Interview – BAFTAs and bullet hell, how Vampire Survivors beat the odds
Vampire Survivors has been one of the break out indie games of the last year, the addictive reverse bullet hell not only gained a large following of devout players, but also featured in numerous game of the year awards and has now snagged a shock Best Game win at the 2023 BAFTA Games Awards.
In the wake of those landmark wins, we were able to catch up with George Morgan, Senior Marketing Manager at Poncle, at this year’s WASD game event, chatting about the awards, the game’s growth over the last year, and what the future holds.
TSA – So, how’s your head?
George Morgan – Uh… [Laughs] Yeah, it’s… Obviously, we’re phenomenally humbled by the whole situation. We didn’t expect this, we didn’t expect any of it. Yeah, it’s just been truly wild.
We’re just 15 people that sit in Discord, work on a game and have fun, and what we appreciate is everything around it. Last night was so far out of [the norm]. None of us wear tuxedos – I’m wearing jogging trousers now, and I don’t even jog for a start, I don’t know why I own them! Yeah, that was truly something else, and to have the whole team on stage, and we won Best Game, that was… yeah, we couldn’t have ever predicted it.
TSA – What does it mean for something like Vampire Survivors to win Best Game at the BAFTAs? Especially when going up against AAA juggernauts like God of War – Ragnarök and Elden Ring?
George – I mean, we were having that conversation at 4AM in the hotel lobby! Indie games are a phenomenal thing. Last night with Tunic winning, us winning – which still feels weird to say! – Rollerdrome winning, and God of War – [Ragnarök] winning, everyone’s on the same level pegging it feels. It feels like the first time in a long time where everyone’s on a fair level.
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