Voltaire: The Vegan Vampire is a farming-action roguelite developed by Digitality Games and published by Freedom Games on October 26, 2023, after a seven-month early access period.
Voltaire, Dracula's youngest son, not anyone famous and fed up with his family's bloodsucking ways, Voltaire decides to take matters into his own hands and go vegan.
It doesn't go over too well.
Voltaire is kicked out of his family's castle, but luckily, Uncles Frank and Stein are happy to let their nephew crash in one of their houses, where the farming gameplay starts. The uncles help him start a vegetable garden by giving him tips through letters.
Dracula, enraged by this, decides the best course of action is to send countless malevolent critters to wreck his son's crops. When that isn't enough, he ups the ante, summoning huge 'Grimlords' in an attempt to stop his son's plant-based journey in its tracks.
Will the head vampire succeed? Or will his son's kindness and compassion prevail? One thing is for sure: Voltaire is in for one heck of a ride.
Tropes:
- Archnemesis Dad: Dracula. He chases his son out of his castle over a piece of broccoli, proceeds to send countless minions and Grimlords after his crops and home, and, after all else fails, tries to destroy Voltaire's house himself. He gets better, though .
- Character Class System: There are four character classes; Default, Pyromancer, Druid, and Scarecrow.
- Character Level: The player can level up by defeating mooks and composting seeds. With each new level, the player can choose a new perk from the skill tree.
- Cool Uncle: Uncles Frank and Stein, who let Voltaire crash at one of their places and give farming tips.
- Downer Beginning: The opening cutscene has poor Voltaire chased out of the castle by his father and his minions after bringing a piece of broccoli to the dinner table.
- Dracula: Dracula is Voltaire's father.
- Fetch Quest: Elga, a witch, will occasionally drop in asking for several of a certain artifact (eg, 10 Old Crapples). These quests are optional, however, as she leaves after a few in-game days.
- Flash of Pain: The bosses flash white when damaged.
- Frankenstein's Monster: Uncles Frank and Stein are a variation on this, being two heads on one body instead of a single creature.
- Harmless Electrocution: Lightning strikes do nothing more than momentarily stun Voltaire.
- Mini-Game: At the Carnival of Chaos, the player can play several minigames for tickets and prizes.
- Post-Final Boss: After Dracula is defeated, Voltaire has to go to Hellfire Plains to battle his mother, The Matriarch, and the true ending cutscene plays aferwards.
- Slave Mooks: The baddies in the game - Dracula enslaved their souls and sent them after Voltaire, and defeating them releases them.
- Soul Jar: Soulstones are gemstones holding trapped souls the player can spend to craft items, get upgrades, and unlock classes. Spending Soulstones frees the souls in the process.
- Vegetarian Vampire: Exaggerated. Voltaire is completely vegan, eating only fruits and vegetables from his garden.
- Winged Soul Flies Off at Death: After critters are defeated, their ghosts float up and quickly fade away.
