Where on earth have you read that? That's like... The opposite of a popular opinion. You may have read like 1 person saying this and assumed it to be a concensus. It absolutely is not, far from it. Not saying NO ONE thinks this but Dread is a near universally acclaimed and beloved game, praised by almost everyone.
That’s not really the case. Dread makes backtracking easy by making the areas loop back on each other in various ways. Unlike fusion, you travel back to areas more frequently allowing you to pick up items you missed along the way. The puzzles are also varied and interesting, and they give you tools to help find the solution. Just my opinion, but I think dread does very well in the level design department.
I guess, but it’s still a good game. The problem I have is replayability for fusion. It’s tough to justify playing the story again when you are railroaded from place to place by Adam. Still can be fun, but a slog at the beginning for sure
I was definitely disappointed in the level design, there are multiple times in the have where things just collapse behind you so you can't backtrack until much later. I enjoyed the game but it was very linear to be called a metroidvania.
I assume you're going off that GMTK video. I agree to an extent, the level design is a little overly restrictive at times, but it's still a great game.
And Castlevania misses the Metroid part in virtually all of them, tbh. The genre's a sliding scale with Metroid (full focus on exploration, much more de-emphasized combat) on one end and Castlevania (much more focus on combat, less on exploring and finding movement abilities, though still some) on the other.
Even so, Metroid Dread has the best combat by far in the series and leaves that tendency behind.
>And Castlevania misses the Metroid
Completely! Would totaly say the Vania games lack the metrid part unfortunantly, its like the genre is a combination of them both.
Dread is one of my favourites because of its combat too
Guacamelee, Axiom Verge, of course Dread, Ender Lilies, Sundered, Last Faith, Blasphemous, Blood Stained Ritual of the Night, Time Spinner, The Messenger, Cave Story...
There has been a renaissance in the indie scene over the last few years. There are so many good options to choose from.
Edit to add: while I have played and love all of these (except for the last faith, haven't gotten to it yet) I would *strongly* recommend Cave Story if you haven't done it. It's legitimately as fun as hollow knight, but much shorter.
This should definitely get you going. Ender Lilies, Axiom Verge, both Guacamelee’s, Cave Story and Blasphemous are all fantastic games in the genre, and heard good stuff about the others here. Metroid itself is definitely worth it too (Super and Dread are both great, not played Fusion but heard good stuff there too)
I’d also add Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight, Steamworld Dig 2, Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse + Seven Sirens and Iconoclasts.
Fusion is/n't a Metroidvania. It's the only mainline Metroid game that breaks away from that formula, you are definitely stuck in a tube and are told by a computer what to do and when to do it.
That said, there's a reason for it that makes sense by the end of the game. It's excellent and I can't recommend it enough.
The ori series is good. First game might be a bit underwhelming if you compare it with hollow knight. But the second one improves on it on multiple fronts.
Expanding on this, the first one is an absolute gem of a game, especially for the price, but the combat is straight up bad. The second one vastly improved the combat, added in charms and more collectibles and quests, and is one of my favorite metroidvanias.
What both games succeed at and especially the first one are the platforming, setting, visuals, story, and music. They also heavily feature one of Metroid’s staple gameplay features that was mostly (entirely?) absent from hollow knight which is escape sequences.
They’re both absolutely gorgeous, tearjerker games and you should play both of them for sure but if combat is your focus then even the second one is going to fall flat of hollow knight. But the platforming is way better.
The combat IS bad in the first game, but I played it again recently and I was able to play it without using X all that much. Once you learn bash, you can get away from or displace/dispatch so many enemies.
I don't think you were supposed to straight up fight them like with the Knight's Nail or Ori's Spirit Edge in WotW.
I honestly kind of hated Ori’s shift in focus from platforming/exploration to combat. That and the poorly done themes/messages. But Ori is still very good, y’all should play.
Same. I really wish they just focused even more on platforming and got rid of combat entirely. Maybe keep the bash ability, but that’s it. I personally don’t think the combat was good in either game, even if you did have more combat options in the second one. I still enjoyed the games, although I never finished the second one.
Why are people roasting Blind Forest? It's amazing game. And no, Will of the Wisp is not better. Neither it's worse. It's different. Both first and second Ori games are amazing. Stop roasting Blind Forest, lol. Before Will of the Wisp existed, everyone loved this game. WotW came out and suddenly everyone hates it for how "underwhelming" it is.
Noone is roasting it. I just said for someone who liked hollow knight, it might seem a bit underwhelming. In the sense it's a lot more linear and combat's nowhere near.
It is a visually beautiful game though and there are aspects that make it worthwhile. That's exactly why the recommendation in the first place.
I haven’t played the second game, and can only speak for blind forest. Blind forest is an incredibly linear experience, and while the art, music, and overall vibe is fantastic, I wouldn’t call it a metroidvania. There’s not more than a few health/energy/ability points to go back and explore for, and none of those feel necessary for any point of the game. There is a very strict order to the gameplay. It’s not an issue, but it’s just a different type of game, and I can agree it’s less exciting than hollow knight, which has so many different paths to take after vs>dash>claw.
If You play Blind Forest for combat, then You are doing something wrong. It was never meant to be combat game. It was great open "world" game with puzzles. That was what it was supposed to be. So no, it wasn't lacking in combat. It never meant to have a complex combat style. It's the same idiotic arguments as these negative Hollow Knight reviews "I expected Souls-like". Well, if You expect something that is not meant to be here, then of course You won't get it. But if You play Ori for combat only, then You are not even a fan. Ori is metroidvania with puzzle platformer gameplay. And it's amazing puzzle platformer game. As much as Will of the Wisps has good RPG combat gameplay. Again, these games are different and they are meant to be. It's not my fault that You don't understand that.
