What is the best Metroidvania game?

Hollow Knight is the most common pick - a huge, hand-drawn world, combat with real weight, and exploration that rewards curiosity. Its sequel Silksong, out since September 2025, is the other name people reach for now. Both build on the genre-defining classics: Super Metroid and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.

What's a good Metroidvania like Blasphemous?

If you want the same bleak atmosphere and deliberate, punishing combat, try Nine Sols, Ender Lilies, and Salt and Sanctuary. We keep a full rundown of games like Blasphemous, and a separate list of soulslike Metroidvanias if the difficulty is the part you're chasing.

Is Hollow Knight a good place to start?

Yes, with a caveat: it's large and doesn't hold your hand, which is exactly why people love it. If you want something more guided first, Ori and the Blind Forest or Guacamelee is a gentler entry into the genre.

What makes a Metroidvania different from a platformer?

A platformer is usually a sequence of levels. A Metroidvania is one interconnected world gated by abilities, where progress comes from exploration and backtracking rather than moving stage to stage. That single connected map, slowly opening up as you gain new powers, is the thing every game on this list has in common.

What is the difference between Metroid and Castlevania in the Metroidvania genre?

Metroid emphasizes atmospheric, isolated exploration with minimal story and sparse upgrades. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night added RPG layers - experience, levels, equipment, a huge item list. Modern Metroidvanias borrow from both, and most lean heavier on the Castlevania side for progression depth.

How long does it take to finish Hollow Knight?

A focused first playthrough runs roughly 25-40 hours; completionists report 60+ hours. The base game is very large by genre standards, and the free Godmaster DLC adds significantly more endgame content.

Are Metroidvanias hard?

The genre varies. Hollow Knight, Blasphemous, and Nine Sols are genuinely difficult; Ori and the Blind Forest and Guacamelee are more forgiving. The difficulty usually comes from boss fights and navigation rather than reflexes alone, and many modern entries let you tune it.

Does Metroid Dread count as a Metroidvania?

Yes - it's the series that gave the genre its 'Metro' half, so Metroid Dread is about as pure a Metroidvania as you can get. Dread is notable for its EMMI chase sequences and a faster, more aggressive combat feel compared to older entries.

What Metroidvania games are coming out soon?

The genre is active. Beyond established series, smaller studios release Metroidvanias constantly. KUTO: The Lock of Time is one to watch - a time-bending Metroidvania with a die-and-retry structure and time-manipulation combat, spanning settings from Ancient Egypt to a sci-fi far future.

What time powers does KUTO: The Lock of Time use in its Metroidvania structure?

The game gives Jokoan Kuto time abilities drawn from his bond with the titan Kronos - bullet-time, rewind, dash, and others grouped as 'Time Keys.' You pick two per run. In a Metroidvania structure, time powers naturally suggest a progression where unlocking new abilities opens previously inaccessible areas.

2026-06-11Updated 2026-07-22Andrii Kovalenko6 min read

The Best Metroidvania Games: 17 Essential Picks

The best Metroidvania games, from Super Metroid and Hollow Knight to modern picks like Silksong, Ender Magnolia, Ultros, and Nine Sols.

Ask five people for the best Metroidvania and you'll hear Hollow Knight, its sequel Silksong, and Super Metroid in some order - the first two for sheer scope and combat, the third because nearly everything else on this list still owes it something. The genre's name is a mash-up of Metroid and Castlevania, and its rules are simple: one interconnected world, gated by abilities, where you push forward until you hit a wall you can't cross yet - then come back later with a new power and find the wall was a door. New to all this? Start with what a Metroidvania actually is.

Here are seventeen worth getting lost in, running from the founders to 2025's best new releases - plus a time-bending newcomer on the way.

Quick picks

If you want...	Play this
The best overall	Hollow Knight, or Silksong once you've cleared it
The best entry point	Guacamelee - bright, funny, and forgiving
The hardest fight	Blasphemous - slow, deliberate, closer to a Souls game than a platformer
The best story	Ori and the Blind Forest
The best 2025 release	Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist

Super Metroid

The blueprint. Super Metroid (1994) set the template for atmospheric, ability-gated exploration: a lonely alien world, almost no text, and a map that teaches you to read it. Nearly every game below owes it something. If you want more of that specific isolated-planet mood, we have a whole list of games like Metroid.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

The other founder, and the game that gave the genre its "-vania" half. Symphony of the Night (1997) fused Metroid's exploration with RPG progression - experience, levels, equipment, an enormous item list - and made looting and building a character part of the appeal. It still plays beautifully.

