Doing the Metroidvania very effectively.
Why sure, one other Metroidvania is gracing the Nintendo Swap 2. It’s been a fairly astonishing avalanche of high-quality titles on this style over the previous couple of years. Ever since Hole Knight and the return of 2D Metroid, it’s been such a pleasure to see different builders reinterpret, add and problem the conventions of the style. Enter Effectively Dweller from Kyle Thompson Video games, which is one other incredible recreation you must completely not overlook in 2026.
Effectively Dweller sees you taking part in as Glimmer, a hen that lives with their household in a small effectively. They could very effectively be the final hen household within the kingdom because the merciless queen has ordered all her hunters to seize the birds for his or her feathers to create a costume. However the household wants meals, and the scraps from the hunters must do. Alas, misfortune arrives and Glimmer’s household is taken away. Armed with nothing however a big matchstick, Glimmer units out to rescue their siblings and mom from the clutches of the queen.
At first I used to be type of shocked by Effectively Dweller, however not due to its world design; the presentation is instantly hanging. It’s attractive, fairy-tale-like, and instantly distinguishes itself from comparable titles. That is significantly true as a result of the tales which might be advised are very darkish and dour. The ravaged panorama and scattered teams of critters making an attempt to outlive are balanced by stunning colours and distinctive areas. However what actually struck me was the pacing. It felt gradual and unwieldy. For a hen, glimmer feels sluggish and may’t fly or leap significantly far. It made the opening a bit tough to get by.
Sticking with it as I did, Effectively Dweller slowly unravels its intelligent iterations on the Metroidvania. That matchstick isn’t only a melee weapon. It may be shot at partitions to create a little bit platform to extend your leap. However it could actually solely be carried out if you’re stationary on strong floor. It makes traversal and platforming much more participating, particularly provided that utilizing your weapon to struggle retrieves the matchstick from mentioned wall. You may see how all these layers stack collectively to create some really enjoyable platforming challenges. That’s the place the true energy of Effectively Dweller is hidden. The extent design is solely excellent. At first it could really feel as if the map is incomprehensibly giant and cumbersome to navigate, however the recreation flows so naturally that exploration, whether or not it’s for simple development or discovering hidden collectibles, at all times comes naturally. You’re by no means needlessly prodding at partitions to search out obtuse methods to proceed. It made coming again to Effectively Dweller every evening such enjoyable.
Beneath the hood there are some cautious issues that support its world design. First off are the trinkets. These little collectibles give minor perks to Glimmer. They begin out small, like including a burning impact to your throwable weapon or gaining extra foreign money from defeated enemies. However the recreation solely limits the variety of trinkets you’ll be able to equip by what number of slots you could have discovered on the earth or purchased from the store. These slots are pretty low-cost, that means you can slowly amass a real armory of trinkets with all their results stacked. The sport additionally means that you can quick journey to any save level at any time. Everytime you’re low on well being or wish to take a look at your new trinkets, you are able to do so immediately and have a tendency to lose solely minimal progress. That will sound a bit like a letdown to hardcore followers, however I believe it’s precisely the factor I used to be lacking from one thing like Silksong. It simply makes exploration a lot extra enjoyable. Add to that the third intelligent addition: the power to buy the situation of secrets and techniques on the earth at your save level. Even whereas these factors are marked, you continue to have to usually overcome a platforming or navigational problem in reaching the key. Better of all? These are all non-obligatory. If you wish to play it as a real hardcore 2D motion platformer, you positively can.
There may be additionally a stout problem discovered within the boss battles. These scary creatures, usually husks of people or weird transformations of critters, are an absolute spotlight. Their assault patterns are clearly telegraphed and in contrast to many different video games on this style, touching a boss doesn’t inflict injury. Which means the fight really encourages you to get shut and private in case you can handle to dodge their incoming assaults. Some aren’t even conventional bosses, however moderately a collection of escalating platforming challenges. The range is superb and so they are likely to feed again into the darker storytelling the sport goes for.
Effectively Dweller doesn’t overplay its hand. It could appear incomprehensible at first look, however by its considerate design, attractive artstyle and interesting fight it seems like one other a kind of must-play indie Metroidvanias. I’ve but to play Crypt Custodian or Islets, however Kyle Thompson is now completely on my radar as a recreation designer. To me, this recreation is a shock hidden gem. Every little thing suits collectively so effectively (pun supposed). In a stacked yr stuffed with robust titles, that is one other contender for my favorites of 2026.
