Games like You Have to Win the Game
by Minor Key Games
You Have to Win the Game is a free exploration platformer with a retro 1980s PC aesthetic.
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Ranked by how similar the games actually are, not by sales. Released and Price are remembered for next time.
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$7.99Super Win the Game
Oct 1 · Minor Key Games
Both: Metroidvania · Precision Platformer · Difficult
Throw on your nostalgia goggles and travel back in time with Super Win the Game, a retro-core explosion of exploration and platforming action!!
MetroidvaniaSide ScrollerPrecision PlatformerCasualExplorationOpen WorldDifficultPlatformer2DNonlinear👍 527
$7.99Gato Roboto
May 30 · doinksoft
Both: Metroidvania · Pixel Graphics · Platformer
Pounce inside of your cozy armored mech and set off on a dangerous trek through an alien underworld full of irritable creatures and treacherous obstacles in a valiant effort to save your stranded captain and his crashed spaceship.
IndieMetroidvaniaActionPixel GraphicsAdventure2DCatsPlatformerRetroSingleplayer👍 4,364
$9.99Castle In The Darkness
Feb 5 · Matt Kap, Nicalis, Inc.
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer · Difficult
Castle In The Darkness is a fun and challenging shout out to the early days of video games! It's an action exploration platformer with some RPG elements, much like games from the Castlevania or Metroid series. It's super fast-paced, challenging, and full of secrets!
MetroidvaniaIndiePlatformerActionDifficultPixel GraphicsAdventureRPGRetro2D👍 1,185
$4.99VVVVVV
Sep 7 · Terry Cavanagh
Both: Pixel Graphics · Precision Platformer · Platformer
VVVVVV is a platform game all about exploring one simple mechanical idea - what if you reversed gravity instead of jumping?
Pixel GraphicsPrecision PlatformerPlatformerIndie2D PlatformerGreat SoundtrackDifficultRetro2DSingleplayer👍 6,659
$9.99Odallus: The Dark Call
Jul 15 · JoyMasher
Both: Metroidvania · Retro · Pixel Graphics
The old gods have forgotten this land. No one could save our people when darkness started spreading and collecting human souls for its army. Odallus is a classic exploration/action game, inspired by Ghosts’n Goblins, Demon’s Crest and Castlevania.
MetroidvaniaActionIndieRetroPixel GraphicsPlatformer2DAction-AdventureExplorationGore👍 864
-75%$4.99Axiom Verge
May 14 · Thomas Happ Games LLC
Both: Metroidvania · Pixel Graphics · Platformer
Explore and uncover the mystery of a surreal alien world by blasting aliens and glitching your environment in this intense retro side-scrolling action/adventure.
MetroidvaniaIndiePixel GraphicsPlatformerGreat SoundtrackAction2DSci-fiAdventureRetro👍 5,840
$4.99Escape From Tethys
Jul 12 · Whimsical
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer · Pixel Graphics
You're trapped, alone and cold on a distant planet. Pursued by a droid with only one purpose: killing everything. You must find an escape. Explore the hostile environment, find secret upgrades and new weapons, and finally make your escape from this dark, hostile planet...
ActionMetroidvaniaPlatformerExplorationAction-AdventurePixel Graphics2DRetroIndieSingleplayer👍 109
$19.99The Messenger
Aug 30 · Sabotage
Both: Retro · Platformer · Pixel Graphics
As a demon army besieges his village, a young ninja ventures through a cursed world, to deliver a scroll paramount to his clan’s survival. What begins as a classic action platformer soon unravels into an expansive time-traveling adventure full of thrills, surprises, and humor.
RetroPlatformerPixel GraphicsMetroidvaniaNinja2DGreat SoundtrackIndieAction2D Platformer👍 10,714
$9.99Xeodrifter
Dec 11 · Atooi
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer · Retro
Xeodrifter is the story of an interstellar drifter traveling the stars on a simple mission of exploration. We join our nomad as he embarks on the investigation of a small cluster of four planets in the omega sector, after a collision with a rogue asteroid damaged his warp core.
MetroidvaniaIndiePlatformerRetroPixel GraphicsSci-fiActionExploration2DAdventure👍 738
$14.99Cathedral
Oct 31 · Decemberborn Interactive
Both: Metroidvania · Pixel Graphics · Retro
Make your way through more than 600 rooms, and unravel the secrets of your past by finding the five elemental orbs. Cathedral features a vast world, meant for exploring!
