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Recently, I’ve been enjoying some really short metroidvania games, and I thought I’d start a thread to celebrate them. I have coined a term for this sub-sub-genre of platform games: Micro-Metroidvanias (or, if you like, Mini-Metroidvanias, Minivanias, Microtroids, etc.).

These are games with that satisfying metroidvania gameplay loop, but that can be beaten in just a few hours. Gato Roboto is likely the epitome of the sub-sub-genre. It offers immensely an immensely satisfying gameplay, a fun alien world to explore, just the right amount of backtracking, and satisfying combat. Also, you can play it to completion in just 3-4 hours! A few others I’ve enjoyed are Ninja Smasher, Trash Quest, Unstrong Legacy, and Xeodrifter.

In this thread, we can discuss Micro-Metroidvanias, and I’ll keep a list of them here:

Alchemist’s Castle
Bloody Vampire
Clash at Demonhead
Gato Roboto
Grizzland
Micetopia
Ninja Smasher
Spooky Ghosts Dot Com
Trash Quest
Unstrong Legacy
Xeodrifter
Zombie Incident

I’ve only listed ones I’ve beaten. What others are out there? As we discuss games, I’ll list new ones here. I may also drop a review from time-to-time.

I look forward to a robust debate regarding whether some ganes are really metroidvania games AND whether they’re short enough (1-4 hours) to be considered Micro-Metroidvanias!

It's so weird to see Metroid be called a Micro Metroidvania.

o.pwuaioc wrote:It's so weird to see Metroid be called a Micro Metroidvania.

I agree, though it does fit the criteria...

Wow, I never considered Legacy of the Wizard to be short. I have been constantly destroyed since I was in elementary school. I guess if I read a speedrunning FAQ and already knew the solution... Maybe if I had the manual, but it was a trade in grade 5.

Ack wrote:

o.pwuaioc wrote:It's so weird to see Metroid be called a Micro Metroidvania.

I agree, though it does fit the criteria...

I know! Compared to modern metroidvania games, however, it’s really quite short. Super Metroid almost made the cut, which is also kind of weird.

Anapan wrote:Wow, I never considered Legacy of the Wizard to be short. I have been constantly destroyed since I was in elementary school. I guess if I read a speedrunning FAQ and already knew the solution... Maybe if I had the manual, but it was a trade in grade 5.

Yeah…that was a tough one. (I went off of the times on HLTB.) If you know where you’re going and what you’re supposed to do, you can get through it pretty quickly. If you don’t, though, the game’s inscrutable nature means it could take you dozens of hours. I’ll take it off the list.

Question for the group on the topic of old games…Does Zillion fit the list? Impossible Mission? Blaster Master? Bionic Commando? Castle Quest? (I added Ufouria.) Also…and thinking about his last night…are there any 16-bit or 32-bit games that fit this criteria? Despite the fact the genre takes its names from two 16- and 32-bit classics, I don’t think we saw a lot of these between the 8-bit and modern eras.

I'm tempted to say Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth. I don't know if it's short enough to meet the criteria, but it didn't take long for me beat it.

The two Metroid games on the GBA I finished with about 70% of the pickups in 3-4 hours. Not speedrunning. Just playing normally.

Thanks, guys! You’re both right, and I didn’t recall the GBA Metroid games being that short!

It feels weird classifying so many Metroid games as Micro-Metroidvanias; so, as much as I hate doing it, I’m moving the goalposts!

I think that, to be a true Micro-Metroidvania, the game should be easily beatable in 4 hours at most. This means that we lose Carrion, Faxanadu, Shantae, Ufouria, and a few others. It also means Deedlit doesn’t make the cut. Still, Metroid: Zero Mission almost makes it, but since it feels weird putting a Metroid game on the list, I’m still leaving it off.

Thank you both very much for helping me focus the criteria a bit, and I’ve updated the first post, based on the new, more focused criteria. The new list feels more coherent, and it includes fewer games I considered full metroidvanias.

Thoughts on other games now that the criteria is a bit clearer?

I don't remember how long Tails' Adventure for Game Gear is if you're just trying to beat it but I'm *pretty sure* I've beaten it in a single sitting on one set of batteries, so it can't be that long! (HowLongToBeat.com indicates 2.5 - 6 hours, but not a lot of people have logged it)

This might be a stretch but what about Slime World on the Lynx? It kinda has that metroidvania vibe, minus upgrades. Can be beaten rather quickly with different end points.