Envar Games Studio introduced us to Witchspire, a charming open-world adventure that can be enjoyed either solo or in co-op with up to six players. Alongside exploring a vibrant world filled with magic, the game features extensive crafting mechanics that allow you to shape your own adventure. Witchspire is currently available in early access on Steam for 22,99€.
The story begins with your arrival in an unknown world, where you have been invited as a novice student. What initially seems like an ordinary adventure quickly turns into a journey filled with uncertainty, as your first task is to discover where you really are, what happened to your friends who arrived in this world before you, and what fate has befallen them. However, as you continue to explore, it soon becomes clear that a much greater mystery lies beneath the surface. The world you are exploring is slowly succumbing to a spreading darkness that threatens to consume everything around you. Your search for your friends soon evolves into a far more important mission, which is uncovering the secrets of this mysterious world and finding a way to stop the force that threatens to consume it forever.
You can probably tell that the story isn’t the game’s main focus, which doesn’t mean it isn’t interesting, however much of it is uncovered through various books cleverly scattered throughout the world, each containing pieces of the lore that gradually immerse you deeper into the game’s universe.
Before setting off on your adventure, your first task is to create your own world by giving it a name. In my case, we traveled to Carcosa. After that, you’ll have the opportunity to create your character. The character creator is genuinely interesting and offers enough customization options to make your character feel unique. Once that’s done, it’s time to choose your class. There are six classes available, and your choice determines the weapon you’ll start with. For example, if you choose The Starsmiths, accompanied by the intriguing description – ,,Even Stars can bend”, your starting weapon will be the Starsmith Spellblade. After deciding how your character looks and what weapon they’ll wield, you’ll make another very important choice, which is – your Familiar, a small companion that will assist you throughout the many battles ahead. You can choose from four companions at the start, each possessing its own element and combat style, and on top of that, they are absolutely adorable.
Although you only have four options initially, you’ll encounter numerous creatures throughout the world, some of which can become your new Familiar. Since you have three Familiar slots, you can switch between them whenever you like. Sometimes you’ll come across groups of same enemies, and depending on your luck, after defeating them, the spirit of one of them may remain for a short time, allowing you to collect it. This won’t happen every time, so grinding for specific Familiars is sometimes necessary. Familiars also feature a rarity system consisting of: common, rare, epic, and legendary. Since each Familiar has its own element, there will be moments when you’ll need to swap them out in order to activate certain objects or mechanisms you’ll encounter throughout the world. Besides being able to name them, every Familiar also has its own skill tree.
As for the player, the game offers a choice between a magic wand and a sword, both of which come in several elemental variations. In addition, you’ll be able to find new equipment for your character, such as hats and outfits, as well as medallions and rings that boost specific attributes. After completing a few quests, you’ll also unlock a broom that allows you to fly, however, if you want to reach higher areas of the map, you’ll first need to unlock your flying ability by collecting several magical orbs scattered throughout the world. The combat is enjoyable, allowing you to combine attacks with your sword, magic wand, and Familiar and if you ever find yourself outmatched, you can always simply fly away. One feature that would make combat even more engaging would be the ability to fight while flying, or at the very least, the addition of more bosses, although the ones I encountered were already quite interesting.
Every quest in the game recommends a specific level before attempting it, and even a difference of just four levels can make a quest surprisingly difficult. During one of my co-op sessions with a friend, while he focused on building and I concentrated on looting, I accidentally stumbled upon one of the many portals scattered across the world. Inside, I was greeted by a boss that was several levels above me. On my own, it would have probably taken me an hour to defeat it, but by joining forces we somehow managed to win, only for two more bosses, also several levels above us, to appear immediately afterward. At that point, we simply gave up and decided to continue leveling instead.
However, if you’re anything like my friend and enjoy building in games, Witchspire offers countless opportunities to let your imagination run wild and create something truly beautiful. As soon as you enter build mode, your character begins to levitate, making it incredibly easy to place objects exactly where you want them. Whether you’re placing furniture, walls, or roofs, building feels intuitive and satisfying. Several different architectural styles and design options provide even more creative freedom, making it easy to build a home that looks exactly the way you envisioned it.
Because of this, there’s a good chance you’ll spend countless hours decorating every corner of your cozy little house. At any point, you can also build a Hearth, which essentially serves as your base while also functioning as a fast travel point. The Hearth can be upgraded with various additions, which directly benefit your character’s skill tree, as the higher your Hearth’s level becomes, the more abilities you’ll be able to unlock. In addition, you can build a cooker that allows you to prepare meals and unlock new recipes, a workbench, a furnace, and many other useful structures, all of which make Witchspire a genuinely relaxing experience whenever you want to take a break from combat and simply enjoy building.
The world itself is massive, although it currently feels somewhat empty, which is understandable considering the game is still in early access and the developers have already announced that they plan to gradually bring each region of the map to life over time. Even so, every area looks gorgeous, especially at night, when the world becomes absolutely magical.
Many people told me that the game reminds them of Palia and Palworld, which you’ll have to see for yourself since I haven’t played either of those games. Still, I truly enjoyed this experience and the two hours I initially set aside for the game easily turned into seven, as I completely lost track of time while exploring and getting familiar with the game itself. The entire world is full of colour and feels both fairytale-like and mystical at the same time. Whether you’re exploring forests bathed in sunset light, darker areas illuminated by glowing plants, or ruins floating among the clouds, every part of the map has its own identity and gives you the feeling of being inside a storybook world.
The Day & Night Cycle, besides its gameplay benefits, also completely changes the atmosphere, making exploration engaging even when you’re just wandering without a specific goal. The design of the Familiars is phenomenal because, in addition to there being many of them, each one manages to feel unique. Alongside the Familiars, your weapons also look great, whether it’s a magical wand or a sword that changes colors depending on its element, while also sometimes appearing different visually. It would be great if, as the game continues to develop, we got different character equipment in the form of clothing and hats, since although there are some, they mostly look quite similar, with the only difference being their rarity.
Even though Witchspire is clearly designed as an experience that shines the most when played with friends, it still easily provides hours of fun for those who prefer exploring solo. Of course, as a title still in early access, there is room for further improvements and refinement of certain systems, but the foundations that Envar Games has built give strong confidence that the game will only get better over time.
If you are a fan of relaxed open-world adventures, crafting, exploration, and magical atmospheres, Witchspire is definitely a game worth trying right now. It’s one of those titles where you can easily lose track of time, whether you’re exploring the world, building your home, or simply enjoying the magical landscapes after a long day.
We would like to thank Envar Games Studio for providing us with a copy of the game for review purposes.
