Metroidvania is a weird genre, isn't it?

[evilcommiedictator]

Soulsborne is 100% about improving your skill and 0% XP farming. Just because you can level up doesn't make it a forced grind. The attribute changes are negligible anyway, this should be clueing the player in. It could be argued that the way weapon upgrades work make finding Titanite etc the closest thing you do to "farming", but I made it through comfortably without doing any of that and my skill level is utterly average.

Something something Black Knight Halberd something. Also why then hide spells and miracles in merchant inventories :P

[jimboslice]

Love Metroidvanias. Ori, Guacamelee, Arkham Asylum if that counts...

Metroid Prime is an absolutely beautiful game that I have ridiculously fond memories of. I remember completely shitting myself when you get given the thermal visor, the lights go out, and space pirates start dropping from the ceiling while you scramble to stick your new power on. Still waiting for Metroid Prime 3 to appear on the Switch so I can complete the set. The Metroid games on the GBA were also great too (Fusion / Zero Mission / Another maybe?). I imagine the 2D ones haven't dated as much.

There was a great one on the 360 called Shadow Complex, but the studio behind it just seem to make mobile phone games now.

I agree about Hollow Knight being a pain in the arse to backtrack in. It's also just too difficult for me.

[Kelvin]

Has anyone played Blasphemous? It's one of the best 2D Metroidvanias I've played.

Set in a world where unhinged religious fanaticism is the norm and people are constantly being twisted and transformed by the will of the Divine Miracle, its a fairly difficult metroidvania with really strong art design and world building.

I say it's difficult, but really, I think the game starts very hard, but tilts back to being a more reasonable challenge after the first few bosses. I'd say the biggest thing that might put people off, though, is the really oppressive and often quite depressing tone of the game, which has a heavy focus on cruel, unknowable divinity and the suffering people accept in their devotion. Everyone's always coming a cropper to some horrible, ironic fate, or taking on some thankless duty - and early on, I really found it all a but much, a bit try hard. By the end, though, I thought the world was fantastically fleshed out, similar to how it was in games like Hollow Knight, or dare I say it, Dark Souls, which it undoubtedly takes cues from.

Anyway, it's a strong recommendation, with a nice open-ended map you can generally explore in any order (something that weirdly uncommon in the genre) and which has a really unique and disturbing atmosphere, with lovely art and voice acting.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3SxYMu5qGY           



I played it on Switch, but I think it's available on everything.

[Pink Gregory]

Tried the demo, it seems full of promise, but as you say the tone and design, while clearly very, very good, didn't endear me to it at all.  Just hit me the wrong way at the time I guess.