Rusted Moss combines Hollow Knight, Metroid, and a grappling hook

In Metroidvanias, it’s usually in regards to the vacation spot, not the journey.

You may discover a new improve or a new space you haven’t explored earlier than, and that’s thrilling, however the path you took to get there simply concerned a lot of working and leaping, which isn’t terribly fascinating. Newer examples, just like the Ori video games and Metroid Dread, have emphasised the significance of motion — that it must really feel as satisfying to maneuver world wide because it does to search out a new, shiny piece of treasure.

Rusted Moss follows that very same mannequin, supplying you with unparalleled management over the way you progress via its labyrinthian world with the assistance of a tremendous enjoyable (and sproingy!) grappling hook.

Developed by a core staff of simply three individuals, Rusted Moss provides a twist on fairy folklore, with a post-apocalyptic, grungy vibe. The gameplay each follows and dramatically departs from the numerous Metroidvanias that got here earlier than it. While it principally focuses on 2D platforming – a long-held normal – it additionally introduces 360 aiming, a essential factor in fight in addition to traversal. There’s continuously a reticle on the display, letting you hearth off rockets or charged railgun photographs in any path, even when you’re shifting. But that reticle additionally controls the aiming of your grappling hook, which rapidly turns into the signature characteristic of Rusted Moss.

Image: faxdoc, happysquared, sunnydaze/Playism

Most online game grappling hooks are fairly predictable in relation to getting you from one level to a different. Either they act just like the hookshot in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, which sends you on a direct path to your goal, or they act just like the grappling beam in Super Metroid, which provides extra of an Indiana Jones-style swing. Rusted Moss’s grappling hook is someplace within the center. It has true elasticity, which implies that you’ll be dragged extra rapidly towards partitions which are farther away.

Many of Rusted Moss’s platforming puzzles revolve round using the grappling hook in inventive methods. In one puzzle, I needed to soar off a cliff, hearth my grapple in mid-air, and use the momentum of the sproing to launch myself onto a a lot increased platform. It required exact timing, not simply when it comes to after I shot the grapple out, however after I launched it, guaranteeing that I wouldn’t nonetheless be tethered by the point I reached most velocity on my upward trajectory. Because these interactions aren’t canned, they will result in frequent moments of trial and error, the place I used to be attempting to get the angle and timing excellent. Eventually nailing the complete equation felt superb, however in the event you’re the type to get annoyed simply by platforming puzzles like this, Rusted Moss provides a variety of accessibility options that will help you overcome its extra finicky challenges.

I’m additionally impressed by how Rusted Moss retains nestling in new methods to maneuver via its world, a lot of that are by no means absolutely defined to the participant. A number of of the weapons at my disposal, just like the shotgun and rocket launcher, have their very own influence on my bodily momentum, and I can use them to get some further torque or carry on a difficult soar. While this appeared intimidating early on, after a few hours I used to be in a position to transfer via areas in seconds that had beforehand taken me minutes.

Because of the excessive talent ceiling for the mobility instruments, the sport’s builders have correctly in-built a variety of speedrunning challenges (all non-obligatory), permitting actually devoted followers to point out off their exceptional abilities. Here’s only one instance that blew me away:

Rusted Moss’s distinctive mobility choices could also be overwhelming at first, however for these on the lookout for a distinctive and difficult spin on the Metroidvania 2D platforming style, this recreation may get its hook into you quicker than you’d count on.

Rusted Moss was launched on April 12, 2023 on Windows. The recreation was reviewed on a Steam Deck. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These don’t affect editorial content material, although Vox Media could earn commissions for merchandise bought by way of affiliate hyperlinks. You can discover extra details about Polygon’s ethics coverage right here.