ActionIndieMetroidvaniaAdventurePixel GraphicsRetroPlatformerDifficult2DSide Scroller👍 302
$14.99Mago
Jun 21 · Dream Potion Games
Both: Platformer · Pixel Graphics · Retro
Mago is a retro 2D platformer that puts us in the boots of a sorcerer, who was unfortunate enough to eat evil overlords' food. Now he has to rescue his beloved princess from the dinner menu of the evil Gourmet! Nostalgia awaits!
IndieAdventurePlatformerPixel Graphics2DRetroGreat SoundtrackFunnyDifficultSingleplayer👍 933
$14.99Valdis Story: Abyssal City
Oct 30 · Endlessfluff Games
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer · Difficult
Assume the role of Wyatt in this Action/Exploration Platformer as you explore the ruins of a holy city that was lost many years ago. Battle various types of demons, angels, and a new threat known only as the “Ferals”, using swordsmanship, martial arts, and sorcery.
MetroidvaniaActionPlatformerRPGIndie2DDifficultGreat SoundtrackSingleplayerExploration👍 2,275
$17.99OUTBUDDIES DX
Oct 15 · Julian Laufer
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer · Pixel Graphics
Run, gun and explore an open undercity in this otherworldly non-linear Metroidvania adventure about the Old Gods, strange creatures and the remnants of a lost world!
IndieMetroidvaniaActionAdventurePlatformerPixel GraphicsDifficultExplorationGreat Soundtrack2D👍 200
$14.99Cave Story+
Nov 22 · Nicalis, Inc., Studio Pixel
Both: Metroidvania · Difficult · Platformer
Run, jump, shoot, fly and explore your way through a massive action-adventure reminiscent of classic 8- and 16-bit games.
ExplorationMetroidvaniaDifficultPlatformerShooter2DCuteStory RichMultiple EndingsAction👍 5,233
-85%$2.99SteamWorld Dig 2
Sep 22 · Image & Form Games
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer
SteamWorld Dig is back! Dig deep, gain riches and unearth the terrors of the underworld in this platform mining adventure influenced by classic Metroidvania style games.
AdventureMetroidvaniaIndieActionPlatformerMining2DSteampunkFemale ProtagonistSingleplayer👍 5,702
-85%$1.49SteamWorld Dig
Dec 5 · Image & Form Games
Both: Platformer · Metroidvania
SteamWorld Dig is an action-adventure puzzler with strong Metroidvanian influences set in the SteamWorld Universe. You’ll need to dig deep into the earth, gather resources to upgrade your tools and abilities, take on enemies, solve challenging puzzles and uncover the secrets to save a dying town.
PlatformerMiningMetroidvaniaSteampunkIndieAdventureWestern2DRobotsAction👍 6,511
$24.99ANIMAL WELL
May 9 · Billy Basso
Both: Metroidvania · Pixel Graphics · Platformer
Explore a dense, interconnected labyrinth, and unravel its many secrets. Collect items to manipulate your environment in surprising and meaningful ways. Encounter beautiful and unsettling creatures, as you attempt to survive what lurks in the dark. There is more than what you see.
MetroidvaniaExplorationPuzzlePixel GraphicsPuzzle PlatformerPlatformerHorror2DAtmosphericAdventure👍 22,819
$19.99Celeste
Jan 25 · Maddy Makes Games Inc., Extremely OK Games, Ltd.
Both: Precision Platformer · Difficult · Pixel Graphics
Help Madeline survive her inner demons on her journey to the top of Celeste Mountain, in this super-tight platformer from the creators of TowerFall. Brave hundreds of hand-crafted challenges, uncover devious secrets, and piece together the mystery of the mountain.
Precision PlatformerDifficultGreat SoundtrackPixel GraphicsIndiePlatformer2D PlatformerFemale ProtagonistSingleplayer2D👍 132,188
$14.991001 Spikes
Jun 3 · Nicalis, Inc.
Both: Precision Platformer · Platformer · Difficult
Discover the lost treasures of Ukampa in South America as Aban Hawkins searches for his estranged father, world-famous archeaologist, Jim Hawkins. Aban Hawkins races into the frozen tundra of the antarctic, undiscovered temple ruins and the vast caverns of South America in search of his father and the legendary treasure rumored to lie...
Precision PlatformerPlatformerIndieActionDifficultAdventure2DPixel GraphicsLocal MultiplayerRetro👍 493
$14.99Wuppo: Definitive Edition
Sep 29 · snekflat
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer
Play as an exiled 'wum' looking for a new home in this bizarre but charming world, filled with strange creatures, puzzles, monsters and political chaos.
