Metroidvania reviews from Reddit
Summary
We analyzed 256 Reddit reviews across 8 subreddits and 20 posts to rank the best Metroidvania brands recommended by redditors, including communities like r/metroidvania, r/gamingsuggestions, r/Steam, r/gamerecommendations, r/Trophies. Top-rated brands include Ubisoft (4.8/5), Nintendo (4.8/5), Moon Studios (5.0/5).
Stats
Reviews256
Subreddits8
Posts20
Brands74
Products53
256 reviews from
and
By Brand
/By Product
#1
Ubisoft
4.8
(18)
"If combat and gameplay are important for you - go for Prince of Persia: the lost crown. One of the best."
"Also play Prince of Persia TLC."
"Prince of Persia is also incredibly good."
"Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, platforming is fun and challenging, combat is deep enough to be engaging without being annoying, good story."
"Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Blasphemous 2 and Ender Magnolia are all in the must play category for me."
"Blasphemous 2(duh), Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, and Biomorph are 3 I highly recommend."
"Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown"
"Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is probably what you’re looking for"
"Prince of Persia the lost crown. Amazing metroidvania"
"Like others said, prince of Persia tlc is your best bet"
#2
Nintendo
4.8
(14)
"Also play Metroid Zero Mission."
"Cant go wrong with castlevania symphony of the night and metroid zero mission. They're both easy and fun"
"I think Zero Mission is probably the perfect starter Metroid game."
"Super was my first too. I think its another great option."
"My first ever one was Super Metroid and it’s still my favourite game of all time."
"Start with the games that actually defined the genre (and still hold up really well). Zero Mission is a great starting point."
"My recommendation would be Castlevania Symphony of the Night or Metroid Zero Mission."
"Bloodstained ROTN, Metroid Fusion, Ori and the Blind Forest, and Timespinner are great introductions to the genre."
"The "Metroid" in Metroidvania is generally quite easy too. Zero Mission, Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion are also quite readily available on PC."
"The "Metroid" in Metroidvania is generally quite easy too. Zero Mission, Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion are also quite readily available on PC."
#3
Moon Studios
5.0
(10)
"I'd recommend Ori games but those are so popular that I guess you've played them already"
"Ori 2 feels, sounds, & plays so, so well."
"I'd still highly recommend the sequel Ori & the Will of the Wisps."
"Ori 2 is absolutely stunning and feels way different than the first game - I thought it was totally superior, especially the combat."
"Bloodstained ROTN, Metroid Fusion, Ori and the Blind Forest, and Timespinner are great introductions to the genre."
"Ori and the blind forest and the sequel (will o' wisp). I just started playing it recently and heard nothing but excellent reviews."
"Finish up the ori series with will of the wisps."
"Ori and the Will of the Wisps"
"Since you’ve already played Ori and the Blind Forest, I highly recommend playing Will of the Wisps."
"If you’ve only played Blind Forest I highly reccomend Will of the Wisps! Both incredible games with different strengths but I think I enjoyed Wisps slightly more."
#4
ArtPlay
4.5
(10)
"I would strongly recommend bloodstained ritual of the night"
"Bloodstained ROTN, Metroid Fusion, Ori and the Blind Forest, and Timespinner are great introductions to the genre."
"Here are a few Metroidvania games that I have enjoyed and actually completed: Bloodstained"
"Here are a few Metroidvania games that I have enjoyed and actually completed: Bloodstained"
"Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night!"
"Bloodstained Ritual of the Night, Prince of Persia the Lost Crown."
"Bloodstained is not that hard."
"Bloodstained is a breeze. Start there."
"Bloodstained: ritual of the night is spiritual successor of SOTN. Honestly a good game."
"I've played bloodstained/afterimage/tales of kenzera/salt and sanctuary and id definitely say out of those afterimage and tales of kenzera are the easier ones to get into."
#5
Konami
4.9
(8)
"Castlevania Advance Collection and Dominus Collection are both good collections of several great games."
"Cant go wrong with castlevania symphony of the night and metroid zero mission. They're both easy and fun"
"Castlevania, Symphony of the Night and pretty much any 2D Castlevania that came out after also fits the bill."
"Bloodstained wouldn’t be a bad start honestly but Blasphemous would. My recommendation would be Castlevania Symphony of the Night or Metroid Zero Mission."
"Castlevania - Symphony of the night. Game is on the easy side."
