Interesting that in the title, stated in absolute terms in the text, and from the designers they interviewed, they cite getting lost as crucial for the genre. Personally, I disagree. Getting lost has tended to be why I didn't care for certain games in this genre, like Axiom Verge, and it soured my otherwise higher opinion of games like Hollow Knight and Symphony of the Night. Still, I think this is a good exploration of the genre and what makes it tick.

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[–] Gradually_Adjusting@lemmy.world 14 points 2 days ago (9 children)

I've seen video essays about metroidvanias that talk about "getting lost". The real point is to follow clues, feel immersed in a world, learn to find your way, and make interesting decisions.

In Hollow Knight, it's no problem to use the compass if you find that aspect too burdensome. I really enjoyed my time with Axiom Verge, and I seem to recall it came with a compass as standard? Perhaps that's wrong, it's been a few years since I picked that one up.

More to the point, which metroidvanias did you like and what did they do differently?

[–] ampersandrew@lemmy.world 6 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (6 children)

Axiom Verge had a lot of hidden passages through walls and otherwise same-y environments that just made getting back to where I wanted to go a chore. I don't remember a compass, but if it had one, it didn't help.

With Hollow Knight and Symphony of the Night, the maps are so large and contiguous, and they give you so little information as to why you didn't fully explore a corner of the map, that you end up either easily missing a thing that you needed in order to progress or you get there and say to yourself, "oh, that's right, that's why I was stuck", wasting a lot of time traveling there to come to that realization. In most Metroid games, the map is broken up into chunks with lots of entrances and exits connecting to the other chunks, which can keep the map screen small and easier to read. Plus, if there's an ability that the game wants to make sure you get before you leave, they make sure you're trapped in there with no option except to find it and make sure you know how it works first.

EDIT: Some of my favorites in the genre would be Batman: Arkham Asylum, most of the Metroid series, Ori and the Blind Forest, and the roguelike A Robot Named Fight.

[–] stringere@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Ori and the Will o' the Wisps is an amazing sequel, just as beautiful and just as smooth to play.

Moon Studios also has a new project, No Rest for the Wicked. It is very different from the Ori games but just as well crafted.

[–] ampersandrew@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago

Will of the Wisps fell through the cracks for me. It came out at a time after I had switched to Linux and before Proton was a thing. I ought to make time to get around to it someday.

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