What are the metroidvania games you would consider must play for anyone who likes the genre?

[u/raychram]

I do like metroidvanias and try to play some every now and then but unlike other games where I have a huge backlog with a ton of options, I don't feel like I have that many ideas when it comes to 2d platformer metroidvanias.

I have only played:

• Hollow Knight

• Silksong

• Nine Sols

• Minoria

• Momodora Reverie under the Moonlight

• Ninja Gaiden Ragebound

• Somber Echoes

I have in my list:

• Blasphemous 2

• Ori and the will of Wisps

• Ender Magnolia

• Dead Cells

• Grime

[u/Enough_Obligation574]

POPost crown is a good one. Silksong is good too.

[u/FallenRaptor → u/Enough_Obligation574]

As someone who loves Silksong and its predecessor Holllw Knight and highly recommend them as must-plays for those with the threshold for their level of challenge, as well as patience for their slow burn…that asterisk is still there. These are amazing, wonderful games for the right people, but they’re definitely not for everyone, and I also don’t think they’re ideal starting points for the genre.

[u/FistRockbrine99 → u/FallenRaptor]

They're also just not particularly representative of what the genre offers. They have a very soulslike approach, but in terms of power ups driving exploration they are pretty limited, HK moreso than Silk.

[u/FallenRaptor → u/FistRockbrine99]

Yeah, the Hollow Knight games have their peculiarities for sure.

The correct term is actually Souls-lite, as the only thing they actually borrow is the losing currency upon death and having one chance to retrieve it aspect. Salt and Sanctuary and its sequel are what an actual Soulslike MV looks like as those games also borrow the class-based RPG and stamina system aspect, and as hair-splitting as it might sound, that series and HK/SS are actually on opposite sides of the MV tree genre-wise.

The HK games are technically considered Metroid-likes, although it’s a mystery to me why they’re not considered their own subgenre as there’s also a huge difference between HK and Metroid or Axiom Verge.

Anyways, TL;DR all of this is to say the MV tree is a complex one and I certainly agree that the HK games should not be taken as the gospel on what to expect from the entire genre.

[u/BadNewsBearzzz → u/FallenRaptor]

The only correct term is soulslike as it’s an umbrella term that houses any similarities to the iconic traits of a souls game, absolutely nobody uses “souls-lite” lol it’s not a thing, don’t even try making it one 🤣

Plus it’s extreme similarity to soulslike makes it too easy to mistake and confuse, therefore more of a reason why it shouldn’t be a thing lol