Raiders of Blackveil is a top-down action roguelite that deliberately steps away from the current wave of screen-filling bullet heaven games. Developed with a strong emphasis on co-operative play, MOBA-inspired combat, and tactical decision-making, the game places players in a dark fantasy city corrupted by monstrous forces.
Rather than chasing pure power fantasy, Raiders of Blackveil focuses on precision, positioning, and teamwork. Every encounter feels intentional, every ability matters, and success depends far more on player skill and coordination than on runaway stat scaling. Those makes Raiders of Blackveil an interesting outlier in the modern roguelite landscape — a game that values how you play over how much damage you can stack.
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Gameplay & Core Loop
At its core, Raiders of Blackveil revolves around raid-style runs into hostile districts of the fallen city. Each run is self-contained, challenging players to survive, adapt, and extract with rewards that fuel long-term progression.
Raid-Based Structure: Players select a hero and enter corrupted zones filled with enemies, elites, and objectives. Encounters are structured rather than endless, creating a sense of forward momentum and escalating danger. Every cleared area pushes the raid deeper into Blackveil, where enemies become more aggressive and punishing.
MOBA-Inspired Combat: Combat is clearly inspired by multiplayer online battle arenas:
- Each hero has a distinct kit with active abilities, cooldowns, and defined roles
- Positioning and timing are critical
- Enemies telegraph attacks, encouraging awareness instead of brute force
Unlike many roguelikes, Raiders of Blackveil strongly discourages mindless movement. Standing in the wrong place or misusing an ability can quickly snowball into a failed run.
Build Progression During Runs: Instead of dozens of small stat upgrades, the game emphasizes meaningful, build-defining choices:
- Ability modifiers that fundamentally change how skills behave
- Passive traits that alter survivability or crowd control
- Synergy-focused upgrades that reward coordinated team play
Each choice feels impactful, forcing players to commit to a direction rather than grabbing everything available.
Between-Run Progression: Outside of raids, players unlock:
- New heroes with different playstyles
- Permanent upgrades that slightly improve survivability or flexibility
- City progression elements that reinforce the theme of reclaiming Blackveil
This persistent progression is deliberately restrained, ensuring that player skill remains more important than meta progression.
What Works Really Well
⚔️ Deliberate, Skill-Driven Combat
Raiders of Blackveil excels at making combat feel weighty and readable. Attacks have clear animations, enemies have distinct behaviors, and abilities require proper timing. Victory feels earned, not accidental.
🤝 Co-op That Feels Essential, Not Optional
Many roguelikes allow co-op, but few are truly built around it. Raiders of Blackveil shines when players work together:
- Tankier heroes create space
- Damage dealers capitalize on openings
- Support abilities can turn near-failures into clutch recoveries
Team composition and coordination genuinely matter, making multiplayer runs far more engaging than solo play.
🧠 Meaningful Build Decisions
The limited number of upgrades per run ensures that players must think carefully about their choices. Builds evolve organically, and there’s real tension in deciding whether to double down on a strategy or adapt to new threats.
🎨 Dark, Cohesive Art Direction
The industrial fantasy aesthetic gives Blackveil a strong identity. Environments feel oppressive, enemies look grotesque and threatening, and the overall tone reinforces the idea of a city consumed by corruption.
🔁 Replayability Through Mastery
Rather than relying on randomness, Raiders of Blackveil encourages replayability through player improvement. As you learn enemy patterns, hero synergies, and optimal positioning, runs become smoother and more rewarding.
Areas for Improvement & Considerations
⚠️ Steep Learning Curve
New players — especially those unfamiliar with MOBA-style mechanics — may struggle early on. Cooldown management, positioning, and hero roles aren’t immediately intuitive, and early failures can feel punishing in Raiders of Blackveil.
⚠️ Not a Traditional Power Fantasy
Players expecting exponential damage scaling and overwhelming enemy destruction may be disappointed. Progression is subtle, and power increases feel controlled rather than explosive.
⚠️ Solo Experience Feels Secondary
In Raiders of Blackveil, while solo play is possible, some encounters feel clearly tuned for multiplayer. Solo players may find the experience more demanding and less flexible compared to playing with friends.
⚠️ Requires Focus and Engagement
This is not a “turn your brain off” roguelike. Runs demand attention, situational awareness, and deliberate decision-making, which may not suit players looking for casual sessions.
⚠️ Bugs and Server issues
Many players reported that they couldn’t even set up a game with their friends, or there’s no way to reconnect to the lobby after disconnecting etc. These are the big problems, and the players even said that those issue happened since the demo version, which is unacceptable to release without fixing those issues first.
Final Verdict
Raiders of Blackveil is a thoughtful, skill-focused roguelike that prioritizes tactical combat and co-operative play over chaos and excess. It doesn’t try to compete with bullet heaven games on spectacle; instead, it offers a more grounded, strategic experience that rewards mastery and teamwork.
For players willing to engage with its systems and learn its rhythms, Raiders of Blackveil delivers tense, satisfying raids that feel genuinely rewarding to overcome.
But, to us at Indie Games Tavern, the developers should be 100% focusing on fixing the bugs and server issues now, to let the game deserved with its potential. If not, it’d be so sad!
Who Should Play It?
- 🎮 Co-op Enthusiasts looking for a PvE game built around teamwork
- 🧠 MOBA Fans who enjoy ability-driven combat without PvP stress
- ⚔️ Players Who Value Skill and Positioning over raw stats
- 🕹️ Groups of Friends seeking a repeatable, challenging roguelike experience
Who Might Wait or Skip It?
- ❌ Solo-Only Players who prefer games designed primarily for single-player
- ⚡ Fans of Fast, Overpowered Bullet Heaven Games
- 🧩 Casual Players looking for low-pressure, low-complexity runs
- ⚠️Players who want a polished, better quality version.
Raiders of Blackveil Review by Indie Games Tavern.
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