Some games capture your attention simply because of how they look. Whether your poison is photo-realistic graphics or comic-book visuals, sometimes you just want to play a game based on nothing other than what it looks like. My poison is charming pixel-art, and that’s how Into the Necrovale caught my eye.
This pixelated action-RPG is set in the miserable hell-hole named in the title. You, Dear Reader, are a criminal sent into this so-called Necrovale in search of redemption. In fact, you’re tasked with saving the world. I’m not sure how exactly yet, but you’re going to have to do it with a sharp sword or similar, that much I know.
The focus at this stage has clearly been on creating interesting item interactions and build synergies. I’d say that Into the Necrovale is the kind of game that is going to appeal to people who love to tinker with a loadout, finding the optimum collection of gear and then blending that with increasing mechanical skill.
I probably shouldn’t go further without mentioning that it’s not a roguelike in the traditional sense. Death resets your progress but you still retain a lot of gear. There is procedural generation however, with the rooms arranged differently each time, to keep things fresh.
Death in the Necrovale
There are two main currencies involved. Hope and money. Money somewhat speaks for itself, whereas Hope is a much more interesting mechanic. The Necrovale is an understandably miserable place, after years and years of being sent the worst criminals and so on – and you’re sent in to sort things out after being hand picked for the job.
I feel like there’s room for a Snake Plissken DLC down the line.
The Hope mechanic, as I understand it, has two sides. There are Hope Stones (the name may change to help confused souls such as yours truly) that are spent on unlocking new areas and also cheering up the locals. There is also Hope, which is shown by a bar on screen-left. If you die with no hope left, you must sacrifice one of your items at the start of the next run – your items persist between runs and there’s a chance that you lose one you like (although you can pay to roll again).
As you will have no doubt surmised by now, death will come at the hands of the creatures you encounter during your journey. The Necrovale is a confusing labyrinthine place filled with dungeons and combat gauntlets that you must run. The first few hours are going to involve you exploring your surroundings, meeting the various NPCs dotted about the place, and so on.
Into the Necrovale’s combat
At first, I wasn’t sure whether I liked the movement of the player-character. However, after a couple of hours, I had become accustomed to the way that you move and fight. The dash is utterly essential and mastering that is the first challenge. Rooms are filled with enemies who rush you immediately, and the lesson I learned in those first few dungeons was to move first, ask questions later.
I battled enemies such as rats, wolves, and draugr (skeleton enemies), with both a mid-ranged bow and with a selection of melee weapons. There are also magic staffs, but I didn’t get on too well with them and I probably need to revisit the magic side of thing in a bit more detail once I’m less green.
I did get used to the melee combat, and after a while I was really starting to enjoy myself, as I balanced dodging, blocking, and then administering my own attacks. The action quickly develops its own unique flow, and overall the combat feels like it has a ton of potential, especially as more items are layered in.
In fact, that sentiment pretty much sums up my initial impression of Into the Necrovale: this is a game of tremendous potential. It also has a long way to go, and the developer himself mentions wanting to add thousands of items over time. That’s an admirable ambition, and bringing the game to Early Access is a big part of that. More players and more investment means more time and room for development, and this is a game that will benefit greatly from that.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m really impressed with what I’ve seen, especially as I understand that this is the work of one person. I will be coming back to the Necrovale for more adventures, of that I’m sure. Still, this feels like a diamond in the rough that needs a good ol’ polish before it truly sparkles.
