Games Like Hollow Knight: Silksong - 12 Best Metroidvania Picks (2026)

Quick Answer: Start with Hollow Knight if you want the closest match: same studio, same mournful bug-world DNA, slower but still brilliant. Pick Nine Sols if Silksong’s boss pressure is what you’re chasing, but with parries at the center. Go with ENDER MAGNOLIA: Bloom in the Mist if you want that melancholy, hand-painted atmosphere with a softer landing.

Why These Games #

Silksong finally exists, and it leaves a very specific itch behind. This is not just “another Metroidvania.” It is fast, sharp, lonely, and mean in a way that still feels fair. So we ranked these picks by the parts that really stick with you after you put the controller down: boss fights that punish panic, worlds that feel drawn rather than assembled, progress driven by curiosity instead of checklist markers, and movement that makes even crossing a room feel good. Some of these games feel almost like siblings. Others chase one piece of the Silksong feeling especially well. All 12 are Steam-available games we would actually recommend after finishing Silksong, bouncing off it, or simply needing a break from Hornet’s climb.

Top Picks #

1. Hollow Knight #

GAMIVO€6.91Steam €6.91Voir le prix →

Before Hornet had her own kingdom to climb, Hallownest set the template. Team Cherry’s 2017 original drops you into a ruined insect realm full of locked paths, strange citizens, nasty bosses, and secrets hiding behind more secrets. It is slower than Silksong, but the craft is ridiculous. Every shortcut, bench, and hidden room teaches you to trust the world.

• Similar because: Same studio, same universe, same hand-drawn melancholy, and the same taste for fair but demanding bosses.
• Different because: Hollow Knight is quieter, heavier, and less acrobatic than Hornet’s faster, more aggressive adventure.
• Best for: Anyone who skipped the original or wants the foundation before going deeper into Silksong.

2. Nine Sols #

GAMIVO€12.75Steam €12.75Voir le prix →

If Silksong made you crave boss fights where flinching gets you killed, Nine Sols should be near the top of your list. Red Candle Games’ 2024 action Metroidvania mixes Taoist sci-fi with a brutal parry system, so you are not just dodging through patterns. You are standing your ground, reading the hit, deflecting it, and hitting back. The art is gorgeous, the story has bite, and the bosses demand real nerve.

• Similar because: It has hand-drawn atmosphere, exploration-led structure, and bosses that feel hard without feeling cheap.
• Different because: The combat is built around parrying, not Silksong’s more mobile needlework and aerial pressure.
• Best for: Players who love Silksong’s challenge and want a cleaner, meaner test of timing.

3. ENDER MAGNOLIA: Bloom in the Mist #

GAMIVO€6.43Steam €6.43Voir le prix →

Fog, sorrow, and fragile beauty do most of the talking in ENDER MAGNOLIA: Bloom in the Mist. Binary Haze’s 2025 sequel to Ender Lilies takes you through a ruined fantasy world soaked in grief, where you command companions who fight beside you instead of relying on pure swordplay. That gives combat a slightly ghostly rhythm. It still has bosses and danger, but the real pull is the mood, the music, and the slow discovery.

• Similar because: The sad atmosphere, painted look, exploration pace, and boss encounters sit close to Silksong’s quieter side.
• Different because: Companion-based attacks make it less purely physical, and the difficulty is more forgiving.
• Best for: Players who want Silksong’s loneliness without quite as much controller tension.

4. Blasphemous 2 #

GOG€4.11-75%Steam €4.11Voir le prix →

Every room in Blasphemous 2 looks like it was built to judge you. The Game Kitchen’s 2023 sequel is a religious nightmare in lavish pixel art, starring the Penitent One as he carves through grotesque saints, cursed cities, and boss arenas that feel like punishment chambers. It is heavier and bloodier than Silksong, but it has that same grim pleasure of learning a fight inch by inch.

• Similar because: It brings bleak tone, large-scale exploration, high pressure bosses, and a serious demand for patience.
• Different because: It is pixel art, darker, more violent, and more about direct confrontation than agile flow.
• Best for: Players who want harder edges, religious horror, and stylish executions with their Metroidvania.

5. Prince of Persia The Lost Crown #

GAMIVO€7.90Steam €7.90Voir le prix →

For a faster, cleaner, more generous take on acrobatic Metroidvania design, Prince of Persia The Lost Crown is an easy recommendation. Ubisoft’s 2024 revival turns the series into a polished 2D adventure built around Sargon, a fighter with wild mobility and time powers. It is bright, readable, and slick in a way big-budget games rarely are in this genre. The platforming snaps, the fights flow, and the map keeps opening up.