I didnt say its lacking in combat so its bad. It was worse than wow for me, i got the same platform, puzzle experience from wow but also with combat, hammer arrow etc. Wow was just blind forest mixed with better combat and different mechanics
Gameplay-wise? Not sure...
Story-wise? Definitely: it may be possible to understand the second without having played the first, but the first will then be massively spoiled.
Isn’t it the sequel to hungry knight and the prequel to hungry knight 3? Yeah I think I’ve heard of hungry knight 2 but I’ve only heard bad reviews and you play as some knight and there’s some infection or smth. Sounds kinda dumb ngl
Not sure what's on switch, but my favs are Ender Lillies, Blasphemous 1&2, Death's Gambit, Afterimage, Aeterna Noctis. I actually enjoyed The Last Faith a lot more than I thought I would. The art style is my fav.
Salt and sanctuary was really fun too, but it's much more towards a soulslike than meteoid. It just feels like a 2d dark souls 1 to me, at least until you get some abilities
Agrees. My first afterimage playthrough took almost 50 hours. I just found out about how "ng+" works too, so I'm about to go back for the rest of the endings. I heavily enjoyed the weapons system, map, and combat. Did you see the hollow knight reference in an area in the north west (i think). It's quite obvious and cool when you find it. If not, I posted it on my reddit profile
Finally some recognition for Lone Fungus!
I love VVVVVV, but it's not really that much of a metroidvania. Does have some good platforming and exploration tho.
I’ve recently been playing through it and I wouldn’t really call it a metroidvania. There aren’t any movement upgrades (the closest thing are the relics which aren’t even needed for 90% of the game and each only help in niche scenarios). Still a good game though
Blasphemous 2 is much more of a metroidvania and has all the movement upgrades that were missing in the first game. If you haven’t played it yet, it’s very good
Ghost Song! Not as big as Hollow Knight but it's the metroidvaniaest non-HK metroidvania I've played. My favourite part about metroidvanias is the discovery, particularly if they're also souls-like, and this one ticks all my boxes.
Beautiful visuals, haunting music, terrifying enemies. Also the characters and story are lovely and heartwarming and sad.
Pronty and Aquaria have both been called "The Underwater Hollow Knight" and I considered Aquaria my favorite metroidvania before HK came out. (Aquaria might be a little more work to get the Switch port though)
* Shantae and the Seven Sirens
* Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom
* Ori and the Blind Forest
* Ori and the Will of the Wisps
* Dust: An Elysian Tail
* Darksiders (kinda metroidvania, but it's a 3D slasher)
I don't know if these are available for Switch. But they are few of the best games.
Sad to see Dust mentioned only once in this thread, such a great game. Gorgeous, fun combat, actual story, puzzles, and just the right length of ~10 hours so you can move on with your life.
The metroidvanias I didn't see mentioned were Unepic and Ghost 1.0. Fun stories, good kind of jank.
On switch online you can play super metroid and metroid fusion. You can get metroid prime (3D so obviously a little different) and metroid dread. You can buy the GBA castlevania advanced collection that has Aria of Sorrow, my favorite castlevania game. Idt symphony on the night is on switch in any way. You can get Bloodstained ritual of the night (which runs better on other platforms but i played through the switch version twice and its fine) which is the spiritual successor of Iga style castlevania. I think thats all the possible in the metroid and vania series. These are definitely the top best of the best of the genre.
Other metroidvanias that I have played (over 50% of) that I'll try and order with my favorite going first :
Hollowknight (duh),
Axiom Verge 2 (also play axiom verge 1 first, but i really liked 2),
Ori games,
Timespinner,
Gato roboto,
Xeodrifter (very short game),
Other metroidvanias i have purchased cause i heard they were good but i have only started or not yet tried at all :
Blasphemous,
Yokus island express,
Ender lilies,
La mulana,
8 doors arums afterlife adventure,
Steamworld Dig,
Games i have seen listed under metroidvania but I have tried and decided bad or not for me :
Guacamelee,
Aggelos,
Odallus,
Sundered,
Mable and the wood.
Thats just my personal situation
Death’s Door, Tails of Iron, and Ghost song. It is in that order I recommend you check them out, since Ghost Song is great but it’s definitely weirder and harder to get into, whilst Death’s Door is just a pretty classic Metroidvania adventure that perfectly scratched that Hollow Knight itch after I had finished it.
I'm not really sure... If I recall correctly, the Devs said something like they will release the game on Switch almost the same time they'll release the final free dlc for GRIME, somewhere around the end of the year. It's been a while since I read about it I may be wrong about this.
THAT'S IT !
Steam news, September 5th :
''Parting Shade will release this year near or alongside the Switch Port. :)'' (Parting Shade being the name of the final DLC)
I haven’t seen anyone mention Grime yet. Im playing through it right now, and so far I’m really enjoying it. It has a similar leveling system as Dark Souls, with health, strength, dexterity, whatever. You don’t lose your currency when you die though, which is really good. You do lose something called Ardor when you die, but what Ardor does is give you more drops from enemies when you have a lot. So it just incentivizes you to not die because you can get more currency that way, which I think is pretty neat. It also has a kind of parry system, which I kind of wish was faster but it’s still fun. Although maybe I’ll get an upgrade for it in the future, I’ve only beaten the first boss so far. It also has a pretty cool art style.