MetroidvaniaExplorationPlatformer2D2D PlatformerCuteGreat SoundtrackPuzzleActionSingleplayer👍 4,950
-50%$0.99Dungeon of Zolthan
May 11 · Robert Alvarez
Both: Platformer · Metroidvania · Retro
Dungeon of Zolthan is a casual, arcade-style metroidvania platformer where your goal is to defeat Zolthan; a powerful mage that lives inside the dungeon. Using an array of powerups and your own wit and guile, guide your character through Zolthan's Dungeon!
IndieActionAdventurePlatformerMetroidvania2DMinimalistRetroSingleplayerPixel Graphics👍 389
-75%$4.99Chasm
Jul 30 · Bit Kid, Inc.
Both: Metroidvania · Pixel Graphics · Platformer
Explore the depths below a remote mountain town in this procedurally-generated Adventure Platformer. Taking inspiration from hack 'n slash dungeon crawlers and Metroidvania-style platformers, Chasm will immerse you in a fantasy world full of exciting treasure, deadly enemies, and abundant secrets.
MetroidvaniaPixel GraphicsIndieAdventureActionRPGPlatformer2DProcedural GenerationSide Scroller👍 1,435
FreeHargrave
Oct 12 · Disafter Games
Both: Metroidvania · Retro · Platformer
Hargrave finds himself inside the walls of a mysterious labyrinth filled with strange robots. Find the way out, or find what's hidden deep inside.
Free to PlayAdventureCasualIndieMetroidvaniaRetroPlatformerDifficultPixel Graphics2D Platformer
$19.99Souldiers
Jun 2 · Retro Forge
Both: Metroidvania · Pixel Graphics · Difficult
Fight for your freedom in a sprawling fantasy world caught between the living and the fallen. Hone your skills in a retro epic featuring puzzle platforming, metroidvania exploration and crunchy soulslike combat.
MetroidvaniaPixel GraphicsActionAction-AdventureSingleplayerCombatDifficultAdventureLore-RichSouls-like👍 2,322
-25%$4.49Pseudoregalia
Jul 28 · rittzler
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer
Deep within the realm of sleep, Sybil finds herself pulled to a distorted castle. Grow strong, and unlock new abilities to build up a deep movement system, fight enemies, find secrets, and free the weary soul of Castle Sansa, in this retro-inspired 3D Platformer Metroidvania.
3D PlatformerMetroidvaniaFemale ProtagonistParkourExplorationPlatformerOld School3DSingleplayerThird Person👍 16,992
$2.99LOVE
Feb 7 · Fred Wood
Both: Platformer · Pixel Graphics · Retro
Love is a reductive platforming game with a retro aesthetic and a focus on a challenging difficulty. It has an custom respawn system, 16 levels, 12 track soundtrack, competitive scoring, and a simple-to-use level creation feature.
PlatformerIndiePixel GraphicsRetroActionGreat SoundtrackShortPrecision PlatformerMinimalist2D👍 830
$9.99Out There Somewhere
Mar 14 · MiniBoss
Both: Platformer · Pixel Graphics · Retro
You play an explorer stranded on a dangerous alien planet. Low on fuel, your only hope for escape is to find the planet’s core in this incredibly clever action-puzzle-platformer.
PlatformerPixel GraphicsIndiePuzzleAdventure2DGreat SoundtrackRetroActionSci-fi👍 6,161
$19.99Timespinner
Sep 25 · Lunar Ray Games
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer · Pixel Graphics
Travel back in time to change fate itself, in this beautifully crafted story-driven adventure, inspired by classic 90s action-platformers. Join timekeeper Lunais on her quest for revenge against the empire that killed her family, using time-bending powers to explore a vast, connected world.
MetroidvaniaFemale ProtagonistSide ScrollerLGBTQ+2D PlatformerExplorationPlatformer2DPixel GraphicsRPG👍 2,824
$15.99F.I.S.T.: Forged In Shadow Torch
Oct 2 · TiGames
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer
F.I.S.T.: Forged In Shadow Torch is a Metroidvania action game featuring exploration, intense combat and challenging platforming.