"Start with the masterpiece that kicked off the whole genre, Symphony Of The Night."
"Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is the game that Bloodstained was sort of a spiritual successor to, and it's also quite forgiving."
"I completed aria of sorrow when I was a chill so it shouldnt be that hard, and it has fun gameplay with all the abilities."
#6
Hollow Knight
4.6
(8)
"Here are some of MVs that I really enjoyed: Hollow Knight, Ender Lilies & Ender Magnolia, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Astalon: Tears of the Earth, Ori and the Blind Forest & Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Death's Gambit: Afterlife, Doomblade, HAAK, Yoku's Island Express."
"There is always hollow knight"
"Hollow Knight and Blast Brigade"
"But also check out Hollow Knight, Blast Brigade and Guacamelee for some different art styles"
"My recommendation too. Play both these then Hollow Knight."
"Hollow knight"
"Honestly i dont think Hollow Knight requires some insane level of skill that cant be accomplished through some upgrades."
"Hollow Knight is a work of art. But it's hard. Really really hard."
#7
Adglobe
4.5
(8)
"Ender Lilies. That's one seriously beautiful game."
"Beautiful, great mechanics and fun"
"I loved Ender Lilies and I’m a big fan of metroidvania as well."
"This game has 39 trophies... They are hard (7/10) and take 25 hours to complete."
"Ender lilies and ender magnolia!"
"Ender Lillies is very pretty imo and one of the first indie games where specifically the soundtrack blew me away"
"I just finished ender Lillies and I don’t think it required much in reflexes."
"I’m currently enjoying Ender Lilies - the bosses are quite easy and you don’t lose all your “souls” when dying."
#8
Ghost Song
4.7
(7)
"Ghostsong is awesome"
"Ultros and Ghost Song both got average reviews, but to me they were both excellent."
"Some great but underrated games have already been mentioned here, such as ***Ghost Song***"
"Loved Ghost Song."
"I was going to mention ghost song. Very good and under rated."
"Ghost song was pretty good."
"Astalon, Ghost Song or Islets"
#9
Game Atelier
4.8
(6)
"Another great 2D metroidvania is Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom. But the vibe is completely different, much more colorful and joyful"
"Monster boy and the cursed kingdom is great. The artstyle is fun, the gameplay is super enjoyable and the music is genuinly fantastic."
"Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom is also worth your time."
"My top recommendation would be Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom. I thought that was really well made and fairly long to complete."
"My top recommendation would be Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom. I thought that was really well made and fairly long to complete."
"The Monster boy series is good and not too difficult as well."
#10
La-Mulana
4.8
(6)
"The La-Mulana games are the GOAT when it comes to puzzles. I like the second better than the first as it's less opaque and the underlying Metroidvania gameplay is better."
"La Mulana 1 & 2, Animal Well, Outer Wilds, Tunic, Eldritchvania, Exographer"
"La Mulana 1 & 2. Period."
"Someone else mentioned La Mulana 1 & 2, and they don't get much more puzzle-y than that."
"The La Mulana titles absolutely count as Metroidvanias in my opinion, and yeah, if you want headscratcher levels of puzzle difficulty...Yep. You're gonna get that."
"If you haven't tried La Mulana, give it a shot."
#11
SteamWorld
4.7
(6)
"Islets and SteamWorld Dig 2"
"Definitely Steamworld Dig 2... It is amazingly good."
"The second game is more of a metroidvania than the first one, but both are a good time."
"Steamworld Dig 1 and 2 are slower paced and I really like their presentation."
"Easy mv games I can think of will be Steamworld Dig, both 1 and 2. It's an introduction to the genre without the heavy fight and soul-like thing, good for exploring and upgrading"
"Steamworld Dig 2 then Prince of Persia The Lost Crown"
#12
F.I.S.T. Forged In Shadow Torch
4.0
(6)
"I’ve never seen a more interesting, detailed and alive background than FIST"
"F.I.S.T. It has some of the best visuals I ever seen on an MV, fun enough combat, and snappy traversal"
"If you look for something easy I recommend F.I.S.T forged in shadow torch, steampunk bunny running around beating the heck out of anyone"
"F.I.S.T. Forged in Shadow Torch was pretty good as well I thought."
"Fist forged in shadow"
"I really wanted to like F.I.S.T. but it has alot of issues"
#13
Castlevania
4.8
(5)
"The greatest game of all time."