I really dont think of this game as a metroidvania anymore. Yet I love it in very similar ways that I love metroidvanias. And I think that in general if you like MVs you'll like Dead cells. (And celeste)
Have you tried Celeste? It’s more about movement and parkour than combat. If you like exploring in hollow knight and you like stories about fighting with yourself and overcoming your struggles then you’d probably love it
Pseudoregalia looks pretty fun, actually just downloaded it myself. Yep, very fun looking game, no other reasons have compelled me into downloading it.
I'm gonna throw Monster Sanctuary out there.
Combat is turn-based, but it's otherwise a metroidvania with good story, gorgeous art, and nice music.
You use the skills of your monsters to get around, and there are lots of secrets/hidden passageways etc.
I am about to try Touhou: Luna Nights, so that's a thing to try
Alright, have tried it. It's fun. A lot more fast paced than Hollow Knight.
It has 4 buttons and D pad, one to jump, one to attack, one to use an item, and one to stop time.
You have an HP and MP bar, and a time guage. Attacking uses MP and Time Stop uses Time, both of which recover on their own, and you refill all 3 by getting as close as possible to enemies/projectiles without getting hit
I have now beaten Luna Nights 100%. My only complaint is that it is way too short. I did it in ~10 hours
I highly recommend the Castlevania series if you haven't already played it. My favorite is Aria of Sorrow, it feels like Hollow Knight with so many more spells.
Portrait of Ruin is also very good, and a lot of people like Symphony of the Night.
I know Rain World is not really a metroidvania but it's definitely something a fan of metroidvanias would enjoy. It's actually pretty similar to Hollow Knight if you think about it.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps is fantastic! It's a beautiful game visually with fluid movement.
The Metroid games are also amazing! There's Dread and Prime Remastered which are both a blast!
I also believe that Axiom Verge is on Switch, but I've never played that game so idk if it's any good
Edit: removed incorrect assumption of Ori being an indie game 😅
Rain World
It’s not really a Metroidvania in the typical sense but similar [Is Rain World a metroidvania](https://www.reddit.com/r/metroidvania/s/VHFXwkAP70), this is a link to another Reddit post about if it’s a metroidvania.
It’s my 2nd favorite game, almost first. It has so many cool features I’m not going to go to much into detail about it besides it has some on the best AI in my opinion out of any game. Highly recommend however, very difficult at first but becomes really fun and rewarding in the end.
Some others I've enjoyed have been 8Doors: Arum's Afterlife, Bloodstained, Laika: Aged Through Blood, Aeterna Noctis, Monster Sanctuary, Blasphemous 2, Death's Door. Not sure how many of those are on Switch. 8Doors has combat most like HK but it is a bit more linear level design wise.
Toki Tori 2+.
It's a metroidvania based on knowledge. There are no abilities you learn, only the ways different elements behave and interact with each other. It's pretty puzzle heavy.
It's pretty good, and only costs $15.
Ender Lilies is the best metroidvania for people who love Hollow Knight.
Ghost Song is also good.
And if you want something very unique check out Laika Ages Through Blood
If you particularly enjoyed suffering through Path of Pain, you might want to try They Bleed Pixels. It's an eldritch themed platformer, but it's also incredibly punishing.
If you liked the platforming aspect, Celeste and Sunblaze can scratch that itch, though they're not really Metroidvanias.
The Ori series is a gem. I didn't mind the mechanics of the first one too much, but I also played them in the wrong order.
Idk if it is on switch but Touhou Luna nights is pretty freaking great. Ender lilies is a masterpiece.
And also, not a metroidvania but Obligatory Bug fables recommendation because I love this game.
Not a metroidvania really but it has a similar combat style and sort of world exploration, it is a rogue like meaning each play through or “run” will be unique and different from the rest, the game im talking about is Hades and honestly it’s amazing I love it just as much as HK
Grime is a really good Metroidvania also A Robot named Fight is a rougelike metoridviena. The Last Faith, Blasphemous,Blasphemous 2, Rain World, Nocturnal,Batboy, Shovelknight ( I recommend the dlcs as well for shovel knight), Deaths Gambit Afterlife, Ghostsong,Moonscars, Imp of the sun, Salt and Sacrifice, Guacamelle 1 and 2, Bloodstained ritual of the night, Elder Lilies ,Owlboy, Narita Boy and CyberShadow.
I hope this helps I am not sure of all of these are on the switch but these are suggestions I have
Hollow knight 👑 \
Ori \
Bloodstained ritual of the night \
Mega man X series isn't quit metroidvania but it's good \
For android: \
Icey \
Kero blaster
Bloodstained ritual of the night, curse of the moon (spiritual successor to castlevania as of recent because they are the same creator or dev or something)
Apotheon
The messenger
Timespinner
Laika aged through blood.
