Greedland Review

I must admit that I didn’t receive a code for this game on Xbox, but I enjoyed it so much that I felt compelled to write about it. Solo developer VaMP He is responsible for the creation of Greedland, which is now available on Xbox Series X|S. As soon as I saw that this experience had taken some inspiration from Vampire Survivors, I was all over it. Roguelike survival auto-shooter titles are quickly becoming my favourite games to play. They aren’t demanding on the old hard drive space, and I can easily lose hours to them. Greedland has been available for almost two years on PC, and according to their Steam page, the game is still in its early access phase.

Chaotic Madness All Of The Time

Greedland is a border survival shooter that follows the same premise as games such as Army of Ruin, Halls of Torment and Vampire Survivors. Here you’ll be able to choose and switch between manually firing your weapons or taking the lazy approach and having it automatic. There are three different biomes, each with several levels that increase in difficulty and duration. The biomes are Jungle, Desert and Ice, each with their own unique aesthetic and range of enemies.

Between each level, you’ll be using currency to level up your armour sets, weapons and even power-ups that drop from the sky. It is critical to keep progressing, as you’ll struggle to keep up with the infestation of alien critters during the later stages. Slaying enemies will make them drop green gems, which you’ll then collect to level up during the run. Each level allows you to select a power-up or power weapon and even increase your speed and the intensity of the weapon you have in hand.

Deep Progression Brings Longevity

As you spend your currency, you’ll also be able to modify your loadouts entirely, allowing you to fine-tune them to your playstyle. Ticking off certain quests will bring bonuses, allowing you to bank them to spend on more unlocks. It can feel a little grindy in some respects, as you will have to finish off some advanced tasks to unlock everything on offer. This approach was great for me, though, as it meant that there was always something to aim towards. The game lists online and local co-op as ways to play if you fancy some same-screen fun with a friend or linking up on the interweb, though I didn’t test this portion of the game.

Visuals & Audio

Visually, Greedland takes a sci-fi approach, and I’d liken it to a top-down Helldivers-esque mood and atmosphere. Having thousands of enemies on screen at once never becomes too much, and the Xbox Series X version of the game runs buttery smooth at all times. I would have liked to see more enemy/boss variety, but the range of weaponry and character builds more than makes up for this. At the end of the day, the package and presentation put together here are phenomenal for a solo development project. Audio is as you’d expect, weapons sound fairly punchy, and the soundtrack suits the atmosphere and intensity of the game.

Final Thoughts 

As soon as I saw this on the Xbox Store, I purchased it immediately, and I don’t regret the decision at all. This is a fairly deep and progressive roguelike auto-shooter game that sits comfortably with the best in the genre. Whilst I’d have liked to see a little more variety in enemy types, bosses, and some of the powers on offer, it doesn’t hamper my enjoyment of the game. The developer appears to be continually working on this experience and adding in more and more over time, so there is every chance it will continue to improve.