• Similar because: It nails fast movement, clean combat, exploration structure, and bosses with actual mechanical bite.
• Different because: It is brighter, more action-forward, and offers friendlier assists than Silksong.
• Best for: Players who want Silksong’s speed with smoother onboarding and big-studio polish.

6. Ori and the Will of the Wisps #

GAMIVO€5.65Steam €5.65Voir le prix →

Movement is the star from the first clean dash to the last desperate escape. Moon Studios’ 2020 sequel is one of the best-feeling games in the genre, letting Ori glide, launch, and flow through a world that looks like a painting in motion. The sequel adds stronger melee and ability-based combat, plus chase sequences that can still make your hands tighten around the controller.

• Similar because: It shares Silksong’s love of fluid traversal, expressive environments, and tense boss-style set pieces.
• Different because: It is warmer, more emotional, and much less punishing overall.
• Best for: Players who love silky movement but want beauty and relief instead of constant pressure.

7. GRIME #

Kinguin€1.84-91%Steam €1.84Voir le prix →

A black-hole head wandering through stone, flesh, and hostile architecture tells you immediately what kind of strange trip GRIME is. Clover Bite’s 2021 game is weird in the best way, with combat that leans on absorbing and countering enemies. The whole thing feels alien, chewy, and hostile without ever feeling out of control.

• Similar because: It has hard bosses, exploration-driven progression, striking art direction, and rhythm-heavy defensive play.
• Different because: Its body-horror surrealism and absorb-based growth system are far stranger than Silksong’s fantasy.
• Best for: Players who want challenge, but also want their Metroidvania to look genuinely unsettling.

8. Dead Cells #

GAMIVO€3.03Steam €3.03Voir le prix →

Dead Cells earns its place here on feel alone. Motion Twin’s 2018 roguelite is not a traditional fixed-map Metroidvania, but its fast runs, punchy weapons, hard-hitting enemies, and death-driven learning loop hit the same action nerves. Years of updates have turned it into a huge, sharp, endlessly replayable combat machine.

• Similar because: The speed, snap, danger, and weapon feel line up with Silksong’s action-first side.
• Different because: It is built around repeated roguelite runs, not one persistent world full of permanent shortcuts.
• Best for: Players who want the combat high and do not mind starting over again and again.

9. Aeterna Noctis #

Kinguin€1.99Steam €1.99Voir le prix →

Some Metroidvanias ask you to explore; Aeterna Noctis asks you to prove you deserve the next screen. Aeternum Game Studios’ 2021 game is for people who think most platforming is too polite, with a huge hand-drawn world, dense routes, and late-game movement tests that can feel absolutely savage. The appeal is precision. You are not drifting through the map. You are earning every screen.

• Similar because: It has hand-drawn style, a large world, exploration gates, and a real appetite for demanding execution.
• Different because: It leans harder into extreme platforming, with a steeper difficulty curve than Silksong.
• Best for: Players who finish Silksong and immediately ask for something meaner.

10. ANIMAL WELL #

GAMIVO€21.30Steam €21.30Voir le prix →

The hook is not a sword, a combo, or a boss wall. ANIMAL WELL is a 2024 pixel-art Metroidvania from a solo developer that barely cares about combat, choosing instead to hand you a few tools and a bizarre, layered world full of animals, secrets, puzzles, and hidden logic. It is quiet, mysterious, and deeply satisfying when something finally clicks.

• Similar because: It understands the addictive joy of finding secrets because you noticed something, not because a marker told you.
• Different because: It has almost no traditional fighting and no Silksong-style boss gauntlet.
• Best for: Players who mostly love the exploration, puzzle-solving, and secret-hunting side of Silksong.

11. Afterimage #

Kinguin€1.71-93%Steam €1.71Voir le prix →

When the appeal is simply getting lost in a beautiful map for hours, Afterimage delivers volume. Aurogon’s 2023 game is a big, pretty, hand-drawn Metroidvania that throws a lot at you: huge regions, many weapons, many skills, and a map that keeps sprawling outward. It is not as razor-edged as Silksong, but it has that long-session pull where one new route turns into five more.

• Similar because: The hand-drawn world and sheer exploration volume make it easy to disappear into the map.
• Different because: It is gentler, more loot-and-weapon driven, and less obsessed with punishing precision.
• Best for: Players who want a large, beautiful Metroidvania with less stress.

12. MIO: Memories in Orbit #

GOG€7.31-25%Steam €7.31Voir le prix →

Lonely sci-fi discovery gives MIO: Memories in Orbit its own lane beside Silksong’s insect fantasy. Douze Dixièmes’ 2025 Metroidvania sends a small robot through a massive abandoned space station, pairing delicate hand-drawn art with music that reacts to what you are doing. The world has that survival feeling where the environment tells half the story before anyone explains it.

