Bloons Blitz: A fun, free Survivors-like with 1 major twist

By:Dustin Judge
Screenshot from Bloons TD 6, the tower-defense game whose monkeys and bloons star in Bloons Blitz

Bloons Blitz, Ninja Kiwi’s take on the Vampire Survivors formula, is out now worldwide on iOS and Android. The free-to-play spinoff drops the studio’s dart-throwing monkeys into an auto-attacking roguelite, and it supports ads and in-app purchases.

The global release landed Wednesday without much warning, though it wasn’t a total surprise. Ninja Kiwi first revealed Bloons Blitz in November 2025 and soft-launched it in the Philippines on May 19, according to the Bloons Wiki.

What is Bloons Blitz?

Bloons Blitz keeps the run-based structure of Vampire Survivors but remixes it around the Bloons series. You steer a Hero who attacks nearby bloons automatically, then earn experience to level up and add more firepower: stat boosts, new Monkeys that follow you around and upgrades for the ones already on your team.

The roster gets flashier as the difficulty climbs. It’s the same balloon-popping fantasy fans know from the tower-defense games like Bloons TD 6, just with you in the middle of the swarm.

Each run moves through a level’s checkpoints before boss encounters. If you fall, you head back in with fresh upgrade picks and try again — a loop that suits the series’ reputation for tough boss fights.

How Bloons Blitz differs from Vampire Survivors

The biggest change is structure. Vampire Survivors asks you to outlast the clock until the 30-minute mark. Bloons Blitz swaps that open-ended survival for defined levels, checkpoints and bosses.

Pocket Gamer’s Iwan Morris argues that makes it “more approachable for casual fans” than the path to 30 minutes in Vampire Survivors, while keeping the core survival feel intact.

Where it fits

Bloons Blitz joins a growing wave of franchise games borrowing the Survivors-like formula. Pocket Gamer points to Warhammer and My Hero Academia as other brands that have tried their own versions.

What sets Ninja Kiwi’s entry apart is how neatly the genre fits Bloons. Waves of balloons were always the point, and the series has long been built around levels and bosses rather than a timer.

What’s next for Bloons Blitz

Ninja Kiwi hasn’t published a detailed roadmap, but a PC version is planned after the mobile launch, according to the Bloons Wiki.

Reporting from Pocket Gamer contributed to this story.

Dustin Judge is the Founder and CEO of Total Apex Media, bringing more than 20 years of writing and editorial experience to the company's growing network of digital publications. He specializes in sports, sports betting, fantasy sports, and digital publishing, with a focus on producing accurate, timely, and engaging content for readers. Dustin oversees editorial strategy, content development, and publishing operations across Total Apex Media while remaining actively involved in sports, betting, and fantasy sports coverage.

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