Protect this dog with your life.
There is no denying that developer Nomada Studio’s debut game – the 2018 release Gris – is a beautiful, moving game. An emotional story about grief and loss, Gris offered a gorgeous and contemplative journey that I enjoyed my time with. Gris was widely acclaimed, won a bunch of awards, and overall was an unqualified success. I did have one knock against the gameplay: that it was maybe a little too focused on the experience and not so much on the act of playing the game. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it personally was what prevented Gris from being one of my favorite games of that year. Nomada Studio’s second game Neva picks up a lot of the magnificent visual aplomb, but adds a crucial engaging element: combat. It’s not a flawless addition to the experience, but it did enough to make Neva more of a game and less of a puzzling walk.
Neva’s story is similar in presentation and style to Gris. While Gris was more focused on the parent and child relationship, Neva focuses more on the human and pet relationship, as you control a woman named Alba who is bound to a wolf cub named Neva after a traumatic incident in the game’s introduction. You wander through side-scrolling environments, completing the occasional puzzle, performing some platforming challenges, and fighting off some dark evil forces. The variety is what stood out most to me, as you would have the occasional segment that focused on just going forth with your beloved dog and taking in the scenery, only to be interrupted by a fight where you and your pup need to fend off enemies.
The combat never gets too complex but easy-to-grasp controls and a good enough variety of enemies keep it fresh throughout. Alba has a simple attack and a dodge roll, with a few flourishes added in as you progress. A few segments feel a little kill room-y, but it also happened at a clip where I’d start to have that thought, and then the segment would end. The only parts I didn’t really enjoy were the chase sequences, which are also the only part of the game where you can die in the Story Mode difficulty. The tension created as you have to move quickly is good, but they felt more punishing compared to everything else throughout the game.
I’ve been a pet owner my entire life and have experienced my fair share of pet-centric media. This is one of the most impressive examples, doing a tremendous job of capturing that connected feeling to an animal through a central element of working your way through the seasons. The game is split into four overarching segments (one for each season) and you see the growth of Neva through each one as well as the growth of your relationship. It’s emotional along the way. I would protect this wolf with my life and well, that is certainly a thing you have to do a lot in this game.
I preferred Neva to Gris, though both games are triumphant and artistic video games that will probably make you cry like a baby. If you’re a lifelong pet owner like myself, Neva has the potential to hit you like a train, but it’s also a universal enough feeling to work for anyone. The combat is a great addition to the video game aspect that definitely filled in a hole for me in the experience. Nomada Studio continues their penchant for making gorgeous games that are packed with emotional resonance. Now that they’ve told game stories about parents and pets, we’ll see how they can make us all cry next.
