When a gaming genre becomes popular, there tends to be a blueprint that many follow to ensure success. Within the Soulsgenre, many developers look toDark Soulsfor all the answers. Within the world of puzzle games, developers will often seePortalas the benchmark, and the same goes for the Metroidvania genre. Only in that genre, the games that set the benchmark are literally baked right into the name. Which makes it even harder to stray from the tried and tested blueprint.
Every Item in Animal Well Ranked
Frisbees, Yo-Yo’s and Slinkys. Did I Time Travel To The 80s?
Then along cameAnimal Well, a new Metroidvania title that has redefined what 2D platforming should be and has prioritized player freedom and agency to promote natural discovery. Plus, it’s one of the most minimalist yet visually striking games you’ll ever come across.
If you’re like me, you probably absorbed allAnimal Wellhad to offer like a thirsty little sponge, and now you’re hankering for more. Well, I’m not about to disappoint you, as I have a list of incredible games that will suitAnimal Wellfans down to the ground.
Just to be upfront regarding our selection criteria, we will mainly be listing games that are direct inspirations to the Animal Well developers, Metroidvanias with a unique take on the genre, or games that provide an immersive experience centered around player agency and natural discovery.
PastaGames
Metacritic Score
We kick things off withKarmaZoo, a game so similar in nature to Animal Well that it even has an animal theme.LikeAnimal Well, KarmaZoohas a unique minimalist pixel art style. It offers a nuanced and unique take on the art of 2D platforming, and likeAnimal Well,it allows players to mess around with acquired abilities to find new and interesting discoveries.Honestly, it’s hard to believe these games aren’t related to each other at all.
KarmaZoodoes vary fromAnimal Wellin that it is more of a cooperative platformer. You’ll need to pick your chosen animal avatar, and then use your unique abilities to help others get to the end of the stage, and in turn, you’ll unlock more animal abilities to make use of. In a lot of ways,KarmaZoofeels like the experimental, wacky cousin ofAnimal Well, and as such, is a little less polished. However, if you want to enjoyAnimal Well-adjacent platforming with friends, this is just the ticket.
2Yoku’s Island Express
Poopy Postman Pinball
Villa Gorilla
If you’re looking for a Metroidvania with a difference, then you need to check out one of my personal favorites,Yoku’s Island Express.This game tells the story of a little dung beetle who has arrived at Mokumana Island to serve as the new Postman. This means you’ll need to use your poop-rolling abilities to get around. It sounds pretty gross, but in reality, it’s actually one of the most fun, whimsical mechanics I’ve ever witnessed firsthand.
This game sees you get around the Island by engaging with Pinball-based mechanics, allowing you to platform, solve puzzles, and fight bosses.Then, as is custom, you’ll gain other new abilities to backtrack and find new interesting areas to explore. You may just be a novice postman, but you just might be the savior of Mokumana Island. It’s a truly unique shake-up of the tried and tested Metroidvania, much likeAnimal Well, and therefore, is worth a try for allAnimal Wellfans.
3Pseudoregalia
A Metroidvania in 3D? How Novel!
87% (Based on Average of Two Available Reviews)
More Metroidvanias with a difference, I hear you cry. Well, my dear friends, your wish is my command. So, to give some context,Pseudoregaliais very different fromAnimal Wellin terms of gameplay and design, offering a 3D Metroidvania. But it is a game that, much likeAnimal Well,redefines what a Metroidvania is, and what platforming and puzzles should look like in games such as this.
This is a game that focuses on high-precision parkour platforming, and through exploration, you’ll unlock awesome abilities, allowing you to chain your movements fluidly.It takes some getting used to, but mastering the games mechanics and understanding the world around you, much likeAnimal Well, is deeply satisfying.
I’ll admit, the clunky,Dark Souls-esque combat is pretty irredeemable, but if you can pass that, you’ll have gained another truly profound gaming experience to treasure forever.
4Outer Wilds
Exploring The Cosmos 21 Minutes At A Time
Mobius Digital
Every Location In Hollow Knight, Ranked
Ranking all the Hallownest Hotspots
This is a game with no map markers and no active quests. Players are left to their own devices to make their own way in this world, and discovery is your primary reward.It takes a brave developer to do this, but if you’ve playedOuter Wilds,you’ll know that that risk paid off and then some. Much likeAnimal Well, Outer Wildsis a game I wish I could wipe from my memory and play all over again. So, if you still haven’t had the pleasure of doing so, I envy you, my friend.
A Little Further With Every Death
Nolla Games
InAnimal Well, your success is often not defined by your battle acumen, or your ability to perform precise movements. Progression is often dictated by your problem-solving skills and your understanding of the world presented to you. This is something that the open-world roguelikeNoitahas going for it as well.Through its perma-death mechanics every death is a lesson, and pushes you that little bit further in your next run.