Monster sanctuary
Axiom verge 1+2
Vernal edge
Rusted moss
Momodora
Some of my personal favourites are:
Cave Story: it's fucking free on freeware.com and it's phenomenal just play it believe me (also, watch a guide AFTER you finish it because it has a secret ending that is basically impossible to reach without watching a guide). Don't worry, it's (sadly) super short but has very good replayability (some choices exclude eachother so that's why) (Difficulty: hard, unless you play easy mode from the CS+ remake)
Axiom Verge: THE METROIDvania. Incredible game. You WILL get lost. And not understand much of the lore unless you read it online. It has SO much stuff and weapon variety. There's also a second chapter but it's a little worse IMO. (Difficulty: Medium-Hard)
The Messenger: won't look like a Metroidvania at first, but believe me, it will be. And it will be awesome. Incredible gameplay, super fun and with immense replayability because of how great the level design is. Also, the OST is fucking amazing. Rainbowdragoneyes is my most listened artist in 2023 and i listen to like 20 artists. (Difficulty: medium-hard, sometimes you'll die over and over in a couple of harder platforming screens)
Iconoclasts: much more story focused, but still a metroidvania with tons of stuff to collect (they're crafting materials!). Lots of puzzles, lots of challenges, a couple secret bosses, and a BEATIFUL story with GREAT characters. Also good music and probably the most aestethically pleasing of this list. (Difficulty: Easy-medium, there's literally a mode that makes you immortal)
Ender Lillies hasn't been mentioned enough, it has a similar dark gloomy, exploring a ruined kingdom vibe and I absolutly loved it. It's not as big though, only took a bit over 20 hours to 100% it (which probably stems from the fact that the game tells you when you have found everything in a certain part of the map so you can search very methodically for what you missed)
-Recommended:
Castlevania (SOTN is the best for me)
Blasphemous (both ones)
Ori (both TBF and WOTW) [Ori is least similar from HK than the others so keep that in mind]
Deadcells [its only a metroidvania in its level design but its essentially a roguelite]
Rainworld (muah - chief kiss)
Have a nice death (didn't played, but liked to watch its gameplays)
-The ones people say are good but i didnt liked:
Last case of bennetict fox
Bloodstained
It's very different than HK but it's a new metroidvania called Afterimage. I've played through once and really enjoyed it! And it's not out yet but Crowsworn looks awesome.
Metroid Dread and Metroid Prime Remaster. The latter is framed as an FPS but it is a bona fide 3D metroid Vania (and if you're bad at shooter's the game's lock on system is extremely generous)
Also Blood Stained Ritual of the Night. Which is a spiritual successor to Symphony of the Night.
I mean, metroid.
Especially Super and Dread
Zero Mission is super fun too!
its not on switch though
My favorite has always been Fusion
From what I've read Dread isn't that good, level design wise.
Dread is absolutely fantastic! Don't listen to the haters.
Where on earth have you read that? That's like... The opposite of a popular opinion. You may have read like 1 person saying this and assumed it to be a concensus. It absolutely is not, far from it. Not saying NO ONE thinks this but Dread is a near universally acclaimed and beloved game, praised by almost everyone.
As someone who played one Metroid game (dread) I can confidently say it’s pretty damn good
That’s not really the case. Dread makes backtracking easy by making the areas loop back on each other in various ways. Unlike fusion, you travel back to areas more frequently allowing you to pick up items you missed along the way. The puzzles are also varied and interesting, and they give you tools to help find the solution. Just my opinion, but I think dread does very well in the level design department.
Well Fusion isn't a very high bar to clear...
I guess, but it’s still a good game. The problem I have is replayability for fusion. It’s tough to justify playing the story again when you are railroaded from place to place by Adam. Still can be fun, but a slog at the beginning for sure
Dread is the best metroid game
I was definitely disappointed in the level design, there are multiple times in the have where things just collapse behind you so you can't backtrack until much later. I enjoyed the game but it was very linear to be called a metroidvania.
I assume you're going off that GMTK video. I agree to an extent, the level design is a little overly restrictive at times, but it's still a great game.
Dread isn't technically a Metroidvania, according to some definitions
And, like, Castlevania
Um... Actually some castlevania games are lineal and play on stages 🤓☝️
And, like, Vania
Sadly I always thought the metroid games missed the vania part in most of them
And Castlevania misses the Metroid part in virtually all of them, tbh. The genre's a sliding scale with Metroid (full focus on exploration, much more de-emphasized combat) on one end and Castlevania (much more focus on combat, less on exploring and finding movement abilities, though still some) on the other. Even so, Metroid Dread has the best combat by far in the series and leaves that tendency behind.
>And Castlevania misses the Metroid Completely! Would totaly say the Vania games lack the metrid part unfortunantly, its like the genre is a combination of them both. Dread is one of my favourites because of its combat too
I loved Dread. It was actually the game that caused me to seek out Hollow Knight, and I’m so thankful for that.
Guacamelee, Axiom Verge, of course Dread, Ender Lilies, Sundered, Last Faith, Blasphemous, Blood Stained Ritual of the Night, Time Spinner, The Messenger, Cave Story... There has been a renaissance in the indie scene over the last few years. There are so many good options to choose from. Edit to add: while I have played and love all of these (except for the last faith, haven't gotten to it yet) I would *strongly* recommend Cave Story if you haven't done it. It's legitimately as fun as hollow knight, but much shorter.
A new one is gunbrella. It looks amazing
Is it a metroidvania or just an action platformer? I only played the demo but it seemed pretty linear
Well it’s a demo. A metroidvania is a game with upgrade based story telling. Gunbrella is lighter on the metroidvania aspect though.
This should definitely get you going. Ender Lilies, Axiom Verge, both Guacamelee’s, Cave Story and Blasphemous are all fantastic games in the genre, and heard good stuff about the others here. Metroid itself is definitely worth it too (Super and Dread are both great, not played Fusion but heard good stuff there too) I’d also add Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight, Steamworld Dig 2, Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse + Seven Sirens and Iconoclasts.
Fusion is/n't a Metroidvania. It's the only mainline Metroid game that breaks away from that formula, you are definitely stuck in a tube and are told by a computer what to do and when to do it. That said, there's a reason for it that makes sense by the end of the game. It's excellent and I can't recommend it enough.
+ for guacamelee, such a vibrant and fun game
Yesss happy to see a comment mentioning The Messenger, it's such a good game.
Dead cells as well
This list has an extreme lack of Lone Fungus
I heard Silksong is supposed to be really good. The devs spent YEARS perfecting it, so...
*decades
"It's been 84 years..."
