This Is No Cave is a premium adventure game by monome.studio. It’s a 2D platformer set in space. Players assume the role of a space explorer who finds themselves on a hostile planet. They must rely on the mobility of their suit to traverse the dangerous terrain and escape before time runs out.

In This Is No Cave, you use your mouse—or a controller if you prefer—to grapple, thrust, swing, and zip through underground and jungle-like alien terrain. This game blends slick minimalist visuals, frantic movement mechanics, and a looming alien threat.

Hostile planet

In This Is No Cave, you get stranded on a strange planet after you crash. You need to get back to your ship using only your suit thrusters and grappling hook before you run out of time. With just a mouse or a controller, you move yourself with thrusters and a grappling hook, making your way through carefully designed levels while dodging giant alien worms.

Aside from the main campaign, you can also jump into endless mode to see how far you'll go, or compete for the fastest times in the global leaderboard. The game is quite challenging to master, though. Thankfully, there are accessibility options where you can tweak lives, burst charges, and even game speed if you’re not in full speed-run mode. This is to balance the high difficulty precision platforming.

In this game, you will be immersed in beautifully hand-drawn environments—from the eerie depths of its winding subterranean caves to the vibrant expanse of a lush, alien jungle. It also features 16 achievements and support for five languages. However, the overall experience feels relatively short, with limited content compared to larger platformers, which can make it feel incomplete or leave players wanting more after just a few sessions.

Engaging and fast-paced

This Is No Cave is a fast-paced 2D sci-fi platformer where you play as a stranded space explorer navigating a hostile alien planet. Using only your thrusters and grappling hook, you race through hand-drawn caves and jungles to escape before time runs out. With challenging gameplay, accessibility options, and global leaderboards, it offers thrilling precision platforming—though its short length can leave players craving more.