It’s not a roguelike that is dictated by incremental stat increases. It’s a game that forces you to deeply understand each mechanic, enemy type and ride your luck a little at times to master all you survey. If I were to boil it down, it’s a little bit likeTerraria, a little bit like Dark Souls, and a little bit likeAnimal Well. So if you like the sound of that gaming cocktail, be sure to giveNoitaa try.
A Change Of Perspective Is What You Need
Polytron Corporation
Animal Well’sdeveloper has never hidden from the fact that their game is heavily inspired byFez, Phil Fish’s dimensional perspective puzzler. In fact, you can even turn your little blob inAnimal WellintoGomezif you press the right inputs. The similarities betweenFezandAnimal Wellare mainly found in the puzzle design of both games. Each title has a unique way of presenting problems, and goes against industry tropes to urge players to think outside the box.
WithFezin particular, the puzzles are related to a 3D world you can only view from a 2D perspective, and the game allows you to rotate the world around you to create new pathways, access new areas, and uncover secrets.It’s a little likeSuperPaper Mario, but in my opinion, much cooler. So if you want to know whereAnimal Welldrew its inspiration from, you need to check out this grandfather of indie gaming.
It’s Dangerous To Go Alone…
TUNIC Team
Fezwas one of the games from whichAnimal Welldrew inspiration. The other was the open-world Zelda-likeTunic.This game has been lovingly referred to as cartoonDark Soulsand indieZelda, but it’s much more than that. It’s a beautiful, intricately connected pseudo-open-world experience with incredible accessibility options to cater to all player abilities.
It’s a game that lovingly acknowledges the top-downZeldagames of old, and then builds upon this strong foundation to offer players a game that I would boldly say outdoes any top-downZeldagame to date. Through its clever world design and the need for players to explore a world with no grasp of the in-game language, this game offers a similar experience toAnimal Well, which doesn’t hold your hand and trusts you to find your way at your own pace.
Oh, and you can also become the little fox fromTunicinAnimal Wellif you hold down the jump button. You have to love a good Easter egg.
8Hollow Knight
Don’t Mind Me, Just Waiting For Silksong…
Team Cherry
WhileHollow Knightmay be a Metroidvania that leans more toward the traditional side of the equation, you can’t deny thatHollow KnightandAnimal Wellare cut from the same cloth. Let me be clear:Hollow Knighthas intense combat, precise platforming, and punishing Souls mechanics, so it’s not quite as forgiving asAnimal Well. However, the similarities come through the approach to world design and player freedom.
Animal WellandHollow Knightboth create a palpable atmosphere, and they both allow players to forge their way in the world with minimal direction. Offering various avenues to success where one player’s experience will undoubtedly differ from another.
Plus, both games have a distinct and eye-catching art-style worthy of winning any award show. You will need to put on your big boy (or girl, or other) pants to beatHollow Knight, but I assure you, if you lovedAnimal Well, you’ll get a kick out of Hallownest.
9La Mulana
Frustrating, Clunky, Yet Brilliant
I tentatively recommendLa Mulana, and I include this with hesitation because it is a game that is often unfair and deeply frustrating. It has very intentionally clunky platforming; it uses cheap tricks to kill you instantly, and it has rather basic platforming. And yet, if you have the patience to endure this one, you’ll uncover a deeply rewarding puzzle platformer.
This is whereAnimal WellandLa Mulanaintersect.La Mulanaalso has a number of cleverly designed, yet incredibly obtuse puzzles that ask the player to truly engage with all around them to make heads or tails of.
You’ll need to read into the lore thoroughly, you’ll need to be a master navigator, and if you plummet to your death via a trap door, well, that’s on you. It’sAnimal Well’srich environmental puzzle design, combined with some of the most sadistic platforming mechanics in gaming history. It’s not going to be for everyone, but it’s worth checking out at least.
10Rain World
A Delicate Ecosystem
Then, to wrap up, we haveRain World,a game that critics widely panned mainly because it was too hard and unintuitive. Which, with the power of hindsight, many of them will now realize, is the thing that makesRain Worldso interesting. Animal WellandRain Worldare kindred souls, sharing a minimalist pixellated art style, Metroidvania progression, and a willingness to let the player figure things out, for better or worse.
InAnimal Well, this usually means scratching your head for a little longer as you try to work out a puzzle.But inRain World, however, this usually means fighting to survive in an ever-changing and hostile ecosystem that’s out to get you.Rain Worldis a game where you have to roll with the punches, learn as you go, and try not to die in the process.So, if that grueling experience sounds like a blast to you, then maybe giveRain Worlda go.
