R.I.P. - Reincarnation Insurance Program Review – Bullet-Hell Looting with Diablo Vibes
I played R.I.P., a Vampire Survivors-meets-Diablo roguelite: hordes, loot, recasting and messy, satisfying mayhem. Early Access charm with bugs, but lots of promise for loot hunters.
R.I.P. immediately sells itself with a neat hook: what if the frantic onslaught of Vampire Survivors met the loot treadmill of Diablo? As an elite corporate drone tasked with clearing endless zombie waves, you’ll be juggling high-rate weapons, elemental procs and an obsession with golden beams. It’s loud, flashy and occasionally messy — in a way that made me grin and throw controllers at nothing. If you like your chaos with a side of gear-hunting, this title scratches an itch few clones manage to reach.
Racing the Horde, One Run at a Time
Gameplay in R.I.P. is an addictive loop built around surviving waves, looting, and iterating your build. Runs start simple: pick a character, equip early gear and dash into a map where zombies come in relentless waves. Combat leans into spray-and-pray satisfaction — SMGs, shotguns and rocket launchers all feel distinct and heavy, and the core loop is to snowball by grabbing powerful drops and scaling those numbers until the screen is a glittering mess. Movement and dodging matter against elite mobs and mutant lords, but more often than not the answer is to have a gear set that lets you face-tank a little. Each mission serves both as instant adrenaline and long-term investment, because Contribution Points persist and let you climb the talent tree between runs.
Golden Beams and the Joy of Recasting
Where R.I.P. separates itself is in the loot and customization. You are constantly scavenging hundreds of weapons and tactical gears that come with variable affixes, and the golden beam moments where a legendary drops are genuinely thrilling. There’s a recast system for rerolling stats, and Legend Contracts that grant set bonuses which can reframe your entire build mid-run — I had a game where an odd set turned my SMG into an elemental burn machine, and it felt like discovering a new subclass. Passive blessings and summonable historical spirits layer additional synergies on top of gear, creating many “aha” moments when two systems click. If you loved Diablo’s gear treadmill or the build diversity of ARPGs, you’ll find a lot to nerd out about here.
Screen Candy, Sound and Performance Notes
Graphically R.I.P. is ambitious for an indie: flashy VFX, satisfying hit effects and punchy impact feedback give every scroll of numbers a visceral feel. Sound design helps too — weapons have weight and bosses land memorable cues when they turn mean. That said, the visual density becomes a drawback at times; players have complained (and I agree) that excess effects can obscure aiming reticles, skill ranges and enemy tells during late-game chaos. Performance and stability in Early Access are a mixed bag: it runs smoothly on my PC for the most part, but there are stutters, occasional freezes and controller aiming issues reported by others. There’s also room for QOL improvements like clearer UI icons, more readable gun names and an effects-density toggle, which would greatly improve usability.
R.I.P. is a promising mash-up that already delivers a lot of joy to loot hunters and bullet-hell fans, even in Early Access. It has strong core design, memorable VFX and a gear system that invites experimentation, but it needs polish: stability, controller support and clearer UI should be priorities. Buy if you like Vampire Survivors or ARPG loot loops and enjoy tinkering; otherwise wait for a few updates.
Pros
- Addictive loot loop blending Vampire Survivors with Diablo-style gear.
- Satisfying weapon feel and punchy hit effects.
- Deep recast and set systems that enable strong build diversity.
- Persistent progression keeps runs meaningful between sessions.
Cons
- Early Access still has bugs, stutters and UI rough edges.
- Visual effect density can obscure important combat cues.
- Controller aiming and some usability features need polish.
Player Opinion
Players are largely excited but cautious. Praise centers on the addictive loop — many reviews mention how the combination of horde survival and gear hunting keeps them coming back, with several people comparing it positively to Vampire Survivors and Diablo. Visuals and hit feedback receive frequent kudos, as do the talent tree and persistent Contribution Points. On the negative side, a recurring theme is Early Access roughness: bugs, freezes, controller aiming issues and occasional crashes. Multiple players asked for a toggle to reduce effect density and clearer UI elements like separated weapon names and stronger icons. In short: if you enjoy loot-driven roguelites and can tolerate some polish work, you’ll probably have a blast; if you hate jank or need perfect controller support day one, consider waiting for a few updates.