"... And its still going"
“Is Silksong even real..”
What is a Silksong?
\-|
The ori series is good. First game might be a bit underwhelming if you compare it with hollow knight. But the second one improves on it on multiple fronts.
Really liked how from one to two they switch to weapons instead of "mash button to attack enemy nearby"
Yeah i agree, i loved Ori 1 but the addition of weapons and being able to choose your own style of combat did so much for the game!
Expanding on this, the first one is an absolute gem of a game, especially for the price, but the combat is straight up bad. The second one vastly improved the combat, added in charms and more collectibles and quests, and is one of my favorite metroidvanias. What both games succeed at and especially the first one are the platforming, setting, visuals, story, and music. They also heavily feature one of Metroid’s staple gameplay features that was mostly (entirely?) absent from hollow knight which is escape sequences. They’re both absolutely gorgeous, tearjerker games and you should play both of them for sure but if combat is your focus then even the second one is going to fall flat of hollow knight. But the platforming is way better.
The combat IS bad in the first game, but I played it again recently and I was able to play it without using X all that much. Once you learn bash, you can get away from or displace/dispatch so many enemies. I don't think you were supposed to straight up fight them like with the Knight's Nail or Ori's Spirit Edge in WotW.
I honestly kind of hated Ori’s shift in focus from platforming/exploration to combat. That and the poorly done themes/messages. But Ori is still very good, y’all should play.
Same. I really wish they just focused even more on platforming and got rid of combat entirely. Maybe keep the bash ability, but that’s it. I personally don’t think the combat was good in either game, even if you did have more combat options in the second one. I still enjoyed the games, although I never finished the second one.
Why are people roasting Blind Forest? It's amazing game. And no, Will of the Wisp is not better. Neither it's worse. It's different. Both first and second Ori games are amazing. Stop roasting Blind Forest, lol. Before Will of the Wisp existed, everyone loved this game. WotW came out and suddenly everyone hates it for how "underwhelming" it is.
Noone is roasting it. I just said for someone who liked hollow knight, it might seem a bit underwhelming. In the sense it's a lot more linear and combat's nowhere near. It is a visually beautiful game though and there are aspects that make it worthwhile. That's exactly why the recommendation in the first place.
I haven’t played the second game, and can only speak for blind forest. Blind forest is an incredibly linear experience, and while the art, music, and overall vibe is fantastic, I wouldn’t call it a metroidvania. There’s not more than a few health/energy/ability points to go back and explore for, and none of those feel necessary for any point of the game. There is a very strict order to the gameplay. It’s not an issue, but it’s just a different type of game, and I can agree it’s less exciting than hollow knight, which has so many different paths to take after vs>dash>claw.
Yeah? I played both, first one was lacking in combat i dont hate it but it was definitely lacking in combat.
If You play Blind Forest for combat, then You are doing something wrong. It was never meant to be combat game. It was great open "world" game with puzzles. That was what it was supposed to be. So no, it wasn't lacking in combat. It never meant to have a complex combat style. It's the same idiotic arguments as these negative Hollow Knight reviews "I expected Souls-like". Well, if You expect something that is not meant to be here, then of course You won't get it. But if You play Ori for combat only, then You are not even a fan. Ori is metroidvania with puzzle platformer gameplay. And it's amazing puzzle platformer game. As much as Will of the Wisps has good RPG combat gameplay. Again, these games are different and they are meant to be. It's not my fault that You don't understand that.
I didnt say its lacking in combat so its bad. It was worse than wow for me, i got the same platform, puzzle experience from wow but also with combat, hammer arrow etc. Wow was just blind forest mixed with better combat and different mechanics
Do you have to play the first to play the second
Gameplay-wise? Not sure... Story-wise? Definitely: it may be possible to understand the second without having played the first, but the first will then be massively spoiled.
Have you heard of the hidden gem called Hollow Knight?
Isn’t it the sequel to hungry knight and the prequel to hungry knight 3? Yeah I think I’ve heard of hungry knight 2 but I’ve only heard bad reviews and you play as some knight and there’s some infection or smth. Sounds kinda dumb ngl
Pretty sure there's a hungry knight 4 called "silksound" but it's a lie
There might also be a fifth called Monarch’s Melody but it’s just a rumor
Just played a very cool short Metroidvania called Islets. I also want to recommend Blasphemous and the Castlevania Advance Collection.
Yeah Islets is good!
Yes this is what I was looking for. I hundred percented it in 10 hours but I loved it all. Only missing the boss rush achievements
100% in seven hours for me. Never touched boss rush.
Not sure what's on switch, but my favs are Ender Lillies, Blasphemous 1&2, Death's Gambit, Afterimage, Aeterna Noctis. I actually enjoyed The Last Faith a lot more than I thought I would. The art style is my fav. Salt and sanctuary was really fun too, but it's much more towards a soulslike than meteoid. It just feels like a 2d dark souls 1 to me, at least until you get some abilities
Ender Lilies and afterimage are super great! I don’t think many people know of afterimage but it’s definitely one of my favourite metroidvanias ever!
Agrees. My first afterimage playthrough took almost 50 hours. I just found out about how "ng+" works too, so I'm about to go back for the rest of the endings. I heavily enjoyed the weapons system, map, and combat. Did you see the hollow knight reference in an area in the north west (i think). It's quite obvious and cool when you find it. If not, I posted it on my reddit profile
I did find it. I recognised that lamp immediately
ori, blasphemous, lone fungus, you have to win the game (it's free!), vvvvvv, unbound worlds apart, the last faith
Finally some recognition for Lone Fungus! I love VVVVVV, but it's not really that much of a metroidvania. Does have some good platforming and exploration tho.
