Summary
Everybody knows and, to a certain extent, fears vampires. Crypt-dwelling, blood-drinking, nocturnal creatures of an unnatural lifespan that haunt the shadows of folklore and myth. While there is no shortage of games depicting vampires as monsters or games that hand vampirism to the player from the get-go, fewer games allow players to experience trading their mortality for a life of eternal darkness and sanguine indulgence.
These games do notbegin with the player as a vampire, nor does the premise involve the assumption that the player is destined to embrace dark vampiric powers, but instead allow the player to optionally transform from human (or whatever it was before being bitten) into a creature of the night.
It can hardly be said thatBaldur’s Gate 3’s companion, Astarion, led an idyllic life before the campaign kicked off. As a vampire spawn, Astarion was subjected to cruel and senseless punishments over two hundred years that left him scarred and a little sadistic himself. However, if the player isable to woo Astarion during Act 3after dispatching his former master, the player can strengthen him and take on his dark powers.
Granted, the player will technically become Asterion’s spawn, albeit one with agency thanks to the tadpole, but as a newly ascended vampire would point out if asked, and if the player character agrees to the transformation, the vampire spawn life will be “a touch different” for them than it was for Astarion under Cazador.
With the Vampiric Powers introduced inDiablo 4’s first Season, “Season of Blood,” players can imbue themselves with dark abilities to combat the Dark Master and his hoard of blood-sucking minions. By collecting “potent blood” from the Dark Master’s most powerful servants, players can summon supernatural bats, use pools of blood to enhance their abilities, and curse enemies.
The more potent blood they collect, the more powerful these vampiric abilities become, withmany ofDiablo 4’s vampire powersrelating to life force (maximum health), spreading the vampire curse, and dealing additional damage to foes under crowd control effects, such as Sanguine Brace, Coven’s Fangs, and Domination.
The vampire life state has been withThe Simsseries ever since The Sims 2’s Late Night expansion pack. However, theSims 4might be the series' most fleshed-out incarnation of the concept thanks to its dedicatedsupernatural expansion pack, creatively titled “Vampires.” Becoming a creature of the night remains an entirely optional lifestyle choice for sims who simply enjoy the macabre decor that the pack brings to the table.
Freshly squeezed vampire sims will have to develop their abilities by leaching the life force from their neighbors. Thankfully, vampires inThe Sims 4can switch between their normal and “dark” forms, fangs and aetherial eyes and all. Of course, all the comforts of the living dead (haunting pipe organ music, a comfy coffin) are available for use in Buy Mode alongside all the rest of the mortal trivialities.
Given the rogue-like design ofThe Binding Of Isaac’s levels, this power-up may only appear once in a blood moon. However, vampire fans who come across the Charm of the Vampire will enjoy Isaac’s Dracula cosplay, complete with the slick widow’s peak, bloodstained mouth, and cute little vampire fang.
Additionally, the passive item allows Isaac to heal hearts after slaying 13 monsters. With the “Repentance” DLC loaded, the Charm will deal a small amount of bonus damage to enemies and will remove Isaac’s reflection on shiny surfaces.
This TV-obsessed reptile known for his eye-rolling quips and love of flies embodied everything aboutgaming culture in the 90sbut has since been as silent as the grave. Speaking of graves, one of the first levels inGex: Deep Cover Geckoinvolves finding a secret laboratory in a dark-academia-style manor (one reminiscent of the setting of aSherlock Holmescaper).
Hitting the switch on a sketchy-looking machine turns the tail-springing lizard into Vampire Gex, complete with pale scales, fangs, and more Dracula references than a late-night monster movie marathon. This transformation isn’t permanent or required to make progress but merely gives Gex the ability to glide down to the three blood coolers inexplicably situated on the gigantic manor’s high windows (and a way to snag a collectible in the hub world outside).
This short vampire tale is technically an expansion of thesuper-powered open worldInfamous 2, but despite its length, it became an offshoot of the game it spawned from and can be played separately. The electric-powered Cole MacGrath is lured into a church and its catacombs and turned into a vampire by a cult in the process of resurrecting their matriarch, Bloody Mary.
This transformation does not strip Cole of his base electrical abilities, but it does somewhat remove his humanity and the player’s dilemma about doing good or evil and adds a few more swarm-of-bat, blood-drinking skills to his arsenal as he seeks to put down Bloody Mary.
Vampirism, brought upon by a disease known as Sanguine Vamparis, has been around for a long time inThe Elder Scrollsseries, and not just in the lore (although there isplenty of interesting vampire lore inTES). Vampirism was around all the way back inDaggerfallwhen infected players could find themselves at the mercy of their bloody thirst.MorrowindandOblivionfollowed suit with the optional (and easily curable) vampire state.
However,Skyrim’s “Dawnguard” DLC really made playing a vampire shine (or, more aptly for a night creature, smolder). Accepting the dark gift is still optional, as the player can also drop in with the vampire slayers if they aren’t interested in the Vampire Lord’s abilities to float and glide ominously, rip through enemies like a sabertooth tiger through cured ham, and control living being via their own blood.
