Blood, castles and disco: these are top 10 bloody good games with vampires

10. Dark Stalkers

Now it's no surprise that vampires will spend a lot of their immortal lives squabbling among themselves, which will surely lead in countless bouts between the felonious fiends.

If you're hoping to see how some of these scraps play out - look no further than Darkstalkers.

With it's original Japanese name being literally 'Vampires', you'll find plenty of chances to get your claws and fangs out as you go toe-to-toe with all manners of occult beings and monsters in Campcom's fighter - which they have conveniently upgraded to glorious HD in the resurrection edition.

9. BloodRayne

WWII and Vampires? Sign us up! (Photo: Majesco Entertainment Company)

If battling Vampires doesn't quite cut it, and you're wanting to take the fight to even more enemies of humanity, BloodRayne lets you take the fight to the Third Reich in a unique blend of Nazis and Nosferatu.

With an eerie resemblance to Blade - you take on the mantle of Rayne, a half-vampire turned vampire slayer who's recruited by the Brimstone society - who are tasked with ridding the world of blood-suckers; and apparently any fascists they find along the way.

If you've ever wanted to experience the feel of the film, but would rather see the day-walker cast as a PVC-clad red head - your search is over.

8. Van Helsing

While we're on the topic of vampire hunters, let's talk about the most famous of the bunch. Even more so than Wesley Snipes. Abraham Van Helsing - the professor turned predator who sought to end Dracula once and for all.

Wouldn't it be great if we could play a game featuring him? Well, Neocore gave us the next best thing as we took on the role of his son - and his efforts in keeping the family business alive.

The incredible adventures of Van Helsing takes us in a world set after Stoker's novel, in the fictional kingdom of Borgovia which is running rampant with monsters and magic, all the product of a few mad scientists.

You'll get to tailor your vampire hunting experience as you create the slayer of your dreams in this quirky action RPG.

7. Darkwatch

We all enjoy a good crossover right - and what could be better than mixing vampires with cowboys? You think we're getting on to Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare don't you?

Well you're wrong - those were zombies, you're mixing up your undead. Whilst Red Dead 2 did have one vampire in Saint Denis, that's not enough to warrant a place on our list.

So lets look at the rootinest tootenist blood suckenist gunslinger in the West: in Darkwatch.

As with Bloodrayne, you play as a half vampire recruited as a vampire hunter on a quest to slay a timeless terror, and like Van Helsing, you also get a pretty nifty hat.

The resulting product is a fast paced FPS with a morality system that changes your power depending on how benevolent or malevolent you've been.

It's a niche little gem, which unfortunately didn't get the attention it deserves during its release.

What's a bigger shame is that this was set to be the first in a series of titles that took us to different points in History to fight vampires.

Kind of like Assassin's Creed, but more like - well - Assassin's Feed.

6. Infamous: Festival of blood

This is the action we want to see (Photo: Sucker Pumch Productions)

Up next we've got a vampiric spin on a well known adventure through Infamous 2's DLC 'Festival of Blood'

During the 'Pyre Night' festival your superhuman blood is used to awaken the powerful vampire cult leader 'Bloody Mary' - which is certainly not the type of Bloody Mary you want to see after the rough night.

After escaping from the undead infested catacomb - always a popular hang out spot for occult types - you begin your quest of stopping Mary from fulfilling her desires to set fire to the surface with white phosphorus bombs.

The result is an action packed romp through the streets of New Marais with all the cinematic action of the original game.

However, this has the added benefit of being able to drink the blood of civilians, which would definitely not fly with the original games karmic system.

5. Dawn Guard

As a serious, there's no end to vampires in the Elder Scrolls series, with these essence addicts popping up in every major iteration of the game since Arena, back in '94. With its sequel 'Daggerfall' in 1996, Bethesda improved on the feature and allowed players to contract the Vampirism disease.

However no game in the series refined the experience quite like Skyrims DLC 'Dawnguard' which introduced a sect of powerful vampire lords, as well as their counterpart acting to safeguard the continent from their shenanigans.

One way or another, you're going to get bitten - and from there you can either roll with it and unlock your full potential and join Harkon's court of carnivores, or you can join the Dawnguard and become a - here we go again - vampire-turned-vampire hunter.

For budding blood-suckers, teaming up with Harkon is the obvious way to go, and from there you'll join in his quest to block out the sun, and begin the eternal night - there's some real Mr Burns vibes from this one.

