1666: Amsterdam is a game that has taken an unusually long and winding road to reach players, but Panache Digital Games’ historical action-adventure is finally becoming a reality. Set in a supernatural version of seventeenth-century Amsterdam, the game combines investigation, witchcraft, stealth and combat with an unlikely partnership between a witch and a cat carrying the consciousness of a man from the future. That combination already makes 1666: Amsterdam rather difficult to compare directly with other games, and the Early Access version suggests that its ambitions are still considerably greater than what is currently playable.
What we know
1666: Amsterdam takes place primarily in Amsterdam during the year 1666, with the city recreated as a series of detailed districts rather than one enormous open world. Players take on the role of Noa Brooklyn, a Collector belonging to the Zaindaris witch coven. Her task is to track down the mysterious Originals, supernatural beings who have been hiding among ordinary citizens after receiving magical powers. During the day, Noa investigates the city, gathers information and identifies potential targets; when the time is right, she can confront those Originals in their more sinister forms.
Magic is an important part of Noa’s arsenal, with spells allowing her to manipulate the environment as well as deal with enemies. The game also gives her a rather unusual companion in Aaron, whose consciousness has ended up inside the body of a cat after an encounter with witchcraft. Players can switch between Noa and Aaron, with the two characters offering very different ways of navigating the world and solving problems. Aaron’s small size and ability to interact with certain people can open routes for Noa, while possession and other supernatural abilities provide additional ways of approaching objectives. The story also moves between different time periods, including 1999, adding another layer to its supernatural mystery.
Rather than following a completely linear structure, 1666: Amsterdam eventually gives players more freedom to investigate its districts and track down the Originals. The game also incorporates roguelite mechanics, with temporary abilities and upgrades that can change how Noa approaches combat and traversal. Dying can mean losing some of these temporary advantages, adding a degree of risk to exploration. 1666: Amsterdam entered Early Access on PC on August 25, 2026, with the current version representing the beginning of the planned experience.
What we saw
This preview is based on the Early Access build of 1666: Amsterdam, allowing us to experience the game beyond the introductory material and get a better impression of how its investigation, exploration, combat and character-switching mechanics fit together. This provided a useful look at the game’s central ideas while also making it clear that this is very much a work in progress, with some systems and presentation elements still needing refinement.
What we thought
The most immediately convincing aspect of 1666: Amsterdam is its setting. Recreating seventeenth-century Amsterdam is an ambitious undertaking, but Panache has created a city that gives the game a very distinctive visual identity. The canals, narrow streets, brick buildings and period interiors make exploring the environment worthwhile in its own right, while the supernatural elements provide an effective contrast to the historical setting. There is a pleasing sense that the city itself is part of the game’s identity rather than merely providing a backdrop for the action. At times, however, that impressive environment makes the rougher elements elsewhere more apparent, particularly when animations, character models or NPC behaviour fail to match the quality of the surroundings.
The underlying gameplay ideas are similarly more interesting than some of their current execution. Investigating the Originals gives the adventure a detective-like quality, with players gathering information and working out where their targets are hiding rather than simply following a marker towards the next enemy. The ability to approach situations through stealth, environmental manipulation, possession or direct confrontation creates room for experimentation, while the relationship between Noa and Aaron is particularly promising. Switching between the witch and her feline companion can turn apparently inaccessible locations into small environmental puzzles, and the idea of manipulating other characters through Aaron opens up some entertaining possibilities. Unfortunately, the cat’s movement and traversal currently feel more restrictive than they should. Jumps depend on finding very specific points from which they can be initiated, which can turn what ought to be satisfying environmental problem-solving into a hunt for the correct interaction prompt.
Combat is where the Early Access nature of the game is most obvious. Noa’s basic fighting currently revolves heavily around attacking and dodging, and the absence of a conventional block or parry mechanic limits the variety of encounters. It can be functional enough against ordinary enemies, but the relatively straightforward behaviour of opponents means that battles do not yet make full use of the game’s supernatural potential. The magic and temporary upgrade systems offer more interesting possibilities, especially when abilities can change the way enemies or the environment are handled, but these systems will need greater variety and balancing to prevent the basic combat loop from becoming repetitive. Stealth provides an alternative, although enemy detection can currently feel forgiving enough that avoiding confrontation is not always particularly demanding.
There is nevertheless enough here to make the Early Access approach understandable. 1666: Amsterdam has a genuinely unusual premise, a memorable historical setting and several systems that could complement one another in interesting ways once they are more fully developed. The visual presentation can be striking, while the voice performances and music help give the supernatural story an appropriate atmosphere. Technical issues, uneven animations and occasional rough edges currently interfere with the immersion, but the bigger question is how much Panache can refine the underlying mechanics as development continues. For now, 1666: Amsterdam feels less like a finished historical action-adventure and more like an intriguing foundation for one, with the combination of investigation, witchcraft and its very peculiar human-and-cat partnership providing plenty of reasons to see where the game goes next.