Metroidvania

Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse – PC Review

2Nov

By Ruddy CelestialNo Comments

PC Reviews

Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse – PC Review

Castlevania: Belmont's Curse is a 2d Action RPG Metroidvania from the hands of Konami and assistance from Evil Empire. We've finally returned to the classic Castlevania we all know and love. But, this time we're playing from only a one generation jump from Trevor Belmont's family. Though I'm amazed Konami stopped their focus on making only slot machines and is slowly returning to gaming. Let's grab our whip and tarot cards to start the hunt for this review. This might sound silly, but legit was listening to P4 music and some Duane and Brando while out of cutscenes. Though I said a lot with Whipping and Nay nays. Gameplay In Castlevania: Belmont's Curse has us playing as Rose Belmont. The daughter of Trevor and Sypha Belmont. We start with being requested to come help a Bishop in the c...

21Sep

By Ruddy CelestialNo Comments

PC Reviews

Well Dweller PC Review

Well Dweller is an Action, Adventure, Metroidvania from the mind of Kyle Thompson. The same creator of my favourite game, Crypt Custodian. Well Dweller was honestly an adventure I could not put down. You're going around fighting these small creatures while being a small creature yourself. But enough of that, grab your matchstick and a slingshot as we begin this review. This game has a surprise cameo from the McDonalds at night Moon Guy. Don't believe, well you'll see. Gameplay Well Dweller has us play as Glimmer. The oldest of five siblings, sent to go grab food from the Hunter's cabin. After retrieving the food as mother asked, we headed back to our home in the well. But, unbeknownst to Glimmer, he was being followed by the same hunter they stole from. This man starts to grab your...

Blasphemous 2: The Third Sin DLC – PS5 Review

6Jul

By JoseNo Comments

PlayStation Reviews

Blasphemous 2: The Third Sin DLC – PS5 Review

Blasphemous 2 is an action, metroidvania, roguelite from Sevilla-based game developers The Game Kitchen and published by Team17. Its second DLC, The Third Sin, was released on June 6th, and it is completely free. Blasphemy, Sin, and Penance The Penitent One returns to extinguish the sins of the Miracle and bring back peace and balance to mortals once again. In this beautifully grotesque and bloody re-imagination of Spanish catholic themes, the protagonist of this not-so-little expansion sets out to stop Asterion, First of the Penitents, in his fanatic pursuit to fulfill the Miracle's apocalyptic wishes. Get ready to slice, dice, squash, maim, stab, behead, disembowel, mutilate, and otherwise cut your enemies into tiny little pieces Spanish Inquisition style! Gameplay Yes, The T...

13Apr

By JoseNo Comments

PlayStation Reviews

Legacy of Kain: Ascendance – PS5 Review

Legacy of Kain: Ascendance, developed by Bit Bot Media and published by Crystal Dynamics, is a retro pixel-art 2D action platformer and the first original entry in the series in over two decades. The long-awaited follow-up arrives 23 years after 2003's Legacy of Kain: Defiance, the franchise's previous installment. After three remasters in recent years, Soul Reaver 1, Soul Reaver 2, and Legacy of Kain: Defiance, fans of the franchise finally get to explore never-before-seen characters, places, and timelines. Which, at first, may sound intriguing and interesting, but unfortunately, new personalities like Elaleth do not feel like an organic addition to the lore. Instead, the execution falls flat, burdening a beloved franchise with retroactive continuities, or rather, I should say retroact...

Fallen Tear: The Ascension – PC Early Access Preview

16Mar

By PaulNo Comments

Previews & Early Access

Fallen Tear: The Ascension – PC Early Access Preview

If there's one genre of game that has a tonne of fantastic indie representation already, but I'm always willing to accept more of, it's Metroidvania. Enter Fallen Tear: The Ascension, a new and debut entry from a studio in the Philippines. Winter Crew Studios, a sub-company of publisher The CMD Studios, was spun-up in 2020 with the express purpose of creating Fallen Tear. They launched a crowd-funding effort on Kickstarter in 2024 and garnered the attention of over 3000 backers. Now, they are bringing the game to Early Access on Steam with the intention to use this period for balancing combat builds and in-game economies along side the games community of players. The Early Access build represents a small portion of the beginning section of the game, and I've spent about a dozen hours tr...

