Four rats. One witch. Ireland, 1777. Curse of the Sea Rats is the hand-animated Metroidvania from Barcelona-based Petoons Studio — a pirate adventure set on the Irish coast where four prisoners of the British Empire, transformed into rats by the pirate witch Flora Burn, must fight their way across a vast 2D world to capture the witch, rescue a kidnapped child, and break the ancient curse before they're stuck as rodents permanently.
The hand-drawn animation is the game's most celebrated quality. Every character, environment, and boss battle is rendered in frame-by-frame 2D animation inspired by the golden age of animated cinema — the visual style that reviewers across IGN, Gematsu, and PlayStation Universe singled out as the game's strongest asset. The Irish coastal world is built from beautifully illustrated environments across cliffs, caves, ships, and underground passages, animated with the care that only a dedicated art team working in the classic style can produce. For players drawn to games where the visual presentation is a feature in its own right — Hollow Knight, Cuphead, Salt and Sanctuary — Curse of the Sea Rats delivers a striking, hand-crafted aesthetic that stands apart from the procedurally generated or pixel-art visual approaches common to indie Metroidvanias.
Four playable characters — David Douglas (strength), Buffalo Calf (agility), Bussa (power), and Akane Yamakawa (technique) — each with their own skill trees, move sets, stat distributions, and playstyle. Players choose their character at the start and can switch at checkpoints throughout the game. The character variation provides meaningful replay value, as the different movement options and ability unlocks change how the world is navigated. Up to 4 players can play together in local or online co-op — the full cast in one run, each player controlling one character across the same world.
The Metroidvania structure provides a large, interconnected map of the Irish coast with locked areas opened by abilities gained through progression, fast travel between discovered checkpoints, and boss battles guarding the route to Flora Burn and her diabolical crew. The challenge level is notable — combat encounters require attention to timing and character abilities, particularly in the early game.
Developed by Petoons Studio, Barcelona. Published by PQube. Released April 6, 2023.
