Have you ever looked at Dark Souls and thought, 'Man, this game would look great if it had an anime outlook!' Well, your prayers have been answered. Code Vein by Bandai Namco is a Dark Souls-ish game wrapped in not just anime graphics, but also a shonen story. If you know anything about shonen anime, you'll know that there's an extensive list of skills that the hero acquires and Code Vein religiously follows those dynamics.
Code Vein uses a class system called "Blood Code." Each class has its own set of skills that are known as "Gifts." You can switch your Blood Code any time you want and use the unlocked gifts or skills with other Blood Codes, as long as they're compatible.
There's a plethora of gifts in Code Vein, 168 to be precise, and those are just the active gifts. It's literally impossible to go through and unlock each and every gift in one lifetime, or rather one playthrough. So we're here to talk about the best gifts in Code Vein. We've broken down this guide into four parts- Defence, Offence, Ranged Combat and Exploration. Each section will talk about relevant skills.
Best Defensive Gifts in Code Vein
Blood Code | Gift | Description |
Fighter | Health Boost (Passive) | Increases maximum HP |
Warrior | Health Stimulant (Passive) | Increases maximum HP. |
Ranger | Shifting Hollow (Active) | Dash forward in mist form. |
Berserker | Iron Will (Active) | Temporarily reduces damage taken by weaving a barrier into your blood. |
Vitality Up | Survivor (Passive) | Increases Vitality by one step |
Goddess's Smile | Ishtar (Passive) | Restores HP when you enter a focused state |
Augmented Regeneration | Scout (Passive) | Increases the number of times regeneration can be used. |
Fighter and Ranger are two of three basic Blood Codes you receive in Code Vein, and even if they don't entirely match your play style, they still offer awesome Gifts that can carry you far in this game. So when you begin, you're limited to a couple of defence gifts but once you unlock other classes, that's when you can start branching out.
Best Offensive Gifts in Code Vein
Blood Code | Gift | Description |
Fighter | Adrenaline (Active) | Temporarily boosts attack power |
Fighter | Triple Annihilator (Active) | Unleash a combo on a nearby target. An offensive skill performed with Two-handed sword/hammer. |
Ranger | Venom Mark (Active) | Temporarily applies the venom effect to your current weapon. |
Berserker | Blow of Madness (Active) | Increases the power of the next attack. |
Prometheus | Blade Dance (Active) | Temporarily increases attack power each time you damage an enemy with your weapon. |
Isis | Draconic Stake (Active) | Transforms your blood into a giant stake that pierces the target. (Damage multiplier: 460%) |
Isis | Indra's coil (Active) | Fires three powerful bolts of lightning at your target's feet. Damage multiplier: 390% |
Isis | Fourfold Verdict (Active) | Fires an unrelenting barrage of lightning bullets at the target. Damage multiplier: 600% |
Atas | Flashing Fang (Active) | Increases the power of the next attack. |
Assassin | Shadow Assault (Active) | Perform a fast, short-range charge. An offensive skill performed with One-handed sword/Halberd/Bayonet. Damage multiplier: 220% |
The variety of offensive gifts in Code Vein is what really sets the game apart. The offensive gifts essentially determine your build and playstyle in the game. Here, we've mentioned the most powerful offensive gifts, but you'll need to unlock the different Blood Codes before you become an unstoppable tank.
If you've found your perfect weapon or weapon type, then you'd want to grab the mastery gift of that particular weapon type. The mastery gift will greatly increase the power of your weapons. However, if you're not too sure on which weapon you want to use till the end of the game, then hold on and try out all the different weapons in the game before you find your perfect match.
Best Ranged Gifts in Code Vein
Blood Code | Gift | Description |
Caster | Blazing Roar (Active) | Shoots an intense flame at the target. |
Prometheus | Fire Storm (Active) | hoots a series of flaming projectiles that stagger the enemy. |
Hunter | Ranged Impact (Active) | Temporarily increases the attack power of shots fired from weapons. |
Hunter | Blood Sacrifice (Active) | Spends your own HP to gain ichor |
Hunter | Ichor Strikes (Passive) | Reduces the ichor cost of weapon attacks while you are focused. |
Scout | Blood Barrage (Active) | Shoot a series of blood projectiles that bombard foes in a wide area. Damage multiplier: 450% (Melee Range) |
Fionn | Ice Barrage (Active) | Shoot a series of icy projectiles that bombard foes within a wide area. Damage multiplier: 450% (Melee Range) |
Best Exploration Gifts in Code Vein
Blood Code | Gift | Description |
Survivor | Treasure Tracker (Active) | Uncollected items within range will appear on your radar. |
Hunter | Active IFF (Active) | Enemies within a certain range will appear on your radar. |
Mercury | Sprinter (Passive) | Reduces stamina drained by dashing. |
Mercury | Vivification (Active) | Returns you to the last mistle touched without losing haze. |
Code Vein isn't exactly what I'd call an exploration game, but in classic Souls fashion, there are narrow paths that lead you to the secrets of the world. The best exploration gifts in Code Vein are are a healthy mix of finding secrets, being weary of enemies and making a quick escape if you find yourself in a difficult situation.