GRAVEN, by developer Slipgate Ironworks and publishers 3D Realms, Fulqrum Publishing, is a first-person adventure game with an emphasis on navigating environments, fighting the undead, and solving questlines. My first impression of the swamp town from the introduction reminded me of something from the Dungeons and Dragons MMO. Hopefully, you are not turned off by the sewer level in most RPGs, because it is the first thing we get into.
After making a profile, we are ready to start a campaign in this dark fantasy universe. We play as a dishonored priest, whose memory of recent events is somewhat limited. According to our journal, we have a daughter who is our primary motivation for pushing forward to the local library for answers. It is not entirely clear what priesthood in this universe means, or what skills that may endow us with, but characters can recognize our profession upon speaking with us.
We are armed with a wooden club of some kind and the knowledge of how to wield mana as we come to learn spells. We engage in objectives based on quid pro quo, or doing something for something else in return. It seems like our protagonist has a knack for service and a disposition to helping others. The first quest is to traverse the Lice Trough to clear bodies that are clogging the sewer drains. It is an interesting experience consisting of fighting zombies and skeletons, navigating a maze, and lighting peat on fire. I forgot to clear the second clog, even though the town guard reminded me. If you’re like me, backtracking will become commonplace to you, too.
Combat is a slow grind with moments of jumping enemies. The generic mob will attempt to lunge at you and take a bite. The Skeletons will try to thrust their spears at you like a hoplite until we batter their shields to splinters. When confined within narrow walls, the mobs can pose a threat. Most of the time, however, they are clunky and too slow. I played this on the middle difficulty rating to give an idea of what a normal experience can look like. I was somewhat disappointed in the magic system so far, though I did enjoy casting flames pointedly at skeletons as well as setting off explosives.
We use melee, magic, and crossbows to mow down our enemies. In my opinion, it feels a little generic with not much skill to be desired. Your skillset, as a player, is keeping track of where you are as you are dungeon crawling. A keen eye should be left searching for hidden doors, treasure, and interactable objects (e.g., switches on the floor). An even more curious mouse-clicker should be smashing all the crates and barrels, looking for loot.
GRAVEN is rather grave when we get to brass tax. There are more bodies stacked in this town than actual residents roaming the streets. Anyone else is trying to kill you. Things come off rather dire, and some characters don’t appear fazed by the plague at all. There is not much in the way of a working story, so a narrative is not going to be the main attraction here. The level design is somewhat decent, but I found myself wondering why some areas exist at all. Combat has moments when it seems like I landed a critical strike and smashed an enemy to a pulp, but it’s not the thing that draws me into playing more. The UI takes me back to older RPGs and the soundtrack is good.
I think a fair rating for this game is a 7 out of 10. I wouldn’t often put it this way, but it feels right here: this is a good title but not a great one. I like the aesthetic and the approach. I actually enjoyed the opening quest in the sewer and the subsequent Lighthouse quest. I just was not engrossed by the combat and the linear progression in a world that didn’t seem like I understood.
GRAVEN is available for PC via Steam.
Related: Reviews by John Pruitt
I like to think of myself as the average Joe who grew up alongside video games. I have fun playing strategy games, RPGs, shooters, sandboxes, the whole shebang! Every game provides an experience whether it strikes you as profound, mundane, or someplace in between. I'd like to weigh in my two cents before you spend a single penny.
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