Metroidvaniais a gaming genre with a notorious reputation for delivering often amazing gameplay and challenging combat but at a cost where the story either falls short or gets too convoluted with all the lore text you have to scour through. This is common among most Metroidvanias, but not all. Sometimes, you’re able to find those that focus on a well-grounded narrative that’s much easier to piece together.
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From indie titles to AAA games designed with either 2D pixel graphics or stunning 3D graphics, you have a diverse range of Metroidvanias offering up enjoyable and visually unique storytelling, some also choosing to have voiced characters over silent protagonists to make things even more immersive. Here are some of the finest examples.
8The Gunk
A sci-fi Metroidvania in which you explore a mysterious planet for its resources is the premise of The Gunk. The planet is vibrant and colorful and contains various biomes for you to traverse, but parts of its environment are contaminated with large toxic globs of gunk, which you must clear with the suction of your Power Glove.
If you enjoyed the satisfying mechanic of vacuuming debris withAstroneer’s terrain tool and are looking for a sci-fi mystery akin toReturnal, minus the rougelike elements and bullet-hell combat system, The Gunk is a solid follow-up.
The story of The Gunk is a story of two down-on-their-luck space haulers named Rani and Becks, where you control Rani and communicate with Becks via radio during your journey on the planet. You arrive at this planet thinking you struck gold with the bountiful resources it provides, but come across the grave threat of parasitic gunk and the mystery of a past civilization.
As Rani, you’ll solve puzzles, collect materials, and scan alien flora, while getting closer to the source of what’s causing all this wretched gunk to grow.
7The Last Case Of Benedict Fox
There’s no other Lovecraftian story quite as cinematic in the Metroidvania genre as The Last Case of Benedict Fox. You start with an opening cutscene revealing the rise of an antagonistic organization after the First World War, called the First Circle, that’s responsible for disturbing rituals.
Then enter your character, Detective Benedict Fox, who’s found the whereabouts of his father in a mansion that has ties to the First Circle, and now seeks answers.
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The intriguing twist with Benedict is that there’s a giant tentacled entity possessing him, which not only aids in the combat and platforming but allows Benedict to access the memories of those that are deceased. The areas around the mansion where Benedict will be investigating and uncovering clues achieve the perfect Lovecraftian aesthetic and atmosphere, as do all the mindscapes you’ll be visiting throughout the gameplay.
6Iconoclasts
Another excellent sci-fi Metroidvania story can be found in Iconoclasts. It takes place in a dystopian futuristic society governed by a body called the One Concern, who are after a vital commodity called Ivory.
Only official mechanics can be trusted to handle Ivory, but the main character Robinhappens to be a rebellious mechanicwithout an approved license who’s soon caught in the crosshairs of the One Concern.
Her background will factor into the combat and puzzle elements, requiring all sorts of tools to be used, and the sprawling Metroidvania layout is filled with some of Robin’s companions who will help you out in battles. You’ll find the story comes with some religious themes and has unique antagonist characters like One Concern’s Agent Black and Agent White.
5Blasphemous
The storytelling, world-building, and lore ofBlasphemousare highly reminiscent ofBloodborneandDark Souls, but with a story more centered around religion. A character named the Penitent One wanders the Gothic landscape of Cvstodia with a symbolic sword, the Mea Culpa, to avenge the massacre that befell a religious order called the Silent Sorrow, of which you were also a part and miraculously survived.
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The grotesque and intricate boss designs are one of the best parts of this game, as well as the haunting imagery you see throughout each area. The environments are chilling, the combat is brutal, and the story representssome of the darkest material in a Metroidvania game, even something wholesome like The Miracle serves as a twisted antagonist.
However, the full story is not something that’s uncovered with traditional linear storytelling, but rather more in the lore of items you discover and the environment itself.
4Convergence: A League Of Legends Story
League of Legendscertainly doesn’t miss when it comes to creating well-crafted narrative experiences in its established universe, treating fans with the Netflix animated series Arcane, and now with a story-driven Metroidvania game called Convergence. This game will immerse you in the 2D-platforming cyberpunk cityscape of Zaun, where you’ll battle enemies with a glowing blade, including League champions like Jinx, wall run, and even have the ability to rewind time as main protagonist Ekko.
The storyline initiates with an explosion of a Poingdestres-owned spire, hosting the manufacturing site of synthetic explosive hextech crystals known as Syntixi. Ekko, who actually invented the device called Zero Driveallowing you to rewind time, will need to find the Syntixi remnants and save the future of Zaun with his allies and a little help from his future self as well, only fitting for a League of Legends narrative with elements of time travel.
3The Ori Series
The Ori games give you an emotional story as sweet and beautiful as their majestic forest environments and adorable protagonist, who’sa brave little forest spiritalways willing to rescue the land from the evil corrupting it.Ori and the Blind Forestsee the tragic origin of the titular hero, losing their adoptive mother to starvation caused by a devastating storm and themselves revived by the narrating Spirit Tree after succumbing to the forest.
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Newly revived, Ori soon meets an orb calling itself Sein, and they join forces to restore the forest of Nibel back to its original state, eliminating all the threats standing in their way. The sequel,The Will of the Whisps, sets up a new story for Ori that takes you to the location of Niwen, bringing even more gorgeous areas and also more deadly gigantic creatures to fend off.
2Control
Controlis another mind-bending supernatural sci-fi thriller from Remedy, the developers ofQuantum BreakandAlan Wake. It seamlessly goes for a different Metroidvania-style level design, without sacrificing the bold and unique storytelling the developer is known for.
Once more, you’re gripped by an incredibly original mystery, this one centered around a fictional government establishment known as the Federal Bureau Of Control. And at the helm is Jesse Faden, the organization’s new director.
The Bureau of Control is responsible for the study of phenomena called Altered World Events (AWEs) that bring with themvarious strange Objects of Power, like your protagonist’s weapon. Jesse arrives in the building during an extremely perilous time when an interdimensional entity known as the Hiss wreaks havoc on the grounds and takes control of FBC employees.
You will have to clear waves of Hiss using Jesse’s abilities to establish Control Points and will be caught in between alternate dimensions to unravel the suspense.
1Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
It doesn’t get more story-driven of a Metroidvania thanStar Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, giving you a more traditional Soulslike Metroidvania approach than its open-world sequel. Here you discover the origins of Cal Kestis, a Jedi survivor of the Order 66 massacre who’s now on a quest for a Jedi holocron and hunted by the Empire’s Inquisitors.
Cal is not alone in his endeavors, as he’ll have the help of Mantis pilot Greez, former Jedi Cere Junda, and his cute Swiss army knife companion droid BD-1.
Cal’s journey will take you to the most hidden areas of planets like Bogano, Dathomir, Zeffo, and Kashyyyk, which are crawling with Imperial enemies and the native creatures that inhabit them. There are plenty of tough boss fights and puzzles in store, but the character development, writing, and cinematics make it one of the most memorable Star Wars games in a while.
