V Rising

Game images by RAWG

V Rising

Stunlock Studios

PC; PlayStation 5Premium purchase; optional DLC packs

Health Score

DECENT

Official Website Watch Gameplay

About This Game

Super Review

V Rising offers a challenging vampire survival experience, blending resource gathering, castle building, and combat with a gothic aesthetic. While private servers foster cooperation, parents should be aware of the mature themes, stylized violence, and potential social risks on public servers.

Super Review

Parent verdict

V Rising is a qualified fit for older teens (13-18) who enjoy complex survival-crafting and gothic fantasy. Its 'Decent' score of 50 reflects the engaging base-building and strategic combat balanced against mature themes, stylized violence, and the need for careful community selection. It works best when played cooperatively on private servers, mitigating some of the social risks found in public online play.

What players actually do

Explore a gothic open world, gathering resources like wood, stone, and minerals, which exercises planning and exploration skills.
Build and expand a vampire castle, placing walls, crafting stations, and decorations, fostering creativity and spatial reasoning.
Hunt humans and powerful bosses for blood and gear, engaging in combat mechanics and strategic decision-making.

Where it shines

The game strongly encourages planning and resource management as players collect materials to craft items, upgrade their castle, and prepare for encounters.
Cooperative castle-building on private servers fosters teamwork and communication, as players work together to defend their territory and progress.

Parent watch-outs

The game's vampire theme normalizes predation on humans, presenting players as creatures who hunt and feed on them for survival and power.
Public servers can expose players to toxic behavior, griefing, or unwanted interactions, potentially leading to frustrating or negative social experiences.

Family rules worth setting

Only allow play on private servers with trusted friends or family, specifically choosing Player-vs-Environment (PvE) settings to avoid unwanted player combat.
Set clear time limits for play sessions, as the survival-crafting loop and persistent world can encourage extended engagement.

Talk about this

Discuss how the game portrays vampires and the consequences of their actions versus real-world ethics and choices.
Talk about good online citizenship and how to handle negative interactions if encountered in online communities.

Play style

V Rising features a persistent world with a day-night cycle, encouraging players to manage their time and resources carefully. It can be challenging, especially when facing bosses or other players. It's best played cooperatively with friends, as solo play can be demanding. Players may need help understanding complex crafting recipes, optimizing base layouts, or strategizing for difficult combat encounters.

Score Breakdown

Positive Aspects

Educational Value

2/5

Creativity

3/5

Pro-Social

3/5

Risk Factors

Addictive Monetization

2/5

Time Pressure / FOMO

3/5

Social Risk

3/5

Content Intensity

4/5

Why this rating

Educational Value

2/5

V Rising is designed for entertainment and strategic gameplay rather than explicit learning. While it encourages planning and resource management, it does not offer direct academic or life skill instruction, leading to a low educational score.

Addictive Monetization

2/5

As a premium game with optional DLC, V Rising's monetization model is transparent and does not rely on manipulative or addictive tactics. The core experience is purchased upfront, and additional content is clearly optional, warranting a low risk score.

Pro-Social

3/5

When played on private servers, V Rising strongly encourages cooperation and teamwork for castle building and boss hunting. This cooperative element can foster positive social interaction among trusted players, contributing to a moderate pro-social score.

Social Risk

3/5

The game includes 'Users Interact' in its ESRB rating, and public servers are noted for potential toxicity and griefing. While private servers mitigate this, the possibility of negative social exposure on public servers raises the social risk to a moderate level.

Content Intensity

4/5

V Rising is rated T for Teen (ESRB) and PEGI 16, citing Violence and Blood, along with a theme that normalizes vampiric predation. Despite the stylized graphics, the mature subject matter and combat intensity result in a high content risk score.