
Speed · close combat
Ravena
Silver Sabre
A slender blade and quick, chained strikes. Ravena must close in, read the opening and leave before the answer comes.
For players who enjoy fighting close and keeping the rhythm.
A Moon Cartridge metroidvania / Beta demo available

Enter Castle Vahl as Ravena, Friar Viktor or Ossian. Read the signs of the dead, uncover forgotten paths and discover why morning ceased to exist.
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01 / The night of Vahl
By order of Duke Orvald Vahl, this night shall never end. For seven years, the castle has lived beneath the moon, among crimson glass, cold stone and candlelight. Whoever crosses its gates must bring their own light.
Diaries, letters and gravestones hold fragments of what happened. Collected notes stay in the hunter’s book: the story unfolds as you explore.
“Seven years without the sun. Whoever enters, bring your own light.”Inscription at the gates of Vahl
02 / Choose your hunter
The same castle calls for different decisions depending on the weapon you carry.

Speed · close combat
Silver Sabre
A slender blade and quick, chained strikes. Ravena must close in, read the opening and leave before the answer comes.
For players who enjoy fighting close and keeping the rhythm.

Resilience · wide arc
Iron rosary
An iron cross hangs at the end of his rosary. Slower strikes cover a wide arc and push back the dead.
For players who prefer controlling distance with weighty blows.

Reach · aerial combat
Scythe
His scythe traces long arcs. A top hat, coat and lantern accompany a hunter who can also reach threats in the air.
For players who enjoy reach and facing flying creatures.
03 / Between encounters
Libraries, crypts, gardens and towers connect through passages, stairs and shortcuts. Abilities open previously unreachable paths; the map helps you recognise the way back.
Dedicated chambers to rest, restore health and save your progress. Some also let you travel between discovered destinations, chosen on the map.

A map with zoom, panning and discovery markers accompanies your journey. Collected notes can be read again at any time.

04 / The bestiary of Vahl
Every threat signals its attack. Watch the stance, wait for the blow and find your opportunity.
In-game movements · watch the warning and the opening
Sleeps hanging in flocks of five. When the hunter gets close they wake together and dive.
In-game movements · watch the warning and the opening
Sleeps under the soil and rises when the hunter gets close. Walks slowly and smashes with its arm.
In-game movements · watch the warning and the opening
A skeleton on patrol. Throws its own femur and, when felled, the bones put themselves together again.
In-game movements · watch the warning and the opening
Stays still as a statue. If the hunter lingers in the room, its eye lights up and it dives.
In-game movements · watch the warning and the opening
Swings a censer. Spins when someone gets close and hurls the thurible, which bursts into a blinding cloud.
In-game movements · watch the warning and the opening
Keeps watch on patrol with its shield raised. Strikes with a mace and is then left open.
05 / The guardians
The demo includes three encounters. Open their entries if you want to see their names and appearances before meeting them.

Veil, roses and thorns. An encounter about reading movement and choosing when to advance.

A mass of bones rises. Its heavy blows change the rhythm of exploration.

The lord of the castle awaits at the Throne. What the night has made of him is yours to discover.
06 / Those who still live here

The merchant
A lantern and a bag of provisions. Tereza offers conversation and supplies for the next crossing.

The librarian
Among books and wax, he keeps clues for those who listen. Not every wall tells the truth.

The gravedigger
He still tends to the dead, even when they no longer rest. He knows what walks the crypts.
07 / Development journal
Dawnless is in development. News and stories about building the game have their meeting place on itch.io.
Follow on itch.io ↗28 connected rooms, three hunters, three bosses, NPCs, notes, a map, secrets, Vigil chambers and keyboard or touch controls.
The goal is to expand to around 120 rooms, with new regions, bosses and abilities. This content is planned and is not part of today’s demo.
How did combat feel? Did the map help? Were the mobile controls comfortable? Share your experience in the itch.io comments.
Play and share feedback ↗