"Is on Android."
"Is a given."
"Obviously."
"Is really good."
#14
Mossmouth
4.4
(5)
"Animal Well. The art is amazing and the abilities u gain are unique."
"Animal well - These first three are 10/10s."
"Animal Well is good fun, beautiful, not too difficult, and has an insane level of depth to it if you like obtuse mystery puzzles."
"Animal Well."
"Animal Well!"
#15
Valve
4.4
(5)
"There are SO many great metroidvanias on Steam"
"Steam Deck would be the sensible alternative. That's the way to have virtually every Metroidvania ever accessible for you."
"I recently grabbed a Steam Deck, and I'm checking out games on that too. You can't go wrong with either one."
"I have a Steam Deck and it plays most Metroidvanias quite smoothly."
"Steam deck and switch easy"
#16
Afterimage
3.5
(6)
"The game's graphics look great. Kind of remind me of Ori."
"Underrated would be AfterImage"
"Afterimage had amazing art"
"I just bought Afterimage the other day and I'm struggling with it."
"I've played bloodstained/afterimage/tales of kenzera/salt and sanctuary and id definitely say out of those afterimage and tales of kenzera are the easier ones to get into."
"Afterimage was okay in terms of difficulty I think. And it's absolutely massive."
#17
Sabotage Studio
4.2
(5)
"The Messenger is a particularly witty adventure/metroidvania. I’ve had an absolute blast playing it."
"Maybe The Messenger for 8 bit/16 bit 2D or Death's Door for a more modern isometric metroidvania."
"If you’ve played aria of sorrow then i think you will enjoy the sequel dawn of sorrow."
"The last faith is a very fun experience, it pulls some elements from bloodborne and theres a lot of customization for your build (like a soulsborne), and its in general fun!, highly recommend it."
"The last faith. havent played it but herd its is good"
#18
Islets
4.0
(5)
"Islets and SteamWorld Dig 2"
"Islets"
"Astalon, Ghost Song or Islets"
"Islets is great."
"Islets is easy to get into, might be good for a player returning to the genre."
#19
MercurySteam
5.0
(4)
"Also play Metroid Dread."
"Metroid Dread and Metroid Prime Remastered."
"Metroid Dread is also a worthy Metroid sequel."
"Metroid dread is also really fun."
#20
WayForward Technologies
4.0
(5)
"They're a series of cartoonish metroidvanias where you play as a genie girl that whips monster with her hair."
"Shantae and the Seven Sirens: It's a smaller Metroidvania and maybe a bit simplistic at points, but it's competently made and somewhat feels like a good entry point to me."
"Shantae and the Pirates Curse"
"Shantae is a good choice if you have a console."
"The Shantae series"
#21
Clover Bite
3.6
(5)
"I'd recommend Grime - some of the best combat mechanics in the genre and IMO the best soundtrack too."
"Surprised I don't see any GRIME on here. It's the bomb"
"Try Grime! Pretty good game for me"
"Terrible controls, terrible load times. I don’t like it at all and don’t understand the love for it."
"Grime, pop: lost crown"
#22
Palm Pioneer
4.5
(4)
"Go with Nine Sols. I still think Nine Sols comes out on top for me personally."
"Also play Nine Sols."
"You should try Nine sols. It can be rough on the standard mode at time but they also have a story mode with is much easier."
"I've been playing Worldless lately and its absolutely stunning, I really love the visuals, combat gets kinda difficult though. Highly recommended :)"
#23
Momodora
4.5
(4)
"Momodora (any)"
"Momodora I loved the series."
"Metroidvania: Momodora: reverie under the moonlight/Moonlit Farewell"
"Momodora"
#24
DrinkBox Studios
4.5
(4)
"I second guacamelee, I enjoyed it far more than I thought I would. AND the second one."
"Really recommend Guacamelee 2"
"Guacamelee 2, yokus island express, Ori blind forest"
"Guacamelee has some tricky optional platforming but the main story path is very approachable, no harder than anything in Bloodstained."
#25
Souldiers
4.0
(4)
"People never seem to mention the game Souldiers. It's such a greatly put-together game."
"Definitely check out Souldiers. It has 3 different classes that you can experience the entire game in - archer, mage, and swordsman. Cool replay value but the game took me 30 hours to 100%."
"Souldiers was fun but it was definitely padded."
