that doesn’t quite fit existing genre categories, hence Poncle’s tongue-in-cheek insistence that it’s not just another roguelite deckbuilder despite clearly being exactly that plus dungeons.
Community Reactions
Reddit discussion following the announcement showed enthusiasm tempered by wait-and-see caution. Many commenters expressed excitement about the dungeon crawling addition, noting that if implemented well, the spatial exploration could differentiate Vampire Crawlers from the crowded deckbuilder roguelite space dominated by Slay the Spire and its countless imitators.
Skeptics questioned whether Poncle could successfully translate their magic to an entirely different genre. Vampire Survivors succeeded partly through simplicity and accessibility, with minimal UI and immediate gratification. Deckbuilders typically require more cognitive load tracking card synergies, managing resources, and planning multiple turns ahead. Concerns arose about whether the studio’s minimalist design philosophy meshes with a genre that traditionally embraces complexity.
Optimists pointed to Poncle’s track record of constant improvement and community engagement. Vampire Survivors launched as a bare-bones prototype and evolved into a feature-rich experience through consistent free updates and responsiveness to player feedback. Trusting that same iterative development approach could produce something special in deckbuilder format.
Multi-Platform Launch Strategy
Vampire Crawlers launches simultaneously across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC via Steam and Microsoft Store, iOS, and Android in early-to-mid 2026. This broad platform strategy mirrors how Vampire Survivors eventually expanded beyond its initial PC-only release to dominate every available gaming platform.
Day one Xbox Game Pass availability for console, PC, and cloud gaming provides immediate access to millions of subscribers. Xbox Play Anywhere support means purchasing on either Xbox console or Windows PC grants access on both platforms, adding value for players who game across devices.
Mobile versions coming to iOS and Android day one represents interesting strategy. Deckbuilder roguelites translate exceptionally well to touchscreen controls, with games like Slay the Spire finding massive mobile audiences. Vampire Survivors also succeeded on mobile despite requiring more precise movement than typical touch games. Combining both franchises’ mobile appeal could create a portable deckbuilding hit.
Post-Launch Support Plans
When asked about post-launch content plans, Poncle stated they have a thousand ideas but will wait to see player feedback before committing to specific directions. They emphasized Vampire Crawlers is a whole game with a beginning and end, meaning it’s designed as a complete experience rather than an endless live service requiring constant content injection.
This approach mirrors early Vampire Survivors development where Galante released a finished core loop then expanded based on community response. The willingness to let player suggestions guide post-launch development created genuine collaboration between developers and fans rather than following predetermined roadmaps.
Expect free updates adding new characters, cards, dungeons, and mechanics if Vampire Crawlers achieves commercial success. Poncle’s philosophy emphasizes providing value to existing players rather than aggressive monetization, building goodwill that translates into long-term sales and positive word-of-mouth.
Pricing and Availability
No pricing has been announced yet. Vampire Survivors launched at just five dollars before eventually settling at slightly higher price points as content expanded. Given Vampire Crawlers’ larger scope with dungeon exploration and more complex systems, expect pricing above pure budget tier but likely below premium indie standards. Somewhere between ten and twenty dollars seems reasonable.
The Game Pass day one availability means Xbox ecosystem players get immediate access without purchase, reducing financial barriers. For other platforms, the low expected price point should make it an easy impulse buy for genre fans curious about Poncle’s take on deckbuilding.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does Vampire Crawlers release?
Vampire Crawlers launches in early-to-mid 2026 for all platforms including PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, iOS, and Android.
Who is developing Vampire Crawlers?
Poncle, the studio behind Vampire Survivors, is developing Vampire Crawlers as a spin-off set in the same universe with returning characters and items.
Is Vampire Crawlers on Xbox Game Pass?
Yes, Vampire Crawlers will be available day one on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for console, PC, and cloud gaming when it launches in 2026.
What type of game is Vampire Crawlers?
It’s a first-person roguelite deckbuilding dungeon crawler combining turn-based card battles with spatial exploration, inspired by classic blobber RPGs from the 1980s.
Do I need to play Vampire Survivors first?
No, Vampire Crawlers is designed as a standalone experience. While it features returning characters and items from Vampire Survivors, it’s a completely different genre that doesn’t require prior knowledge.
How is Vampire Crawlers different from other deckbuilders?
The key differences are first-person dungeon exploration between battles and variable pacing allowing players to either carefully plan tactical turns or blitz through combat at maximum speed with guaranteed accuracy.
Will Vampire Crawlers have DLC or expansions?
Poncle stated they have many post-launch ideas but will wait for player feedback before committing to specific content plans. Expect free updates if the game succeeds commercially.
Conclusion
Vampire Crawlers represents either brilliant genre evolution or risky overreach depending on your perspective. Poncle proved they understand what makes compulsive gameplay loops tick through Vampire Survivors’ success, but translating that magic to deckbuilding presents entirely different challenges. The dungeon crawling hook provides meaningful differentiation from pure menu-driven competitors, while the combo-stacking mechanics promise the same snowballing power fantasy that made Vampire Survivors addictive. Whether the deliberate pacing of deckbuilding synergizes with or contradicts the chaotic energy of horde survival won’t be clear until early-to-mid 2026. For now, wishlist the game and prepare to either discover your new obsession or wonder why Poncle didn’t just make Vampire Survivors 2.