Metroid Dread

The series that started it all, refined into a tense, fast, modern entry. Dread's EMMI chase sequences turn stretches of the map into stealth-horror, and its combat is quicker and more aggressive than older Metroids. As pure a Metroidvania as you'll find.

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night

Symphony of the Night's spiritual successor, made by the same designer. Bloodstained is unapologetically old-school: a sprawling gothic castle, a deep crafting and shard system, and dozens of hours of loot-driven exploration. If SotN is the classic you missed, this is the modern one built in its image.

Guacamelee

A bright, funny outlier. Guacamelee wraps its Metroidvania map in Mexican folklore, luchador combat, and dimension-swapping platforming that gets fiendishly precise late on. It's one of the most approachable ways into the genre, and the co-op makes it a rare couch-friendly pick.

Ori and the Blind Forest

The prettiest entry, and one of the most approachable. Ori pairs precise platforming with a genuinely moving story and hand-painted art that still looks stunning. Its sequel, Will of the Wisps, adds proper combat and an even bigger world - if you love one, play the other, and see our list of games like Ori and the Will of the Wisps for what's next.

Hollow Knight

The modern high point for most players. A vast, hand-drawn underground world, combat with real weight, and exploration that constantly rewards curiosity. It barely tells you where to go, and that's the appeal - the map reveals itself through your own poking around. It's big, it's hard, and it's the game most people mean when they say "the best Metroidvania."

Blasphemous

Dark-fantasy misery done gorgeously. Blasphemous sets its world in twisted Catholic iconography and plays combat slow and punishing, closer to a Souls game than a platformer. If that grim, deliberate feel is what you're after, see games like Blasphemous and our roundup of soulslike Metroidvanias. The sequel, Blasphemous 2, sharpens the combat and is the better starting point for newcomers.

Ender Lilies

A quieter kind of bleak. Ender Lilies is a melancholy, beautiful Metroidvania where you fight by summoning the spirits of the enemies you defeat, building a party of attacks as you go. It's more forgiving than Blasphemous but shares the same gothic, mournful atmosphere - a great pick if you want the mood without the maximum difficulty.

Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist

Ender Lilies' sequel, and one of 2025's best surprises. Ender Magnolia keeps the spirit-summoning idea but hands it to mechanical Homunculi instead of ghosts - each one gives you a travel ability or an attack, with three variations per Homunculus that double as your build. The bosses hit harder than the original's ever did, and the mist-poisoned, Victorian-tinged world is the best-looking thing Binary Haze has shipped. If Ender Lilies was the quiet, sad cousin, this one grew teeth.

Nine Sols

One of the best of the current wave. Nine Sols wraps a "Sekiro-like" parry-based combat system in a striking Taopunk world and hand-drawn art, and its bosses are the highlight. It's demanding but fair, and it's become a genre favourite fast - here's more on games like Nine Sols if it clicks.

Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus

A platforming-first Metroidvania that leans on skill more than exploration. Bo wraps its map in Japanese folklore and a charming cast of frog monks, and its boss fights are the reason to play - tight, demanding, and generous with a checkpoint right before the one that matters. It doesn't reinvent the genre's structure, and honestly it doesn't need to; the platforming alone carries it.

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

The mainstream revival nobody saw coming. The Lost Crown is a big-budget, superbly polished Metroidvania with fluid combat, time-based powers, and a smart "memory shard" system that screenshots the map so you remember where that locked door was. Widely considered one of the best in years. See games like Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown for similar picks.

Animal Well

The puzzle-box. Animal Well is a tiny, strange, meticulously crafted game where your "abilities" are odd little tools - a bubble wand, a frisbee - and the real progression is knowledge. It hides secrets inside secrets, and the community is still digging. Nothing else on this list feels quite like it.

Ultros

The genre's weirdest recent entry. Ultros sets its Metroidvania map inside a cosmic, uterus-shaped sarcophagus, coats it in neon psychedelic art, and layers in a time-loop structure where you replant a dying ecosystem between resets. The combat feels good even when you're not entirely sure what's happening to the plot, which is often - the hard sci-fi worldbuilding asks a lot of patience. Play it for the visuals and the loop; the lore can wait.

Hollow Knight: Silksong

The long-awaited sequel, out since September 2025, and an instant flashpoint for the genre. Silksong swaps Hollow Knight's slow drift for faster, more aggressive movement and combat, a new world, and a steeper challenge. If you've finished it - or you're still waiting on your ideal follow-up - our list of games like Hollow Knight: Silksong has more.

