Neva

One of the great games of 2024, Neva is an unforgettable narrative experience that combines precise combat, clever puzzles, and monochromatic visuals. A journey that will forever remain in the hearts of those who play it.

Neva is what happens when you let actual artists make a game. That we rarely get works like this is depressing, but there’s no sense that anything in Neva was produced according to what a suit thought would be best for the share value. Yes, Neva lacks in subtlety, but it is nonetheless a beautiful, heartfelt and evocative experience. It makes it clear up front that its goal is to make you cry, and even though you know what it’s doing, you are going to cry on cue at the end of it.

Neva is a sweet little game that left a significant impression on me. Every frame looks like a painting, there’s a surprising amount of challenge and the way it builds these characters without saying a word is masterful. If you’re a fan of short, artful experiences in games, you need to play Neva.

Neva is a great example of the artistic value of video games. It is a work that reinforces Spain's position in this industry, and it is an adventure that is able to connect on a personal level with each player. This is, without a doubt, one of the best experiences of 2024.

Neva feels more like a 'game' than Nomada's previous title, but is nonetheless a top-tier work of art.

Neva is a title aimed at the whole family and not just a specific audience, with a story in which emotional ties are present at all times. If anything becomes clear as we get to know its protagonists, it is that unity is strength and that by being together, all kinds of adversities will be overcome. This game aims to be one of the most important indies of this present 2024 and if as players, you are looking for an experience that goes straight to the point, emotive and leaves aside the combat and action section that many of us are used to in other titles, Neva is the perfect choice.

Like the previous game, Neva is a delight to the eye and a real hug to the soul. Nomada Studio bets this time on a story with small doses of action, and it's as touching as Gris, but it never leaves its own path. Everything, from the sounds of the forest to Alba's swords, feels delicate. It's a rich world you'll never want to leave.

Neva is a profoundly moving, interactive work of art. It’s as pleasing to the eye as it is the ear, and the effort this still young studio has gone to in developing upon ideas cemented in their first game, Gris, is commendable. Without eclipsing it, Neva matches the stirring catharsis of Gris with another flash of brilliance.

Neva is a stunning game with incredible art and visuals that showcase a Nomada Studio team that's much more refined since it's last game, "Gris." The much-improved gameplay experience on offer in Neva paired with a deeply emotional story that's expressed in the art, the score, and the wonderfully detailed animations hit deep within you, charging you towards the credits until you're weeping while watching them roll. It's more simplistic puzzle-platforming and combat design do leave something to be desired, and a pacing deficiency dampens the mood, but those issues don't stop it from being a must-play game and one of the best indie's in 2024.

Six years ago, Nomada Studio made a name for itself with Gris, an atypical platformer, which went off the beaten track and whose sincere intentions made it possible to see that even among indies, we are still capable of standing out. Neva takes up this same ideology by pushing the desire even further. By completely embracing this osmosis with nature, by drawing unabashed inspiration from the works of Hayao Miyazaki and the productions of Studio Ghibli, the Spanish developers of Nomada transport us into an absolutely captivating universe where each moment, each screen gives the feeling of contemplating the painting of an accomplished artist, that of Conrad Roset. With the COVID crisis, the birth of his child, his relationship has changed and this evolution in his personality is also felt in Neva, a game where the need to help each other, to take care of each other is felt in this dying world. Nothing is lost despite appearances, an optimistic message that will guide the player in an experience like no other has offered us. The platform is still relevant, the puzzles are still as enjoyable, but we have gained in ferocity and adversity, thanks to this katana put in the hand of Alba, our heroine, capable of many things and movements. Her hand-made animations are sublime, her fight too, while Neva, this wolf cub who is growing up visibly, is a character that we also want to cuddle. Sublime.

These gameplay moments and the parts where every aspect of the experience comes together to work in harmony aren't quite common enough. We wish some mechanics stuck around for longer, but it does keep the experience fresh and consistently exciting, making Neva another hit from the small Barcelona-based studio.

Neva is gorgeous work of art transferred to videogame format, a simple but emotionally effective action-platforming adventure starring the swordswoman Alba alongside the she-wolf Neva. An ode to motherhood that leaves us with some of the best moments of the year in digital art.

Neva is a solid video game, but a true masterpiece if we look at it as an art piece. As is often the case, the whole is far greater than the sum of its parts. The adventures of Alba and Neva are incredibly memorable, leaving you eager to relive them immediately after you finished a playthrough, just to bask in the beauty of its stunning scenes. While it’s not a game for those seeking adrenaline, it’s a beautifully crafted tale that forges an emotional connection with anyone patient enough to let the story unfold. For indie fans, Neva is a must-play—an experience that should not be missed.

