No, Warhammer Survivors is not made by poncle. It is developed and published by Auroch Digital, the Bristol studio behind Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun. poncle, the studio behind Vampire Survivors, is a partner: it lent Auroch the Vampire Survivors engine and advised on the design, and the game is officially licensed by Warhammer.
Below we cover exactly who does what on the game, what poncle and Auroch have each said about the partnership, who Auroch Digital is, how much of Vampire Survivors carries over, and whether poncle is doing this with other studios. Everything comes from the two studios’ own posts and the store listings. (poncle writes its name in lowercase, so we do too.)
Who Makes Warhammer Survivors
Warhammer Survivors is “an officially licensed game from Auroch Digital (Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun) in partnership with Warhammer and poncle (Vampire Survivors),” in the words of its Steam page. Here is how the roles split:
| Role | Company | Where it says so |
|---|---|---|
| Developer | Auroch Digital | Steam page, Auroch’s own site |
| Publisher | Auroch Digital | Steam, PlayStation Store, Nintendo eShop, App Store |
| Engine and design partner | poncle | Both studios’ posts |
| Licensor | Warhammer | Steam page, official FAQ |
Some early coverage of the announcement described poncle as the publisher. The store listings do not back that up: Steam names Auroch Digital as both developer and publisher, the PlayStation Store lists Auroch Digital Limited, and the App Store’s seller is Auroch Digital Ltd. That makes this a self-published Auroch game, unlike Boltgun 2, which Steam lists under publishers Big Fan Games and Devolver Digital.
What poncle Actually Contributed
Both studios describe the same arrangement: Auroch built a new game on poncle’s technology, with poncle’s input.
poncle explained it in its 2025 wrap-up post on the Vampire Survivors Steam page. It said it had started “lending the base VS-Engine to other studios we like and that approached us with interesting ideas (like Warhammer Survivors).” The same post sets out poncle’s bar for any game built on that engine: “it has to offer a substantial difference from the original, a good reason to justify a new price tag.” poncle picked Warhammer Survivors as its example, praising Auroch as a studio “that has proven to understand the IP.”
Auroch’s side of the story is in its official FAQ: “It’s been great working in close partnership with poncle to realise this vision while also ensuring we preserve that fundamental Survivors experience, and, of course, putting our own Auroch spin on the genre.” In a November 2025 post, Auroch said “it’s been great to build on Poncle’s tech, and their guidance was a fantastic resource.”
poncle still promotes the game as a friend’s project rather than its own. Its October 16 Vampire Survivors patch post called Auroch “our friends at Auroch Digital, makers of the fantastic Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun,” who “have been tinkering with the VS engine to bring the VS experience to Warhammer fans.”
Who Auroch Digital Is
Auroch Digital is a studio based in Bristol, England. Its Warhammer track record is what earned it this project, in poncle’s telling:
- Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun, the retro shooter whose hero, Malum Caedo, is a playable champion in Warhammer Survivors.
- Boltgun 2, released on October 14, 2026. Our Boltgun 2 launch story covers it.
- Boltgun: Words of Vengeance, a free typing spin-off.
Auroch’s site also lists work-for-hire credits on games such as V Rising and Sea of Thieves.
How Much of Vampire Survivors Carries Over
The foundation is the same, and fans will recognize it within a minute. Auroch’s FAQ says the game is “built on the foundation of Vampire Survivors, but every single character, stage, enemy, power-up, and secret has been crafted from scratch.” The familiar parts:
- Weapons evolve the same way: max a weapon, carry its paired passive item and open a chest from a tough enemy.
- Coins buy permanent upgrades between runs. The menu for them is called Enhancements, the game’s version of PowerUps.
- Runs are about surviving the clock. Each stage has a time limit, and an Auroch developer said on the Steam forum that “there are ways of extending the time limit.”
What Auroch added on top:
- Two universes. Warhammer 40,000 and Age of Sigmar each have “their own character rosters, weapons, enemies, and stages,” with a few shared weapons such as Nuln Oil.
- A Keyword system. If your champion picks up a weapon their keywords do not allow, an ally joins to wield it for you, forming a small squad, per Auroch’s Squad System post.
- Faction Traits and status effects. Tyranid Synapse creatures send nearby swarms Berserk, Ork Waaagh!s spawn bigger mobs, and weapons apply Burning, Poisoned and Oiled.
- Extremis Bosses such as Ghazghkull Thraka and the Great Unclean One.
- Hobby references, from the Nuln Oil paint pot weapon to a stage set on a modeler’s desk, and Warhammer paint pots that unlock new character forms.
One thing does not carry over: Vampire Survivors has co-op, but Warhammer Survivors is single-player at launch, per Auroch’s FAQ.
Is poncle Doing This With Other Studios?
Yes, in two ways, according to poncle’s wrap-up. Besides lending its engine to studios like Auroch, poncle teams up with other indie studios on spin-off concepts of its own, and Vampire Crawlers is the example it names. Our story on Vampire Crawlers’ Death Parade update covers it. poncle also says it is working on original titles, which it describes as side projects that are “quite far away.”
For launch details, our Warhammer Survivors release time guide has when it unlocked in every time zone, and our guide to whether it is on Switch, PS5 and mobile covers every platform. Our guide to the best Enhancements to buy first covers the PowerUps menu’s Warhammer version, and the Warhammer 40,000 guides hub collects the rest.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who made Warhammer Survivors? Auroch Digital, the studio behind Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun and Boltgun 2, made it in partnership with poncle and Warhammer.
Who publishes Warhammer Survivors? Auroch Digital publishes it itself, according to every store listing we checked.
Is Warhammer Survivors made by the Vampire Survivors developers? Not directly. poncle lent Auroch its Vampire Survivors engine and guidance, but Auroch’s team built the game.
Is Warhammer Survivors a Vampire Survivors DLC? No. Auroch calls it “a different, standalone game,” and you do not need Vampire Survivors to play it.
Does Warhammer Survivors use the Vampire Survivors engine? Yes. poncle says it lent “the base VS-Engine” to Auroch for this game.
Is Games Workshop involved? The game is officially licensed by Warhammer, which Auroch names as a partner alongside poncle.