Never Grave: The Witch and The Curse launches March 5, 2026
2D roguelike action game dated.
2D roguelike action game Never Grave: The Witch and The Curse will launch for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PlayStation 4, Switch, and PC via Steam on March 5, 2026 for $16.99 / £13.99 / €13.99 / ¥1,980, Pocketpair Publishing and developer Frontside 180 Studio announced.
Pre-orders are now available via PlayStation Store, with other platforms to follow. A bundle including the game’s official soundtrack will also be available for $20 / £15.49 / €16.99 / ¥2,384. PlayStation Plus users will receive a 10 percent-off discount when pre-ordering either edition of the game.
Here is a message from Frontside 180 Studio producer, director, level designer, and programmer Yasuomi Sakai on the release date announcement:
At its core, Never Grave: The Witch and The Curse is about challenge and growth.
We wanted to capture that feeling of trying again and again; failing, learning, and pushing forward each time. Those small moments of progress and discovery that come from persistence are what truly define this game.
From the earliest days of development, we’ve been obsessed with striking a balance between the tension of exploring dangerous dungeons and the calm satisfaction of building up your village base. The coexistence of struggle and comfort is something we’ve been especially focused on.
One of our biggest challenges was creating the “Possession” system. Each possession comes with its own unique hand-drawn animations, abilities, and combat mechanics. Stealing an enemy’s powers can help you turn the tide of battle, explore hidden paths, solve puzzles, or even collect materials in new ways.
We hope you’ll enjoy discovering what kinds of enemies you can possess, and how their abilities can change the way you play.
You can also team up with friends online and share the adventure together. Facing challenges as a group creates moments of laughter, chaos, and triumph that simply don’t happen when playing alone, and we can’t wait for players to experience that for themselves.
We’re beyond excited to finally announce the release date. The entire team is working tirelessly to polish the game to its very last moment.
We hope Never Grave becomes the kind of adventure that you’ll want to return to time and time again.
And here is an overview of the game, via Pocketpair Publishing:
About
A Metroidvania x roguelite, where you advance using a cursed hat. Use a variety of magic or possess your enemies to reach the lowest levels! Bring back loot, build new facilities in your village, make a living and strengthen yourself for the next battle! Supports up to four-player multiplayer.
Authentic 2D action
Identify enemy attacks, fight with magic, and sometimes use the terrain to win! Dungeons such as ruins and botanical gardens are auto-generated and change each time you play. Furthermore, there are obstacles and puzzles waiting to block the player’s path in the dungeons.
Possession System
Possess enemies using a cursed hat. Use unique abilities from your possessed enemies to open up avenues of action and gain an advantage in battle!
Rebuild a Ruined Village
Use materials collected in the dungeons to clear the rubble of ruined villages, build new facilities and cultivate crops in the fields. Produce food and potions in the village to prepare for the next battle!
Multiplayer support for up to four players. Call your friends from other worlds and conquer dungeons together!
Key Features
- Metroidvania x roguelite with an emphasis on exploration.
- Sophisticated and tactilely designed player character controls.
- Possession system where hats can possess enemies and use their unique abilities.
- Traditional Japanese hand-drawn limited animation is used for character 2D animation.
- Thickly painted backgrounds with depth, as if you are travelling through a world of picture books and cut-out pictures.
- Learn actions such as double-jump from artefacts to explore new areas.
- Constantly changing play style depending on the synergy of “traits” associated with magic and items.
- Intense battles with tough bosses. It will take more than just memorizing boss patterns to defeat them without taking damage…
- Rebuild your village. Strengthen yourself through building and production to prepare for the next adventure.
- Explore different terrain each time you play through procedurally generated dungeons.
- Multiplayer support. Up to four players can delve into the dungeon together!
Watch a new trailer below.