Vampire Survivors’ PlayStation port continues to stumble, but that hasn’t stopped the indie bullet-hell darling from becoming one of the most impactful games of the decade.
Persistent PlayStation Woes Deepen With Patch Delay
Poncle’s May 1, 2025, X thread confirmed that a long-awaited patch for Vampire Survivors on PS4 and PS5 is being delayed. The reason? A memory leak in the engine version and the discontinuation of support for older versions.
“A patch to fix PS4 crashes due to low memory is in the works… unfortunately this isn’t a quick fix,” the developer stated.
The problem is especially bad for PS5 users running the PS4 version via backward compatibility. According to ComicBook.com (April 25, 2025), players have experienced save data corruption and frequent crashes. The issue mirrors past struggles seen in other indie titles like Hollow Knight, which also suffered performance problems on aging PlayStation hardware (IGN, June 12, 2019).
A Technical Challenge Rooted in Design
The core design of Vampire Survivors—hundreds of enemies swarming the player—puts pressure on system memory. Prior to a 2023 engine update, the game could drop to 5 FPS on Steam Deck in late-game scenarios. After beta testing, that number rose to a smooth 60 FPS (Reddit, March 3, 2023).
The need to upgrade the engine is part of a broader 2025 trend. Unity ended support for older versions in 2024, forcing indie developers to update or risk performance issues (Unity Blog, March 5, 2024). This transition, while necessary, is hitting smaller studios especially hard.
The History of Vampire Survivors
Created by former gambling industry dev Luca Galante, aka Poncle, Vampire Survivors launched in early access in December 2021. The game took inspiration from classic Castlevania aesthetics—whip-wielding characters, gothic enemies, and retro horror vibes are baked into its DNA. Its pixel-art style and monster roster drew comparisons to Konami’s iconic series almost immediately.
Set in rural Italy, Vampire Survivors began as a low-budget project on itch.io before exploding on Steam. Galante used his background designing slot machine interfaces to make the game’s chest animations feel especially addictive—a detail that didn’t go unnoticed by fans or critics.
By the time it hit Xbox, mobile, and PC with a full release in late 2022, Vampire Survivors had become a bonafide phenomenon.
Reception: A Critical Darling
Metacritic rated the game 86/100 on PC, and reviewers praised its deep replay value, simple controls, and compelling progression system. Some critics called it polarizing—you either “get it or you don’t”—but few denied its low price-to-content ratio was a steal.
Valve even considered pre-installing it on Steam Decks at one point (Metacritic, October 2022), a sign of its broad appeal. Vampire Survivors became a fixture on gaming recommendation lists and earned a reputation as a new standard for roguelikes.
Sales: A Billion-Dollar Success
By September 2024, the game had sold more than 6 million copies and generated $7 million in its first month on Steam (LEVVVEL, September 17, 2024). Including DLC, Xbox Game Pass revenue, and bundle sales, Vampire Survivors cleared $150 million in total revenue by the end of 2024. Not bad for a game that once sold for $4.99.
Awards and Accolades
The game won big at the 2023 BAFTA Games Awards, taking home trophies for Game Design and Best Game. It also earned honors at the Golden Joystick Awards, New York Game Awards, and the D.I.C.E. Awards.
Despite competing with AAA juggernauts, Vampire Survivors proved that good game design and addictive gameplay could win just as much praise as cinematic storytelling or cutting-edge graphics.
DLC: Expanding the Madness
Poncle kept the content flowing.
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Legacy of the Moonspell (2022) added a Japanese-themed stage.
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Tides of the Foscari (2023) brought fantasy elements.
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Emergency Meeting (2023) introduced an Among Us crossover.
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Operation Guns (2024) layered in Contra-style chaos.
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Ode to Castlevania (2024), launched with patch 1.12, paid direct homage to its vampire-hunting inspiration.
Regular updates included new Arcanas, stages, and quality-of-life fixes—ensuring long-term playability.
What’s Next for Vampire Survivors?
Despite the technical headaches, Vampire Survivors isn’t slowing down. Poncle has promised a fix for the PS4/PS5 issues and continues to engage the community with transparency and humor. With its legacy cemented as one of the biggest indie successes of the decade, it’s only a matter of time before another patch, another DLC, or even a sequel reignites the hype.
For now, Vampire Survivors remains proof that a simple, well-crafted idea can still make an impact—even if it occasionally crashes your console.
Sources:
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Poncle, X Post, May 1, 2025
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“Vampire Survivors Dev Warns of Major Issues on PlayStation”, ComicBook.com, April 25, 2025
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“Vampire Survivors Reviews”, Metacritic, October 20, 2022
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“How many copies did Vampire Survivors sell?”, LEVVVEL, September 17, 2024
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“Version History”, Vampire Survivors Wiki, March 10, 2025
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“Vampire Survivors – Games | PlayStation®”, PlayStation, April 10, 2024
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“Hollow Knight PS4 Patch Notes”, IGN, June 12, 2019
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“Unity Support Lifecycle Update”, Unity Blog, March 5, 2024
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Reddit Thread, March 3, 2023
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Wikipedia, “Vampire Survivors”, accessed April 25, 2025
News compiled, edited, and fact-checked by Derek Gibbs and Edgar B. for D/REZZED from Clownfish TV.
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