The Vampire Survivors Studio Just Published a Game So Weird, It Might Break Your Brain (Or Just Your Controller)
AI Gaming News Author · Polygon ·
Poncle, the brilliant minds behind *Vampire Survivors*, have stepped into game publishing with *Kill the Brickman*, a bizarre brick-breaker roguelike that's fun in bursts but struggles with clunky controls and a glacial pace that hides its deeper mechanics.
Right, so you know Poncle, yeah? The wizards behind that absolute time-sink of a game, *Vampire Survivors*? The one that turned 'bullet hell casual' into a genre and sucked in more hours than a black hole on a caffeine binge? Well, they’re not just making games anymore. Oh no, mate. They’ve decided to dabble in the dark arts of publishing, and their first big reveal is a little number called *Kill the Brickman*. And let me tell you, it’s not just 'a little number' – Polygon called it 'weird AF', and after peering into its digital soul, I reckon they’re spot on. But 'weird' can mean a lot of things, can't it? Sometimes it's a glorious, reality-bending experiment. Other times, it's just... a bit odd.
So, what IS *Kill the Brickman*? Imagine your classic brick-breaker, the one you probably played on a Nokia 3310 back when life was simpler, right? Now, twist it like a pretzel stuck in a hadron collider. Instead of a paddle and a bouncing ball, you’ve got a gun, and *you* fire the bullets. The catch? You’ve gotta deflect those bullets off walls, other brickmen (the titular enemies, naturally), or environmental hazards to score hits. It’s like billiards meets a firing range, if the billiards balls were made of pure chaotic energy and the table was constantly trying to eat your hat. Sounds bonkers, right? And it is! The sheer audacity of the concept, the bizarre presentation – it all screams 'indie innovation' from the rooftops. For a hot minute, I was genuinely buzzing. Poncle backing something this off-kilter? Sign me up!
But here’s where the digital tea leaves start to get a bit murky. My first dance with *Kill the Brickman* was on a gamepad, thinking, 'Yeah, this is how I like my roguelikes, mate.' Bloody hell, was I wrong. Trying to line up those precision shots with two thumbsticks felt less like aiming and more like trying to tie your shoelaces with your elbows. It was a nightmare, genuinely – angles were escaping me faster than my last coherent thought before a *Vampire Survivors* run. Switching to mouse and keyboard? Ah, now we’re talking. Much more consistent. It’s a minor thing, a little blip on the radar, but it’s the kind of blip that can make you wonder if the game’s been designed for a parallel dimension where everyone has three hands.
Now, once I got past the initial control kerfuffle and into a groove, *Kill the Brickman* revealed itself to be a genuinely fun time-waster. It’s got that 'just one more level' magic, the kind that makes you look up and realise an hour’s evaporated like a forgotten spell. The moment-to-moment action? Solid enough. It’ll get the job done for a quick commute or a half-hour break. But here’s the kicker, the real head-scratcher: the pacing. I spent a fair few hours with this thing, and while there were tantalising glimpses of deeper mechanics – upgrades for bullet bounces, special revolver cylinders, different coloured bullets for combo effects – it took an absolute age to get to them. It felt like the game was holding back its best tricks, making me slog through the basics when all I wanted was to dive into the truly experimental stuff. It’s like being promised a grand wizard’s duel but having to spend four hours doing broomstick chores first.
And this brings me to its roguelike claims. The original article posed a brilliant question: 'Is this a skill issue? Or is the game just slow?' And honestly, it’s a bit of both, but with a twist. See, roguelikes are meant to push you, right? To make you adapt, to punish your mistakes with a swift, often brutal, reset. *Kill the Brickman* doesn't do that. Its 'punishment' for non-optimal play isn’t losing progress; it’s just... time. Everything takes longer. You don’t fail; you just get fatigued. It’s an interesting design choice, sure, making it super accessible (no harsh penalties, yay!), but it also means progress often feels less like a triumphant ascent and more like trudging through treacle. I didn't fail once, but I can’t honestly say I felt like I was 'winning' either. It kinda felt like I was trapped in a digital waiting room, occasionally deflecting a bullet.
So, where does that leave us with *Kill the Brickman*? It's a contradiction, mate. Clunky in parts, especially with a controller, but oddly enjoyable when you find your rhythm. There’s a genuinely clever game bubbling beneath the surface, but I reckon a lot of folks might bail before they ever taste its true depth. It’s not *Vampire Survivors* – it won't consume your life for days on end. But it is the kind of game you’d keep installed for those moments you need to kill half an hour and fancy something a bit... different. If they can tighten up the pacing and give controllers a bit more love (and maybe give the soundtrack a bit more oomph), this could really shine.
But let's zoom out for a sec. Poncle’s move into publishing is fascinating, isn't it? After the meteoric success of *Vampire Survivors*, a game that arguably redefined what an indie hit could be – simple premise, addictive loop, surprisingly deep – it's natural to wonder what their taste in games looks like beyond their own creations. *Kill the Brickman* gives us a hint. It's experimental, it's got a unique hook, and it values accessibility (even if its pacing inadvertently makes it a bit of a marathon). It suggests Poncle isn't just looking for clones of their own success but for genuinely innovative ideas, even if they're a bit rough around the edges. It’s a bold first step into the publishing arena, a statement that they’re willing to take a chance on something truly 'weird'. And honestly, that's pretty exciting. It means they’re looking for the next accidental reality-bending spell, not just trying to recreate the last one. Keep an eye on Poncle, folks. They’re clearly not done surprising us.
So, yeah, *Kill the Brickman*. Not a perfect spell, perhaps a little too much chaos for its own good, but definitely one worth peeking at if you’ve got a spare half-hour and a mouse and keyboard handy. Just don't expect another *Vampire Survivors* binge. Expect something... weirder.
Tags: Indie Games, Roguelike, Puzzle Game, Vampire Survivors, Game Impressions
Original article: Polygon