Intro

Mandragora: Whispers of the Witch Tree launched a Kickstarter campaign, got fully funded with just $276,742 and is looking at full release on April 17, 2025. All of this happened in the span of two and a half years. Star Citizen backers might burst a vessel.

In this period, Mandragora evolved from being a humble two-developer project to a genre bending sidescrolling action RPG metroidvania with an estimated 40 to 50 hours of quality time for the initial playthrough. Given the high replayability factor, we are looking at hundreds of hours of fun.

After all, it took me around 4 hours to go through the playtest build initially but by the time I started on this preview article, I had over 17 hours in it. With that in mind, Mandragora is highly likely to be yet another great title coming in April this year.

Story

Kicking things off on a high note, which is one of many, we have Brian Mitsoda as the writing lead for Mandragora: Whispers of the Witch Tree. He is best known for his work on Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines, a game that had an immense emphasis on player choice, immersion and different endings.

It is unclear just how much player choice will be present during the game but the devs have confirmed that multiple endings will be available, depending on what we do with our Inquisitor.

In the small preview slice I got my hands on, the writing was gripping from the very beginning and the delivery was impeccable. Primal Game Studio employed 21 voice actors to play around 170 characters in total. Some of the highlights include Anthony Howell, who delivered the iconic “Thou art of passing skill” line in Elden Ring and Tracy Wiles who voiced Jaheira in Baldur’s Gate 3.

Keep in mind that only the English version of the game is fully voice acted. Localizations only have text based communication.

Gameplay

Character creation is not really extensive. You get to customize the body type, hair, skin color and choose between two voices. On the other hand, the choice in wearable items is vast so customization is deeper than it seems initially.

However, it is the character build that will be the more important aspect of customization. There are 6 classes in total, each with a chunky talent tree. Most of these are stat increases but they do lead towards more important bonuses that will alter the way you play the game.

Multiclassing will make this part even deeper so if you were initially a Vanguard that just likes to smash things with a big weapon, you might want to dip into Flame Weaver’s talents and set that greatsword on fire for extra spicy hits.

Difficulty is highly customizable with sliders and depending on one’s class, it may be altered further. Some classes are safer due to range or sustain abilities while others are more adept at bringing down chunky enemies. In other words, some are better during exploration while others will melt bosses as if they were made of butter.

Speaking of bosses, the devs confirmed we will have a wide variety when it comes to playstyles. Some will be quicker and will require the players reflexes to be top notch while others will require patience and observation since they are slow but can potentially OHKO the Inquisitor.

Combat speed will also vary based on the class(es) of the player. The game can have the slower pace of a soulslike or somewhat faster combat of a classic metroidvania.

Staying true to that part of the genre, Mandragora features numerous navigational abilities, such as breaking the floor, gliding and grappling hook to make those areas worth visiting once again. Don’t worry, it’s not a chore due to a well-implemented fast travel system.

Game size

Mandragora: Whispers of the Witch Tree is estimated to last 40-50 hours in the first playthrough, unless you beeline it. The game features 10 main quests, 15 bounty quests and 35 side quests. Due to the nature of a metroidvania and respawning between fast travels, one will have to repeatedly chew through enemies or opt to run past them. That choice alone will cause oscillation in playthrough times.

That said, Mandragora has a huge replayability potential. With each class I tried out, the gameplay felt fresh so that should be incentive enough for multiple playthroughs. There are also the aforementioned different endings so seeing all of those will be a cherry on top.

Besides the quest numbers, you are also looking at 15 bosses, 19 mini bosses and 72 enemy types in total. They are spread across 72 locations which are found across 11 maps.

Performance and graphics

While the initial budget of the game is rather humble, as seen on Kickstarter, the game itself does not show it. Absolutely gorgeous graphics had me enjoying every minute spent in the world of Mandragora, thanks to a brilliant art style choice and fantastic work of the artists. This culminated in a game that didn’t require an exorbitant budget to mesmerize the players.

This sidescroller features 2D backgrounds but the characters are 3D which gave the devs additional breathing room when it comes to the budget. With that in mind, the art direction is probably best described as a dark version of Trine.

As far as performance goes, the playtest was mostly smooth but there were a few stutters which left a strange impression.

Pricing and potential DRM

Mandragora playtest was a stellar experience overall but there are two bullets the devs used to shoot themselves in the foot with. First, the aforementioned stutters were most likely caused by the preview build’s DRM, the reviled Denuvo. CEO and Co-Founder of Primal Game Studio recently noted the team is currently not sure whether Denuvo will make it into the full game but it is here for the time being.

Another proverbial bullet is a bit more vague. Namely, metroidvanias have this unwritten rule where they can’t cost more than $30 but Mandragora will launch with a $40 / €40 price tag. Personally, I suspect it will be worth the price due to the high quality and size of the game but it remains to be seen how this choice will affect the sales.

We will know more when the game launches on April 17, 2025.