There's a tendency to refer to tough 2D platformers with old-school sensibilities, upgrade systems and a focus on exploration as 'Metroidvania' games on account of their resemblance to the classics Metroid and Castlevania. But it'd be foolish to slip into that trap here, because Axiom Verge is pure Metroid through and through. The game throws you into a dark alien dimension filled with the the menacing kind of aliens you can imagine H.R. Geiger having nightmares about. Thankfully, as you explore the multi-layered levels and pick up power-ups, you build up an equally menacing arsenal of weapons to combat them with - ranging from your classic laser beams to lightning guns, to strange devices that spawn little alien sidekicks to fight by your side. Pretty and 16-bit though the game may look, Axiom Verge is decidedly a current-gen game, with pinpoint mechanics that ensure that when you die (which you will often), you'll only ever have your own skills and strategies to blame. The bosses are particularly memorable, and as you're blasting away at a giant alien wasp's weak points while avoiding its deadly barrages you'll get fond echoes of classic 2D shooters like Contra and R-Type. It's a tough and often unforgiving game that refines the alien-blasting Metroid formula and delivers it to PC and PS4 gamers.
Gamer, Researcher of strange things.
I'm a writer-editor hybrid whose writings on video games, technology and movies can be found across the internet. I've even ventured into the realm of current affairs on occasion but, unable to face reality, have retreated into expatiating on things on screens instead.
