Neva Prologue shows players the touching backstory of how Alba met the wolf Neva before the events of the Neva main story. Nomada Studio, the developers behind Gris, know exactly how to create an intricate, artistic, and challenging puzzle platformer, even if it’s a short DLC. First revealed at PlayStation’s February 2026 State of Play, and released over a year after Neva, is Neva Prologue worth the extra purchase? 

Playing Neva and its prologue back-to-back certainly made it a stronger experience. However, I would recommend brushing up on the controls if you’re coming back after its initial release, as Neva Prologue ups the ante and offers a tougher experience. We’ll uncover in this review whether Neva Prologue is worth your time after my experience playing it right after finishing the main story.

A step up in gameplay

Neva Prologue starkly contrasts Neva in its difficulty. Not to say that Neva is too easy or that Neva Prologue is too arduous, but it really tested my skills and added new mechanics that made for a fun and stimulating platformer. Clocking in at only about an hour long, Neva Prologue still makes it worth your time with puzzles that force you to have precise timing with jumps.

I found Neva to be quite easy in comparison, so the prologue definitely felt like a prequel that you have to start after the main story. My favorite parts were the puzzles where platforms would only appear for a short amount of time, and you had to time when you would jump on or through them. I had to stop and think many times and view the scene strategically to understand what I had to do.

There were fewer optional puzzles due to how short the DLC is compared to the base game. Still, I was stuck on some of them for a while and felt quite satisfied after figuring out the solutions. I was seeking that boost in challenge, and Neva Prologue gave it to me in spades.

A shorter story experience

The one thing that may hold Neva Prologue back for some players is its focus on gameplay over narrative. I cried at the end of Neva and was touched by its story and character relationships, but Neva Prologue didn’t give me that same feeling. The majority of the time, you’re by yourself, and only for small sections, you’re figuring out platforming puzzles with puppy Neva.

It was sweet to see the beginning of Alba and Neva’s relationship, but this felt a lot more like Alba’s story. I faced deeper challenges and tougher enemies, but I wasn’t as emotionally gripped as I was in the sections in the main story when I was separated from Neva.

A gorgeous art style

Still, the gameplay carried the experience of Neva Prologue, alongside the fantastic artistic design that Nomada Studio is known for. The world of Neva is like a Studio Ghibli-inspired storybook illustration, and it’s still ever-present in this DLC. Although you don’t get as many differing environments within this short prequel, the ones that you experience are striking.

A lot of Neva Prologue is devoid of color, giving you the feeling that the darkness that has spread throughout the land has been plaguing it for some time. The times that you do get color come in near the latter half when a thunderstorm is brewing in the background. The lightning strikes are timed with the glowing platforms that only appear with the lightning, giving a spot of color when needed in this drab world.