V Rising dev is working on what's next, promising something "worthy of Vardoran"

If you want to lose countless hours to a survival game, you're spoilt for choice these days. Rust continues to dominate on Steam. Subnautica remains a genre classic. Minecraft has just overhauled its visuals after more than a decade. For my money, though, V Rising remains the quintessential choice. With the Invaders of Oakveil update finally launching earlier this year, the vampire-focused game has become the experience I'd always dreamed of. With version 1.1 now out in the wild, however, developer Stunlock Studios is finally looking at what's next - and I have high hopes.

Stunlock's journey with V Rising has been a long one. The game launched in early access back in 2022, with the full 1.0 release coming two years later. Since then, the absolutely gigantic Invaders of Oakveil update turned it into one of the best vampire games ever made.

If you've not played V Rising since Oakveil dropped, allow me to fill you in. You've got the new Oakveil Woodlands biome, three more weapons, seven spells, and the fuse and reforge system. Stunlock even reworked combat with stats adjusted, gear rebalanced, and blood types overhauled. You can even build a custom combat arena in your castle, and store all your (definitely not) stolen goods in a treasury. Whether you're a newly risen bloodsucker or have taken some time off, Invaders of Oakveil makes now the time to jump back in.

As for what's next for Stunlock Studios, though, it's outlined potential plans in a new blog post.  The team says V Rising 1.1 marks "the realization of the vision we set out to achieve," but that's not all.

"With this latest update, we've developed the core content we originally set out to deliver," Stunlock Studios writes. "Now, with our vision realized, we're turning our gaze not backward, but inward, ruminating on how we can elevate our dark universe to even greater heights and what exactly that would mean.

"Before we can decide what's ultimately next, we must return to our crypts to work in the shadows. To experiment, learn, and imagine what has not yet been imagined. It's a familiar task, an invitation to a thrilling challenge. The path ahead will take longer than usual to reveal itself, but be patient and grant us time, children of the night. The Vampires will always rise. What comes next must be worthy of Vardoran."

Exactly what this could mean remains to be seen. Perhaps Stunlock wants to "elevate our dark universe" with another expansion or DLC. Maybe the team is considering a new vampire experience in the same universe. Given that the world of V Rising is called Vardoran, and that's what the team invokes, I'd guess that Stunlock might want to keep the V Rising train moving in some form.

While we all wait for what's next from Stunlock, you can check out the very best survival games and RPGs currently available on PC.

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