Hollow Knight

Always the top of any Metroidvania list, we thought it would be interest to see if it cracks the very fabric of space-time to put it in the middle, given this one’s in no particular order. Hollow Knight is the Metroidvania darling, the game against which all other modern attempts at the genre are measured.

It’s also a bit too hard. Ooooh, we went there. That sound you just heard was the sucking of a billion teeth at the very suggestion.

Ahem. Personal agenda aside, Hollow Knight is unquestionably a stunning game, from its art to its monsters to its level design. It’s a game that’s deliberately difficult in a way that the Ori games are not, a sort of dark mirror version of its rival franchise. Combat requires talent, while the game makes you work for every bonus, every marker on a map, every new plop of health.

Its insectoid world has you playing as the mute Knight, a bug who explores the dangerous underground tunnels and chambers of Hallownest, ruined by The Infection. As you’d imagine, you’re aiming to undo all that damage.

Made in the shadow of the Dark Souls games, this is undeniably influenced by the ruthlessness of that series, asking players to be up for a challenge if they wanna get anywhere far into this one. And that certainly worked—the game has sold over three million copies.

Its sequel, Hollow Knight: Silksong, will be released in the year 2341.