Evergate

Evergate PC is a 2D puzzle-platformer from Stone Lantern Games, published by PQube, built around precision movement, spatial reasoning, and a distinctive targeting system. The current Steam listing still uses the original name Evergate, with no verified rebrand or replacement edition. You guide Ki, a lost soul moving through memories in the Afterlife, using the Soulflame to activate crystals, overcome hazards, and reach the exit of each stage.

How Evergate plays

Evergate is viewed from a side-scrolling 2D perspective, but it is not primarily a combat platformer or a traditional exploration-based metroidvania. Its structure is closer to a sequence of self-contained puzzle rooms, each built around a specific route, a collection of interactive objects, and an end gate that must be reached.

Ki can jump and move normally, yet the central movement tool is the Soulflame mechanic. When activated, it lets you slow time, aim a beam, and target a white surface known as the Source. If a crystal is aligned between Ki and the Source, the Soulflame breaks it open and releases its stored effect.

The key challenge is deciding which crystal to hit, from which angle, and in what order. A single activation may launch Ki across a gap, alter her trajectory, create a temporary platform, burn through an obstacle, or open a new route. Later puzzles expect you to combine several effects while moving through the air rather than solving everything from a safe position.

This creates a hybrid loop of route planning and precision platforming. Knowing the solution is not always enough. You still need to line up the shot, control Ki's momentum, and land in the right place before the opportunity disappears. The game gives you room to experiment, and several stages support more than one viable route to the gate.

Crystals, timing, and creative solutions

Every crystal type changes the way a memory is navigated. Some provide direct propulsion, while others manipulate the surrounding space or remove barriers. The important distinction is that Evergate does not hand you a large inventory of unrelated tools. Instead, it repeatedly recontextualizes the same crystal powers through increasingly intricate level layouts.

Multiple crystals can be struck together, allowing their energies to combine. This is where the game moves beyond simple switch puzzles. You may need to create a chain of effects, use one crystal to reach the angle required for another, or preserve a particular launch direction so that Ki can continue moving without touching the ground.

Time manipulation is equally important. Slowing the action gives you space to aim during a jump, inspect the trajectory of a beam, and make a controlled decision instead of relying only on reflexes. It does not remove the execution challenge, but it makes the game’s demanding sequences readable and deliberate.

The result is a platformer where movement itself is the puzzle. Players who enjoy tightly authored rooms and repeated attempts will find more depth here than the soft visual presentation initially suggests. If you prefer a more direct test of dash timing, wall movement, and room-by-room mastery, precision-focused 2D platformers such as Celeste are a useful comparison, although Evergate places much more emphasis on aiming and environmental interaction.

Memories, Essences, and progression

The campaign follows Ki through a series of memories connected to a kindred spirit. The narrative uses the Afterlife as its framing device, while each memory introduces new scenery, hazards, and puzzle ideas. The story is delivered through the progression between stages and the revelations found within those memories rather than through an open world.

Evergate includes 85 challenging stages, giving the campaign a substantial collection of discrete puzzles instead of one continuous map. The linear structure keeps the focus on learning each mechanic, applying it under pressure, and recognizing how familiar crystal effects behave in new circumstances.

Exploration within individual memories still matters. Reaching every available area allows Ki to collect Essences, which can be spent on ancient artifacts. These artifacts improve attributes such as movement speed, jump height, and the strength of Ki's abilities, giving completion-focused players a reason to revisit spaces and search beyond the most obvious route.

The upgrade system is deliberately lightweight. Evergate is not an action RPG with equipment tiers, combat builds, or branching skill trees. Its progression comes from better understanding the puzzle language, unlocking artifact improvements, and gradually becoming more consistent with mid-air aiming and momentum control.

Content model and difficulty

The PC package is a paid single-player game rather than a live-service product or a free-to-play platform. The current Steam catalog lists the main game alongside a separate soundtrack add-on and a bundle that combines both. There is no verified catalog of character packs, seasonal content, or large gameplay expansions that changes the core experience.

That makes the content model straightforward: the main purchase provides the complete puzzle-platforming campaign, while the soundtrack is optional supplementary content. Players should approach Evergate as a focused authored game, not as an endlessly expanding platform for new stages.

