The Aquatic Adventure of the Last Human
4 out of 5. While its story may be a case study in ludo-narrative dissonance, The Aquatic Adventure of the Last Human provides a unique underwater take on metroidvania design with some great bosses.
Drilly Willis
2 out of 5. Drilly Willis has fun exploration and a lot of heart, but it can be broken and frustrating in other aspects. The first impressions you had looking at its screenshots are probably right.
BatBarian: Testament of the Primordials
4.5 out of 5. A multitasking focused action puzzle-platformer that will bend your brain in creative ways, with all of its challenges being wrapped up in great music and a charming layered narrative.
An Untitled Story
4 out of 5. Maddy Thorson’s earlier work still holds up in terms of game design, offering a robust Metroidvania world to explore and plenty of precision platforming challenges.
Artifacts
3 out of 5. Strong level design in combination with novel concepts creates a fun risk/reward Metroidvania experience, even if a lot could be improved in terms of technical polish.
Aquaria
3.5 out of 5. In spite of some rougher edges around its gameplay, Aqauria’s world is like no other, and if you allow yourself to be immersed within it, it will doubtlessly bind itself to your memory.
Sheepo
3 out of 5. A functional and fun platformer that manages to wear just a little thin with its gimmicks even with its short playtime, but makes up for it with a uniquely bizarre atmosphere.
UnEpic – Single Player Mode
3.5 out of 5. UnEpic pulls off strategy and action with varying degrees of success, but the true value of the game will come from whether you are in the target audience for the story it presents.
Carrion
Become the monster in this reverse horror game. Grow, evolve, and consume the humans that tried to contain you.
Maptroid
3 out of 5. A fun (and free) 15-minute parody of the Metroidvania map system that is well worth taking the time to play.
Bananas Academy’s Psyber
An educational Metroidvania-inspired platformer that teaches the fundamentals of Computer Programming.
Bone Appetit
4 out of 5. A delightfully open-ended Metroidvania that asks you to forge your own path to its final encounter, with a few twists to encourage resource planning and player expression.
Pear Potion
A Hero Core inspired top-down Metroidvania involving witchcraft and fruity potion brewing.
Bookbound Brigade
1.5 out of 5. Bookbound Brigade’s unmatched premise and beautiful presentation values are lost on its poor writing and level design, resulting in a mostly frustrating use of your time.
Jumplord
3 out of 5. Nothing creates the feeling of being in an alien world like a game that does things completely different. Jumplord begins and ends with infinite jumping, but it’s more complicated than that.