10Mar

By KieranNo Comments

PlayStation Reviews

God of War: Sons of Sparta – PS5 Review

Announced and shadow drop released at the end of PlayStation's State of Play livestream back on February 12th 2026, and to help celebrate the 20th anniversary of the franchise, God of War: Sons of Sparta is a 2D Metroid Vania-inspired side-scroller and prequel to the famous God of War himself, Kratos. Zeus! Your son has returned! (With his younger brother) Story - A tale of two Brothers Sons of Sparta tells a fun prequel story of Kratos as a young adolescent boy, joined by his younger brother Deimos, who previously featured in the PSP spin-off game, Ghost of Sparta. The game’s narrative is framed as a story being told by Kratos to his young daughter, Calliope. The original Kratos voice actor, TC Carson, is reprising his role as the game’s narrator. The story is fun and simple. Fo...

16Feb

By Ruddy CelestialNo Comments

Gaming, PC Reviews

Kotama and Academy Citadel – PC Review

Kotama and Academy Citadel is an Action, Adventure, Metroidvania from the minds of Atomstring Games. With their publisher 2P Games, Kotama and Academy Citadel starts you as Kotama, a candidate for the Carmel Star and the labelled exchange student of this tale. You venture through the four parts of the academy to collect votes for the election and retrieve the keepsakes. Can you successfully become the new Carmel Star? Or will you discover the many secrets that lie behind these academy's walls? Do you think being the Carmal Star gives you the right to do the Caramelldansen? Gameplay You have now entered the labyrinthine that's both a city and a school known as Carmel Academy. A place that has 4 branches of academies is what makes Carmel, well, Carmel. You've got your Art Academy, the B...

23Jan

By PaulNo Comments

PlayStation Reviews

MIO: Memories In Orbit – PS5 Review

We're starting 2026 off with a bang with a very strong indie Metroidvania offering from Douze Dixièmes and Focus Entertainment. MIO: Memories In Orbit is, if you'll excuse the pun, stellar. Whilst I certainly have gripes with some elements, I'm very much captivated with the whole experience. I wrote a preview on MIO in June last year when I played the demo, and most of my thoughts there still stand, I recommend reading that too. Following my time with the full game, I now have answers to some of the burning questions I had. Holy Mother of Pearl! Mio Is Precious I don’t really like talking about story details in my review, at least beyond the initial premise. That is especially true for games like this - where the journey of discovery for each player is so important, and will uniquely ...

Chronicles Of The Wolf – PC Demo Preview

20Jun

By JoseNo Comments

Previews & Early Access

Chronicles Of The Wolf – PC Demo Preview

Chronicles Of The Wolf is a metroidvania so fiercely loyal to its source material that it could have fooled me into believing it was made in the early 90s. As cliché and overused as it may sound, the game is a true love letter to the roots of the genre. Whilst the game is available now on Steam this is a preview article of the demo only. A Nostalgic Throwback, For Better And For Worse As soon as you open the game, your senses teleport you back to a time when the internet made strange noises, phones had long curly cords, and televisions were as heavy as modern fridges. The menu options, the eerie retro music, and the 32-pixel resolution all work together in harmony to deliver an incredibly immersive experience. Let's check it out. Gameplay You play as Mateo Lombardo, an initiate of ...

4Jun

By PaulNo Comments

Previews & Early Access

MIO: Memories In Orbit – PC Preview

Action, mystery, and wonder await in MIO: Memories In Orbit, a new Metroidvania from Shady Part Of Me developer Douze Dixièmes (Twelve Tenths). They are a small, French team who form part of PulluP Entertainment (formerly Focus Entertainment) since their acquisition in 2021. This should immediately give you a sense of the quality to expect, given the publisher's history backing titles such as Curse of the Dead Gods, Dordogne, and A Plague Tale: Innocence, among many others. You can play the demo and add MIO: Memories In Orbit to your Wishlist on Steam now, with a release due sometime this year. Remember MIO? MIO, an agile robot with flowing, tendril hair, is awoken on the Vessel; a decaying spaceship drifting through space. The ship's AI overseers have seemingly gone offline, leaving ...