Try the demo for top-down undead slayer Moon Watch, in which time is movement and movement is garlic grenades

A week ago, while belabouring the nuances of Arco, I expressed a wish to play more bullet hell games with time freeze mechanics, the better to savour the intricacy of their projectile patterning. Now here’s Moon Watch, a Vampire Survivors-ish pixelart shooter in which you have a watch that stops time when you stand still. Snug within that frozen instant, you’re free to laugh in the gurning faces of the living dead while you idly choose and aim garlic grenades, stake launchers and bouncy ice comets.

At least, until you run out of energy for garlic grenades, stake launchers and bouncy ice comets. In a sadistic reversal of the premise – akin to offering a child a spoonful of pudding, only to swap it for a spoonful of disgusting, nutritious vegetables – energy for weapons must be restored by moving about. So when you’re not laughing in the faces of the living dead, you’ll be carefully kiting them and dodging their shrapnel, with one eye glued to the energy reservoirs in the bottom left.

Why is Moon Watch “Vampire Survivors-ish”, rather than “Vampire Survivors-like”? Well, firstly because many of the abilities have to be manually aimed and fired using the mouse. And secondly, because the game is made up of distinct levels or arenas sprinkled across a roguelitey campaign path. Each arena asks you to hold out for a certain time, rather than being a continuous, upward spiral of enemy waves and unlockables – it’s a bit reminiscent of Into The Breach, I guess.

The vampire swarms aside, similarities with Vampire Survivors include a choice of three unlocks when you level up. These are the usual mix of passive buffs and new weapons for your hand. You can get turrets, for instance, and throwable zombie bait, and a teleport dash. I’m sure you can figure out some way to combine these things.

What else is there to tell? Well, the starting character is some kind of warrior-nun who looks like the ogreish blonde girl from Hey Arnold!, but doesn’t seem nearly as ogreish. When you beat a level she does a victory twirl, even as the remaining zombos mob her position like pigeons spotting a dropped sandwich. I find this charmingly plucky. Also, developers The Jaspel are the same depraved, genre-muddling scientists wot did Backpack Hero.

Find the demo for Moon Watch on Itch.io with a full release to follow on Steam at some point in the tactically deferred future.