Difficulty comes from precision and problem solving rather than enemy combat. A missed angle, poorly timed launch, or incorrect crystal sequence can force a restart, especially in later stages where several actions must be chained together. The design rewards patience, but it is not a passive or purely relaxing puzzle game.

Players looking for an atmospheric experience with less mechanical pressure may prefer art-led 2D platform adventures such as GRIS. GRIS and Evergate share a strong visual and emotional presentation, but Evergate is substantially more focused on repeat attempts, trajectory control, and solving exact movement problems.

Who should play Evergate?

Evergate is a good fit for PC players who want a compact, level-based challenge with a clear mechanical identity. It suits people who enjoy finding the intended solution, then refining it for a cleaner run or better stage completion. The game’s most satisfying moments come from understanding a puzzle and executing the full sequence without hesitation.

It is less suitable if you want a large interconnected map, frequent combat, character builds, or extensive dialogue. Evergate may look similar to a modern metroidvania at first glance, but its real structure is linear puzzle progression through individual memories.

The game also expects tolerance for failure. Some solutions are easy to understand but difficult to perform, particularly when several crystals must be activated while Ki is airborne. Players who dislike repeating a room after a small timing error may find the precision demanding, while platforming specialists will appreciate the consistency of the underlying rules.

Its tone is gentler than its hardest stages. Hand-drawn environments, a haunting Afterlife setting, and an orchestral score provide emotional context without replacing the need to think carefully about each move.

PC features and storefront details

Evergate is listed for Windows PC on Steam and supports single-player gameplay, Steam Achievements, and Family Sharing. Steam metadata also identifies full controller support, which is useful because aiming the Soulflame and managing Ki's movement benefit from analog control.

The available interface language set includes English, French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese. The current storefront listing marks these as interface languages rather than full voice-over options, so players should not expect a broad multilingual audio cast.

No online multiplayer, co-op campaign, competitive mode, or split-screen feature is listed for the game. Evergate is designed around one player solving and executing each stage, with the challenge coming from mastery of its movement systems rather than multiplayer interaction.

PC players comparing storefront availability should also note that the game remains clearly represented on Steam, while the current GOG listing is a Dreamlist entry rather than a normal GOG release. The verified PC storefront identity is therefore the standard Evergate package on Steam, with the optional soundtrack presented separately.

Similar games on PC

Evergate occupies a specific space between puzzle games and precision platformers. It shares the authored-room discipline of Celeste, but replaces dash chains with Soulflame targeting. It also shares some of the visual and emotional language of GRIS, while demanding much more active interaction with level machinery.

For players who want a larger exploration-driven platformer with combat, upgrades, and a connected world, hand-drawn metroidvanias like Ori and the Will of the Wisps are the closer structural alternative. The comparison is useful, but the difference is important: Evergate’s memories are curated puzzle stages, not an open-ended world built around backtracking.

Choose Evergate when the appeal is crystal-based movement puzzles, careful aiming, and repeated attempts at difficult routes. Choose a conventional metroidvania when exploration, combat, map discovery, and ability-gated secrets matter more than solving one carefully framed room at a time.

Evergate FAQ

Is Evergate a metroidvania?

No. Evergate is best described as a 2D puzzle-platformer with a linear sequence of memories and stages. It includes ability progression through artifacts, but it does not use the interconnected map and backtracking structure associated with a traditional metroidvania.

How many stages are in Evergate?

The current PC storefront description lists 85 stages. The campaign is organized around memories that introduce and recombine crystal mechanics, with optional Essence collection adding extra completion goals.

Does Evergate have multiplayer or co-op?

No. The PC version is listed as single-player. There is no verified co-op, online multiplayer, competitive mode, or split-screen campaign.

Does Evergate support a controller on PC?

Yes. Steam metadata identifies full controller support, and the game’s aim-and-launch movement system is well suited to analog input. Keyboard and mouse details are not the main selling point of the PC version, so controller users should feel fully supported.

What is the Soulflame in Evergate?

The Soulflame is Ki’s primary interaction tool. It slows time, lets you aim at the Source, and activates crystals positioned along the beam. Crystal effects can launch Ki, alter movement, create routes, or clear obstacles.

What languages does Evergate support?

The PC storefront lists nine interface languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese. The listing does not indicate full audio localization for these languages.