Drova – Forsaken Kin is a dark, atmospheric action RPG that draws heavy inspiration from classics like Gothic and Dark Souls, while grounding itself in a unique Celtic-inspired world filled with mysticism, decay, and moral ambiguity. Developed by Just2D, the game sets out to create a deliberate, weighty experience—one that values exploration, consequence, and narrative depth over fast-paced gratification. While still in development, what’s already here paints a promising picture of a game that could grow into a cult classic.

The world of Drova is bleak and foreboding, with a decaying society unraveling in the aftermath of a divine catastrophe. Players take on the role of a nameless wanderer who stumbles into a fractured land divided by ideology and survival. The setting is hand-crafted with care, sporting pixel art visuals that are gritty yet evocative, layered with environmental detail that subtly tells its own story. Dense forests, ruined temples, and ghost-haunted caves feel lived in and abandoned all at once, lending the game a strong sense of place. The choice to use pixel art doesn't limit immersion—instead, it deepens it, giving the world a rustic, eerie aesthetic that fits the melancholic tone perfectly.

Combat in Drova is methodical and punishing. Every swing, dodge, and parry matters, and even low-level enemies can quickly punish careless players. There’s a clear Souls-like influence here—not just in terms of difficulty, but in how the game rewards patience, timing, and learning enemy patterns. The stamina system enforces discipline, and weapon types behave differently enough to offer meaningful experimentation. Though the current early access version may lack a wide arsenal, what’s there feels intentionally designed to complement the slow, deliberate rhythm of combat.

One of the game’s most striking features is its faction system. Players are quickly introduced to two major factions vying for control over the region, each with its own worldview, methods, and moral failings. Choosing a side—or attempting to navigate between them—affects dialogue, quests, and how NPCs react to you. There’s no clear “good” or “evil,” just layers of survivalist pragmatism, cruelty, and broken ideals. This moral grayness enhances replayability and gives weight to decisions in a way many RPGs struggle to achieve. Dialogue is rich with personality, though not overly verbose, and most quests can be approached with multiple solutions, including stealth, diplomacy, or outright violence.

Exploration is also a core pillar of Drova’s experience. The world is not sprawling in size but dense with secrets, environmental storytelling, and hidden dangers. There are no quest markers or hand-holding; players are expected to pay attention to clues, NPC dialogue, and environmental cues. This design choice will likely polarize players—some will find it refreshingly immersive, while others may grow frustrated with the game’s unwillingness to explain itself. Still, for fans of games that respect their intelligence and reward curiosity, Drova offers a deeply satisfying adventure.

Visually, the game’s pixel art is moody and detailed, with lighting effects that bring depth and drama to even the smallest campfire or flickering torch. Enemy designs are grotesque and memorable, and the environments shift from hauntingly natural to otherworldly with seamless cohesion. The soundtrack complements the setting with somber melodies and eerie ambient sounds that enhance tension without becoming intrusive. Audio cues are subtle but useful in navigating threats, and the absence of a traditional HUD during exploration adds to the game’s raw, immersive quality.

However, Drova is not without its flaws. Combat can feel sluggish at times, particularly when enemy AI becomes erratic or unresponsive. There are occasional performance hiccups and bugs—NPCs stuck in place, hit detection failing, or environmental assets clipping awkwardly. Some of the user interface elements still feel rough or unintuitive, especially in inventory and crafting management. Still, the developers have shown transparency with their roadmap and have actively engaged with the community, frequently patching and expanding the experience based on feedback.

Ultimately, Drova – Forsaken Kin stands as a compelling early access title with a clear vision and the foundations of a memorable RPG. Its strength lies in its atmosphere, meaningful choices, and slow-burn storytelling. It won’t appeal to every player—its unforgiving combat, vague quest design, and gritty tone demand a certain patience—but those who connect with it will likely find themselves immersed in one of the most promising indie RPGs in recent memory. If the developers continue to refine and expand on its systems and narrative, Drova could evolve into a standout of the genre.

Rating: 9/10

This is a great classical RPG with an interesting story, gearing, and progression

It's just like playing you for the first time. Again.

drova foreskin is pretty good.

Just for one thing, the experience of combat sucks all the time, from the begin to the end.

Even if you already have equipped Legendary weapons and armors, distributed all your learning points, it's still doing so little damage to the enemies, who could easily kill you with their acrobatic abilities.

By the way, I was playing classic mode, and got level 24 when I beat the game, that's horrible you have to eliminate all enemies by yourself most time.

Terribly boring. Huge story exposition dump before you can do anything (you can skip it, but good intros blend gameplay and story), game doesn't teach you all of the principles (I guess you're supposed to assume the red hand means stealing... nothing says this, which ruined the last 53 mins of my save game), and altogether boring. From someone who comes from oldschool RPGs, this one misses the mark.

Overall a solid game, the story is interesting enough, exploration and quests are fun. The only thing hindering the game a bit is the clunky combat, this becomes especially apparant when trying to fight the game's big hidden boss. As a whole it's worth playing through though!

To say it's an incredible game doesn't do it service---I haven't been this absorbed in an RPG for 20 years.

An indie gem !

You can feel all the passion from the developers in the game. There is so much to discover in Drova, characters, quests, monsters, magic, ruins, ancient documents. Game is not easy though, you will need to master weapons and combat. Be prepared to die often in the beginning...but after all, you're just a nobody trying to get important in this world. Understanding what's happening and what happened is rewarding because your choices really matter.

Play it :)

Fantastic experience; fun, challenging, and a great story to play through.
Highly recommended if you enjoy RPGs with puzzles, hidden quests and items, etc.