• Similar because: It uses careful art, exploration, mystery, and solitude to pull you through an unknown world.
• Different because: The setting is sci-fi space survival, not insect fantasy, and it feels more modern in tone.
• Best for: Players who want Silksong’s atmosphere and discovery in a fresh sci-fi setting.

Comparison Table #

Game	Similar because	Different because	Best for
Hollow Knight	Same studio, universe, hand-drawn mood, exploration, and boss design language.	Slower, quieter, and less acrobatic than Silksong.	Players who want the closest match or need the original first.
Nine Sols	Hard but fair bosses, hand-drawn atmosphere, and exploration-led structure.	Parry-first combat replaces Silksong’s dodge-and-move aggression.	Players who want a brutal timing test.
ENDER MAGNOLIA: Bloom in the Mist	Melancholy tone, painted environments, exploration, and boss pressure.	Companion attacks and softer difficulty change the feel.	Players who want mood with less pain.
Blasphemous 2	Bleak world, large map, demanding combat, and oppressive bosses.	Pixel-art religious horror with more violent direct combat.	Players who want darker, harsher action.
Prince of Persia The Lost Crown	Fast traversal, clean combat, boss fights, and Metroidvania map design.	Brighter, more accessible, and more big-budget in feel.	Players who want polish and speed.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps	Superb movement, expressive world design, and tense set pieces.	Warmer, easier, and more emotional than Silksong.	Players who want fluid traversal without the grind.
GRIME	Hard bosses, exploration, striking art, and rhythm-based defense.	Weirder body-horror world and absorb-based progression.	Players who want a strange, punishing Metroidvania.
Dead Cells	Fast, sharp, high-risk combat with great weapon feel.	Roguelite runs replace fixed-map exploration.	Players who want action and replayability.
Aeterna Noctis	Hand-drawn world, big map, and high execution demands.	Much more focused on extreme platforming.	Players who want something harder than Silksong.
ANIMAL WELL	Exploration, secrets, hidden logic, and discovery-first design.	Almost no traditional combat or boss challenge.	Players who want pure mystery and puzzles.
Afterimage	Hand-drawn scale and a huge world to explore.	Easier, more weapon-heavy, and less intense.	Players who want volume and beauty over pressure.
MIO: Memories in Orbit	Lonely atmosphere, hand-drawn detail, and exploration-led mystery.	Sci-fi space station setting instead of bug fantasy.	Players who want a newer atmospheric sci-fi pick.

Filters #

Filter	Games
Closest to Silksong	Hollow Knight, Nine Sols
Want harder bosses and challenge	Nine Sols, Blasphemous 2, GRIME, Aeterna Noctis
Want friendlier difficulty and atmosphere	ENDER MAGNOLIA: Bloom in the Mist, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Afterimage
Love the exploration and secrets	ANIMAL WELL, MIO: Memories in Orbit
Want fast, snappy combat	Prince of Persia The Lost Crown, Dead Cells

FAQ #

Is Silksong harder than Hollow Knight? #

For a lot of players, yes, at least early on. Silksong is faster, more aggressive, and expects you to use Hornet’s movement with confidence much sooner. Hollow Knight is still tough, but it gives you more breathing room between fights. Compared with Nine Sols or Aeterna Noctis, Silksong still sits in that hard-but-fair zone. You can learn it. You just cannot mash through it.

Can I play Silksong without playing Hollow Knight first? #

Yes, you can jump straight into Silksong. Hornet’s story stands well enough on its own, and the new kingdom gives new players a clean place to start. But if you care about the tone, the history, and why this world has such a hold on people, play Hollow Knight first. Then branch into ENDER MAGNOLIA: Bloom in the Mist or Ori and the Will of the Wisps if you want more atmosphere.

Which games here are closest to Silksong? #

The closest is Hollow Knight, because it comes from the same studio and shares the same bones: lonely exploration, handmade spaces, and bosses that teach by bruising you. Nine Sols is the next best match if you want hard, fair, hand-drawn combat with a sharper parry focus. For mood over punishment, ENDER MAGNOLIA: Bloom in the Mist is the gentler cousin.

Are all these games on Steam? #

Yes. Every game on this list is available on Steam, including Dead Cells, ANIMAL WELL, and Prince of Persia The Lost Crown. Many of them show up in seasonal sales, so this is a good wishlist batch if you are not buying immediately. The nice part is the range: you can grab a brutal boss game, a pure exploration game, or a smoother action pick without leaving the same storefront.