Summary
Since the old days ofCastlevania, vampires have been a mainstay in the video game world. However, they’re less often seen as the heroes of stories, which is a shame, because the curse of vampirism is a fascinating challenge for a hero to grapple with.
However, some games take on the challenge of making the vampire the hero to startling success. From resident doctors in Victorian London to vampires willing to rebel against their society, there are plenty of great video game vampire heroes to choose from.
After the success of theLife is Strangefranchise, few expected Dontnod Entertainment to delve into the tonally opposite world of Gothic horror, but their follow-upVampyrshowed that the studio had wide tastes and skills, even ifVampyrin the end turned out to be a touch janky.
In the game, players inhabit the role of Dr. Jonathan Reid, an unwilling vampire convert who must manage his hospital in dismal conditions in Victorian London while trying to uncover the vampire clan stalking the streets and murdering civilians. Players have the choice to resist their vampiric urges orgo the evil route, resulting in different combat abilities and story outcomes.
When it was announced that one ofSkyrim’s major DLC expansions would be about vampires and vampire hunting, it’s no surprise that many players were ecstatic to embrace their blood-sucking side. However, theDawnguardDLC also added Serana, one of the best hero NPCs Bethesda has ever written.
Serana is introduced with a bang, holding an Elder Scroll, and having doubts about her family’s role as a vampire tyrant. Players can slowly turn her against her family and have her experience the joys of humanity, making her a fan favorite and one ofthe best followers in the game.
ThoughVampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlinesdidn’t do commercially well upon its release and Troika Games had to shut as a result, in the years since it has picked up a massive cult following, with the game gaining a reputation as one of the best vampire games ever made full ofmemorable great characters.
Set in a supernatural version of LA where vampires, werewolves, and more stalk the streets, the player Fledgling is a new vampire convert and must determine how to navigate the complex politics of vampire society while satisfying their new urges. Though the Fledgling itself doesn’t have much character, the player’s ability to shape the Fledgling into whatever shape they like cements their place on this list.
Castlevaniais one of the most important franchises in gaming history, but its most modern incarnations inCastlevania: Lords of Shadowand its sequel have a somewhat mixed reputation from broadly dropping its Metroidvania roots for more generic third-person action game mechanics.
However, Gabriel Belmont is an undeniably great main hero. He starts off as a warrior of God but slowly becomes corrupted, destroys ancient demons, and becomes the vampire Dracula, becoming one of the most powerful creatures in all of existence, taking the fight back to the God he once served. It’s incredibly metal, and a really fun arc for a vampire hero character.
Though Dracula in theCastlevaniagames is probably the most famous video game vampire, the title for the best original vampire created in a video game is almost certainly Kain, the sometimes villain, sometimes anti-hero of theLegacy of Kainfranchise, where his machinations and singular ambition has made him a compelling persona to follow throughout.
Kain is a ruthless ancient vampire who is always plotting to restore the world of Nosgoth to its original vampiric rule. He’s a bad guy who does a lot of bad things, but throughout his games he engages in a slow redemption arc that turns him into an anti-hero, and one of the best vampire heroes in the process.
Alucard (yes, that is the word “dracula” spelt backwards) may not be the original vampire hunter that theCastlevaniafranchise started off with, but his half-vampire, half-human lineage became the basis of one of the most compelling characters ever made in video games, so much so that he’s a fan favorite in the TV show as well.
A shape-shifter, master swordsman, rebel to his father’s dreams of world domination, and protagonist ofthe bestCastlevaniagame ever made, Alucard is the sophisticated protagonist of countlessCastlevaniagames that acts as a counter-part to the villainous vampire, while still having all the fun tools that vampirism has to offer.
In the most technical sense possible, Raziel is no longer a vampire in theLegacy of Kaingames, but a revenant, an ex-vampire who surpassed his master Kain and was subsequently betrayed, executed, then returned to the world of Nosgoth to exact his vengeance.
Raziel may be simple in his desire for vengeance, but he is so single-minded about cutting his way through the vampire world that it’s hard not to love him for it. Throughout the games, he develops from a revenge-filled maniac to even a partial ally of Kain himself, developing character growth over several games that few other video game characters can claim to have had.
