Just in the past month it has been interesting to see the number of new indie games hitting the eShop that are not just in the same vein as Vampire Survivors, they’ve taken some of its core elements and then changed it up in some way. Of these recent releases, Bloodshed has been the biggest surprise, and that’s because it has pulled off something I wasn’t sure would work well. It essentially asks the question of “What would it be like to play an old-school first-person shooter like DOOM, but that has roguelike elements that are similar to Vampire Survivors?”

While it has some essence in common with that hit, the move to first-person perspective can’t support quite the same degree of visual noise, so while you’ll be able to use multiple weapons you’ll need to cycle between them as needed. You will still have skills that will trigger, with many of them having visual effects, but thankfully none of them gets in the way of being able to understand what’s in front of you. Unsurprisingly though, you’ll quickly discover it’s what can be behind you that is of concern. Mix that with enemies that fling projectiles at you, and it isn’t surprising that movement while strafing should generally be the norm. Smart movement, mixed with effective use of your tools to deal death, which include things as powerful as mini-guns all the way down to melee weapons, can make you quite effective, particularly when you’ve upgraded them fully. Mix in pretty well-hidden spiders that will give you golden skull coins needed to unlock special levels and you’ll have good reason to focus on more than just surviving the carnage, doing some exploring as well to get the most out of the game.

While fans of the olden days of the likes of DOOM, Duke Nukem, Hexen, and more may get a thrill from what is new but still feels familiar, I’d imagine the younger generations may not be as appreciative. The game is absolutely going for a vibe, and while there’s no question that it calls to me personally, the less contemporary look may be an obstacle to others. Another oddity I ran into is that while the experience undeniably grew on me, getting used to it first felt like a struggle. It just took a few runs and some unlocks to truly begin to click, but that may vary from person to person. While I do appreciate the variety of unlockable characters, and there do seem to be quite a lot of weapons and skills that you’ll unlock, quite a lot of them do feel a little redundant, so a bit more true variety could have been helpful as well. For the right crowd, this does feel like a solid remix of two very different styles, but it does feel like there’s still more to be explored in either a future competitor or sequel.