Based on a narrative of affective contemplation, guided by the poignant emotions of the music in perfect harmony with each moment and built on visual art of profound beauty that few games achieve, Neva is an essential unit, a meaningful experience that does not focus on platforming action, but employs it as a small part of an astounding, determined and hopeful whole.

NEVA is pure emotion, an audiovisual delight that conquers the gameplay with the sword to offer an adventure that is more earthly than GRAY, but equally full of meaning and feeling.

There is a lot greatness to be found in Neva, it’s just that the game isn’t paced well enough to enjoy the ride to its fullest.

Neva's strengths, similarly with the case of Gris, lie in its touching story, exploring themes of parenthood and coming of age. We feel that a bit more challenge could enhance the experience, nevertheless, few games manage to evoke such strong feelings, especially without a single word spoken.

Neva parades its Studio Ghibli influence to the point where the word “homage” becomes strained, but its visual presentation, mechanics and level design lift a fairly typical adventure title into something thoroughly satisfying to play.

Once again, Nomada Studio proves its mastery of the alchemy between video games and art.

Between a blanket of fog and a field of wildflowers, Neva's aesthetics are imbued with great poetry. An artistic inspiration that unfortunately is partly obscured by excessive quotationism, which calls into question in particular the imagery outlined by Studio Ghibli in Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away. A soundtrack of rare beauty accompanies the growth of Neva's two protagonists on screen, a little girl and a wolf cub. Through the alternation of the seasons, Nomada Studios tells us about the relationship of trust between a human being and an animal, but also the cyclical nature of existence. Despite a narrative component that is perhaps excessively hermetic, Neva manages to move in many moments, generating a sincere wave of affection for its main characters.

Some works leave a deep impression on you. After the excellent Gris, Nomada has succeeded for a second time in making a condensed game that will nevertheless leave a lasting impression on those who venture into it. It's hard not to compare it with the studio's previous title, so similar are they in some ways. But Neva has a personality of its own. It tackles other themes, just as universal and with an evocative force that goes straight to the heart. We want more, just a little bit more, to close this never-ending story with the feeling that we've really reached the end of what the game can tell us. This doesn't detract from the pleasure of traversing the sublime scenery of this dreamlike world, in the company of this little she-wolf whom we quickly fall in love with. Neva will definitely find its place in the hearts of all gamers.

After the sublime Gris, Nomada Studio is back with an action-adventure game that, under its appearance of an ecological fable with a young woman and her wolf, actually has a much heavier message. And we liked the way Neva took us by surprise. The latest baby from the Spanish team also comes back with a superb artistic direction, where the nature full of details contrasts with the “emptiness” of certain passages, marked by a surrealism that echoes Gris… In Neva, Nomada also offers - for the first time - action-adventure phases and does more than well. The demons that Alba must face give rise to gripping action phases, well staged, where a certain tension reigns (without ever falling into an excessive challenge). A very beautiful adventure that we recommend.

Neva is a wonderful and entertaining adventure, but it doesn't quite match Gris on an emotional level.

It’s difficult to place in the face of the game’s overwhelming and evident visual prowess but there’s a quiet self-consciousness to Neva that leads it to places incrementally but mountingly less than it should be. There are moments and even stretches of ingenuity and beauty that paint a portrait of a developer entirely in control of their craft, coalescing into a richly satisfying emotional conclusion. Neva’s path to this place is less certain though, resting too neatly atop a pile of influences and structural choices that rob it of being more than its aesthetics or touchstones. Perhaps most simply, Neva is a good game from a studio capable of greatness.

The audiovisual beauty, the diversity of the gameplay and the dynamism of the combat system make Neva a worthy representative of the artistic platformer genre, but it lacks the visionary element known from Gris.

In truth, when it does attempt to tug firmly on the heartstrings, Neva is never as effective as we might have feared. But the images it leaves behind are indelible. [Issue#404, p.114]

Neva is almost brilliant. This is a finely crafted game let down by too much empty time-wasting, untapped potential in its puzzling, and a rather onerous desire to make people cry.

With its sumptuous art and rousing soundtrack, Neva sure is a treat for the eyes and ears. Its story will pull on your heartstrings, too. It's just a shame that its gameplay is basic at best and it often borders on being simply dull.