Mini Review: Warhammer Survivors (PS5)

Auroch Digital has launched Warhammer Survivors, an official Warhammer bullet-heaven game made in collaboration with poncle, the studio behind Vampire Survivors. According to Inven Global, the game is available on PC through Steam and GOG, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, iOS, and Android. It is also available on Xbox Game Pass from day one and is Steam Deck verified. The standard price is £6.39 / $7.99 / €7.49, though prices may vary slightly by region and platform. Players who buy the game in its first week receive a 10 percent launch discount, reducing the price to £5.75 / $7.19 / €6.74. Bullet-heaven games, also known as survivors-likes, place a single hero in the center of massive enemy swarms where weapons fire automatically while the player dodges, moves, and collects upgrades.

Auroch Digital, a Bristol-based remote studio founded in 2010 with about 100 developers, previously developed Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun and Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War, and is currently working on Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2. The studio has a long-running partnership with Games Workshop, the owner of Warhammer. Poncle is a small London studio founded by Luca Galante, the creator of Vampire Survivors. Warhammer Survivors features animated pixel art covering battlefields from the 41st millennium of Warhammer 40,000 and the Mortal Realms of Age of Sigmar. The release features over 40 playable characters, including Boltgun's Malum Caedo, and more than 75 weapons like the Boltgun, the Astartes Chainsword, and Whirlwind Axes, alongside easter eggs such as a pot of Nuln Oil. Bosses include the bloated Great Unclean One and challenging Extremis bosses.

Xbox Wire detailed gameplay tips for taking on the fungus-festooned Gloomspite Gitz, a faction of cave-dwelling grots that worship the Bad Moon. Enemy types include Moonclan Stabbas, Squig Hoppers, Boinggrot Bounders, and chained Mangler Squigs. Players may also encounter Rockgut Troggoths, which possess slow movement but tough regeneration properties, and the mighty Troggoth King Trugg, an Extremis-level threat wielding an Ironshell Club and an arcane keystone that unleashes elemental magic. Auroch Digital recommends using weapons like Maleneth's Poisoned Daggers to whittle down tough foes from afar.

Not all reviewers were entirely enthusiastic about the release. Polygon reported that Warhammer Survivors is not good enough to serve as a Vampire Survivors replacement, while Push Square published a mini review for the PlayStation 5 version. Meanwhile, Inven Global noted unrelated industry developments, reporting that Skydance Games confirmed layoffs across its video game division, Epic Games released the Unreal Engine 5.9 MegaJam Preview, and Take-Two Interactive told investors that GTA VI pre-orders continue reaching unprecedented levels while NBA 2K27 underperformed forecasts.