5. Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer
The single announcement of this game was a shock given the fact that Nintendo doesn’t license their IPs to game developers outside the company, but the guys at Brace Yourself Games convinced Nintendo with their incredibly original idea and well, here we are. Cadence of Hyrule follows the same basic gameplay structure from the original Crypt of the NecroDancer which is that you have to crawl through dungeons and beat enemies to the rhythm of the sickest remixes from the Zelda series. While it’s widely known and appreciated by fans across both series, I consider this game to be quite underrated as it isn’t constantly brought up in the conversation regarding Nintendo Switch’s The Legend of Zelda games.
4. Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon
I could’ve easily placed the original Shovel Knight with its DLC in this spot if it wasn’t for the love this game has gotten ever since its announcement and eventual release in December 2021. Shovel Knight is a unique experience in which you “join your mysterious guide Puzzle Knight as you shovel scads of foes, procure new equipment, and battle bosses both familiar and new”, being both a breath of fresh air to the Shovel Knight franchise and something a fan of the series would absolutely recognize. If you go to the YouTube comment section of the game’s trailer you’ll mainly find positivity regarding the puzzle/dungeon crawler fusion gameplay and the amazing soundtrack. A conversation surrounding its difficulty has been going on since it was launched, but several items will make your experience smoother if you’re not much into the games that give you headaches subgenre.
3. Minecraft Dungeons
Minecraft Dungeons might immediately feel like a corporate movement from Microsoft to make the Minecraft IP bigger than it already is, but I must be honest and say that once you start playing this game, you can feel the passion the developers put in when making it. Minecraft Dungeons will forever be overshadowed by the game it’s a spin-off from, but if you like Minecraft and your favorite activity is exploring while fighting known and new enemies, Dungeons is an experience worth going through.
2. The Binding of Isaac: Repentance
The Binding of Isaac has been out in the wild for a little over a decade. It has seen several platforms during its lifetime in which the New Nintendo 3DS and Wii U are incredibly included after some controversies with Nintendo a couple of years prior, the original one had a few expansions and a remake with some DLCs which have nothing but make the game even better. The Binding of Isaac: Repentance is the last expansion to the game and what a way to close a chapter in the history of the indie gaming scene. Repentance improves the already great remake of The Binding of Isaac and it also brings tons of new content including items, enemies, and new tracks. We could talk for hours about the amazing soundtrack along with some tracks from the Afterbirth+ being my favorite from the series and also constantly played in the background when I write these articles. Something I’d like to mention is the difficulty, not only from the game but from how a pain in the ass it has been for me to find a physical copy; of course, that adds nothing to this ranking but I had to get it out of my mind.
1. Hades
Did someone say Game of the Year? Well, if we go back to 2020 and talk about cultural phenomena (no, we’re not talking about you celebrities complaining about COVID from your goddamn mansions) Hades is one of those everyone remembers with lots of joy. And tears. And outrageous frustration. I don’t think I need to give a lot of explaining regarding either the gameplay or the story, but it’s ancient Olympians trying to kill you, in a nutshell. On a personal note, this game along with Cuphead are games that I know are widely praised gaming masterpieces, but I’m pretty sure that if I played longer than half an hour I’d probably have an anxiety breakdown and not even my Xanax would be able to deal with that kind of pressure. That’s how good Hades is; it also felt pretty satisfying that it was a Nintendo Switch console exclusive for almost a year.
