Crunchyroll Adds 80s Martial Arts Beat ‘Em Up Karate Survivor to Its Android Vault

Crunchyroll’s latest addition to mobile is Karate Survivor. It’s a fast-paced action roguelite brawler developed by Alawar and was originally released on PC in 2024. It’s a Vampire Survivors-like, but it replaces the fantasy projectiles and passive auto-spells with melee-first and 80s martial arts action.

Anything lying around on the street can become a weapon in Karate Survivor

It’s a street-fighting-meets-roguelite-survival setup. You play a martial arts master who’s the neighbourhood’s last hope. It’s a gritty neon-and-pixel version of the 1980s where ruthless gangs, thugs, goons, bandits, and big bosses are all trying to ruin your day.

Survive as long as you can, beating the absolute hell out of everything coming at you. Also, unlock permanent martial arts skills and turn the entire environment into a weapon. That’s the basic setup in Karate Survivor.

You can smash a plastic chair over somebody’s head, swing a mop handle around when a crowd gets too close, throw bricks, and break neon signs into your attackers. You can even use things like plastic flamingos and a child’s toy hammer as deadly weapons.

Karate Survivor has a horde-survival loop where hundreds of enemies can crowd the screen at the same time. It forces you to react quickly and make those split-second decisions before you get completely buried. Every run is different, so you’re constantly fighting, getting knocked out, unlocking stuff, and jumping back in with a stronger character.

As you defeat enemies and pick up experience during a run, you’ll unlock martial arts techniques, defensive moves, and passive stat boosts. There are dozens of different attacks, and you can build combinations of up to six attacks around whatever kind of fighter you want to play.

It’s full retro

Karate Survivor has a retro presentation, with detailed pixel art inspired by classic arcade games and old VHS-era action flicks. You’ll be throwing hands in rain-slicked alleyways, neon-lit bars, and other distinct areas. There’s also a pulsing synthwave soundtrack keeping everything moving.

Karate Survivor is now available on the Google Play Store as part of Crunchyroll’s game lineup. It’s exclusive to Crunchyroll Mega and Ultimate Fan Memberships.

If you aren’t a Crunchyroll member, read our next scoop on Aux Court That Takes Competitive Music to Another Level!