Warhammer Survivors preview: It’s Vampire Survivors, but in the Warhammer universe

God, yes: I’m all for Survivors-anything, and so the news that Auroch Digital was teaming up with Poncle to bring a Survivors game to the Warhammer universe was music to my ears. And after going hands-on with Warhammer Survivors, I’m even more excited. You don’t have to be a Warhammer buff to get a kick out of this: coming from the developer of Vampire Survivors, it’s set to be up there with the best in the genre.

I’ve only played a slice of what Warhammer Survivors has to offer so far, but I’m already very impressed. There’s a lot of Vampire Survivors DNA here, from the visual effects of opening a treasure chest to the range of upgrades available to you between runs, but it also feels fresh and unique thanks to its setting within the Warhammer universes. Yes, I do mean universes, plural, because when you start playing, you’re given the choice of Warhammer 40,000 or Age of Sigmar.

Technically, then, you’re getting two games in one, with each universe offering distinct environments, different characters and separate upgrades. It seems many of the weapons and attacks are the same across both universes, but it’s easily forgiven, given the sheer amount of content available here.

In Warhammer 40,000, you’ll initially play as a Space Marine, although as you progress through the game you’ll unlock more characters, all with their own unique starting abilities. The same is true of Age of Sigmar, where you’ll start as Stormcast Neave Blacktalon. Like with any Survivors-like, you’ll gather experience tokens (skulls) as you defeat enemies, levelling up each time your experience bar is full. Every level up will allow you to choose a new passive or active ability, or upgrade an existing one. Survive long enough, and you’ll be able to become a formidable force to be reckoned with. But that’s a big if: Warhammer Survivors doesn’t go easy on you, and surviving the early stages is going to test your mettle.

Thanks to a huge range of permanent upgrades, though, you’ll soon get more powerful, with no run of the game ever feeling like a waste of time. You’ll be able to upgrade your base HP, attack power, how long attacks last, the size of attacks and a whole lot more, with those upgrades applying to every run you have. You will have unique progress in both Warhammer 40,000 and Age of Sigmar, though, giving you good reason to spend time in both.

Warhammer Survivors doesn’t have a release date just yet, but it’s expected to land later this year. You don’t have to wait to give it a go, though: a free demo is available now on Steam – and it’s well worth your time.