"Souldiers (very cool pixel art graphics but very long and padded)"
#26
Yoku's Island Express
4.0
(4)
"Yoku's Island Express. Enjoyed it very much and don't hear many talk about it."
"Yoku's Island Express looks pretty gorgeous."
"Guacamelee 2, yokus island express, Ori blind forest"
"If you like pinball, Yoku's Island"
#27
F.I.S.T.
3.8
(4)
"I loved FIST player for hours when Xbox game pass added it."
"F.I.S.T. (stereotypical Metroidvania)"
"F.I.S.T"
"I really wanted to like fist, but had to put it down."
#28
Astalon
4.7
(3)
"I definitely think you should play Astalon"
"Astalon"
"For retro style check out Astalon: Tears of the Earth and Castle in the Darkness."
#29
Ender Lilies
4.7
(3)
"Here are some of MVs that I really enjoyed: Hollow Knight, Ender Lilies & Ender Magnolia, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Astalon: Tears of the Earth, Ori and the Blind Forest & Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Death's Gambit: Afterlife, Doomblade, HAAK, Yoku's Island Express."
"Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights and Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist, two very straight forward Metroidvanias in terms of gameplay and story."
"Nice, they gave Ender Lilies out for free with Amazon Prime recently so I installed it. It's on the play list for sure."
#30
Environmental Station Alpha
4.7
(3)
"Some great but underrated games have already been mentioned here, such as ***Environmental Station Alpha***."
"Environmental Station Alpha is now playable on Steam Deck and in my opinion it’s one of the best Metroid-Likes ever made."
"Environmental Station Alpha, Animal Well, Shadow Complex, Batman Arkham Origins Blackgate"
#31
Bloodstained
4.3
(3)
"Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night for something like a modern symphony of the night."
"Bloodstained is basically the best metroidvaia in recent years, aside maybe some more obscure indie I haven't heard of yet."
"This always gets me downvoted but I honestly think the gameplay itself does what Bloodstained did but better."
#32
Unsighted
4.3
(3)
"More of a Zelda-like than a metroidvania, but I just completed Unsighted and it’s phenomenal"
"Unsighted was cool."
"Unsighted"
#33
Death's Gambit
4.3
(3)
"Death’s Gambit Afterlife needs to be on your list ASAP."
"Deaths gambit;afterlife runs well and I enjoy the visual effects and pixel art"
"Death's Gambit is another not very well known one that's really good."
#34
The Game Kitchen
3.7
(3)
"Blasphemous has hard bosses in a few places, but it mostly doesn’t have tricky platforming."
"Blasphemous 1 and blasphemous 2"
"If you are a beginner then Blasphemous can wait, as it is hard and can be challenging"
#35
Axiom Verge
5.0
(2)
"Axiom verge (1 especially. Also 2)"
"If you ever played Super Metroid, Axiom Verge 1 is a love letter to it. And personally I love the music, pixel art, and story of the game. It has such a great atmosphere."
#36
Cookie Cutter
5.0
(2)
"Some great but underrated games have already been mentioned here, such as ***Cookie Cutter***"
"I think Cookie Cutter is amazing."
#37
Humongous Entertainment
5.0
(2)
"Dust: An Elysian Tail, Ender Lilies, Afterimage, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, the newer Shantae games"
"Dust: An Elysian Tail."
#38
Axium Verge series
5.0
(2)
"Here are a few Metroidvania games that I have enjoyed and actually completed: Axium Verge 1 and 2"
"Here are a few Metroidvania games that I have enjoyed and actually completed: Axium Verge 1 and 2"
#39
Tunic
5.0
(2)
"Tunic is basically a big puzzle in ways that will surprise you. Animal Well is great too."
"Tunic is a masterpiece."
#40
Metroid
5.0
(2)
"Honestly the best "beginner" MVs are the OGs, Metroid and Castlevania. Maybe not the NES Metroid, but Super Metroid, Zero Mission, and Dread are all solid"
"A classic Metroid game is what I recommend. Super Metroid or Zero Mission are probably the best."
#41
Dark Light
4.5
(2)
"I absolutely loved dark light"
"Check out Dark Light"
#42
Moonscars
4.5
(2)
"Gotta recommend u about Moonscars"
"Have you played Moonscars? Gotten a few patches since release that improved it"
#43
The Last Case of Benedict Fox
4.5
(2)
"I have finished it less then a month ago, and I loved it. There are multiple puzzle types, wonderful graphics, Lovecraftian atmosphere and storytelling, fine combat and some Ori -like escaping / fleeing precision platforming sequences."