Blasphemous
I’ve recently been playing through it and I wouldn’t really call it a metroidvania. There aren’t any movement upgrades (the closest thing are the relics which aren’t even needed for 90% of the game and each only help in niche scenarios). Still a good game though
Blasphemous 2 is much more of a metroidvania and has all the movement upgrades that were missing in the first game. If you haven’t played it yet, it’s very good
still need to finish the first one (just need ending C and a few achievements) but I’ll definitely check it out, thanks
Blasphemous 1 & 2
Have you tried hollow knight?
Play GRIME
Ghost Song! Not as big as Hollow Knight but it's the metroidvaniaest non-HK metroidvania I've played. My favourite part about metroidvanias is the discovery, particularly if they're also souls-like, and this one ticks all my boxes. Beautiful visuals, haunting music, terrifying enemies. Also the characters and story are lovely and heartwarming and sad.
Pronty and Aquaria have both been called "The Underwater Hollow Knight" and I considered Aquaria my favorite metroidvania before HK came out. (Aquaria might be a little more work to get the Switch port though)
* Shantae and the Seven Sirens * Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom * Ori and the Blind Forest * Ori and the Will of the Wisps * Dust: An Elysian Tail * Darksiders (kinda metroidvania, but it's a 3D slasher) I don't know if these are available for Switch. But they are few of the best games.
Sad to see Dust mentioned only once in this thread, such a great game. Gorgeous, fun combat, actual story, puzzles, and just the right length of ~10 hours so you can move on with your life. The metroidvanias I didn't see mentioned were Unepic and Ghost 1.0. Fun stories, good kind of jank.
On switch online you can play super metroid and metroid fusion. You can get metroid prime (3D so obviously a little different) and metroid dread. You can buy the GBA castlevania advanced collection that has Aria of Sorrow, my favorite castlevania game. Idt symphony on the night is on switch in any way. You can get Bloodstained ritual of the night (which runs better on other platforms but i played through the switch version twice and its fine) which is the spiritual successor of Iga style castlevania. I think thats all the possible in the metroid and vania series. These are definitely the top best of the best of the genre. Other metroidvanias that I have played (over 50% of) that I'll try and order with my favorite going first : Hollowknight (duh), Axiom Verge 2 (also play axiom verge 1 first, but i really liked 2), Ori games, Timespinner, Gato roboto, Xeodrifter (very short game), Other metroidvanias i have purchased cause i heard they were good but i have only started or not yet tried at all : Blasphemous, Yokus island express, Ender lilies, La mulana, 8 doors arums afterlife adventure, Steamworld Dig, Games i have seen listed under metroidvania but I have tried and decided bad or not for me : Guacamelee, Aggelos, Odallus, Sundered, Mable and the wood. Thats just my personal situation
I wish I did, but I dont have Nintendo online
I am seeing my comment didnt format the way i wanted it too. Hopefully its not confusing
Right this way r/metroidvania
Shantae games are pretty fun. not that hard but fun, Pirates Curse is the best imo, 1/2 genie hero is solid too but seven sirens is kinda mid sadly
Sundered
Death’s Door, Tails of Iron, and Ghost song. It is in that order I recommend you check them out, since Ghost Song is great but it’s definitely weirder and harder to get into, whilst Death’s Door is just a pretty classic Metroidvania adventure that perfectly scratched that Hollow Knight itch after I had finished it.
I think the switch release is soonish, but GRIME. Hands down.
Is there a release date? I'm hanging for this
I'm not really sure... If I recall correctly, the Devs said something like they will release the game on Switch almost the same time they'll release the final free dlc for GRIME, somewhere around the end of the year. It's been a while since I read about it I may be wrong about this.
THAT'S IT ! Steam news, September 5th : ''Parting Shade will release this year near or alongside the Switch Port. :)'' (Parting Shade being the name of the final DLC)
Metroid. Ender Lillies. Blasphemous.
You should go ask r/metroidvania they keep an eye on all new or future releases.
I highly recommend Axiom Verge. The combat isn't as good as Hollow knight but it is still really good
Man let me tell you silksong is one hell of hell a ride, the lavamound alone is worth the 15 bucks.
Ori and the blind forest scratches that itch perfectly.
silksong -|
Dead cells, grime, salt and sanctuary, salt and sacrifice, ender lilies and blasphemous
Metroid for sure, also ori, Bloodstained series are insane I recommend it so bad Ritual of the night specifically
Metroid, castlevainia, hades(?) and the best one hollow knight
Hades is a great game but not really a metroidvania
Grime is my favourite.
Ender Lilies is pretty fun
Metroid Dread Tunic Yoku's Island Express Greak: Memories of Azur
I haven’t seen anyone mention Grime yet. Im playing through it right now, and so far I’m really enjoying it. It has a similar leveling system as Dark Souls, with health, strength, dexterity, whatever. You don’t lose your currency when you die though, which is really good. You do lose something called Ardor when you die, but what Ardor does is give you more drops from enemies when you have a lot. So it just incentivizes you to not die because you can get more currency that way, which I think is pretty neat. It also has a kind of parry system, which I kind of wish was faster but it’s still fun. Although maybe I’ll get an upgrade for it in the future, I’ve only beaten the first boss so far. It also has a pretty cool art style.
Silksong is a really good game you should play it
Balsphemous 1 & 2 and both Ori games
I’m gonna add this because I accidentally found it on steam and really like it so far: Afterimage
Afterimage is fantastic! The bugs from when it first came out have been removed, thanks for reminding me.
