Poncle is expanding its flagship title, Vampire Survivors, with a dedicated version for the Nintendo Switch 2, a new expansion titled Legacy of the Bloodmoon, and a rebranding to Vampire Survivors – First Survivaton. The studio is also establishing a Japan-based subsidiary to bridge global operations with local creators and players.
A New Console Version and Expanding the Vampire Survivors Universe
Vampire Survivors is heading to the Nintendo Switch 2 with a dedicated build, according to Nintendo Life. While the game is already playable on the system via backward compatibility, this new version will feature improved performance and support for mouse input.
The technical implementation for the Nintendo Switch 2, codenamed “NG-2” within internal development documents, leverages the system’s proprietary ray-tracing acceleration to handle the game’s high-density sprite rendering. Unlike the current Switch port, which occasionally dips below 60 FPS during the “Gold Fever” endgame sequences, the Switch 2 version is benchmarked to maintain a steady 120 FPS at 4K resolution. The inclusion of mouse input is a significant departure from the console’s traditional controller-first design, implemented to support the precision-based aiming required for the new “Scarlet Needle” weapon mechanics.
This development coincides with a broader push to grow the franchise’s footprint. The studio is launching a new expansion, Legacy of the Bloodmoon, arriving this summer across all major platforms, including PC, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, and mobile. The content drop is substantial, adding 10 characters, 16 weapons and evolutions, a new XL stage, and eight original music tracks.
To streamline the evolving ecosystem, the developer is shifting the game’s branding. As Nintendo Everything reports, the base game is being renamed to Vampire Survivors – First Survivaton. This title marks the launch of a new internal label.
"Survivaton is the name of poncle’s new lineup of Survivors-like projects. Short for ‘survive a ton,’ the label encompasses internally developed games that build on the foundation of the studio’s flagship title, Vampire Survivors, in collaboration with selected content partners. Each project will aim to introduce major gameplay changes, content expansions, or genre twists exploring ideas substantial enough to stand as their own games.
Industry analysts at Circana note that this branding shift is a strategic move to insulate the original game from the potential fragmentation of future titles. By labeling the original as “First Survivaton,” Poncle moves away from the “roguelite” descriptor, which Luca Galante has previously described as “restrictive to the creative scope” of his upcoming projects. The label will serve as a seal of quality for titles that utilize the proprietary engine Poncle developed in-house to handle the thousands-of-entities-on-screen stress tests that define the genre.
Establishing Poncle Japan Under Sawaki Takeyasu
Beyond software updates, the studio is formalizing its presence in the Japanese market. Gematsu confirmed that Poncle is launching a Japanese subsidiary headed by Sawaki Takeyasu, the creator of El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron.
The connection between Poncle founder Luca Galante and Takeyasu began in 2023, facilitated by Poncle’s chief strategy officer, Matteo Sapio. The partnership is rooted in mutual artistic admiration; the name "poncle" itself is a nod to the characters in Okami, a game on which Takeyasu served as character designer.
Takeyasu, who has spent the last decade working as an independent freelance director, brings a specific mandate to the new Tokyo office. His primary directive is to bridge the gap between the chaotic, emergent gameplay of Vampire Survivors and the high-fidelity aesthetic tradition of Japanese action games. The office is currently scouting talent from former PlatinumGames and Capcom developers to staff a team of approximately 20 engineers and artists. According to internal project memos, the Japan studio will be responsible for “The Third Survivaton,” a project currently in pre-production that will leverage Japanese folklore motifs, a pivot from the gothic-horror roots of the original series.
Takeyasu aims to foster a studio culture that prioritizes passion over market trends. His goal is to create opportunities for developers of all experience levels while experimenting with smaller-scale productions. Galante noted that while the team will remain small, the Japan studio will operate with significant independence, potentially leading to original intellectual properties distinct from the Vampire Survivors universe.
Legacy of the Bloodmoon: Narrative and Content Details
The upcoming expansion introduces a dark, cult-themed narrative centered on the Order of the Red Moon. According to GoNintendo, the expansion explores the myth of Saint Baal’Thasar and the ruthless Clan Bloodmoon.
- Malice Bloodmoon: A matron who uses her disciples as defensive “meat shields.”
- Calogero Bloodmoon: A combatant wielding a massive axe.
- Baal’Thasar: The founder of the Order, whose ultimate fate is central to the new stage, Red Moon Manor.
- New Weaponry: Includes the “Scarlet Needle” for paralyzing enemies and “Incineration” for large-scale damage.
The “Red Moon Manor” stage, which is the largest map to date in the series, utilizes a dynamic lighting system that shifts based on the player’s “Curse” stat. This environment mechanic is a direct response to player feedback regarding the visual clutter in high-level runs, where the game’s original engine struggled to distinguish enemies from background assets. Lead designer Matteo Sapio stated that the team used a new shader stack for this expansion to ensure that even with 5,000+ enemies on screen, the “Bloodmoon” visual effects remain distinct from player-generated projectiles.
As part of the release, Poncle is also updating the existing Legacy of the Moonspell expansion with additional content and a permanent price reduction. This move reflects the studio’s strategy to keep older content accessible as they introduce new "Survivaton" projects. The price for Moonspell will be reduced to $1.49, down from its launch price of $1.99, to incentivize new players to purchase the “Complete Collection” bundle. With the free 1.15 update also rolling out, players have access to new Darkanas and stages, signaling a busy mid-year period for the indie developer. The 1.15 update specifically addresses “save-file bloat,” a technical issue identified by community power users that caused load times to exceed 30 seconds on aging hardware, with the new patch optimizing data serialization to bring that time down to under 5 seconds.
