Words On Wednesday

“ Hollow Knight ” is a Metroidvania released on all major platforms in 2017. I steered clear of Hollow Knight for years due to its "Souls-like" description, but a recent whim turned my opinion and made me open up a bit more to the genre. It's no secret that  I hate Souls games , and as much as I love Metroidvania games, I didn't want to get frustrated by a prohibitively difficult experience. As  Silksong  was coming out around that time and the original Hollow Knight was on sale , I decided to pick it up and give it a try. You can't say you don't like something without ever trying it, and I considered that my love of the Metroidvania genre might make up for the Souls elements. After no more than an hour in, I was pretty hooked. Sure, I could see how aspects of Hollow Knight did resemble Souls in certain ways, but I didn't hate it. Benches are just like bonfires, and going back to retrieve your geo from your corpse after you die was a concept I was pretty  ...

“ Axiom Verge ” is a Metroidvania released on the most platforms in 2015. Frequently listed on the best Metroidvania games ever, and especially lists of those released this century, it certainly has a following among indie fans and more mainstream gamers alike. I love a good Metroidvania and I was looking for something short to play after finishing Oblivion Remastered and Wind Waker HD . The last Metroidvania I played was Astalon: Tears of the Earth , and I really enjoyed it. Maybe it was worth checking out a few more of these indie favorites on Steam. Axiom Verge was on sale for $3.99 at 80% off. I figured at such a low price for such a well-received game, it was worth a shot. It's very clear from the beginning that Axiom Verge is a love letter to the original Metroid and other games of the era. Even beyond retro graphics and gameplay loop, there are references that most people would only get if they physically played a Metroid cartridge on original hardware. In particular, the ...

“ Astalon: Tears of the Earth ” is a retro-styled Metroidvania released in 2021. Pixel art is big now, especially with so many indie studios and developers wanting to create games without spending tons of time and money on generating art assets. Plus, the Metroidvania genre is experiencing something of a resurgence lately. With that perfect storm, there are a lot of games LIKE Astalon. What makes Astalon special? Is it worth your attention? I didn’t necessarily come across Astalon by accident, but I certainly wasn’t seeking it out in particular. I had just come off a 100+ hour Skyrim run and needed a palette cleanser game. Metroidvania games in general are some of my favorites, and they’re frequently very short. That makes them perfect between longer and more invested games. With tons of new Metroidvania games out in the past few years, I started looking around for good options in the genre. Lately, I’ve tried to start shifting more of my gaming to PC, but my Surface Pro 7 isn’t very ...