What If You Grew Your Own Weapons?
Most Metroidvania games give you a weapon and ask you to figure out how to use it. Nectarmancer wants you to grow yours.
That idea is at the heart of the game. Plants aren't simply resources you collect along the way; you can cultivate them, experiment with genetic traits, and turn them into living weapons, tools, and equipment. It's the thinking behind what Nectarmancer calls “Gardenvania,” a plant-driven take on the action platformer.
When Your Gear Starts With a Plant
Finding a rare plant in Nectarmancer isn't necessarily the end of the process. It can be the beginning.
Players can discover plant species, preserve their genetic traits, and combine them to create hybrids. The game describes thousands of possible gene combinations, with traits bringing benefits, risks, and new possibilities.
So instead of simply looking for the next stronger weapon, you're experimenting with what your plants can become. How far that system can actually be pushed is something we're still waiting to see.
So, What Is a “Gardenvania”?
Nectarmancer describes itself as a “Gardenvania-style action platformer,” combining interconnected-world exploration with plant cultivation, genetic experimentation, and fast-paced combat.
The important part is how closely those systems are connected. Plants can become weapons and tools, while plant-based abilities can help in combat and reveal hidden routes during exploration. Cultivation isn't just something happening on the side; it feeds into how you move through the game.
Curious to see Gardenvania in action? Check out Nectarmancer on Steam →
When Getting Stronger Comes With a Risk
Genetic traits aren't presented as simple upgrades. Each can bring benefits, risks, and new possibilities, meaning experimentation isn't necessarily about finding one universally “best” combination.
We don't yet know exactly how every trade-off will work in the finished game, but that uncertainty is part of the appeal. With thousands of possible combinations, the interesting question may be less about finding the strongest plant and more about finding one that fits the way you want to play.
Plants Meet Fast Combat
Nectarmancer pairs its cultivation system with fast, acrobatic combat built around dashes, jumps, attacks, abilities, movement, timing, and plant synergies.
Because plant-based abilities can also contribute to exploration, what you grow has the potential to influence both how you fight and where you can go. Exactly how much freedom players will have to build around those systems is one of the things we'll have to discover.
A Skill Tree That's Alive
The Substrate adds another layer to progression. Described as a living bio-computer, it can unlock Nectar abilities, equip upgrades, and enhance the skill tree.
It fits the game's larger idea of keeping progression connected to its biological world rather than treating plants, abilities, and exploration as completely separate systems.
The Wilds Comes With a Catch
Aisa is a prisoner forced to join a gathering team and sent beyond the wall surrounding THE THRONE's territory to collect Nectar, a mysterious substance that powers the world. Beyond the wall, the Wilds are filled with spirits, collapsing ecosystems, and nature transformed into weapons through forbidden experiments.
Exploration also carries a cost: if you die, you may lose the seeds, fruits, and plants collected during that run. Considering those plants can become part of your equipment, going deeper into the Wilds could mean putting more of your hard-earned arsenal at risk.
The Part We're Waiting to See
Nectarmancer is currently in development. Wishlist the game on Steam →