When it comes to darkly-tinged action games, there are few franchises more iconic than Konami's 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Castlevania series. Since its debut on NES decades ago, the series has remained a gripping, rich experience despite largely staying true to its retro roots. You know you're dealing with a significant franchise when it helps spur the creation of an 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:entire subgenre, the Metroidvania.
This style of gaming has become increasingly popular, especially among the indie scene — with studios often putting unique spins on the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:sprawling action-adventure formula. Yet, 💟there exist few games that truly replicate the dark, majestic spirit of Castlevania, as well as the grind-it-out gameplay, exploration, and unique progression system.
Updated December 31, 2022 by Stephen LaGioia: Over the past decade, the once-prominent horror series Castlevania has taken a backseat to "spiritual successors" such as Bloodstained and "Metroidvania" titles. Thankfully, fans can still get a healthy dose of similar efforts, many of which bring their own fun elements or interesting twists. And with so many Castlevania-esque games, it seemed like a good time to revisit and resurrect this list.
20 Aggelos
While 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:more akin to the likes of Zelda 2: T🐭he Adventure of Link, this 2D action gam🐽e from 2018 captures that charming 8-bit spirit of hacking and grinding through vast dungeons.
Storybird Games and Wonderboy Bobi pit you in a series of vibrant, interconnected biomes — each with a distinct personality,🐬 and its own sets of foes and hazards to fight. The old-school action gameplay, rewarding progression, and non-linear navigation 🌠should draw plenty of fans to this fantasy thrill ride.
19 🏅 ꦛ Sword Of The Vagrant
Combining hand-drawn artistic flair with over-the-top retro fantasy, Sword of the Vagrant has you assume the role of the traveling sellsword Vivian the Vagrant, as she hacks and slashes her ꦿway through vibrant locales of Mythrilia. These range from battleground ruins to eerie castles and strange 🐎forests.
You can enjoy the thri𓄧lls of fast-paced combat (complete with chai🌄ns and combos), along with the nuance and progression of an RPG.
18 Cathedral
Many indies have embraced the non-linear 2D sidescrolling and combat-based gameplay of Castlevania, as Decemberborn Interactive reiterates with this romp. This fantasy Metroidvania has virtual knights slash their way through over 600 hand-crafted rooms, fending off an onslaught of all kinds o💞f foes while teaming up with a spirit named Soul.
Enemies range from slimes and floating eyes to chilling grim reapers. Don't let the simplistic pixel art and basic combat fool you — Cathedral is surprisingly epic, with a robust 21 hours of gameplay. And, in classic Castelvania fashion, the game limits handholding, forcing you to explore and delve deeply into this mysterious world.
17 🧸 ꦕ Metroid Dread
Given Nintendo's sci-fi classic shares a subgenre with the series in question, it may not surprise some that this flashy 2.5 Metroid game gets a nod. Metroid Dread nicely balances retro sensibilities with modern flashiness — which makes sense being a revival from a decade-old project that draws from an older franchise. While the experience departs somewhat from both Metroid and Castlevania games of old,🥃 Dread still brings intense run-and-gun gameplay and vast 2D corridors.
Samus will spend much time finding upgrades while dealing with the new robotic foes, the E.M.M.I. Adding to this are atmospheric sci-fi settings and expansive exploration that fans should recognize. Though producer Yoshio Sakamoto also mixes things up with elaborate boss fights, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:puzzle-solving, and a more cinematic app𒁃roach generally spea💦king.
16 Timespinner꧑ ﷽
Diehards of Konami's classic should appreciate the quasi-Gothic, fantastical themes of this time-traveling journey from Lunar Ray Games. While erring on the shorter side, Timespinner stresses depth with the content it does have, with a story-driven quest and some tough gameplay that 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:draws from '90s action platformers. The r𒁃esult is a fun thrill ride that feels very "16-bi🍬t Castlevania."
You'll play as the timekeeper Lunais as she fights her way through colorful foes and solves puzzles. She'll do this by wielding blades, spells, and time-bending powers to avenge her fallen family at the hands of an empire. She can even recruit and train familiars who will follow her in battle.
15 ๊ 😼 Axiom Verge
It's quite a bit more "Metroid" than it is "vania," but that doesn't make Axiom Verge any less suitable for fans of the latter franchise. It looks fantastic, the controls are great and it manages to capture the same ominous vibe that both of the classic series are renowned for.
One thing that sets Axiom Verge apart from some of its peers is its near-perfect difficulty. Where many devs push the sliders a little too far in one direction or the other, Thomas Happ strikes the perfect balance. It's still challenging, but such is the design that deaths never feel cheap or unfair. And while the sequel expands upon this gripping formula with a unique Mesopotamian setting and melee focus, it's tough to beat this darker sci-fi original.
14 Chasm
Whether Chasm's visuals come across as a charming throwback or a lazy design choice will vary from player to player, but most will likely agree that the gameplay that it offers is top notch. It's one of the most intuitive Metroidvanias out there and boasts a fantastic combat system that is both simple and effective.
Following a long and challenging Kickstarter campaign, the game finally released in 2018 and was a big hit with both players and critics alike. It's heavily inspired by Castlevania: Symphony of the Night but also features a lot of interesting new ideas that really set it apart from other games in the genre.
13 Shantae And The Sev💟en Sirens
The Shantae franchise is a lot more colorful and vibrant than anything the Castlevania series has ever put out and the tone is often a lot lighter as a reꦏsult. When it comes to gameplay, however, the two IPs are a lot more similar than they might appear at first glance.
Not only are the controls fairly similar, but Shantae even has access to a whip attack. Granted, she uses her hair rather than a traditional whip, but the end result is much the same. Although fairly linear, the level design in Shantae titles is solid too and there's usually a decent variety of enemies and boss fights.
12 The Mummy Demastered 🦄
When it comes to Metroidvanais, few developers have demonstrated as much mastery of the genre as the team over at WayForward Technologies. Such is the case, in fact, that they even managed to achieve the impossible by actually making a good licensed game.
Rather than shiny graphics and celebrity cameos, The Mummy Demastered instead focuses on providing a solid gameplay experience and achieves this emphatically thanks to some wonderful design choices. It may not be "bleeding edge," but the game's pixel art is of the highest order and, together with other elements, it creates a truly wonderful aesthetic.
11 🍌 Guacamelee
Guacamelee is a pretty bizarre game, but it's also an incredibly enjoyable one. Its often ridiculous nature leads to some genuinely funny moments, although it is the game's combat that really sets it apart from some of the many other Metroidvanias on the market today.
Taking down enemies feels both rewarding and satisfying and there's a decent amount of attack variety as well. The characters are unique, the music's pretty good and the levels are all well designed; both in terms of their layouts and their visuals. The sequel's great too, meaning there's a logical next step for those who complete the first game.
