Current Metroidvania king?

From current gen, Dead Cells.

Ori and Guacamelee are my favorites.

Out of those Guacamelee. Couldn't get over the visuals and style.

Sadly I have not played The Messenger yet and a few others on the list. For that I have to say Dead Cells for me.

Nothing beats Super Metroid.

Shadow Complex was excellent last gen.

But I voted for Hollow Knight from the bunch... best lore and aesthetics. But I have been enjoying Axiom Verge recently.

I wonder why indie games are obsessed with this genre. I voted Hollow Knight, it's one of two metroidvania's that I'v ever finished my whole life. The other is Yoku's Island Express. (Aka babies first metroidvania.)

Ori would be my top pick, awesome gameplay and stellar art design, and I expect the sequel to surpass it.

Dead Cells runner up, but no way I can put that above Ori because the art design is not of the same caliber and because of its rogue-like nature, stuff is recycled.

But I'm currently playing Salt and Sanctuary(Switch), loving it so far, and also started Hollow Knight on Xbox recently, its good but hasn't pulled me in yet, so I dont know yet I have to play both more.

@Bread_or_Decide: Because its a genre that lends itself well to 2d game design.

I find most of the metroidvania genre conventions to be grating. The back tracking, forced progression by limiting your abilities. I would love for one of these games to make the entire game open to you from the start, no stupid I need this ability to progress. Let me go where I want dang it.

I worshiped 75 hours at the altar of Hollow Knight.

It was outstanding.

Hollow knight #1 (i voted)

Axiom Verge #2

but The messenger is my favorite game on this list, only reason i did not vote for it because its not much of a metroidvania style, like you dont have to back track to progress, it plays more like a traditional side scroller rather a metroidvania style, back tracking isnt necessary unless your going for all the seals, it doesnt start you off with the map

Dead Cells for me

Axiom is my 2nd

Mummy Remastered is surprisingly good too

My top 3 are:

1. Hollow Knight

2. Ori and the Blind Forest

3 Guacamelee

But I don't consider Dead Cells a metroidvania game, since it is very level based, and the exploration resets on each death, as many upgrades are lost also.

Regular Metroid and Castlevania for me, but if I have to pick one out of those options, I'll choose Shantae.

I'm enjoying Guacamelee!, but it's very easy. And this is coming from someone terrible at 2D games.

Checkpoints literally right next to the obstacles and instant respawns at mis-timed jumps.

I'm a huge fan of the 4 core Metroid games, Symphony of the Night, of course, and Shadow Complex.

SOOOOO wanted a sequel to that. It was awesome.

Instead...they made 3 semi-interesting but sort of pointless phone games, then...?

I haven't played the games on this list but I own a bunch, and am looking forward to them!

Konami had a few Metroid style games on GBA even aside from Castlevania, which was awesome.

Metroid: Samus Returns... *shrugs, exits thread*

Oh yea, I forgot about Metroid: Samus Returns, or more importantly the superior AM2R, which Nintendo, of course, attempted to close down.

Hollow Knight.

The entire genre is trash.

Castlevania is the least trash of them all.

It there a modern 3D Metriodvania, or do I just need to wait for Prime 4?

Ori for this gen but I think Super Metroid is still the best.

@Bread_or_Decide: cool...I will definitely keep playing it, I just played a lot of different games over the holidays and haven't had the opportunity to put in some serious time with it yet.

Would someone kindly explain to me what "Metroidvania" and "Roguelike/lite" are and how they are different?

I thought the difference was in Roguelike when you die you start over, often with different characteristics or things like that, but then I see above that Dead Cells is in the poll, which is a game I thought was a roguelike.

Or is this one of those "all platforming roguelikes are Metroidvanias, but not all Metroidvanias are roguelike"

Hollow Knight!

While Dead Cells is one of my most favorite games, I don't really consider it a Metroidvania game. It's just a very good 2D rogue-lite.

Roguelike - Enemies move or take action when (and only when) you do, stuff is random, and when you die the whole game is reset and no progress is saved (like the game Rogue from 1980). Dungeons of Dredmor is a good example and a very fun game.

Rogue-lite - Has elements of a Roguelike game (usually random and some sort of reset on death) - could literally be anything.

Metroidvania - SImilar to Metroid and Castlevania where you acquire items to gain access to different areas in a large, sprawling map; fight bosses, get lost, find secrets, etc.... Does not need to have any Rougelike elements.

That's how I see it anyway.

Hollow Knight

Dead Cells is an awesome game as well. Not sure it's really Metroidvania, but kinda. Axiom Verge is great too, but I haven't finished it. Still need to try out Yoku's Island Express.

Axiom verge on the hardest difficulty is amazing. The last boss is a pain in the ass unless you have found all the power ups.

I still haven't played Dead Cells.

I voted for the Messanger because it reeeeallly nailed the vibe for me.... But with that said, Dead Cells is one of the best video games I've ever played.

Pretty much. Dead Cells is a bit special since it's a bit of both. It has levels with secrets, items to acquire to gain access, bosses to kill and stuff like a Metroidvania. But it's also a roguelike (or "roguelite", whatevever who cares), in that you start over if you die. So that, coupled with the map not being one huge level, but several smaller ones, makes me call Dead Cells more of a roguelike rather than a metroidvania.

Rouge Legacy for me. That game is epic.

Ori comes to mind. I'd have to choose Axiom Verge second, liked what I played but hit a dead end mid-playthrough, was thinking of starting it over again.

@mojito1988 said:

Rouge Legacy for me. That game is epic.

Shit, forgot had this donks ago. Might give it a boot.

Not really Metroidvania, but who cares really.

-

Also if you like that check out Cursed Castilla. No Rogue Like.

https://steamcommunity.com/app/534290/

Where's Monster Boy?

Other than that, I'd go with Shantae.

Other - symphony of the night

Currently best?

Super Metroid and Symphony of the Night never gave up their crowns.

Looks like Hollow Knight won soundly.

Congratulations.

Hollow Knight ... and it's hardly a contest.

Without Salt and Sanctuary this is a flawed list.

Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom

Hollow Knight ftw!

Hollow Knight followed by Ori.

More a Souls game.