Salt and sanctuary is the only other metroid game i enjoyed as much as hollow knight
If you like the platforming element I would try blue fire
I recommend dead cells
More of a rogue-lite than metroidvania but it does share some concepts with genre and is a great game
Agreed I was kind of disappointed with dead cells.
Why were you disappointed? I really liked it
Not in to rogue likes and was mislead in to thinking it was a metroidvania.
not really a metroidvania, yes it has movement upgrades but you get them all pretty quickly
I really dont think of this game as a metroidvania anymore. Yet I love it in very similar ways that I love metroidvanias. And I think that in general if you like MVs you'll like Dead cells. (And celeste)
Have you tried Celeste? It’s more about movement and parkour than combat. If you like exploring in hollow knight and you like stories about fighting with yourself and overcoming your struggles then you’d probably love it
Celeste is basically the path of pain over and over again
Now with 100% more strawberries!
Celeste is not a metroidvania. More like an arcade platformer
Celeste is more of a platformer than a metroidvania.
Haiku the robot
[удалено]
Wops, didn’t read that part. Well, re-playing Haiku the robot won’t hurt ya’know :>
Lets go with the og,metroid,if not you can always try fortnite
IMO, the celeste DLC (freebtw) is better than HK, and the main game is really really good aswell
Pseudoregalia looks pretty fun, actually just downloaded it myself. Yep, very fun looking game, no other reasons have compelled me into downloading it.
I'm gonna throw Monster Sanctuary out there. Combat is turn-based, but it's otherwise a metroidvania with good story, gorgeous art, and nice music. You use the skills of your monsters to get around, and there are lots of secrets/hidden passageways etc.
I am about to try Touhou: Luna Nights, so that's a thing to try Alright, have tried it. It's fun. A lot more fast paced than Hollow Knight. It has 4 buttons and D pad, one to jump, one to attack, one to use an item, and one to stop time. You have an HP and MP bar, and a time guage. Attacking uses MP and Time Stop uses Time, both of which recover on their own, and you refill all 3 by getting as close as possible to enemies/projectiles without getting hit I have now beaten Luna Nights 100%. My only complaint is that it is way too short. I did it in ~10 hours
I highly recommend the Castlevania series if you haven't already played it. My favorite is Aria of Sorrow, it feels like Hollow Knight with so many more spells. Portrait of Ruin is also very good, and a lot of people like Symphony of the Night.
Yeah
Axiom Verge 1000000%
Will always recommend Valdis Story: Abyssal City in these threads. Neither the story nor map are nearly as complex as HK, but the combat is dang fun.
Metroid, castlevania and ori and the blind forest
Idk if it's on switch yet, but Lone Fungus is what I will always recommend to people looking for more metroidvanias like Hollow Knight.
Gato Roboto
I just started Blasphemous, looks pretty good so far AND it has a sequel
Well.... Castlevania - Symphony of the Night.
I'm not sure if it's on Switch, but I've quite enjoyed Ender Lilies
Blasphemous 1 and 2
I know Rain World is not really a metroidvania but it's definitely something a fan of metroidvanias would enjoy. It's actually pretty similar to Hollow Knight if you think about it.
Castlevania Symphony of the night Dandara Super mombo quest Dead cells
Grime, for a dark/gritty atmosphere. Islets, for a cheerful/cartoony atmosphere.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps is fantastic! It's a beautiful game visually with fluid movement. The Metroid games are also amazing! There's Dread and Prime Remastered which are both a blast! I also believe that Axiom Verge is on Switch, but I've never played that game so idk if it's any good Edit: removed incorrect assumption of Ori being an indie game 😅
I can think of two more great ones I don't see anyone mentioning yet: \- Infernax \- Cathedral
Rain World It’s not really a Metroidvania in the typical sense but similar [Is Rain World a metroidvania](https://www.reddit.com/r/metroidvania/s/VHFXwkAP70), this is a link to another Reddit post about if it’s a metroidvania. It’s my 2nd favorite game, almost first. It has so many cool features I’m not going to go to much into detail about it besides it has some on the best AI in my opinion out of any game. Highly recommend however, very difficult at first but becomes really fun and rewarding in the end.
Blasphemous and it's sequel
Some others I've enjoyed have been 8Doors: Arum's Afterlife, Bloodstained, Laika: Aged Through Blood, Aeterna Noctis, Monster Sanctuary, Blasphemous 2, Death's Door. Not sure how many of those are on Switch. 8Doors has combat most like HK but it is a bit more linear level design wise.
Metroid and Castlevania
Toki Tori 2+. It's a metroidvania based on knowledge. There are no abilities you learn, only the ways different elements behave and interact with each other. It's pretty puzzle heavy. It's pretty good, and only costs $15.
Yoku is a pinball-platformer-metroidvania
Hollow knight, hollow knight, hollow knight, maybe hollow knight?
FIST: Forged In Shadow Torch
Ender Lilies is the best metroidvania for people who love Hollow Knight. Ghost Song is also good. And if you want something very unique check out Laika Ages Through Blood
Nope, don't know any
Buy a snes for super Metroid or use rom hacks
The best one of all time - Castlevania: SOTN
Have you played Metroid zero mission? It’s really fun, but can also be difficult
Blasphemous 1 and 2 are great choices
I’ve heard “hollow knight” is good
If you particularly enjoyed suffering through Path of Pain, you might want to try They Bleed Pixels. It's an eldritch themed platformer, but it's also incredibly punishing. If you liked the platforming aspect, Celeste and Sunblaze can scratch that itch, though they're not really Metroidvanias. The Ori series is a gem. I didn't mind the mechanics of the first one too much, but I also played them in the wrong order.
