EvilVEvil Review – An addictive shooter with plenty of bite

EvilVEvil is a title by Toadman Interactive that offers fast, frenetic first-person-shooter combat with class abilities and Vampires! The Swedish studio’s most notable title is Immortal: Unchained, which is a Soulslike.

This new title is a big departure from what’s come before, and while EvilVEvil has its fair share of problems, it is a title I see myself enjoying long after the review period.

Become a superhuman badass even with a potato PC

EvilVEvil is a co-op shooter with light RPG mechanics, like leveling up to unlock weapons and perks. You play as one of three Vampires, each with their own unlockables. While everyone on the roster shares basic abilities like a floaty jump, character-specifics help the cast feel unique. For example, Leon has a Slam attack which can also be used as a panic button. Mashaka can conjour Fireballs, and Victoria can summon Ghosts.

Every character has a generic bite attack which kills the target outright. This is how you restore health, so it’s an ability you use all the time.

When you load into EvilVEvil, you’re treated to a stylish cut scene followed by a snappy tutorial that explains the controls. On that note, the controls are decent on a Keyboard and Mouse, but I couldn’t get them to feel comfortable with my controller.

There doesn’t seem to be any aim-assist for analog stick enjoyers, and I noticed a bit of input lag which was pretty distracting. After some testing, I found this may be linked to Vsync, which is turned on by default. Your mileage may vary, and I hope improvements are made before EvilVEvil lands on the consoles.

I’m pleased to announce that I experienced no game-breaking bugs during my time with the game. In fact, EvilVEvil runs flawlessly on my PC, even with all the settings cranked up. It’s a real treat to play a title that feels so well-optimized, even if the visuals are on the more basic side.

The graphics are stylish, although notably less detailed than many newer shooters. I honestly have no problem with this, and the aesthetics are sharp and defined. There are some appealing locations strewn across EvilVEvil’s eleven stages, and well-designed arenas which I’ll talk about shortly. The soundtrack is full of techno bangers, and while we don’t have anything quite on the level of the Blood Rave from Blade, it’s hard not to tap your foot to the music.

An approachable blood-soaked adventure

The gameplay loop of EvilVEvil is pretty simple and caters to players who may not have time for grueling multi-hour sessions. Most stages can be completed in under 10 minutes and are designed to be replayed.

You go in, complete the objectives, kill everything that moves, and collect that sweet EXP reward at the end. EXP unlocks new guns and abilities, and you can earn more for finishing stages on harder difficulties.

You can put your mind at ease if you’re concerned with Toadman Interactive’s Soulslike roots for difficulty. The Story mode is definitely “Games Journalist” difficulty, meaning you’ll struggle to die, even playing solo.

Objectives are basic, and while I don’t mind their simplicity, they may get boring over time. Most tasks are your typical “pull this switch” or “stand in this circle.” It’s routine stuff, but it’s obvious that the main focus is combat. The objectives exist purely to advance the story and ferry you around the map.

And let’s talk about those maps. Most stage layouts in EvilVEvil are a series of large arenas loosely tied together with corridors. The arenas are usually spacious, with plenty of verticality. Care has been taken to give players space to whizz around with their vampire powers, and you have room to get creative.

While I haven’t tried every weapon, the ones I’ve used feel great and sound satisfying and punchy. Each character has two abilities, and while they can augmented with Artifacts, it feels like a missed opportunity that there aren’t more to choose from. However, weaving crazy jumps and movement abilities into gunfights feels great, and this is where EvilVEvil shines.

I’ve seen this movie before

Without delving into story spoilers, let’s just say if you watched the Blade Trilogy, you’ll notice similarities. The story clearly isn’t the focal point in EvilVEvil, but it’s serviceable and the voice acting is strong enough to advance the plot. The playable characters spit out a few odd one-liners that don’t match the tone at all, but it’s a minor nitpick.

The maps aren’t particularly complex, but it’s still possible to get lost. Most of this is down to the Nav Marker, which doesn’t always lead you to the precise place to advance. Sometimes, I reached the Marker, only for it to reappear at the doorway I just came through. I quickly realized it’s best to use the Marker as a rough guide, but it’s a pain when the whole team must gather in one spot before you move on.

The sincerest form of flattery

Even early on, it’s clear what titles EvilVEvil draws inspiration from. ID software’s juggernaut, Doom, is the most obvious, with the level layouts ferrying you between arenas.

You could let that slide as a coincidence, but we have Feeding to Restore Health ala Glory Kills, and a heavy electronic soundtrack. The class abilities and mods wouldn’t feel out of place in Warframe, and EvilVEvil doesn’t do anything particularly new with these ideas.

That said, I don’t think it needs to. EvilVEvil avoids feeling like “Doom at home”, mostly thanks to its environments and vampiric abilities.

Rough around the edges, and I’m left wanting more

I had a blast playing through EvilVEvil, but the constant minor issues did start to chip away at my enjoyment. The most egregious was the lack of feedback when I took damage. It’s easy to quickly lose a ton of health and be completely oblivious until it’s too late. I don’t need Call of Duty jam all over the screen, but a visual cue would be welcome.

Enemy spawns were lacking once I’d figured them out. I got lost on one stage and was trapped in an area where enemies continually appeared. I noticed that the bad guys don’t have designated spawns and can just pop into existence just off-camera.

I’ve already mentioned the misbehaving Nav Marker, and while it never gets better, I did get used to it. If you care about the story, the part that will annoy you the most is the ending.

The ending is so abrupt that I half expected more stages to unlock when I returned to the main menu. Even for someone like me who doesn’t care about the lore, I couldn’t believe the whimper EvilVEvil ends on. There’s almost zero resolution, and while I think it’s to usher in seasonal content post-launch, it’s a baffling way to wrap up the vanilla experience.

None of these problems are too detrimental on their own, but they add up, which is a shame, as EvilVEvil has a lot of promise.

A fun supernatural romp despite its flaws

After playing through every level in EvilVEvil, it’s a game I find particularly tough to review. The title has glaring faults and the controller woes are a bummer. Some gameplay issues need ironing out, and this is a review of what the game is now, not what it could be months down the line.

However, even with those issues, there’s no denying how much fun I have with EvilVEvil. I enjoy the combat and gunfights, and I want to keep playing even now to further explore the roster and their abilities.

I played solo for most of the review period, but I’ll definitely be setting a squad up with the boys at launch.