"Underrated would be Benedict Fox."
#44
Kadokawa Games
4.5
(2)
"Record of Lodoss War-Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth-. This is one title of the same game incase you are confused. Awesome music, great story, beautiful graphics."
"Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth! Has a very "classic" feel."
#45
Nine Sols
4.5
(2)
"Nine sols"
"Check out Nine Sols"
#46
Valdis Story
4.0
(2)
"Dust: An Elysian Tail and Valdis Story: Abyssal City are a little older but also great modern metroidvanias."
"Valdis Story is an old but gold and forgotten Metroidvania."
#47
The Mobius Machine
4.0
(2)
"Check out The Mobius Machine"
"Our game The Mobius Machine is Steam Deck Verified, and it is under the radar of many Metroidvania fans"
#48
Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom
4.0
(2)
"Monsterboy is great all around. The graphics almost felt a bit like a mobile game but you'll get used to it. Really cool switching between the different animal forms and the power ups are all pretty satisfying."
"Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom (slow first 90 minutes then ramps up)"
#49
Depths of Sanity
4.0
(2)
"I enjoyed Depths of Sanity. Very unique."
"Depths of Sanity"
#50
Death's Door
4.0
(2)
"Death's Door is a metroidvania that feels similar to Tunic in gameplay, but it can get hard."
"Maybe The Messenger for 8 bit/16 bit 2D or Death's Door for a more modern isometric metroidvania."
#51
Blasphemous
4.0
(2)
"If you haven’t played it, you ought to give it a go."
"Blasphemous"
#52
Iron Diamond
3.5
(2)
"Iron Diamond"
"May I suggest Iron Diamond, it has just released and has mixed reviews."
#53
Grime
3.0
(2)
"Grime was alright."
"Grime"
#54
Ender Magnolia
5.0
(1)
"Here are some of MVs that I really enjoyed: Hollow Knight, Ender Lilies & Ender Magnolia, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Astalon: Tears of the Earth, Ori and the Blind Forest & Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Death's Gambit: Afterlife, Doomblade, HAAK, Yoku's Island Express."
#55
Ori
5.0
(1)
"Very excited to start the next Ori."
#56
Guacamelee 2
4.0
(1)
"Guacamelee 2 (and 1)"
#57
Somber Echoes
4.0
(1)
"Somber Echoes is a fresh release that has positive mentions of steam deck support."
#58
Selene
4.0
(1)
"Pampas and Selene seemed to have flown under the radar, it's a very oldschool feel if you're into that."
#59
Pampas
4.0
(1)
"Pampas and Selene seemed to have flown under the radar, it's a very oldschool feel if you're into that."
#60
Ultros
4.0
(1)
"Ultros and Ghost Song both got average reviews, but to me they were both excellent."
#61
Frontier Hunter
4.0
(1)
"Frontier Hunter is great if you can tolerate ecchi anime style plot."
#62
Guns of Fury
4.0
(1)
"Basically Metal Slug as a metroidvania. Pretty fun game, do recommend."
#63
Rebel Transmute
4.0
(1)
"Check out Rebel Transmute"
#64
Severed
4.0
(1)
"Is worth checking out."
#65
The Last Faith
4.0
(1)
"Check out The Last Faith"
#66
Infernax
4.0
(1)
"Infernax - This one is even co-op"
#67
Touhou Luna Nights
4.0
(1)
"Touhou Luna Nights and Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth"
#68
Bobo the Cat
4.0
(1)
"Bobo the Cat: free Metroidvania that's well worth the time investment! Please don't let the slow start put you off!"
#69
Dust: An Elysian Tail
4.0
(1)
"Dust: An Elysian Tail and Valdis Story: Abyssal City are a little older but also great modern metroidvanias."
#70
Grimvalor
4.0
(1)
"Good combat, fluid movement, map kinda sucks though."
#71
Apotheon
4.0
(1)
"Apotheon is a hidden gem that I never see any one bring up"
#72
Dead Cells
4.0
(1)
"Is always a good suggestion on any platform!"
#73
Alwa
4.0
(1)
"Both Alwa metroidvanias are $1 each for the next 16 hours."
#74
AM2R
4.0
(1)
"You can install AM2R, Axiom Verge, and Super Metroid Redux."
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