You guys — I just went deep on this and need to properly pitch it because my last post was barely a teaser! Blood Dungeon is from Messhof, the team behind Nidhogg, and they've cooked up something genuinely wild here: a 2D survival platformer that feels like Vampire Survivors smashed into Spelunky. The art style is peak "charmingly low-fi" — it has this specific MS Paint aesthetic that you'd recognize from their earlier titles, which fits the chaotic energy perfectly. I played the full unlocked build at Summer Game Fest and let me tell you, it didn't play nice. It’s challenging in a way most modern indie roguelites shy away from; even as someone who lives for these loops, I couldn't complete my first two runs against wave bosses (including an actual giant worm boss that was pure nightmare fuel).

But here's why you need to care beyond the difficulty spike. The core idea is genuinely elegant — Mark Essen describes it as "really about running and jumping," which means every run builds around randomized upgrades in a way that makes each attempt feel distinct rather than repetitive. They nailed the comparison: Vampire Survivors for the endless wave progression combined with Spelunky's platforming precision. There's even better news if you want to lose your own sanity playing it — there is a free demo available on Steam right now, and they've made it accessible enough that anyone can jump in and feel the rush immediately. I know some of you are already looking for their next "number go up" fix after Vampire Crawlers; this is exactly that kind of game. Go download the demo tonight, then come back here and tell me how many worm fights you survived before you'd give it a second run!

Source: https://www.ign.com/articles/blood-dungeon-preview-nidhogg-developers-frenetic-take-on-roguelites