Noreya: The Gold Project Review – All That Glitters

Noreya: The Gold Project by Dreamirl

Whew, there sure seems to be no shortage of Metroidvania games coming out of the indie scene lately.

For a certified genre junkie like myself, this is great, but at the same time, it makes it all the more important for each title to do something to stand out.

Thankfully, Noreya: The Gold Project does manage to do something new and interesting with the formula. But does that mean it’s any good?

Die for Gold

In a land subjugated by warring gods, the warrior Kali seeks to uncover the truth of her people’s subjugation. Turned into a shade by the god of Greed, she must battle to the center of the City of Gold and determine if her allegiance is to her captor or his rival, the god of Light.

While outwardly simple, Noreya’s story does present a world whose lore and mysteries are genuinely interesting to uncover. This is helped in no small part by the way the game’s stunning pixel art graphics and smooth-as-butter controls constantly push you to discover more.

Like any Metroidvania, you’ll spend the majority of Noreya exploring the world, fighting enemies, and unlocking new traversal abilities that will allow you to return to previous areas and uncover new paths.

What it does differently, however, lies in the aforementioned gods. The game’s save points are statues to the respective gods of Greed and Light, and you can rotate them out to change which god holds dominance over the world.

Depending on which one is currently in control, the map actually changes. Certain paths become closed off while others open up. This makes for an additional layer of exploration and discovery that’s genuinely refreshing. It also ties into the game’s multiple endings.

Golden Mouth of Ruin

As previously alluded to, Noreya’s production is equally impressive. The backgrounds and environments are lush and have an impressive amount of depth to them.

Similarly, the game’s score by composers Sarys and MisterMV stands out as something particularly gorgeous. It even changes depending on which god is currently dominating the world, which is a nice touch.

In terms of flaws, however, the game does have a few. Some mechanics go under-explained during the game proper, likely to preserve the sense of mystery. It’s not egregious, but I definitely found myself a bit confused at times as to how certain things worked.

More importantly, the game’s bosses are something of a weakness. They’re not particularly bad, but neither are they particularly memorable. It’s a shame because the game itself feels so good to play.

The Verdict

Thankfully, what’s good about Noreya far outweighs the bad, and the game itself is just long enough to not overstay its welcome. It doesn’t reach the upper echelons of the genre, but if you’re looking for a new Metroidvania to disappear into, this is honestly as good as gold.

Noreya: The Gold Project is available via Steam.

Watch the trailer for Noreya: The Gold Project below:

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