Brocula asks “what if a vampire had to deal with capitalism?”

In this world full of income challenges, unattainable mortgages and higher-than-ever cost of living, is it so hard to imagine that even a vampire would struggle with modern capitalism? That’s the premise of Brocula, where a vampire wakes up after 500 years with no money and has to take on part-time jobs to make a living while he repairs his ancestral castle. Of course, there’s some vampire stuff to do as well…

We had the opportunity to see the game in action at a special ID@Xbox Digital Session, where we got to hear from Prateek Jadhwani, solo developer and founder of his studio Destroyer Doggo in India, who showed off how you can earn money, explore the town, salvage your castle and enhance your vampire skills.

Brocula is an inherently funny concept, turning the idea of a spooky dangerous villain upside down and forcing him to get a damn job (or three). The gameplay loop on display has you earning money in a style that wouldn’t be too dissimilar to Stardew Valley, or any other farming-style game. Tending to your crops to ensure your farm is able to grow and flourish next to your castle allows you to sell harvest for profit. You can fish so that you can cook delicious meals – again, not the vampire food you’d expect. In the meantime, you’ll be facing bureaucratic hurdles as you try to reclaim the ownership of your castle from the town’s mayor.

Of course, being a vampire means that you aren’t just limited to chores and busy work. Brocula includes some cult management, as you restore the church and conduct sermons to gather lifeblood. You’ll also explore the forest, a procedurally generated dungeon of sorts that has monsters to fight and treasure to discover. In terms of tasks to complete, it seems like you certainly won’t be getting bored here anytime soon.

With a top-down view of your character, the world itself has a lot of lovely little details, as you craft at workbenches, explore the city streets, serve patrons at the cafe and explore the forest. While simple at a glance, it’s also very readable, which is important when juggling tasks like farming and other jobs. Characters all talk in a bit of a mumbly cute sound effect too, and cats… well, their meow is weird and deep, but I’m here for it. The audio is charming, particularly when fast-forwarding through time to get to the next day or next task.

Turning mundane into spooky in a creative way, Brocula is a neat concept that could be a whole lot to sink your teeth into when it eventually releases. With a talented solo developer having worked on the title for the last four years, we can’t wait to check it out.

Brocula is set for release sometime soon.