When I first heard that it was Drova: Forsaken Kin described as a “Gothic-inspired pixel-art RPG,” I wondered how well that style would translate into a top-down adventure. In the end, I was quietly impressed.
Drova manages to capture the atmosphere of the game Gothic in a number of ways, the most notable being that it gives you a relatively compact but rich world to explore, without any hand-holding. When I say “compact”, I don’t mean small world. The world is not procedurally generated and is not designed to last indefinitely. You will often return to the same areas, and your actions will affect the world and the people in it.
The game is set in a vague Celtic-Slavic environment, where every day is a struggle for survival. After you find the druids of your village secretly carrying away a magical red crystal, you decide to become the protagonist and follow them into the dark woods. When things go wrong, the crystal ends up in your hands, and you are trapped in the dark, magical land of Drov. All you have to do is take the crystal to Nemeton City and you might be able to return home.
Unfortunately, Drova: Forsaken Kin it also brings some ancient restrictions. First of all, there is a lack of clear guidelines. The map is deliberately useless, and if you want to mark locations or points of interest, you’ll need to buy ink from the vendor. The main story is partially customizable, as your actions and quests for various factions (once you go down a faction’s path, it becomes locked) can subtly change the reactions of NPCs and what you find in certain parts of the world. As in Gothic-uyou’ll need to find special NPCs who can teach you new skills, and the wrong relationship with factions can ruin your chances of progress.
One thing that Drova what works well is that it doesn’t waste space. If you can get somewhere, there is a reason for it. Corpses, boxes, bags, objects on the ground – there are plenty of reasons to explore every corner of the Drow world. A robust crafting system means you’ll want to collect everything you find, including meat and berries that you can store on campfires.
Skills and experience are mostly combat related. As you progress and use certain weapons more than others, you increase your skill with them and unlock new abilities. Most skills, like magic, have a gauge that fills up by attacking enemies, while others have a cooldown period. Ranged weapons, like bows, require you to tighten the string and align the two lines before releasing the arrow.
Melee combat is simpler, but not easy. Enemies deal serious damage, and since you can freely switch between the two sets of weapons, it’s always good to be prepared. Enemies don’t have levels displayed, so you won’t know if something is too strong for you until it sends you back to the revive point. Combat requires good timing, as you have the ability to dodge by rolling, but the strikes must be precise. While the fight is challenging, it won’t severely punish you for defeat – you’ll simply respawn at the last safe spot.
Although the game has no spoken dialogue except for the intro and has a fairly basic character creator, Drova: Forsaken Kin it exudes atmosphere. Gloomy pixel-art graphics, eerie music and a sense of abandonment in a hostile world create an unforgettable RPG experience that combines elements of the new and the old, evoking classics like Gothic-a.
The lack of maps and quest markers may be a problem for some players (I’ll admit I missed them at times), but it encourages you to slow down and enjoy your exploration. At first glance, some systems seem rudimentary, but the game rewards those who really dedicate themselves to its world. With an average duration of 30 to 40 hours, depending on how much you explore, Drova: Forsaken Kin is a deep and enjoyable experience, regardless of whether you play for an hour or five.
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