Video Game Review – Victor Vran Overkill Edition

It has been stated that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Then once more, there’s the flipside to that familiarity breeds contempt. Victor Vran, by Haemimont Games (of Tropico reputation), straddles that ever so thin line among both splendidly. An action RPG with a storyline steeped in Grimm’s fairy tales (the titular Vran is a demon hunter and will properly be a relation to Van Helsing himself), the sport leans heavily closer to days past of Baldur’s Gate or extra recently the likes of Blizzard’s Diablo and its ilk. It’s been comfortable to be had for the first-class part of two years on PC, but simplest now could be it seeing the light of day on the console, such as both the Fractured Worlds and all new Motörhead Through The Ages DLC.

An isometric motion-RPG, Vran’s tale, and settings can be not anything new, however as an instance of its genre it must be up there as one of the maximum enjoyable romps. Some parents like their games to be idea scary, to assignment their wondering. As for me, generally, a sport has to entertain and interact. I can forgive tale as long as the dynamics of the gameplay let me have amusing. That one, simple, three letter word. Gaming for me is a launch, an escape, a way of letting me overlook the humdrum of day to day life in trade for adventures in some other international. Victor Vran gives me that launch, that blast of fun with tons gusto!

As RPGs cross, it doesn’t disguise behind more than one talent lessons, overly-complicated ability trees or convoluted gadget stats. It maintains matters enormously simple and that works to the sport’s gain. In Victor Vran you stage up as you development via the sport, no want to worry about picking a specific magnificence to aid your play fashion, no want to hold an eye fixed on XP to unlock unique skills. At most you’re given a choice of 3 bonuses whenever you level up. This could be a brand new weapon, potions, or buffs by means of way of Destiny playing cards. This fashion of RPGing fits me to a tee as it allows you to mix up your play on the fly without the need to reduce and start characters from scratch. It’s ideal for the sort of gameplay common in Victor Vran too.

Battling your way thru the game, you’ll usually have two guns at your disposal. I’m partial to a heady mix of the ranged and heavy way to my lightning gun and hammer blend, but there’s also rapiers, swords, shotguns, pistols, grenade launchers and, thanks to the Motorhead enlargement, guitars (simply go with it here folks). They all experience suitably exclusive and also include secondary attacks that may be spammed thanks to a cooldown for every. It’s a nice little bit of strategic blend into the game. Watching the cooldown timer creep again as you discover yourself overrun with the aid of enemies has a tendency to have you walking approximately like a headless chook caught in a persistent bullet-hell. Did I say approach? Running away tends to work quality for me until I take into account that I actually have any other weapon at my disposal that tends to shop my bacon!

The guns aren’t your most effective savior in the game though, consumables such as a region of effect bombs and demon powers also are at your disposal to make you at instances sense like a one-man demon looking navy. While at instances you can get without problems beaten, it is able to be certain, REALLY gratifying (when you take into account) pulling out a fireplace bomb to lay waste to all the ones around you, or use your demon powers to rain down warm fireplace from hell. These moments are regular occurrences for the duration of every pretty rattling big degree and keep you sated in the steady and continual quest for killer loot. They’re adding a key component within the leisure of this hunt, kill, loot, repeat cycle.

Enemies do turn out to be quite much of a muchness, adhering to the standard kinds in this sort of recreation it must be said; skeletons, wraiths, elementals, spiders and scorpions all make way for the inevitable give up of stage boss battles. It’s fine though, due to the fact Victor Vran has another nice contact up its sleeve as each region additionally consists of five secondary targets to paintings your way via, and return to if you need to at a later date (as all enemies re-spawn in case you leave). Usually, these goals are a mix of skill ratings, secrets and techniques and death by using required weapon. They’re an outstanding inclusion and are a large part in supporting you stage up and reap precise loot. Haemimont even uploads another layer onto this in a few areas, where you can also upload modifiers inside the way of hexes that now not handiest up the risk level, however, increase the capability for reward.

Away from the gameplay itself, I’ve were given to take my hat off to the writing, voice acting and tune. Yes, I know the tale isn’t going to win any Booker prize awards, however, the sport grabs you in other approaches, gameplay apart. The gorgeous Doug Cockle’s tones are so right away recognizable that you may almost have idea Geralt himself had inhabited Victor’s body. The writing right here, in particular, the communicate of Victor and our unseen narrator is quite rattling delicious, mocking, international-weary and really tongue in cheek too. There’s an air of self-attention going for walks during, with a few first-rate popular culture references and gaming nods that make me applaud the wit.

The tune in the course of is likewise hauntingly melancholic at instances. Sounds of harpsichords, lutes and greater I’m certain to give it an actual olde worlde experience… except you sense like rocking out to the killer sounds of Motorhead conventional all through the instead unusual extra DLC!

At the give up of the day, all of these factors come collectively to offer you with an aRPG enjoy that’s not simplest a familiar romp, however, some thing that manages to marvel and pleasure in methods you perhaps didn’t suppose became feasible any greater on this style.

Score: 9/10

Pros
+ Easy to pick up and play
+ Beautifully imagined tiers
+ All. The. Loot.

Cons
– Can grow to be quite the grind
– Storyline isn’t in particular sturdy