Developer: Haemimont Games
Publisher: EuroVideo Medien
Platform: PC, Mac, Linux, PS4, XBox One, Switch
Tested on: Switch
Victor Vran: Overkill Edition (Switch) – Review
The most popular monster stories are still those of vampires and werewolves, and we can understand why, as in many ways these are the most realistic. We’ve seen many movies that revolve around Dracula, be it with a monster hunter in the lead or not. The stories of Van Helsing have been adapted to fit both the big screen as well as the small screen in the comfort of your home. This time however, we trade in the adventures of Van Helsing for those of Victor Vran, who has already passed our revue twice. This time it’s the Overkill Edition which was just released on the Nintendo Switch. We dimmed the lights and sat on the edge of our seats when we started playing this new monster hunter’s tale.
Story
Victor Vran, a known demon hunter, travels all the way to Zagoravia after he was invited by his friend, Adrian. He arrives to the grim looking town, only to find it infested with ghastly creatures that have clearly taken over the land. While initially he doesn’t care what happens to the residents of said country, he soon joins the queen, who already asked for his help before he found Adrian, and saw what happened to him. His change of heart manifests in the form of him killing every monster in sight, hopefully freeing this land from the dark and grim curse that is currently holding it.
The story progresses as much as you’d expect from a game such as this, which means it stays fairly shallow. Nonetheless, the narrator, or at least the spirit that’s pestering you, adds some flair to what’s going on, and the cutscenes properly convey what is going on, creating some tension which is certainly uplifting for this type of game.
Graphics
Graphically Victor Vran looks a lot like a Diablo game, meaning it’s a top down experience with fairly grim surroundings you’ll have to traverse through. The game uses a fairly varied amount of enemy models, making sure it doesn’t become bland too quickly. The effects are decent, and the developers did their best to add special effects per weapon, making the game a bit prettier in the sense of abilities. The environments are varied enough, but of course everything is rather dark and grim, and sometimes some areas feel a bit empty, but overall things look nice for a Switch port.
Sound
Even though the music abruptly stops when opening the menus of the game, the soundtrack is more ambient rather than in your face. The music is calm and provides a decent background for the many sounds of your attacks and of course those made by your many enemies. The voice acting is superb and truly adds to the experience that is Victor Vran. While many of the conversations are fairly short, they are properly voice acted and just give the game that much extra in terms of how it was developed.
Gameplay
Victor Vran: Overkill Edition is a port of the hit PC isometric hack and slash RPG game, which is very similar to the likes of the Diablo series. From start to finish you’ll occupy yourself by clearing the lands of the monsters that roam upon their soil, all while gathering gear, gaining experience and of course uncovering secrets in the zones you’ll be exploring. Overall the concept is simple, and nearly identical to other games in the genre, but the game does have its own quirks, making it somewhat unique.
While the map you can venture on is rather big, you’ll always find yourself in enclosed zones, with a fairly straightforward goal, namely finding a specific dungeon in said area, etc. Every zone has special objectives you can clear in order to gain bonus experience, items or gold. These extra goals make it fun to continue exploring after reaching your primary objective, or to try out different weapons, as some require you to slay enemies with a specific weapon type.
The skill system in Victor Vran is fairly original, as most skills simply depend on your equipment. Each weapon type comes with a main attack and two special skills, and you can switch freely between two weapon types, as you can have a secondary weapon equipped. This creates a fun flow in the combat. Leveling up will just improve your unknown stats and thus won’t give you any special skills. Your demon powers are also a piece of your equipment, making it so you can opt for the playstyle you like the most.
Other than weapons, you’ll also be able to equip a costume, some consumables, and destiny cards, the latter being passive upgrades for your character. Overall the gear system is simplistic, but it does the trick as experimenting with weapons is quite fun in this title.
Just like the Overkill Edition on the PC, the Switch version comes with all the released DLC, which means you’ll have ample content to explore, and while the DLC basically handles the same, you’ll still be able to collect some new loot and story progression. Overall it’s best to start with the main story, but the DLC is selectable from the start.
Conclusion
Victor Vran: Overkill Edition is a decent port of a good game, expanding the Switch library further. You’ll be treated to a Diablo-esque experience, albeit with a good old-fashioned monster hunter story behind it, fun visuals, great voice acting and decent mechanics, making this a pleasant gaming experience. If you can’t wait for when Diablo III hits the Nintendo Switch, then this one will probably keep you occupied for a reasonable amount of hours to come.
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