The Evolution of Metroidvania: From Super Metroid to Hollow Knight and Beyond

While we all wait for the release of Silksong I thought it might be a good idea to look back over the history of the 'Metroidvania' games that paved the way for this highly anticipated sequel. Hollow Knight, and Silksong are part of the Metroidvania genre, which has been a favorite of indie developers for many years now. This sub-genre of action-adventure games draws its name from the foundational influences of Nintendo's Metroid series and Konami's Castlevania franchise, and they are known for their non-linear exploration, ability-gated progression, and interconnected worlds.

Starting with Super Metroid as the template, the genre has incorporated elements from various titles over the years, and impacted dozens of games in other genres as well. This inspiration and incorporation of different gameplay elements has led us to the modern masterpieces of the genre; Hollow Knight, and its upcoming sequel Hollow Knight: Silksong. In this article, we're going to trace this gameplay progression, highlighting key games and their contributions, while looking forward to what may be coming next. So settle in by the bonfire and listen for a bit.

Super Metroid: The Foundational Template

Released in 1994 for the SNES, Super Metroid refined the principles established in the original 1986 Metroid game, solidifying the core gameplay elements of what would become a Metroidvania game. It is widely regarded as the pinnacle of the genre due to its excellent pacing, where players gradually unlock an interconnected world through power upgrades like the Morph Ball, missiles, and high-jump boots.

The game's memorable atmosphere, blending isolation, tension, and discovery on the alien planet Zebes, set a standard for immersive world-building that many subsequent titles aspire to match. Super Metroid wasn't just a sequel; it fleshed out the non-linear platformer formula, influencing countless later games by emphasizing exploration over linear stage progression.

One of the most incredible aspects of Super Metroid's design is how well everything is telegraphed to players. As each new ability or power is unlocked, and a new area of the world is opened, the player is able to remember what area they should revisit to utilize that new power. It leads to a sense of exploration and discovery that many newer games lack with their endless map markers pointing out every possibly area of interest.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night – Adding RPG Depth and Gothic Flair

Layering it's gothic horror motif directly on the Metroid template, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (released in 1997 for the PlayStation) popularized the genre and gave it its "vania" half. Directed by Koji Igarashi, it shifted from the linear level design of earlier Castlevania games to a vast, explorable castle filled with secrets. SotN introduced light RPG elements, such as equipment systems, swappable weapons, and experience-based leveling, which added depth to the combat and progression.

It transformed the sci-fi setting of Super Metroid into a gothic horror aesthetic, with vampires, monsters, and a haunting soundtrack, establishing a stylistic staple that echoed in many later entries. This blend of exploration and RPG mechanics made SotN the other defining title in the genre alongside Super Metroid.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night expanded on the gameplay of Super Metroid and gave players even more secrets to discover through the introduction of many different endings, and entire sections of the world that could be missed if certain actions weren't taken. Later games in the series took these elements even further and also introduced enemy collection and swappable characters to the genre.

Through several releases for both the Gameboy Advance and Nintendo DS, Castlevania continued to push the genre forward in two dimensions, but it would take another series for the genre to make the jump to 3D.

Dark Souls: Bringing Metroidvania to 3D with Unforgiving Challenge

While primarily looked at as a 3D action-RPG, Dark Souls (2011) has always seemed more like a Metroidvania evolved into three dimensions, featuring a deeply interconnected world, cryptic lore, and punishing difficulty. While Dark Souls is a highly influential game in its own right, it's easy to see the inspiration of the Metroidvanias that came before when you look at its design and structure.

Its world design encourages exploration similar to classic Metroidvanias, but with areas unlocking through keys, shortcuts, and player skill rather than strict ability gates. A key innovation was the "souls" system, where currency earned from defeated enemies must be spent at bonfire save points to level up, introducing a risk versus reward tension by delaying upgrades and punishing death with a potential loss of progress. The added element of allowing players to travel back to the place of their death to reclaim their lost "souls" only added to the tension, and has made many a gamer cry out in frustration when a large batch of "souls" was lost.

Though not a pure Metroidvania due to its lack of platforming and emphasis on stamina management, Dark Souls has profoundly influenced the genre by infusing it with high-stakes difficulty and atmospheric storytelling. In fact, Dark Souls spawned its own sub-genre, dubbed 'Soulslikes', which lean into the delayed RPG progression, bonfires or safe spots to rest and recover, and the punishing difficulty. For a few years after its release it seemed like every new game had some aspect of Dark Souls layered into its gameplay, and Hollow Knight is no exception.

Hollow Knight: A Masterful Synthesis in 2D

Released in 2017 by Team Cherry, Hollow Knight brilliantly melds elements from Super Metroid, Symphony of the Night, and Dark Souls and brings them all back into 2D. It captures the exploratory essence and atmosphere of Super Metroid, with its vast and interconnected underground kingdom of Hallownest, and uses environmental storytelling to slowly unravel the lore to the player. Hollow Knight's map opens up both based on Super Metroid style ability upgrades, like a double jump, dash, and horizontal flight, and in a more Dark Souls method which requires spending "geo", the in-game currency, to open up fast travel points, learn new skills, or purchase keys for special doors.

From SotN, it borrows subtle RPG features, though slimmed down for tighter pacing, focusing on charms and gear customization rather than expansive inventories. The high difficulty and lore-driven narrative echo Dark Souls, with "geo" serving as a souls-like currency for purchasing upgrades, and death mechanics that require retrieving a shade to recover lost resources. This fusion results in an excellent modern Metroidvania, often debated as rivaling or surpassing classics like SotN and Super Metroid in scope and execution.

Hollow Knight has also greatly benefitted from being a modern game, it's generous DLC updates over the years have allowed it to be expanded and refined in a way that Super Metroid and Symphony of the Night never were. This expansion has allowed Hollow Knight to remain relevant to gamers during the long wait for its sequel.

Can Hollow Knight: Silksong Extend This Legacy?

It's now been over 7 years since Hollow Knight's release, and it seems like fans have been eagerly awaiting the sequel for nearly that entire time. Can it possibly live up to their expectations? While Silksong began as an expansion for the original game it has since morphed into something much larger. It stars a new lead character, shifting focus to the much loved Hornet from the first game. It also takes place in a new kingdom and promises expanded exploration, new enemies, and new abilities, while retaining the same challenging combat we all love. And while we haven't seen much of it in action, what we have seen suggests that it builds on the original's strengths and could possibly surpass them.

Only time will tell if Silksong can continue to push the Metroidvania genre forward with new innovations and gameplay mechanics; but thankfully, we won't have to wait much longer.

It's almost time to jump back in.