V Rising Review: An Action-Survival RPG With a Gothic Twist (PS5)

Developed and published by Sweden based Stunlock Studios, V Rising is an open-world survival RPG embellished with a gothic twist. Initially released in early access, V Rising celebrated its full release on May 24th this year, with a slightly later arrival to PS5 on June 11th. Combining a rich open world, hack ‘n’ slash combat and vampire attributes with crafting mechanics and castle design makes guzzling blood an extremely rewarding experience.

V Rising is available on Steam for $34.99 and PlayStation 5 for $39.99.

Story – Bare Bones

V Rising has no cinematic cutscenes nor NPCs asking you to complete their errands in exchange for information, and the objectives which encourage progression are limited to tutorial based interactions. While I was thoroughly invested in the tantalising premise of a vampire fledging joining the disarray which follows the fall of Dracula, I was slightly disappointed with the skeletal story of V Rising.

The fleshiest pieces of lore I encountered were the character biographies of the V Bloods – powerful beings filled with blood enhanced by the dark powers of Lord Dracula. Bosses and backstories are listed in a level-based hierarchy, which will advise you on gear levels and rewards you unlock upon emerging victorious. Other than these slivers of information, it is down to you to use the environment to aid your imagination as you track V Bloods and discover new terrains.

The biographies of the powerful V Bloods offer scraps of lore.

Gameplay – Vampire Coded

The gameplay mechanics of V Rising cleverly incorporate classic vampire tropes, including their weakness; for instance, sunlight BURNS. I soon adapted to the day/night cycle, spending the daylight hours at my castle and preparing for the upcoming hunt when darkness falls. However, if you do stay out ’til morning and find yourself caught in the sun’s rays, you’ll be forced to lurk in the shadows to avoid incineration. This adds an intense, albeit sometimes frustrating sense of immersion as you creep through the world, although it can be slightly countered by crafting sun-resistant cloaks or bone-consuming braziers. Still on the same page of the vampire rulebook, carrying silver coins burns a hole through your pocket, and garlic is painfully stinky.

There are multiple menus to sort through, stats to consider and mechanics to be learned, and these slow, methodical processes are nicely balanced by the chaotic combat. R2 is used to melee attack, and I chose to keep the default dash move, which was useful for weaving between enemies when their numbers became overwhelming and my Beyblade-style special attack was on cooldown.

In addition to your sword and fangs, two spells can be prepared at a time. Spells are assigned to L1 or R1, and eventually a third, more powerful spell slot becomes available, triggered with L1 and R1 in unison. Accessed through the touchpad, the spell book is initially daunting. There are multiple types of magic, with different status effects which can offer advantages against the V Bloods. This is also where spell specific gems can be equipped to enhance your magical abilities.

Chaotic combat breaks up the peaceful castle building and blood drinking.

Blood Pool

Again fully embracing the darkness, the blood types in V Rising go beyond the ABO classification system used by mere mortals, and the vampires make better use of it too. There are various bloods for you to consume, each with their own perks. ‘Creature’ blood from wolves, deer and other mammals quickens your movement and increases your sun resistance.

Humans have multiple flavours, such as the ‘worker’ blood type, which increases the amount of materials gathered, or the ‘warrior’, which improves your physical strength. Regardless of taste, their buffs are only as powerful as the quality of their blood purity. You can even have the good stuff on tap by dominating the snack into servitude. The blood pool plays an active part in healing, and if supplies run dry you will begin to take damage from starvation.

Goth Vibes

As with most survival games, base building is an essential aspect in V Rising, and comes in the form of castle renovation. Opened with triangle, the building menu starts small and grows as you unlock new recipes. Although not offering the largest catalogue of home furnishings, V Rising won me over with the assortment of gothic goods. Stone pillars can be decorated with sculpted gargoyles, archways filled with stained glass windows and you can choose the colour of your floating candles. Most importantly, you can opt to have your bed as an extravagant ornamental coffin, which will double as your respawn point.

V Rising subtly encourages thoughtful planning when laying down the foundations to your domain, by offering perks on the refining equipment. Categorised by function (workshop, forge, tailoring, etc), placing machinery in a room with the corresponding floor tiles will speed up the production process as well as utilise less materials when crafting. Further scratching my organisation itch are the storage options, with chests dedicated to the different types of resources you’ve gathered. Not only did this create satisfying and cohesive room design, but made inventory sorting quick and easy.

The gothic furniture catalogue lets you make your castle home.

Audio and Graphics – Tranquil Blood Sucking

A persistent hindrance during my time with V Rising was holding L2 to rotate the camera with the right analog stick. As spells are also aimed with R3, this caused some confusion and misfires during earlier enemy encounters. However, my finger being glued to the left trigger didn’t prevent me from admiring the way shadows interact with the environment, shifting with the movement of the sun.

You can also zoom in from the top-down perspective by holding L2 and down on the D-pad. While less than ideal for combat, this lets you appreciate the finer, more intricate details, in particular in the customisation options available for castle decoration. Binding the spooky-cosy vibe together is the accompanying soundtrack, which shrouds you in a mysterious sense of tranquillity as each location plays its unique theme gently in the background. 

V Rising was reviewed on PS5 with a key provided by Stunlock Studios through KeyMailer.