Army of Ruin

ヴァンサバ系だとかなり当たり！！

Hat wahrscheinlich das Potenzial, interessant zu sein. Aber viel zu viel Grind, bevor man überhaupt Spaß haben kann.

[h1] Entrance here [/h1] The Survivors-Like genre finally has another entry, for new players to the genre, that serves as a benchmark, wether you like the genre, or not. [h3] The bare minimum [/h3] Milkstone Studios is one of the few developers in the genre, that actually understood the assignement with survivors-likes. The point of the genre is to give you the illusion that you are not playing an idle game, while being as complex as an idle game. This is achieved by the power fantasy of being the bullet hell for the enemies with choices that matter, but are not as taxing as a wrong specc in an Action-RPG for example. [h3] Bones need meat on them [/h3] Army of Ruin is an ideal entry into the genre because it teaches the player the fundamentals of the genre in such an easy and spoon-fed way, that it can't be simpler. You pick a character, pick weapons and trinkets and when you find out what trinkets upgrade which weapons you get stronger. After that you kill enemies and with every run you try to kill more enemies. If that sounds boring or mundane to you, this genre is not for you. In it's core, the genre is nothing more than this loop. What sets Army of Ruin apart from all the other surviors-likes is, that it has a reasonable price, looks good enough and is elegant in its simplicity. [h3] The vampires bite [/h3] You can't talk about a game in this genre without comparing it to the genres king. Vampire Survivors in it's present form still the best choice if you know what you are getting into. This review however serves as an offer to consider, that it's actually worthwhile to not start with Vampire Survivors, since it is so bloated. Army of Ruin has no DLC. If you buy the game, you have everything. It is not the best game in the genre, but it is among the best entries into the genre, which is better than most of the games in the genre.

[h1]Grade: B[/h1] [b]Army of Ruin[/b] does something most bullet hells don't bother with — it gives a damn about how it looks. A [i]dark fantasy fairy tale[/i] aesthetic that immediately sets it apart from the sea of pixel art survivors flooding the genre. The vibrant color schemes against chaotic enemy swarms shouldn't work as well as they do, but somehow the visual language actually helps you read the battlefield rather than fight it. That's a design win most games in this space fumble completely. I've seen enough of this game to say it earns every hour it takes from you. [quote]In a genre where "just one more run" is the whole pitch — Army of Ruin actually delivers on it.[/quote] [h2]What Works[/h2] [list] [] Artistic direction is genuinely distinctive — not just another clone [] [b]300+ unlockables[/b] — characters, weapons, trinkets, charms — the build variety is real [] Multiple difficulty levels per stage give the grind actual purpose [] The auto-shooter loop feels smooth and satisfying, not mindless [*] $7.99 ($3.99 on sale) price point is almost insulting for how much content is here [/list] [h2]Minor Complaints[/h2] [list] [] Some enemy scaling can feel uneven in later difficulty tiers [] Only five stages — the variety is deep, not wide [/list] [b]Bottom line:[/b] If you've written off the survivor genre as Vampire Survivors clones all the way down — [b]Army of Ruin[/b] is the correction. The art alone justifies the look, and the gameplay backs it up.

8/10 Recommended First time playing this in 2026 having played a dozen or so auto shooters. Of the classic Vampire Survivors clone games I consider Nordic Ashes to be the best one and Army or Ruin to be the second best. I think this is a surprisingly challenging game in this space but the meta progression will slowly overcome that hurdle. I can see why reviews might call this too grindy but for me there was enough here to keep things fun. The game has soo many challenges and unlocks to pick away at that you can keep doing things even if you're playing the same difficulty you already beat.

great fun, a dressed up version of vampire survivors, i find this more addictive but may not be for everyone! worth a buy tho! 7/10

It was fun enough to get all of the achievements.