It’s that time again, as another Hollow Knight-inspired Metroidvania is about to fill the Silksong-shaped hole in your heart. With Team Cherry’s sequel now at least five years in the making, the similarly beautiful Voidwrought is right around the corner. With an infinitely smaller wait time and some fascinating differences, this is a Metroidvania you should have on your radar. Even better, it’s quite literally weeks away.
At a glance, Voidwrought very much wears the Hollow Knight inspirations on its sleeve. It’s a hand-drawn, 2D Metroidvania set in dank catacombs with frenetic combat and platforming challenges. Voidwrought even has its own version of Hollow Knight’s Charms, this time called Relics. I could spend all day listing the minutia of what makes Voidwrought feel like Hollow Knight, but after watching the trailer I think you’ll get it.
There’s nothing wrong with inspiration, of course, especially considering Voidwrought’s key differences. The biggest: you’re a cult leader. To explore the deadly Simulcrum you need to build a shrine, expand your tiny cult, and excavate the gloomy ruins further and further. You’ll find new followers, secrets, and rewards as you do, which sounds like the perfect pairing for the Metroidvania formula.
Voidwrought is also filled with over 90 enemies and ten bosses, giving you more than enough to fight your way through. It’s a good job, too, because the combat is incredibly fluid. You’re rolling, sliding, and slashing at enemies between attacks, with plenty of environmental hazards to keep you guessing. For my money, the movement and combat of a 2D Metroidvania like this are what you absolutely need to get right, and Voidwrought has the good stuff.
Those aforementioned Relics will come in mighty useful as well, as each vastly alters your play style. You can shoot laser beams, buff yourself up, alter the flow of time, and much more. With 30 Relics available, the build possibilities are nigh endless, making expression the name of the game.
Powersnake is releasing Voidwrought on Thursday October 24 on Steam, the Epic Games Store, and Nintendo Switch. You can wishlist the game and download the demo right here.
If you want even more, we’ve got all the best platform games to play on PC in the meantime, alongside some free Steam games so you don’t break the bank.
You can also follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides, or grab our PCGN deals tracker to net yourself some bargains.