Nomada Studio, the Spanish indie team behind the watercolour marvel Gris, cemented their place among gaming’s finest emotional storytellers with 2024’s Neva. A harrowing, stunning tale of Alba and her wolf companion navigating a corrupted, dying world, it felt like a fully realised artistic statement – something complete.
So when Neva: Prologue was revealed during February’s PlayStation State of Play, I’ll admit I was a little cautious. Not cynical, just wary. Prequels have a habit of picking at threads better left unexamined.
I’m happy to report that caution was mostly unfounded.
Taking it Back
Neva: Prologue is a compact, roughly one-hour DLC expansion that rewinds the clock to the very beginning – Alba alone in a rose-pink forest, gleefully chasing butterflies before the world turns dark and a frightened little wolf cub tumbles into her life. Conrad Roset’s painterly art style is every bit as arresting here as it was in the main game. Each new landscape bleeds into the next with that signature watercolour elegance, and Berlinist’s score continues to be the ribbon tying the entire emotional package together.
If you fell in love with the look and sound of Neva, stepping into this will feel like slipping back into a beautiful dream.
What’s smartly different is the pacing. Without Neva as a combat companion, Alba is stripped back to her more defensive roots, and the DLC leans heavily into atmospheric platforming and exploration rather than the increasingly ferocious combat of the main campaign. In the most memorable sequences, Alba cradles the trembling wolf pup tightly to her chest – no double jump, no dash, no sword swings – forcing you to push through danger with restraint rather than aggression. It’s a clever design choice that mirrors the emotional vulnerability of this early, fragile bond.
The standout set piece features a towering, slug-like creature stalking the pair against an inky-black backdrop, followed by a tense hide-and-seek sequence in which Alba must stay out of sight between bursts of illuminating lightning. It’s a well-worn video game trope, but Neva plays it with real weight. A later encounter takes the light mechanic even further, with corrupted creatures only materialising in brief flashes of brightness – genuinely inventive, and one of the DLC’s sharpest moments.
The main boss, however, feels like a comparatively safe choice. Where the main campaign boasted some spectacularly designed encounters, Neva: Prologue’s climax runs through a fairly familiar playbook without quite the same flair. It’s serviceable, but in a game that so regularly subverted expectations, it lands as a minor disappointment.
The age-old prequel problem also looms. As beautiful as this origin story is, it doesn’t meaningfully deepen the lore or reframe what came after it. In truth, Neva: Prologue’s emotional resonance is almost entirely dependent on already knowing what happens – knowing what comes next is what gives every quiet moment its ache. As a standalone experience, it would be lovely but lightweight.
Final Thoughts
Still, more Neva is never a bad thing. For a modest price and just over an hour of your time, Neva: Prologue is a tender, exquisitely realised chapter that earns its place in Alba and Neva’s story, even if it doesn’t need to reinvent it.
If you are new to Neva like I was, it’s a great gateway to the main game.
FOUR AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Highlights: Conrad Roset’s art is as breathtaking as ever; emotionally resonant when experienced alongside the main game; smart, restrained gameplay design; Berlinist’s score remains extraordinary
Lowlights: Struggles to meaningfully expand the main game’s themes; final boss plays it a little too safe
Developer: Nomada Studio
Publisher: Devolver Digital
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Windows PC
Available: Now
Review conducted on PC with a launch code provided by the publisher.
Featured header image also provided by the publisher.