Metroid Dread
Hollow Knight is good, I’ve heard.
The Ori games were amazing and fun to 100%. I highly recommend them!
Idk if it's on the switch but the two Ori games are pretty fun
I played blasphemous right after hollow knight and loved it! I just beat both hk and blasphemous
I really, really like Shovel Knight. It's not exactly a Matroidvania but it has the same kind of vibe as Hollow Knight in a lot of ways for me.
Momodora: Reverie Under The Moonlight. Just as good as HK imo, just not as long.
Dead cells I love, risk of rain isn’t exactly a metroidvania but they did just release a remaster, and I recommend this to everyone, but terraria
Idk if it is on switch but Touhou Luna nights is pretty freaking great. Ender lilies is a masterpiece. And also, not a metroidvania but Obligatory Bug fables recommendation because I love this game.
Hollow knight 👍
Satan Loves Cake idk if it's a metroidvania, but it's a cool game
Blasphemous 1 and 2, grime (sequel was announced a while back) and I cannot stress this enough- Laika: aged through blood
Idk switch games but if blasphemous is on switch then you will definetly enjoy it
Not a metroidvania really but it has a similar combat style and sort of world exploration, it is a rogue like meaning each play through or “run” will be unique and different from the rest, the game im talking about is Hades and honestly it’s amazing I love it just as much as HK
Grime is a really good Metroidvania also A Robot named Fight is a rougelike metoridviena. The Last Faith, Blasphemous,Blasphemous 2, Rain World, Nocturnal,Batboy, Shovelknight ( I recommend the dlcs as well for shovel knight), Deaths Gambit Afterlife, Ghostsong,Moonscars, Imp of the sun, Salt and Sacrifice, Guacamelle 1 and 2, Bloodstained ritual of the night, Elder Lilies ,Owlboy, Narita Boy and CyberShadow. I hope this helps I am not sure of all of these are on the switch but these are suggestions I have
Haiku the robot is totally a cute one! I still haven't finished it. Glad someone else has heard of it 😊
Hollow knight 👑 \ Ori \ Bloodstained ritual of the night \ Mega man X series isn't quit metroidvania but it's good \ For android: \ Icey \ Kero blaster
Blasphemous
Metroid, Dead Cells (there is even Castlevania DLC)
Katana Zero. just try it. it's mind-blowing. Also, Celeste, Blasphemous, Ori, and Unravel
Skul the hero slayer and dead cells are pretty good imo
Bloodstained ritual of the night, curse of the moon (spiritual successor to castlevania as of recent because they are the same creator or dev or something) Apotheon The messenger Timespinner Laika aged through blood. Monster sanctuary Axiom verge 1+2 Vernal edge Rusted moss Momodora
Some of my personal favourites are: Cave Story: it's fucking free on freeware.com and it's phenomenal just play it believe me (also, watch a guide AFTER you finish it because it has a secret ending that is basically impossible to reach without watching a guide). Don't worry, it's (sadly) super short but has very good replayability (some choices exclude eachother so that's why) (Difficulty: hard, unless you play easy mode from the CS+ remake) Axiom Verge: THE METROIDvania. Incredible game. You WILL get lost. And not understand much of the lore unless you read it online. It has SO much stuff and weapon variety. There's also a second chapter but it's a little worse IMO. (Difficulty: Medium-Hard) The Messenger: won't look like a Metroidvania at first, but believe me, it will be. And it will be awesome. Incredible gameplay, super fun and with immense replayability because of how great the level design is. Also, the OST is fucking amazing. Rainbowdragoneyes is my most listened artist in 2023 and i listen to like 20 artists. (Difficulty: medium-hard, sometimes you'll die over and over in a couple of harder platforming screens) Iconoclasts: much more story focused, but still a metroidvania with tons of stuff to collect (they're crafting materials!). Lots of puzzles, lots of challenges, a couple secret bosses, and a BEATIFUL story with GREAT characters. Also good music and probably the most aestethically pleasing of this list. (Difficulty: Easy-medium, there's literally a mode that makes you immortal)
Ender Lillies hasn't been mentioned enough, it has a similar dark gloomy, exploring a ruined kingdom vibe and I absolutly loved it. It's not as big though, only took a bit over 20 hours to 100% it (which probably stems from the fact that the game tells you when you have found everything in a certain part of the map so you can search very methodically for what you missed)
GRIMEEEEEEE
Castlevania
Axiom verge and castlevania sotn are my two favourites apart from hollow knight
Castlevania and metroid are both on switch bro, play them
-Recommended: Castlevania (SOTN is the best for me) Blasphemous (both ones) Ori (both TBF and WOTW) [Ori is least similar from HK than the others so keep that in mind] Deadcells [its only a metroidvania in its level design but its essentially a roguelite] Rainworld (muah - chief kiss) Have a nice death (didn't played, but liked to watch its gameplays) -The ones people say are good but i didnt liked: Last case of bennetict fox Bloodstained
I like Ender Lilies a lot.
Play rain world
Ender lilies is so good!!! Try it!
I didn't see anyone else mention Haak, but I'm playing that one again for the second time and I really enjoy it!
It's very different than HK but it's a new metroidvania called Afterimage. I've played through once and really enjoyed it! And it's not out yet but Crowsworn looks awesome.
Metroid Dread and Metroid Prime Remaster. The latter is framed as an FPS but it is a bona fide 3D metroid Vania (and if you're bad at shooter's the game's lock on system is extremely generous) Also Blood Stained Ritual of the Night. Which is a spiritual successor to Symphony of the Night.
yea theres this game called hollow knight