Keeper's Toll (PS5) | REVIEW | The Vampire Survivors Killer!?

You've heard of Vampire Survivors, right? The indie invention that spear-headed the survivors-like trend amongst indie devs? Well, I'd like to introduce to you a potential Vampire Survivors killer. That game being Keeper's Toll. With Keeper's Toll nothing is really new with the set-in-stone formula, but it is better in a lot of ways, regardless. 

In Keeper's Toll you have access to six different classes of characters. Each with their own gameplay gimmicks in tow. This and four larger than life maps with unique themes, looting opportunities, and a variety of animated monsters and creatures that really set a new standard for this genre. In fact it's the massive variety of enemies, their quality design, the fun to play characters, and the ability to play longer than you would in other survivors-likes that sets Keeper's Toll apart from the competition.

Instead of counting down towards a singular boss fight on each map in Keeper's Toll the timer counts seemingly forever upward allowing you to extend the fight through additional NPC offers, multiple bosses, and mini-events triggered during the growing mobs of enemies. 

As with any survivors-like you will be killing to earn XP in this process. The XP, in turn, brings up three random modifiers per level gained, one of which can be added to your ten available slots, and outside of said slots as you stack their effects up to five times each. These modifiers include passive effects, active effects or skills, and buffs with a slight nerf to another performance based stat. This in tandem with special equipment items earned by killing special enemies will power you up, and enable a longer play time. 

The goal during each and every run, in Keeper's Toll, is to ultimately earn the special currencies to empower your characters to the point a full playthrough can be made. This includes buffing character specific talents, and universally applicable skills at the main menu, permanently. This is done through the Talents menu, and Knowledge menu using the special currencies earned in-game. Characters being the means with which to farm said currencies. The characters, themselves, change how the game is played as each has their own individual attacks, and skill sets. There's a melee focused monk, a pyromancer, a necromancer, and even a blood maiden, among others. Mastering their loadouts is key to completion as is stacking the appropriate modifiers as you level them up.

Completion, itself, is a task in rewarding repetition. It has you doubling down on two key boss fights per map, but doesn't necessarily stop there if you want to continue the mob mop up via additional NPC quest objectives after the fact. In fact you'll find that outside of the killing quota there exists shrines, circles, and vendors that each offer up something to extend upon the main looting opportunities. You can fight with temporary curses to gain new items, or speak to NPCs when you have amassed enough of their desired currency to partake of their wares, and quests. The vendors, in particular, offer up bonus effects, and healing flasks for gold. Seeing as healing is limited life flasks are a huge help in survivability. Beyond that you'll need to spam the dodge button, and run around until you gain some speed buffs to help against the pursuing crowd.

Of course it goes without saying that constantly moving and avoiding damage as the mobs of minions grow is imperative to reaching the end game. Carefully stacking/choosing passives, actives, and buffs while doing this is the means with which you'll be able to survive long enough to do so. Everything else between is a looting opportunity in the waiting as you'll find many hidden items, power-ups, secrets, NPCs and vendors willing to play a part in your objective. 

The Presentation ...

This is almost a one-for-one with the design in comparison to Vampire Survivors. That being said Keeper's Toll does have a sprite design edge over it's inspiration, in my personal opinion. The creatures here are more highly detailed, and articulated/animated. Even the characters harbor a superior attention to detail. Leaving the map floors to be the lesser detailed elements outside of the reasonably constructed destructible set pieces that pour forth everything from XP containing souls to coins. Overall it is a very finely detailed survivors-like that will definitely give Vampire Survivors a run for it's money, especially if the developer goes the Vampire Survivors route and adds new DLC content, regularly.

The Verdict ...

For those not yet burned out on the survivors-like craze, and who need a new fix of dopamine Keeper's Toll has your back like a dose of crack. It's a non-stop power trip fantasy that is filled with constant rewards for efforts rendered, and while the replay value might be a little limited it still is very much worth the asking price for said fun. It doesn't break the mold, per se, but it sure as Hell ups the ante!!!

"In Keeper's Toll you don't farm the loot snail, the loot snail farms you."

- Russian Proverb (jk)