4. Vampyr

So far most of the titles have had a pretty loose handle on morality, with most necks being ripe for the biting to keep you fuelled up and energised.

Vampyr take things in a different direction and puts you in the role of a Doctor who struggles with treading the fine line between blood-lust and his Hippocratic oath.

As you struggle to satisfy your cravings whilst you care for your patients, Vampyr will put you in plenty of moral dilemmas, and drop you deeper and deeper into a supernatural world hiding in every nook and cranny of 20th century London.

Despite serving in the Great War, you'll have no training to rely on to protect you from the beasties residing in the game. It's up to you to improvise, adapt and overcome.

It results in a Gothic setting - the natural environment for any vampiric aficionado - filled with plenty of gruesome details that were in abundance during the Spanish flu epidemic.

With a myriad of mysteries and misery to uncover, this is the perfect title for those of you looking for a slower role-playing experience.

3. Legacy of Kain

This story will leave a mark on your heart, pun intended (Photo: Square Enix)

With one of the most ambitious vampire stories on the list, the Legacy of Kain series tells the tale of the formidable tyrannical vampire lord Kain, and his quest to alter fate and become ever more powerful.

Other titles will focus on Kain's former second in command Raziel, who was sentenced to death, but fortunately resurrected as a wraith to enact his revenge on his former mentor - and gobble up a few thousand souls on the way.

It's a story of power, corruption, betrayal, life, death, heroism, tragedy, time-travel and of course, vampires, that stands out as an iconic series in gaming.

With each version the characters motives have become more complex, their relationships more strained, and best for us - their powers more nefarious.

2. Vampire: The Masquerade

Despite its poor initial performance, it was enhanced, upgraded and fixed by its loyal community until it became one of the most exceptional vampire games of all time.

Most games on this list have kept with a very simple theme of 'Vampires + Action = Success', however Vampire: the Masquerade sought to be more ambitious.

Rather than presenting all the species as generic rabid neck-biters, usually enacting the bidding of some shadowy overlord, Bloodlines allows the player to pick their origin from a set of clans.

Whether you choose the rabid Gangrel, the fierce Brujah, the clinically insane Malkavian, the monstrous Nosferatu, the seductive Toreador, the backsabbing Tremere or the aristocratic Venrue - each clan has it's own strengths and weaknesses.

These range from an upset stomach from feeding on the lower class, to an affinity with rats.

This introduced an incredible amount of depth into the role playing experience, as different clans react to each other in various ways, with alliances, indifference and often pure hatred felt between the different lines.

This results in a lot of behind the scenes politics stemming from the character you want to play, and a hidden world lying in the shadows of Los Angeles.

The game will allow you to live out all your fantasies of being a terror of the night in LA, or revel in the glitz and glamour of the nightlife amongst the unsuspecting Hollywood high-life.

There is an incredible depth to the game, and with a sequel just over the horizon, we're looking forward to taking to the shadows, or the spotlight, once more in the definite vampiric role playing experience.

1. Castlevania

Did you expect any other game? Thought so (Photo: Konami)

And in our number one spot - we have the longest spanning franchise on the list with over 30 years worth of games and counting.

With each title we'd encounter new fiendish foes, prey victim to countless hazardous traps, and whipped a whole bunch of stuff. It is of course Castlevania.

First and foremost, the games formula was a revolution for gaming, and it spawned thousands of imitators over the years, and shared a title with Metroid to dub all future attempts 'Metroidvania'.

It's clear to see why so many sought to capture the magic from these games. They were an action packed take on the platforming experienced oozing with atmosphere.

All taking place in levels that were awe-inspiring, and eager you to see your demise just as much as any of the denizens you'll find during your travels.

From ghosts to gargoyles, hunchbacks to harpies, Minotaurs to man-eating plants, there are hordes of enemies that will constantly keep you on your toes as you rise to the upper reaches of Dracula's castle to face off against the most fierce of foes - the count himself in most iterations.

With each game adding new locations, features, weapons and foes, the series has evolved from a simple 2D platformer into an immersive 3D experience, and covered each and every base in the process.

It's spawned countless spin offs, and even a Netflix produced anime series. Whilst most of this list have amassed a robust cult following over the years, Castlevania has been in the public eye since its first releases on the NES.

You'll find a version on every generation of console since, in arcades, and even on your phone. There's no escaping this sprawling series, but why would you ever want to?