Vampires are a common sight in video games. These bloodthirsty creatures of the night feed on the living and spread their curse, and it’s usually the player’s job to stop them. From Dracula himself to assorted characters from Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines, vampires are usually fearsome enemies that the player must take down.
Some vampires don’t adhere to the rules, however. These vampiric characters may have several of the standard traits someone would expect, except for one key difference – they don’t drink blood. Instead, some of them subsist on other things, or simply just eat and drink like normal humans, while others simply don’t appear to have much of a craving for anything at all.
7 Lord DeRosso (Bravely Default)
Lord Lester DeRosso is an optional boss fight in Bravely Default. Granted immortality by a demon, he was labeled a vampire, and sports all the usual traits including fangs and the ability to transform into a bat. However, it turns out that he is not really a vampire, he just maintains the image to instill fear in his enemies.
Defeating him grants the player access to the Vampire job class, which allows players to absorb life energy and magic from opponents. However, this acts more like the Blue Mage job from Final Fantasy, with the player able to use enemy abilities for themselves. It takes a while to build it up, but it can become a useful class with enough abilities absorbed.
6 Kid Dracula
A kid-friendly spin-off from the Castlevania series, Kid Dracula sees players taking the role of the titular character as he sets off to stop a pretender seizing the throne of Demon King. As the name implies, this is a child version of Dracula, specifically his son, who’s just out for adventure.
Naturally, as the game is a spin-off meant for young children, all the typical horror elements of the vampire mythos have been tossed out, including a thirst for blood. Instead, this happy little guy goes around firing magical bullets at enemies and seems to have a great time doing so.
5 Morinth (Mass Effect 2)
While not a traditional vampire by any means, the Ardat-Yakshi of Mass Effect 2 are members of the asari race who have a rare genetic disorder that causes them to kill their mating partners, absorbing their essence and getting stronger. This can prompt a compulsion to mate not too dissimilar to a vampire’s bloodlust.
Morinth is one of these asari, and can become part of Shephard’s crew depending on the outcome of a loyalty mission from her mother, Samara. Morinth can replace Samara depending on Shephard’s choices, and this can even be fatal if the player chooses to romance her.
4 Morrigan (Darkstalkers)
One of the main faces in Capcom’s horror-themed fighting series, Darkstalkers, Morrigan certainly looks the part with a bat-themed outfit. She can also summon bats as part of her move set. She also boasts a wide range of supernatural ability such as speed, teleportation and the ability to change her appearance at any time.
However, Morrigan isn’t really a vampire, she’s a succubus. Her sustenance is unusual though, as she feeds off excitement. She needs to be physically or mentally stimulated constantly in order to maintain her life force. No wonder she’s one of the most iconic characters in a fighting tournament for monsters then.
3 Vincent Valentine (Final Fantasy 7)
Vincent Valentine is never outright stated to be a vampire, but it’s easy to see that he has many of the traits. This optional Final Fantasy 7 party member is found sleeping in a coffin under the Shinra Mansion in Nibelheim, is immortal and has the ability to transform into various beast forms in his Limit Break.
However, he’s not a traditional vampire, he’s a science experiment. Created by Professor Hojo as part of his experiments with Mako, Vincent was forcibly changed into his current form. While distant and cold, he does agree to help the party take down the man who created him.
2 Alucard (Castlevania)
Alucard has shown up many times in the Castlevania series, most notably in his starring role in Symphony of the Night. As the son of Dracula, Alucard possesses many vampiric traits, such as immortality, endurance, supernatural abilities and the ability to transform into beasts including bats. However, he despises his father and rejects that side of himself, preferring to embrace the humanity provided by his mother, Lisa.
It’s not clear if Alucard drinks blood, but it’s never mentioned in the series that he does. However, there is an Easter egg hidden in Super Smash Bros Ultimate that confirms that Alucard doesn’t drink blood simply because he hates the taste.
1 Raziel (Legacy Of Kain: Soul Reaver)
While the lieutenants of Kain in the Legacy of Kain series were originally traditional vampires, by the time the events of Soul Reaver roll around, many of them have drastically changed and evolved into grotesque creatures. One of the most affected by this is Raziel, who was thrown into the Lake of the Dead by Kain as punishment for the crime of growing wings before his master.
This act of cruelty led to Raziel spending centuries in agony, as the flesh was stripped off his body and he became something else entirely. Now Raziel finds himself as a spectral wraith vampire, feasting not on blood, but on the souls of his enemies while serving the mysterious Elder God.