Best Metroidvania Games on Steam
Exploration games where new abilities unlock paths through interconnected worlds.
Browse all Metroidvania →
1Hollow Knight - Forge your own path in Hollow Knight! An epic action adventure through a vast ruined kingdom of insects and heroes. Explore twisting caverns, battle tainted creatures and befriend bizarre bugs, all in a classic, hand-drawn 2D style.
Feb 24, 2017
In this game, you can…
- jump into the minds of characters and enemies to hear their thoughts and dig up secrets that aren't told in normal dialogue
- learn boss fights with no health bar, reading their patterns until you can tell you're winning just from how they move
- take on a near-mythic platforming gauntlet of saws and spikes that can take hours, then reach a hidden payoff at the end
- get dropped into a kingdom with no map, then slowly piece together where to go by exploring, backtracking, and unlocking routes
- customize your build with charms that can completely change how you fight and move, then swap setups to make the same boss feel different
- chain movement upgrades into fluid traversal: wall jump, double jump, dash, then dash through danger and bounce off enemies to keep flying forward
- realize you've charted a massive interconnected world when the full map finally clicks into place and you can see how everything connects
2Dead Cells - Dead Cells is a roguelite, metroidvania inspired, action-platformer. You'll explore a sprawling, ever-changing castle... assuming you’re able to fight your way past its keepers in 2D souls-lite combat. No checkpoints. Kill, die, learn, repeat.
Aug 6, 2018
In this game, you can…
- start as a headless corpse piloted by a green blob, die, then hop into a fresh body and grow yourself back before the next run.
- unlock permanent movement powers like wall-running, teleporting, and growing vines, then use them to open areas that were impossible before.
- grab one random drop mid-run and suddenly rebuild your whole combat style around poison, bleed, traps, backstabs, or a totally different weapon.
- take a different route every run as the castle rearranges exits, secrets, enemies, and rewards across the island.
- freeze an enemy with a parry, then swap weapons and crush them with a heavy hit while you keep moving.
- take a cursed chest for better rewards, then have to get a streak of kills where one hit ends the run.
- chain double jumps, aerial hits, rolls, weapon swaps, and skills into one continuous combo that carries you through a whole room.
3Ori and the Will of the Wisps - Play the critically acclaimed masterpiece. Embark on a new journey in a vast, exotic world where you’ll encounter towering enemies and challenging puzzles on your quest to unravel Ori’s destiny.
Mar 10, 2020
In this game, you can…
- swap passive bonuses on the fly, even mid-fight, to change how you move and hit.
- turn a quiet hub into a busy safe zone by recruiting allies through side quests and materials.
- launch an enemy into the air, shoot it with arrows, then slam it back down with a hammer.
- chain jumps, dashes, grapples, and bashes to rocket across the map.
- fight multi-phase bosses and restart from the current phase when you die.
- race time-trial courses built around pure movement speed and clean routes.
- get a new area-specific power, then return to old zones and open totally new routes and secrets with it.
- use a real weapon loadout with melee and ranged options, then switch your style by re-slotting your kit.
4Batman: Arkham Asylum Game of the Year Edition - Experience what it’s like to be Batman and face off against Gotham's greatest villians. Explore every inch of Arkham Asylum and roam freely on the infamous island.
Mar 26, 2010
In this game, you can…
- perch on gargoyles and pick off armed thugs one by one until they start panicking about the shadows.
- scan a crime scene for evidence, follow trails, and reconstruct what happened using forensic tools.
- dive into Scarecrow's nightmare sequences where the level turns into a surreal horror setpiece with its own rules.
- escort the Joker through Arkham, then watch him escape and turn the whole asylum into a trapped, hostile maze.
- chain punches, counters, dodges, and takedowns into long, uninterrupted combos that carry you across a room.
- hunt down hidden Riddler riddles, trophies, and secret interview tapes with built-in tracking across the entire island.
- stalk enemies from vents, swoop down for takedowns, then vanish back into the rafters before anyone can react.
- roam an open-but-contained asylum island, slipping between buildings and courtyards through shortcuts, secrets, and hidden history.
5Batman: Arkham City - Game of the Year Edition - Get Batman: Arkham City and all DLC for one low price with the release of the GOTY Edition!
Sep 7, 2012
In this game, you can…
- fight Mr. Freeze in a boss battle where you can't use the same takedown twice because he adapts to your tricks.
- switch to Catwoman to cling to walls, crawl across ceilings, and use her whip to navigate and fight in her own story sections.
- glide off rooftops, grapple midair, and cross the entire city in minutes.
- chain counters, stuns, gadgets, and finishers while enemies force you to attack shields from above and shock sticks from behind.
- drop into a room of armed thugs, perch on gargoyles, crawl through vents, and pick them off until the last one is alone and searching.
- control Robin in a post-story DLC mission arc and bring his different gear and combat style into the finale.
- hunt down 440 Riddler trophies hidden all over the city to unlock his side mission.
- scan crime scenes, track signals, and follow environmental clues with detective vision that reveals enemies and hidden details through walls.
6Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition - “Ori and the Blind Forest” tells the tale of a young orphan destined for heroics, through a visually stunning Action-Platformer crafted by Moon Studios.
Apr 27, 2016
In this game, you can…
- drop a checkpoint almost anywhere, but only by spending the same energy you need for powers and survival.
- freeze the action, latch onto an enemy or projectile, aim, and launch yourself like a slingshot across the room.
- dash off an enemy, projectile, or lantern to fling yourself forward while kicking that object away in the opposite direction.
- outrun a collapsing disaster in escape chases where every jump and wall-climb has to land or you restart.
- redirect enemy shots into switches, walls, or other hazards to solve obstacles and win fights with their own attacks.
- chain wall jumps, double jumps, stomps, dashes, glides, and bashes into one flowing traversal combo across the map.
- throw a glowing orb to open routes, extend movement, and turn projectile play into both travel and combat options.
- teleport between warp points so you can revisit far-off zones and clean up secrets without trekking the whole world again.
7Blasphemous - Blasphemous is a brutal action-platformer with skilled hack’n slash combat set in the nightmare world of Cvstodia. Explore, upgrade your abilities, and perform savage executions on the hordes of enemies that stand between you and your quest to break eternal damnation.
Sep 10, 2019
In this game, you can…
- unlock fast travel by donating 20,000 Tears of Atonement to a hidden system.
- encounter enemies like shrieking nuns who swing caged captives as weapons, a cursed boy birthing an old man from his chest, and a dead bishop puppeteered by followers.
- bow before towering statues to have your guilt absolved and your death penalty lifted.
- wake up in a field of naked, faceless, masked corpses as the only apparent survivor.
- die, drop your currency, leave a guilt mark on your corpse, then make a tense pilgrimage back to recover it.
- find story clues in item descriptions, cryptic dialogue, corpses, hidden doors, and boss encounters, then piece the plot together yourself.
- learn boss fights by parrying, dodging, and striking only in tiny openings until you beat towering religious monstrosities through timing alone.
- enter New Game+ penances that change your playstyle, then stack on optional challenges that force a completely different approach.
8Ori and the Blind Forest - “Ori and the Blind Forest” tells the tale of a young orphan destined for heroics, through a visually stunning action-platformer crafted by Moon Studios for PC.
Mar 10, 2015
In this game, you can…
- redirect enemy projectiles in midair to launch yourself in a new direction.
- set your own save point wherever you are, then respawn back to it almost instantly.
- hit a projectile, freeze time for a moment, aim, and slingshot yourself off it to chain jumps and course-correct midflight.
- finish a major area and trigger a timed escape sprint through collapsing terrain that turns the whole level into a moving hazard.
- unlock new movement powers that turn old dead ends into new routes, then loop back to reach secrets you couldn't touch before.
- clear a corrupted region and watch the forest visibly come back to life as you restore it.
- enter a dungeon, learn a new way to move, then use it to survive a set-piece escape where the environment becomes the boss.
- spend upgrade points on things like stronger attacks, better map info, and more efficient use of your self-made checkpoints.
9Skul: The Hero Slayer - Guide 'Skul' on his quest to single-handedly take on the Imperial Army and rescue his King from captivity, in an action-packed rogue-lite 2D platformer for the ages.
Jan 20, 2021
In this game, you can…
- rip off your head mid-run, put on a new skull, and instantly fight with a completely different moveset.
- find a skull that lets you ride a motorbike through rooms while whipping enemies with a burning chain.
- upgrade a skull you found as a common drop until it evolves into a top-tier, endgame-ready form.
- carry two skulls at once and swap between them in combat to cover different ranges, speeds, and damage types.
- stack up to nine items, hit set bonuses, and turn ordinary gear into a build with constant crits or huge health.
- fight the same elite heroes in escalating ambushes: first one, then two, then three at once, and the healer can reset the whole team.
- come back to your castle hub after dying, buy permanent upgrades, unlock helpers, and start the next run stronger.
- push into a postgame mode where each new cycle makes enemies faster, bosses gain new attacks, and the whole game hits harder.
10Rain World - You are a nomadic slugcat, both predator and prey in a broken ecosystem. Grab your spear and brave the industrial wastes, hunting enough food to survive, but be wary— other, bigger creatures have the same plan... and slugcats look delicious.
Mar 28, 2017
In this game, you can…
- get dropped as prey, then watch two rival lizards start fighting each other instead of eating you.
- get chased by a lizard, only for a dropwig to drop from the ceiling and grab the lizard mid-chase.
- trigger turf wars where predators block routes, steal each other's kills, and suddenly switch targets without anything being scripted.
- race the rain by scavenging food and reaching shelter before a downpour arrives and crushes the whole region.
- pull off backflips, rolls, wall-jumps, and corner-kicks to slip through tight tunnels and outmaneuver predators.
- bait a stronger creature into attacking a weaker one, then slip away through pipes while they tear each other apart.
- be both hunter and hunted at once, eating small creatures while bigger ones treat you like food.
- wander an interconnected world out of order, accidentally enter a totally different zone, and realize you've been progressing without noticing.
