As a big fan of Hades and roguelike games in general, Ravenswatch is one I’ve had my eye on for a while. While the roots of Passtech Games’ excellent Curse of the Dead Gods can still be seen, Ravenswatch steps more dramatically away from the Hades structure to offer a freeform open-world ARPG – but one that nevertheless retains all those delicious roguelike hooks. Ahead of its upcoming 1.0 launch in late September, I got hands-on with the game and tried the newest character Carmilla at Gamescom 2024, and I’m already eager to spend more time with her.
While there’s certainly inspirations from Hades to be seen in Ravenswatch, its design much more closely resembles that of games like Diablo. Indeed, each run feels a little like playing a condensed APRG campaign, where you have limited time to level up and prepare yourself before you’re thrown into battle against the region’s big bad. Every one of its characters is based on classic fairy tale tropes, from the rat-commanding Pied Piper to Scarlet, a variation of Red Riding Hood that transforms between human and werewolf form over the course of the game’s shifting day/night cycle.
For the game’s 1.0 launch, Passtech is introducing the game’s ninth character Carmilla, a dhampir (half-human, half-vampire) inspired by the 1872 gothic novella of the same name. Her playstyle revolves around gathering blood from her basic attacks, which can then be spent on her most powerful skills. She can periodically dash towards enemies to deal a devastating bite that also earns her blood – in my playthrough, I pick up an early upgrade that makes me just a little tougher each time I successfully deal a killing blow.
The primary way to spend this earned blood is by summoning a giant orb that Carmilla can direct around the battlefield, dealing massive damage to any enemies in the vicinity. It’s fantastically satisfying, but requires Carmilla to stand still while channeling, and with its high blood cost and a long cooldown you’ll want to choose your moment carefully. Crucially, you can even use the orb while you’re out of blood, but doing so will rapidly drain Carmilla’s health, so it should be considered a last resort.
Rounding out Carmilla’s kit is her defensive trick, which of course transforms her briefly into a swarm of bats, and her ultimate ability. Like all characters in Ravenswatch, she’ll have access to two ultimates, but I only see the first, which allows Carmilla to sprout wings and fly around at incredible speed. This form constantly drains blood while active, ending if your meter empties completely. Your abilities, however, have no blood cost while you’re transformed – with careful use of your basic slashes and bites, you can keep it active for quite some time.
Carmilla fits very nicely into the Ravenswatch roster both thematically and mechanically. Like most of its cast, her abilities feel incredibly potent if used correctly but demand careful consideration in how and when you actually deploy them. Time your blood orb wrong, and you might find yourself out of resources and in a whole world of trouble. With a little practice in managing her blood gauge and gathering enemies together, I can already feel just how strong she might become in the right hands.
Ravenswatch launches out of early access on Steam Thursday September 26. It’s currently priced at $24.99 / £20.99, although Passtech Games says it expects the price to rise with the full release. As well as Carmilla, Ravenswatch 1.0 also marks the introduction of the game’s final challenge: notorious witch of the woods Baba Yaga. If that sounds good to you, head here to check it out.
We’ve rounded up even more of the best roguelikes on PC right now if you can’t get enough run based action. For even more distinct and colorful worlds to explore, here are the best fantasy games.
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