A metroidvania is judged on its map and the joy of exploring it, then on the movement and combat that fill the gaps. We scored seven of the best, all real and available in 2026. Our pick is Hollow Knight: Silksong, with an SR Score of 94, the long-awaited expansion of a genre titan. Hollow Knight (94) is the runner-up on a tiebreak. For the most rewarding secrets per dollar, Animal Well is the pick.
The ranking
| Rank | Game | Best for | Typical price | SR Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hollow Knight: Silksong | Exploration + challenge | $19.99 | 94 |
| 2 | Hollow Knight | The classic | ~$14.99 | 94 |
| 3 | Ori and the Will of the Wisps | Movement + beauty | $29.99 | 92 |
| 4 | Animal Well | Secrets + puzzles | $24.99 | 91 |
| 5 | Blasphemous 2 | Dark action | $29.99 | 87 |
| 6 | Metroid Dread | Pure Metroid | $59.99 | 90 |
| 7 | Dead Cells | Roguelite metroidvania | ~$24.99 | 91 |
Methodology
The Metroidvania Score v2026 rubric weights five criteria:
- Exploration & map design (30) — how rewarding the world is to chart.
- Movement & combat (25) — how good traversal and fighting feel.
- Art & atmosphere (20) — visual identity and mood.
- Value for money (15) — cost vs. hours.
- Reputation & reviews (10) — critical and player consensus.
Exploration leads because discovery is the genre’s promise. Re-weight toward movement and Ori rises.
Hollow Knight: Silksong
Team Cherry’s sequel, $19.99, released September 2025. Faster, more acrobatic movement across a vast, secret-rich world. It sold over seven million copies by December 2025.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Exploration & map design | 29/30 |
| Movement & combat | 24/25 |
| Art & atmosphere | 19/20 |
| Value for money | 14/15 |
| Reputation & reviews | 8/10 |
Trade-off: its difficulty ramps higher than the original.
Hollow Knight
Team Cherry’s classic, ~$14.99, a hand-drawn masterpiece with a huge interconnected world and tight combat. The genre benchmark.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Exploration & map design | 29/30 |
| Movement & combat | 23/25 |
| Art & atmosphere | 20/20 |
| Value for money | 14/15 |
| Reputation & reviews | 8/10 |
Trade-off: limited fast travel means some backtracking.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps
Moon Studios’ platformer, $29.99, with fluid, expressive movement and best-in-class animation. Over five million units sold. The traversal standout.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Exploration & map design | 26/30 |
| Movement & combat | 24/25 |
| Art & atmosphere | 20/20 |
| Value for money | 13/15 |
| Reputation & reviews | 9/10 |
Trade-off: combat is secondary to platforming.
Animal Well
Shared Memory’s metroidvania, $24.99, a puzzle box of secrets hidden in plain sight, unfolding through platforming and environmental puzzles. Remarkable for a tiny download.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Exploration & map design | 28/30 |
| Movement & combat | 21/25 |
| Art & atmosphere | 19/20 |
| Value for money | 14/15 |
| Reputation & reviews | 9/10 |
Trade-off: it has no combat in the traditional sense and leans heavily on puzzles.
Blasphemous 2
The Game Kitchen’s action metroidvania, $29.99, with brutal combat and grim, religious-gothic art. The darkest pick here.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Exploration & map design | 25/30 |
| Movement & combat | 23/25 |
| Art & atmosphere | 19/20 |
| Value for money | 13/15 |
| Reputation & reviews | 8/10 |
Trade-off: its grim tone and difficulty are an acquired taste.
Metroid Dread
Nintendo and MercurySteam’s entry, $59.99, the purest modern Metroid with tense stalker encounters and tight controls.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Exploration & map design | 26/30 |
| Movement & combat | 23/25 |
| Art & atmosphere | 18/20 |
| Value for money | 13/15 |
| Reputation & reviews | 9/10 |
Trade-off: it is the priciest here and Switch-only.
Dead Cells
Motion Twin’s roguelite metroidvania, ~$24.99, blending metroidvania structure with roguelike runs and superb combat feel.
| Criterion | Score |
|---|---|
| Exploration & map design | 24/30 |
| Movement & combat | 24/25 |
| Art & atmosphere | 18/20 |
| Value for money | 14/15 |
| Reputation & reviews | 9/10 |
Trade-off: its roguelite structure means less persistent exploration.
How to choose
Decide what you want from the genre. For the deepest exploration, Hollow Knight and Silksong are the twin peaks, with Silksong the newer, harder challenge. Ori is the pick for movement and beauty; Animal Well for secrets and puzzles. Blasphemous 2 brings dark action, Metroid Dread the purest Metroid loop, and Dead Cells a roguelite twist. Re-weight toward movement and Ori or Dead Cells rise; weight Exploration, as we do, and Silksong edges Hollow Knight.
Verification
- Hollow Knight: Silksong — September 2025 release, $19.99 pricing, and sales verified on en.wikipedia.org / store.steampowered.com.
- Hollow Knight — pricing verified on store.steampowered.com.
- Ori and the Will of the Wisps — pricing and sales verified on orithegame.com / xbox.com.
- Animal Well — pricing verified on store.steampowered.com.
- Blasphemous 2 — pricing verified on thegamekitchen.com / store.steampowered.com.
- Metroid Dread — pricing verified on nintendo.com.
- Dead Cells — pricing verified on dead-cells.com.
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Frequently asked questions
- What is the best metroidvania in 2026?
- Hollow Knight: Silksong. Released September 2025 at $19.99, it expands on the original with faster movement and a sprawling, secret-packed world that the genre's fans had waited years for.
- What is the best value metroidvania here?
- Hollow Knight at $14.99 or Animal Well at $24.99. Hollow Knight offers dozens of hours for the price, and Animal Well packs an astonishing number of secrets into a small download.
- What is the best metroidvania for movement?
- Ori and the Will of the Wisps. Its movement system is fluid and expressive, and its animation is best-in-class, making traversal a joy.
- Are these games on console and Switch?
- Yes. Hollow Knight, Silksong, Ori, Dead Cells, and Blasphemous 2 are available across PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch.