If you have been looking for your next portable Metroidvania fix, Never Grave is officially making the jump to mobile. The platforming roguelike, which has already earned a 'Very Positive' rating on Steam, is now open for pre-registration on Android.
For those unfamiliar, Never Grave casts you as a young witch equipped with a mysterious, cursed hat. The game blends the exploration-heavy structure of a Metroidvania with roguelike elements, all wrapped in a darkly fantastical aesthetic that shares a clear visual kinship with Hollow Knight.
Possession and Dungeon Crawling
The core hook of the game revolves around that cursed hat. Instead of relying solely on the witch's own movement, you can use the hat to possess enemies you have defeated. Once you take over an enemy, your witch’s body slumps to the ground while you gain access to the fallen foe's specific abilities. These powers are essential for traversing the game's treacherous, cursed dungeons and overcoming stronger adversaries.
The gameplay loop extends beyond just combat and exploration. The loot you extract from the dungeon serves a functional purpose: it is used to rebuild a cursed village. This base-building element adds a layer of progression similar to Darkest Dungeon, giving players a tangible reason to keep diving back into the depths.
Co-op and Platforming Features
If you find the dungeon's challenges too daunting to tackle alone, the game includes support for co-op play. You can team up with up to four players to navigate the dungeons together, which should provide a significant shift in how you approach the game's platforming and combat encounters.
While Never Grave has already found success on PC, its transition to mobile remains the next big hurdle. Given its quirky animation and demanding platforming, how well it adapts to touch controls will be the deciding factor for many. If you want to jump in as soon as it launches, you can head over to the Google Play Store to pre-register now.