LogFAQs > #956868933

Lightning Strikes posted...

This is absolutely right. I adore Castlevania and especially the Iga ones, however it is definitely an imposter here. The gap between Metroid 1 and Symphony of the Night is 1.5x the gap between Symphony of the Night and Cave Story, and most Castlevania games arent even Metroidvanias in any way.

It's undeniable that SotN changed the genre and pushed it towards its current form, though. Melee combat, visible stats, usable items, non-essential armor and weapons, enemy drops, NPCs, a viewable bestiary -- all of these are things SotN brought in. It also really codified how Metroidvania maps work, to the extent that even future Metroid games copied SotN's map -- though that difference is pretty small so you could definitely argue it was just the natural evolution from Super Metroid.

I might get push-back for this but Cave Story is really barely even a Metroidvania at all. That game is extremely linear and plot-heavy. It's also full of a lot of what I'll call "events" for lack of a better term. Escorting Curly, finding the 5 dogs, etc. Most Metroidvanias have maybe one of these, at the end of the game typically, because otherwise it impacts your ability to explore the world. Cave Story also has a lot less in the way of character progression than other Metroidvanias.

(The rest of this post isn't really a response to you, I'm just using this as an opportunity to go off about something I find interesting)

Really, I think we could even break down Metroidvanias into these three styles:

Super Metroid style (typically: ranged combat, light RPG elements, sci-fi setting, floaty controls): Metroid Prime, Shadow Complex, The Divide: Enemies Within, Axiom Verge, Xeodrifter, Gato Roboto, A Robot Named Fight!, arguably Ori

SotN style (typically: melee combat, heavy RPG elements, fantasy setting, tighter controls): IGAvanias, Bloodstained, Chasm, Aquaria, Momodora, Touhou Luna Nights, arguably Hollow Knight

Cave Story style (story-focused, less character progression, heavy use of events/gameplay challenges): All I can think of here is Iconoclasts, but I'm sure there are others! This style isn't my cup of tea so I don't seek them out.

There's definitely room for disagreement about where a game should be placed, and some (like Yoku's Island Express) defy the categorization entirely, but I think when you play enough of these games the different styles really do become apparent.

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Congrats to BKSheikah, who knows more about years than anyone else.