Vampire Survivors’ creator just made a new deckbuilder—and it’s for him

Why This Caught My Eye

Vampire Survivors wasn’t supposed to take over our lunch breaks, but it did—because Luca Galante (aka poncle) made something brutally simple, wildly rewarding, and allergic to frustration. Now he’s channeling that design DNA into a fresh direction with Vampire Crawlers, a deckbuilder (card-based strategy game) set in the same gothic universe. In a June 2024 GameSpot interview, Galante didn’t mince words: “I’m making the game basically for me… I am player number one.” In a genre drowning in copycats and complexity bloat, that blunt focus on feel over fashion is exactly why this spinoff matters.

Key Takeaways

• Deckbuilder spin: Vampire Crawlers brings a roguelite deckbuilder twist to the Vampire Survivors IP, aiming to keep things “easy to play, feel-good, low-frustration.”
• Reused art, smart tweaks: Characters and UI from Survivors return in 3D, but with fresh icons, animations, and polish where it counts.
• Play All button: Auto-resolve fodder fights with a single click to keep runs snappy and your build flowing.
• Team effort: Galante shifted from solo dev to studio lead, balancing streamlined budgets with weekend dev sprints to retain that scrappy heart.

Why This Matters Now

Deckbuilders are having a moment again—from Balatro hype to a flood of roguelike survivors-likes—but many new entries either pile on mechanics or drown in UI hell. Galante’s pitch cuts right through that noise: leverage the familiar Vampire Survivors on-ramp, stick close to its interface, and pour effort into flow. He even joked that the marketing could lean into “Yes, it’s super cheap. Yes, we are milking these pixels like there’s no tomorrow.” That level of candor is a breath of fresh air in an industry that loves to pretend every pixel is brand new.

Breaking Down Vampire Crawlers

At its core, Vampire Crawlers trades the twitchy, auto-fire chaos of Survivors for a slower, more tactical loop. This roguelite deckbuilder demands you pick cards, manage resources, and plan combos—risky in a market where attention spans clock out after ten minutes. But Galante isn’t chasing a four-quadrant hit. “If I start thinking about what the majority of players will want, I just end up doing something average,” he told GameSpot. Instead, he’s focused on the same dopamine-driven design that made Survivors stick: cut the busywork, let the magic happen.

The “Play All” Button Could Kill Deckbuilder Boredom

Every card game hits a lull: you’re overpowered, the outcome’s set, yet you still have to click through every animation. Crawlers’ “Play All” button is the perfect antidote. Stack your build, hit “Play All,” and watch your hand auto-resolve trivial encounters at double speed. When choices matter, you decide. When they don’t, you zip ahead. If this lands, it could be as influential to deckbuilders as auto-fire was for survivors-likes.

The Real Story Behind Reused Art

Let’s address the pixel elephant: Crawlers repurposes Vampire Survivors’ characters and UI, now dropped into simple 3D arenas. Galante’s rationale is pragmatic—keeping costs down, avoiding scope creep, and sidestepping predatory monetization. “If we change them, people are going to complain… it is going to increase the cost,” he said. But this isn’t a mere clone: the team added new icons, animations, and UI flourishes where they enhance readability and feedback. If you loved Survivors’ punchy aesthetic, you’ll feel right at home.

From Solo Dev to Studio Lead (Without Losing the Weekend Hacker)

Vampire Survivors began as a one-person love letter to Castlevania, powered by off-the-shelf assets and Galante’s weekend hacking. Now poncle has a studio: he credits collaborators like pixel artist Glauber Kotaki for ping-ponging ideas, while QA testers hunt bugs across PC and consoles. Sure, teams move slower than lone tinkerers—but the payoff is polish, balance checks, and multi-platform readiness. Galante still sneaks in personal sprints on weekends, wearing the same builder hat that launched him into indie stardom.

What Gamers Should Expect

If you’re here for groundbreaking visuals, this isn’t that. Crawlers bets on clarity, pace, and the “one-more-run” itch that made Survivors a phenomenon. The slower tempo will disappoint some, and Galante knows it—but he shipped Survivors in early access precisely to iterate based on feedback. No release window’s been announced yet, so watch for updates in late 2024. The real question: will the feel survive the genre hop? With a “Play All” safety valve and a no-nonsense UI, Crawlers has a shot. Enemy variety, card synergies, and meta progression will decide if it grows legs beyond novelty.

And don’t forget Galante’s decades-long Castlevania obsession—gothic mood, crunchy feedback, and simple systems that snowball into chaos. If Crawlers wears that love on its sleeve as well as Survivors did, it could be the rare deckbuilder that respects your time as much as your brain.

Conclusion

Vampire Crawlers may look familiar, but under the hood it’s a fresh take on roguelite deckbuilding with a low-frustration core. Galante’s self-first design philosophy, smart reuse of assets, and QoL features like “Play All” strike a clear balance between comfort and innovation. Keep an eye on how card combos evolve and enemy variety expands—those will determine if this copycat-free creation becomes the next indie phenomenon.