Vampire's Fall: Origins was originally released by Early Morning Studios back in 2018 as a mobile game for both Android and iOS. It has since been ported to the PC via Steam in February and now makes it debut on Xbox and Switch.
It's essentially a top down 2D open world RPG, with extensive character customization and is very story driven (with extensive dialogue choices), switching to side on tactical combat for encounters.
It's worth noting from the outset, that the port from the mobile version differs in that there are no microtransactions and the complete game is there from the outset, ready to be unlocked through natural progression.
To set the scene, .......... for countless years the villagers of Vamp’Ire have enjoyed a life of peace and happiness. However now, rumors are spreading about a wielder of dark magic - a Witchmaster. Fearing the rumors to be true, the village musters a militia to prepare for the worst. You are a recruit enrolled to defend the village. Little do you know, fate has something special in store for you…
....fate's special treat is that the entire village is slain by the Witchmaster's army, all except you. You rise with added vampiric gifts and set out on a mission of discovery and revenge!
This is where the actual game begins, you're given freedom to explore as you see fit and complete side quests aplenty. It's pretty standard fare for an RPG, kill stuff, level up, put points into character customization all the time upgrading equipment via loot drops. There really isn't anything new, but at the same time this is comfortable, familiar ground for any RPG fans, especially those with a penchant to the more retro of the genre.
Graphically textures and menus have been tweaked from the original mobile version and given an upgrade, although they are still very basic even in comparison to more recent mobile games. I didn't find the graphical style, quirky, endearing or artistic, to me it just seemed functional with the bare minimum having been done to carry the story and gameplay.
Audio wise it is very bad in places, I'm guessing just using the original mobile assets which would have had to be recorded at very low quality simply to save installation space. In fact the sound quality of the intro narrative instantly ported me back to memories of early Sega arcade classics like Altered Beast.
I guess what we have to consider here, is that developing for mobile is much different to other more standardized platforms. In that there are so many phones out there, you are in effect held back by the weaker models in order to provide a game that is accessible to as many users as possible. That finished product can then only be enhanced so much before you enter the realms of having to remake assets, then it becomes less of a port and more of an expensive remaster.
Graphical and Audio limitations aside, the gameplay, story and lore are all excellent and really help to restore some balance to this title. The Story and dialogue are both very well constructed.
Again showing it's mobile roots, but this time to its merit.
With the audio-visual limitations of a mobile format the creators had to play to their strengths and they really did here, with the creation of a genuinely compelling storyline, taking upwards of 30 hours to complete. That's not including the fully fleshed out dialogue trees of the side quests. In addition to progressing the main story quest there is also a lot of lore to be learned from NPC's along the way. The narrative really is the redeeming feature of Vampire's Fall.
The game is however artificially drawn out in places, with the laboriously slow traversal of the open world and a fair amount of filler "fetch me this stuff from way over yonder" type quests. This can be a little frustrating in the latter part of the game, as at that point you just want to get on with the storyline and reach it's conclusion. Overall its a very well crafted RPG in the traditional sense, any limitations left over from its "origins" are more than compensated for by the devotedly crafted narrative.
Despite the abundant use of an almost identical font and it's quasi-isometric appearance, this is not Diablo, not an ARPG, not even close. This is a full on retro style RPG with the freedom of an open world and bags of character. Despite its drawbacks it's well worth the $12.99 asking price for anyone to whom this genre already appeals.
Комментарии