Developed by Strangely Named, OBLITACRATER is a straightforward twin-stick shooter that throws you onto small planets with one objective: survive as long as you can. Playing on Xbox, it didn’t take long to understand what it was going for – quick runs, constant movement, and that familiar “just one more roll of the dice” loop.

The problem is, while that loop is there, it never quite reaches the same level as other games it’s so clearly taken it inspiration from, such as the surprisingly huge hit, Vampire Survivors.

OBLITACRATER Offers a Familiar Setup But Falls Flat

The structure is simple. You drop onto a planet, enemies start spawning, and your goal is to stay alive while building up your score. The longer you last, the tougher things get, and the more upgrades you get to pick up along the way.

There’s a bit of risk involved too. You can leave the planet at any time by going to a highlighted circle and holding in the “Y” button. However, if you push your luck and die, you will lose everything as per the rogue-lite elements.

On paper, it works. In practice, however, it feels a little flat.

I found myself going through the motions from the off – moving, shooting, grabbing XP for upgrades – but without that sense of escalation or excitement that keeps you hooked. It’s functional, but rarely feels engaging enough to keep you wanting to push through.

Combat That Doesn’t Quite Scratch That Itch

Combat is where the game starts to fall off a bit. Combat is responsive enough, but it lacks any real impact. Enemies come in waves, and while there are different types, they don’t feel distinct enough to change how you approach each run in any meaningful way.

Compared to other auto-shooters or survival games, there’s just not much here to mix things up a little. You’re doing mostly the same thing over and over, and it doesn’t take long for repetition to rear its ugly head.

I found myself waiting for a moment where everything would click – a run where the upgrades stacked in an interesting manner, or for the chaos to really kick in – but it never quite got there.

Upgrades and Progression

There are plenty of upgrades available, ranging from stat boosts to additional weapons such as rockets and lasers. The issue is that they don’t feel particularly exciting. You unlock them, they help a bit, you lose them, you move on. There’s no real sense of building something unique or overpowered – something that games of this ilk rely upon.

Runs quickly start to blur together after a while. Even when I found myself doing better, it still didn’t feel any different to the other runs that came before it.

Visuals and Presentation

Visually, OBLITACRATER has a simple, slightly stylized aesthetic, with small spherical planets center screen and bright effects. It’s not aiming for realism, which is clear, but the graphical style won’t be leaving any lasting impressions.

In places, the visuals felt a little fuzzy, especially when things got busy on the screen. With a lot of enemies and effects happening at once, things can start to become a little unclear – not ideal for a game that calls for quick reactions.

It’s not unplayable by any means, but it does feel a little less polished than it is could be.

Summary

OBLITACRATER isn’t a broken game, but it’s not particularly memorable either. The core idea is solid, and the risk-reward system around banking your score is a nice touch, but it never really builds on that foundation.

There’s something here, but it feels underdone – especially compared to the games it clearly takes its inspiration from.