MetroidvaniaPlatformerActionSteampunkAdventure2D PlatformerSingleplayerStory RichExplorationAction-Adventure👍 6,666
-90%$1.49Aggelos
Jun 19 · Storybird Games
Both: Metroidvania · Pixel Graphics · Platformer
Critically-acclaimed action-RPG that takes the template laid down by classics like Wonder Boy, nails the 16-Bit aesthetics for nostalgia fans, but updates the mechanics to feel fresh and modern. Explore a beautiful open world and plunder dungeons, caves and forests to help take down epic bosses!
AdventureIndieRPGMetroidvaniaActionPixel Graphics2DPlatformerRetroSingleplayer👍 562
$4.99Gateways
Sep 13 · Smudged Cat Games Ltd
Both: Platformer · Metroidvania · Pixel Graphics
From the creative mind behind The Adventures of Shuggy comes an exciting new retro-styled 2D platformer, a winner of Dream Build Play 2012 and a top 50 game of 2012 according to Game Informer. Grab the gateway guns and explore a huge lab filled with mysterious puzzles in this classic platforming adventure.
IndiePuzzlePlatformerMetroidvaniaSci-fiTime ManipulationSingleplayerPuzzle Platformer2DPixel Graphics👍 186
$9.99Teslagrad
Dec 13 · Rain Games
Both: Platformer · Metroidvania
A journey begins... A treacherous tower... Unravel its mysteries!Discover the secrets kept in the long abandoned Tesla Tower!Magnetism and other electromagnetic powers will help you explore a non-linear world of beautiful hand-drawn environments, in a steampunk-inspired vision of old Europe.
PlatformerPuzzleIndieMetroidvania2DSteampunkSingleplayerPuzzle PlatformerActionAdventure👍 1,710
$9.99Super Life of Pixel
Oct 22 · Super Icon Ltd
Both: Platformer · Retro · Pixel Graphics
Join Pixel as he quests through gaming history, teleporting across the most iconic video game systems of generations past. He’ll have to jump, dodge and play smart if he wants to survive all the traps, puzzles and enemies waiting to take him down at every turn.
IndiePlatformerRetroPixel Graphics2DGreat SoundtrackAdventureSingleplayerDifficult👍 232
$6.99There Was A Caveman
Oct 8 · Nauris Amatnieks
Both: Difficult · Precision Platformer · Pixel Graphics
There Was A Caveman is a prehistoric themed, retro styled, action platformer. With challenging gameplay that will keep you on your toes. Get ready to die and die a lot.
DinosaursDifficultShortColorfulPrecision PlatformerPixel GraphicsRetroControllerPlatformerSingleplayer👍 108
-50%$9.99Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus
Jul 17 · Squid Shock Studios, Christopher Stair, Trevor Youngquist
Both: Precision Platformer · Platformer · Metroidvania
Flow gracefully through a colorful, hand-drawn 2.5D action platformer inspired by Japanese folklore. Engage in acrobatic aerial combat, unlock powerful mystical abilities, and explore an interconnected world of myth as you seek to unravel the mysteries of your origin.
Precision PlatformerSide ScrollerExploration2D PlatformerPlatformerMetroidvaniaSouls-likeAction-AdventureComic Book2D👍 1,399
$9.99Retro Game Crunch
May 19 · Rusty Moyher, Shaun Inman, Matt Grimm
Both: Retro · Pixel Graphics · Platformer
Retro Game Crunch is a series of 7 games, full of the charm and challenge of the 8-bit generation. Each world feels like an authentic NES classic. A massive genre-spanning collection.
IndieActionAdventureRetroPixel GraphicsLocal Co-Op2DPlatformerMetroidvaniaLocal Multiplayer👍 280
$14.993000th Duel
Dec 12 · NEOPOPCORN Corp
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer · Difficult
3000th Duel is action-adventure game that has speedy, exciting battles as its charm. Fight against monsters with your own style of battle to travel an unidentified world and discover a secret hidden.
ActionAdventureMetroidvaniaSouls-likeIndiePlatformerDifficultDark FantasySide Scroller2D👍 365
$9.99ElecHead
Oct 14 · NamaTakahashi, Tsuyomi
Both: Platformer · Pixel Graphics · Retro
⚡+🤖+🧩
Puzzle PlatformerPuzzlePlatformerLinearPixel GraphicsActionRetroAdventureSingleplayerIndie👍 1,412
$24.99Rain World
Mar 28 · Videocult
Both: Difficult · Pixel Graphics · Platformer
You are a nomadic slugcat, both predator and prey in a broken ecosystem. Grab your spear and brave the industrial wastes, hunting enough food to survive, but be wary— other, bigger creatures have the same plan... and slugcats look delicious.
