Code Vein

Drink blood to survive in a grim post-apocalypse

- Andy Kelly

Code Vein promises to let you “experience the power of blood”; a bizarre way of describing its upgrade system, which sees you drinking the blood of enemies to unlock ‘gifts’, or powers. With blood you can increase your strength, weaken enemies and reveal new attacks for a selection of oversized weapons. And you’ll need them, because Code Vein is tough.

If that reminds you of a certain game about unilluminated souls, that’s no accident. Code Vein owes a lot to FromSoftware’s widely influential game, from its structure and labyrinthine level design to its healing bonfire-a-likes and methodical combat. But while that game is famed for its atmosphere and visual design, the anime-tinged Code Vein is – at least in the area I explored – disappointingly dreary.