The best modern Metroidvanias

If your search is specifically for modern Metroidvanias, the picks that matter most are the recent ones: Hollow Knight and Silksong, Nine Sols, Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist, Blasphemous 2, Ultros, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Ender Lilies, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Metroid Dread, Bo: Path of the Teal Lotus, and Animal Well. Together they show how far the genre has stretched - from soulslike parry duels to hand-painted platforming to puzzle-boxes that never stop hiding things. And it's not slowing down: we keep a running list of upcoming Metroidvania games in 2026, plus a shelf of roguelike Metroidvanias for players who want the structure with permadeath baked in.

The time-bending newcomer: KUTO: The Lock of Time

Our own game, KUTO: The Lock of Time, is a time-bending action Metroidvania - not a roguelike, though it sits close to that crossover. You bend time and fight through eras with the Scythe of Kronos, and a die-and-retry structure keeps meta-progression between deaths. The map opens the familiar Metroidvania way, except the keys are time powers: bullet-time, rewind, dash. If that mix sounds like your thing, you can wishlist KUTO on Steam.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best Metroidvania game?: Hollow Knight is the most common pick - a huge, hand-drawn world, combat with real weight, and exploration that rewards curiosity. Its sequel Silksong, out since September 2025, is the other name people reach for now. Both build on the genre-defining classics: Super Metroid and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.
What are the best modern Metroidvanias?: For games from roughly the last few years, the standouts are Hollow Knight and its sequel Silksong, Nine Sols, Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist, Blasphemous and Blasphemous 2, Ultros, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Ender Lilies, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Metroid Dread, and Animal Well. Between them they cover fast combat, soulslike difficulty, gorgeous art, and clever puzzle-boxes.
What's a good Metroidvania like Blasphemous?: If you want the same bleak atmosphere and deliberate, punishing combat, try Nine Sols, Ender Lilies, and Salt and Sanctuary. We keep a full rundown of games like Blasphemous, and a separate list of soulslike Metroidvanias if the difficulty is the part you're chasing.
Is Hollow Knight a good place to start?: Yes, with a caveat: it's large and doesn't hold your hand, which is exactly why people love it. If you want something more guided first, Ori and the Blind Forest or Guacamelee is a gentler entry into the genre.
What makes a Metroidvania different from a platformer?: A platformer is usually a sequence of levels. A Metroidvania is one interconnected world gated by abilities, where progress comes from exploration and backtracking rather than moving stage to stage. That single connected map, slowly opening up as you gain new powers, is the thing every game on this list has in common.
What is the difference between Metroid and Castlevania in the Metroidvania genre?: Metroid emphasizes atmospheric, isolated exploration with minimal story and sparse upgrades. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night added RPG layers - experience, levels, equipment, a huge item list. Modern Metroidvanias borrow from both, and most lean heavier on the Castlevania side for progression depth.
How long does it take to finish Hollow Knight?: A focused first playthrough runs roughly 25-40 hours; completionists report 60+ hours. The base game is very large by genre standards, and the free Godmaster DLC adds significantly more endgame content.
Are Metroidvanias hard?: The genre varies. Hollow Knight, Blasphemous, and Nine Sols are genuinely difficult; Ori and the Blind Forest and Guacamelee are more forgiving. The difficulty usually comes from boss fights and navigation rather than reflexes alone, and many modern entries let you tune it.
Does Metroid Dread count as a Metroidvania?: Yes - it's the series that gave the genre its 'Metro' half, so Metroid Dread is about as pure a Metroidvania as you can get. Dread is notable for its EMMI chase sequences and a faster, more aggressive combat feel compared to older entries.
What Metroidvania games are coming out soon?: The genre is active. Beyond established series, smaller studios release Metroidvanias constantly. KUTO: The Lock of Time is one to watch - a time-bending Metroidvania with a die-and-retry structure and time-manipulation combat, spanning settings from Ancient Egypt to a sci-fi far future.
What time powers does KUTO: The Lock of Time use in its Metroidvania structure?: The game gives Jokoan Kuto time abilities drawn from his bond with the titan Kronos - bullet-time, rewind, dash, and others grouped as 'Time Keys.' You pick two per run. In a Metroidvania structure, time powers naturally suggest a progression where unlocking new abilities opens previously inaccessible areas.

Keep reading

Jul 15, 2026