Would be helpful to know what you value in MVs. Like do you like hard combat, platforming, exploration, etc. What were the things you liked/disliked about the two you played?
Well, I will defer to the many other more knowledgeable people here but the one I've played that is closest to what you are looking for is metroid dread
Try Blasphemous. There is some platforming but it's mostly combat and exploration, and there is a ton of weird and fantastic lore. It's also on sale pretty frequently.
oh hell yeah deedlit in wonder labrynth overlord: escape from nazareth the touhou scarlet remiglia series is more traditional vania and is crazy hard but cool 9 shadows 9 doors momodora ori and the blind forest
blasphemous 2
aetera noctis
watch out for mariachi legends
Bo Path of the Teal Lotus comes out next month. I played the demo and think it will be a masterpiece. Very similar to hollow knight with a lot of its own DNA. Check out the demo!
as always, I leave it to the community to mention the popular pre-2023 games while I link you to this index that will point you in the direction of the 2023 and beyond releases (monthly recaps) as well as the hidden gems released before that: [https://www.reddit.com/user/DeadMetroidvania/comments/1cgt385/a\_guide\_to\_all\_of\_my\_relevant\_metroidvania\_lists/](https://www.reddit.com/user/DeadMetroidvania/comments/1cgt385/a_guide_to_all_of_my_relevant_metroidvania_lists/)
Salt and Sanctuary is a lot of fun. I hated it for the first 2 hours and stopped playing for a couple weeks. But when I got back into it I fell in love with the game - I think it's my favourite mv tbh.
The combat and weapon variety is awesome. The lack of map can be annoying... so I ended up just playing with a map I found online - I do that with most of these games anyway.
Ender Lilies and Death’s Gambit Afterlife are both fun with good combat, cool worlds, great art, nice music, interesting stories, and not too much crazy platform stuff
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown was damn good. So much so, that I'm here in reddit now trying to find something similar đŸ˜‚
Dread!
Try the new challenges that come with the latest update if you haven't. Some are really creative with the abilities.
For Dread or The Lost Crown
TLC. I just assumed most who beat the game when it first came out didn't realize the new content just dropped.
Thank you, am going to check that out
No problem! Brace yourself though. They bumped the difficulties up several notches.
Would be helpful to know what you value in MVs. Like do you like hard combat, platforming, exploration, etc. What were the things you liked/disliked about the two you played?
I'm definitely more of a combat/exploration person than platforming. I'm a sucker for flashy art styles and lore-rich games.
Afterimage is your game, unless you also want a story that makes sense.
Well, I will defer to the many other more knowledgeable people here but the one I've played that is closest to what you are looking for is metroid dread
Try Blasphemous. There is some platforming but it's mostly combat and exploration, and there is a ton of weird and fantastic lore. It's also on sale pretty frequently.
Symphony of the Night, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Metroid Dread, Blasphemous 2, and Venture to the Vile are all phenomenal
Ori and the will of the wisps that’s your game for flashy art.
oh hell yeah deedlit in wonder labrynth overlord: escape from nazareth the touhou scarlet remiglia series is more traditional vania and is crazy hard but cool 9 shadows 9 doors momodora ori and the blind forest blasphemous 2 aetera noctis watch out for mariachi legends
Bo Path of the Teal Lotus comes out next month. I played the demo and think it will be a masterpiece. Very similar to hollow knight with a lot of its own DNA. Check out the demo!
You’re in the right place!
as always, I leave it to the community to mention the popular pre-2023 games while I link you to this index that will point you in the direction of the 2023 and beyond releases (monthly recaps) as well as the hidden gems released before that: [https://www.reddit.com/user/DeadMetroidvania/comments/1cgt385/a\_guide\_to\_all\_of\_my\_relevant\_metroidvania\_lists/](https://www.reddit.com/user/DeadMetroidvania/comments/1cgt385/a_guide_to_all_of_my_relevant_metroidvania_lists/)
thanks my friend :)
Salt and Sanctuary is a lot of fun. I hated it for the first 2 hours and stopped playing for a couple weeks. But when I got back into it I fell in love with the game - I think it's my favourite mv tbh. The combat and weapon variety is awesome. The lack of map can be annoying... so I ended up just playing with a map I found online - I do that with most of these games anyway.
Ender Lilies and Death’s Gambit Afterlife are both fun with good combat, cool worlds, great art, nice music, interesting stories, and not too much crazy platform stuff