Replaced (Xbox, PC, £16.99 or included with Xbox Game Pass) receives a verdict of dazzling dystopia and a rating of 4/5. Just imagine living in a world where American power is diminished, everything feels broken, and artificial intelligences are everywhere. Crazy, right? Thankfully, we have fiction to show us what these things would look like. The outlandish dystopia described is the setting for Replaced, in which you play as a scientist fused with an AI and must fight your way back to the lab to make things right.
Combat and Visuals
The fighting itself is pretty good, featuring a 2D version of the free-flowing combat from the Batman Arkham games. A goon appears behind you with a pipe; you press a single button to counter his attack, then another to careen into a separate goon. How long can you keep the sequence going? However, what truly makes Replaced stand out is its visual style. In fact, this might be one of the most beautiful games ever made. The mix of retro pixels and modern 3D effects, pioneered for recent remakes of old Japanese RPGs, is used to stunning effect. Every new screen resembles another wonderful diorama to admire.
Story and Progression
After a while, it was the prospect of more glorious sights that kept me pressing on through Replaced’s world, more than its combat or Blade Runner-esque story. This may sound like a knock on those other elements, but it is not really; it is a measure of the spectacle on offer. I would gladly have this digital creation uploaded into my own consciousness.
Vampire Crawlers (PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, PC, £8.99 or included with Xbox Game Pass) earns a verdict of Survivors trump Crawlers and a rating of 3/5. Four years ago, Vampire Survivors emerged seemingly out of nowhere and catapulted its developer, Poncle, to prominence. It was, and still is, an amazingly compulsive experience. You tear around as a constantly attacking character, hoping to last as long as possible against the hordes of Bisconte Draculó.
Deckbuilding Mechanics
Now Poncle returns with Vampire Crawlers. It features the same hordes, retro visuals, and frenetic pace, but it is more of a spinoff than a direct sequel. Instead of shooting fireballs and lightning bolts, this time you attack with cards. Yes, Vampire Crawlers is a deckbuilding game, a genre that has become highly popular. Your character faces off against the denizens of the dark lord by playing card after card from your hand, each representing some power or other.
Comparisons and Critique
As a translation of Survivors to the deckbuilding genre, Crawlers is impeccable. Its main mechanic is 'combinations': if you play cards in a particular order, subsequent cards become more powerful. When you get used to it, this perfectly emulates the constantly upgrading attacks of Poncle's earlier game. However, compared to the deckbuilding genre as a whole, Crawlers is a little lacking. Its systems are not nearly as varied or rewarding as those in Monster Train, Balatro, or Cobalt Core. Besides, Crawlers lacks the joyous surprise factor of Survivors. That one felt as though it had unearthed something entirely new from the past; this one feels as though it has dug out something entirely familiar from the present. Mi scusi, Bisconte Draculó.