DifficultAtmosphericSurvivalExplorationIndiePixel GraphicsPlatformer2DOpen WorldPost-apocalyptic👍 46,938
$4.99The Shadowland
Jul 17 · Bloodcraft Dev
Both: Metroidvania · Difficult · Platformer
EN Little Reaper finds himself lost in grim otherworld. Help him find the way back through treacherous obstacles and threatening foes.Prepare to rely heavily on your reflexes to complete 30+ levels spanning through 6 locations, and beat 3 unique bosses. RU Маленький жнец потерялся в мрачной потустороннем мире.
MetroidvaniaPuzzle Platformer2D PlatformerSouls-likeDifficultPlatformerAction-Adventure2DHorrorCute
$2.99The Impossible Game
May 8 · Grip Games
Both: Difficult · Platformer
The super-addictive and very, very hard platform game finally arrives on Steam - it's quite possibly the world's hardest game! As well as five classic Impossible Game levels, this desktop version includes an EXCLUSIVE new Level Editor.
IndieDifficultGreat SoundtrackPlatformerLevel EditorMusicCasual2DAddictiveSingleplayer👍 1,253
$9.99Volgarr the Viking
Sep 13 · Crazy Viking Studios
Both: Platformer · Difficult · Retro
Return to the Golden Age of arcades with a hardcore action platformer that pulls no punches! Possesses all the hallmarks of true classics like Super Ghouls 'N Ghosts (SNES), Rastan Saga (Arcade), Castlevania (NES) and more with precise controls, high challenge, and meticulous design.
PlatformerDifficultActionIndieRetro2DAdventureSingleplayerArcadeOld School👍 1,620
FreeEternal Cave Escape
Aug 6 · HarderGaming
Both: Precision Platformer · Pixel Graphics · Platformer
You find yourself stuck in a cave with nothing but your wit... and a pickaxe! As you climb your way out you'll find this is no ordinary cave.
Precision Platformer2D PlatformerPixel GraphicsPlatformerFree to PlayAction2DAdventureIndieRetro
$4.99IN-VERT: Definitive Edition
Mar 2 · TERNOX
Both: Difficult · Platformer · Pixel Graphics
This is a short hardcore enthralling puzzle-platform game about a lonely robot, which tries to find his master. To go all the way you'll have to look for the master in two dimensions at the same time. Parallel world module will help to overcome any obstacles!
IndieActionAdventureDifficultPlatformer2D PlatformerPixel GraphicsRetroSingleplayerPuzzle
$14.99The Way
May 20 · Puzzling Dream
Both: Pixel Graphics · Platformer · Retro
Journey to another planet and discover its secrets in order to bring your loved one back to life. Experience an adventure, inspired by old school classics like Another World, Heart of Darkness and Flashback.
AdventureIndieActionPixel GraphicsPlatformerPuzzle PlatformerSci-fi2DRetroSingleplayer👍 900
$4.99Super Panda Adventures
Jul 14 · BlueEagle Productions
Both: Platformer · Metroidvania
In Super Panda Adventures, you play as the brave panda-knight Fu, who is about to finish his training to become the new guardian of the Princess. At the same day of the big celebration party, some uninvited Robots show up to conquer the planet and take the Princess away in their Space Ships!
PlatformerIndieMetroidvaniaActionAdventureCuteRPG2DSingleplayerGreat Soundtrack👍 713
$9.99Catmaze
May 24 · Redblack Spade
Both: Metroidvania · Platformer
Catmaze is a fairy metroidvania inspired by Slavic myths. Age-old tales will come to life in the unforgettable adventure of Alesta, a sorceress whose courage guides her through mysterious paths and dark forests in search of the lost road to Nav, the world of the dead.
Side ScrollerExplorationMetroidvaniaPlatformerAction RPGAction-AdventureFemale ProtagonistCharacter Action GameRPG2D👍 570
$14.99Vibrant Venture
Jul 24 · Semag Games
Both: Platformer · Difficult · Pixel Graphics
Vibrant Venture is a singleplayer 2D adventure platformer game featuring a quirky cast of characters! The game features four playable characters with multiple unique abilities that can be combined for extremely versatile, fluid and fun movement!
PlatformerAdventureSide Scroller2D PlatformerPuzzle PlatformerDifficultActionPixel GraphicsCartoony2D👍 575





