Image: Gloomsoft

I am shocked that Moadra flew under my radar until just before launch. I'm even more shocked that I'd not played the demo until now, revealing that it is a shockingly good bio-horror metroidvania with absolutely gorgeous (if rather Giger-esque) 3D art that looks good enough to pass for pre-rendered stills in screenshots. It looks like the release, coming right in the middle of the Next Fest, has muted its arrival somewhat, so let's shine a spotlight on it, eh?

The game was first revealed back in 2021, but had been in development for some time before that. It's the work of Gloomsoft, a tiny Finnish studio. Apparently the company had plans to release the game in 2023, but it has remained in the oven until now, and from the little I've played of the demo (and I certainly want to try the full game now), this one FEELS polished beyond almost any other game in the genre. From the tiny writhing tendrils on the environment to seamlessly blending between gameplay and cutscenes, this one does not feel like a small indie project.

Given that Metroid Dread came out three days after Moadra's debut trailer, I'm going to chalk this one up to parallel evolution. The formula is familiar stuff, though. You're a power-suited space adventurer (the titular Moadra) exploring a vast interconnected underground facility that has been overrun with a horrible biomechanical plague. Things go wrong, you lose an arm, and wake up after being forcibly upgraded with ancient alien bio-tech.

And there's the fun twist. On top of the usual Metroid stuff (including a scan visor mode, which I will never tire of) and some very agile, free-aiming Metroid Dread-ish combat, you have a semi-freeform upgrade system, letting you absorb bio-matter from enemies to upgrade and customize your abilities, on top of the usual suite of navigation-extending powers you'll be collecting. As with Metroid Prime, the combat is free-aiming, but there's a lock-on button for those who want to keep on target while moving.

Still, there's more talking here than your average Metroid. While the planet is inhospitable, there are other people around - survivors of previous expeditions - and they're generally a chatty, friendly lot when they're not dramatically dying seconds after delivering some final plot revelation to you. They're also content to mostly just sit around where they are, safe, while you handle all the dangerous adventure work. Which, given that you're some kind of chimeric turbo-mutant, is probably a smart call on their part.

Moadra is out now for £22.50/$25, with a 10% launch discount until November 5th. And as mentioned, there's a juicy, squelchy demo to get your teeth into first. The game is planned to eventually come to consoles as well, but right now, this one's PC exclusive.