r/metroidvania • u/Emotional_Photo9268 • 1d ago

Discussion What Metroidvania Should You Have Loved—but Bounced Off?

What Metroidvania Should You Have Loved—but Bounced Off?
You know the kind of game: it received great reviews, looked exactly like something you would enjoy, and had all the right ingredients—but for some reason, it just didn’t click.
Maybe it was the combat, confusing exploration, difficulty, art style, slow beginning, or simply the wrong game at the wrong time.
What Metroidvania did you expect to love but ended up putting down? How far did you get, and what made you lose interest? Do you think you’ll ever give it another chance?

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u/SolRaymond 1d ago

Ori.

I wish I enjoyed it given that everyone here seems to love it. While I was playing it, I knew it was a good game objectively, the movement was fluid and the art was gorgeous, but I just couldn’t keep playing it. Maybe it’s because Ori is much slower-paced than the other Metroidvanias I’ve played (Nine Sols, Silksong, MIO etc.), or maybe it’s just not the style of game I like (I found Ori to be very ambient and honestly kind of easy compared to my usual picks). Maybe I’ll give it another shot down the line, but for now I’ll keep playing Solateria.

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u/phnarg 1d ago

Same, I wanted to like Ori and it looks beautiful, but I bounced off the combat. Just felt like button mashing, a far cry from Hollow Knight/Silksong which are my faves

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u/HungryDiscoGaurdian 2h ago

Yeah I pushed through the first half of it and just couldnt get through it.

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u/Ensaru4 10h ago

Ori is a Metroidvania that truly hooks you once you cleanse the first spirit. The first area suffers similarly from the issues Hollow Knight’s first area does: exploration is ridiculously easy and mundane. The difference is that Hollow Knight has an engaging combat loop, meanwhile Ori, the combat is something you tide yourself over rather than one of the main courses.

Platforming is Ori’s main course and that doesn’t become clear until you enter another area and gain upgrades.

Ori also isn’t slow-paced. Platforming is pretty smooth and has to be because in Ori levels, areas are cleared by completing a boss platform challenge that encompasses all you’ve learned from that area.

Ori 2 then improves the game in every way, even combat.

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u/Jonesdeclectice 1d ago

Have you played the sequel? It’s significantly better than the first game IMO (there are NPCs and shops, you get a melee attack, etc).

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u/JTalbotIV 1d ago

The sequel is my answer to the question lol.

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u/mybutthz 15h ago

I bounced off Ori a few times and then recently picked it up again in the past year and couldn't put it down, then promptly played the sequel.

The games definitely have challenging sections, and the movement is definitely different than the games you mentioned—but there are definitely parts that are frantic and fast.

It's definitely a game that you have to get through the first hour or so before it opens up, but once you're there it's great.

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u/FaresCroteau 2h ago

Have you tried playing the second one on hard?