Hands On: 'Gris' Devs Are Ready To Make Us Cry Again With The Beautiful 'Neva'

Just two games in, and Nomada Studio has already established a brand for itself. GRIS, the developer’s first game, explores the five stages of grief beautifully, allowing colour to paint a grey world of pain – it’s a stunning piece of art and a game that’s almost guaranteed to make you cry.

The studio’s next project, Neva, made us sob not even a minute into the game. Heavily inspired by Studio Ghibli’s Princess Mononoke, it's full of gorgeous natural environments, visceral moments of movement and storytelling, and emotionally resonant moments. It follows a journey of parental bonds, friendship, and relationships between humans, animals, and nature. Essentially, Nomada Studio likes to make us weep in the best possible ways, all with the power of beautiful art and little to no dialogue.

We sat down to play the first chapter of the Neva with producers Adrián Cuevas, and Roger Mendoza at this year’s Summer Game Fest, which made the experience all the more intimate. The room was silent as we sat through the beautifully animated opening cutscene, which was appropriate because this writer was on the verge of tears watching the mother of Neva (the titular wolf cub) fight strange black creatures and lose her life. If you have a pet, or have ever had one, Neva will hit hard.

But you’re not playing as Neva; you control Alba, a woman who is bonded to the little wolf. The two have to make their way through a world that is rapidly decaying. The black branches protruding from the ground and strange masked creatures which seep through the walls and ceilings looking like spirits in Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away are terrifying, inflicting a sense of dread not just on you, but also on Neva. Despite not controlling the wolf, this is about Neva, and the pup’s reactions in the demo are what drive you to progress.

Each chapter is framed around a season, and we got to play through Summer, the opener. Things start out luscious; fields are sprawling with greens, and trees bursting with foliage and flowers. Some light platforming puzzles see you help Neva jump across platforms by encouraging her. There’s a dedicated button to interact with the wolf: when you’re far away from your fluffy friend, you can call for her, whistle, and get her to stop. Neva feels and behaves like a real animal, all helped by the beautiful 'bark' work of one of the developers' dogs.

Alba can jump, roll/dodge, and dash in the air, while the cub is entirely reliant on you helping or encouraging her. This is a game about growth, though, and even in just this single chapter, Neva takes 'puppy' steps and becomes more independent as you progress. For instance, while Neva is initially scared of the black branches that impede her path, by the end of the demo, it’s the wolf who deals the finishing blow in an incredible moment of relief.

This is essentially how the chapter goes until you reach a safe haven, shortly after discovering some of those black branches. When night falls, decay creeps in at an ever-rapid pace, and monsters begin to emerge from the shadows. When artist Conrad told us that Neva “feels like a natural evolution,” this is partially what he meant – the colour of Neva’s world begins to be drowned out by the darkness, and soon the world becomes overwhelmed by this shadow, barely illuminated by the moonlight.

It’s here that the feeling of dread overcame us: our shy little Neva would bark or cower as enemies approached; she would scratch at walls of thorny branches that she couldn’t get by without our help. Sometimes, she’d even run off-screen, and calling her back produces a panicked “Neva?!” Every time this happened, a lump formed in our throats. Our eyes felt damp. We had to find her.

Sometimes, that involves getting involved in combat, which is deceptively simple. Alba has a sword which she can swing around and combo, attack in mid-air, or jump and plunge the sword into the ground. If you take damage, you can restore one health node by combo-ing attacks without getting hit. It’s this risk-reward strategy that makes all the difference, especially when you’re trying to platform around precariously placed branches that will damage you on contact. Some of these combat encounters aren’t super easy, but knowing you can wail on an enemy and get some health back if you don’t get hit pushes you to take risks here and there.

All of the enemy encounters are scripted, and often need defeating before progressing to the next screen, whether it’s to rescue Neva or dissolve the branches in the room. Combat feels more like a means to an end, but we also understand it’s not a key aspect of the game – it’s important to be there, but it doesn’t need to be deep. It just needs to convey the message, the struggle, and the growth.

Nothing does that better in the demo than the boss, a relatively challenging encounter. We did die a few times, but we were simply being too greedy with our hits, trying to restore health when it would be safer to heal. We had to watch the creature’s every move, memorise attack patterns, and know when to jump in for the final blow. If the boss slammed its fists down, we knew we could dart underneath and attack its back legs from behind. If trees emerged from the ground, we had to get as far away as possible. And, if the boss opened its mouth – from which black arms would scramble and attempt to scratch us – we knew we had to jump and dash forward.

The struggle against this creature really convey Alba's powerlessness and desperation while trying to keep Neva safe and escape this decay. However, we also didn’t feel good about killing the monster, as it writhed and screamed in pain. Our desire to stay with Neva is what pushed us to the end, but as black essence explodes from the creature’s body, it feels oddly melancholic.

Just like Gris before it, Neva is telling a story almost entirely without dialogue; the environment, animations, and use of colour do all of that. When Alba hugs Neva, you know you’re safe and you know you’re at the end of a section. When you hear Neva whining off to the right – which is much more noticeable when wearing headphones – you know she’s stuck or lost. When you see light or release mysterious white buildings by solving puzzles, you know you’re either safe or have made some progress. It’s not about adding colour to the world – this time, it’s about preserving that colour, that light. But it’s also about how we literally overcome that darkness.

It’s clear that Neva is a much bigger game than Gris, at least twice the size, with more detailed environments, complex animations, and an incredibly adorable wolf at its heart. Neva will grow throughout the adventure, and watching her bond with Alba, as well as her physical growth, will be the true joy of the experience. We continue to be hugely impressed by this Barcelona-based studio's work, and with Neva releasing on Switch later this year, we’re already stockpiling the tissues and giving our pets a little hug.

Oh, and you can pet Neva too, don’t worry.

Neva is due to launch on Switch and consoles later in 2024. Are you excited for Nomada Studio's next game? Howl in the comments and let us know.