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Play Hollow Knight first. It is the closest released match for Crowsworn’s interconnected exploration, ability-gated backtracking, hand-drawn darkness and demanding bosses. If you want a harsher, more violent combat match, choose Blasphemous. For movement and precision platforming, choose Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown; for expressive traversal and emotional atmosphere, choose Ori and the Will of the Wisps; and for a newer challenge-focused option, choose Nine Sols.
Crowsworn still has no announced release date. Steam lists it as “To be announced” and says it is not yet available, while developer and publisher Mongoose Rodeo’s official site asks visitors to wishlist it. The games below are therefore judged by the things the upcoming game has publicly promised: a huge interconnected world, ability-based backtracking, fast stylized combat, difficult bosses, hand-drawn 2D animation, dark fantasy and three weapons—a scythe, pistols and Corvian magic.
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What Crowsworn is promising—and what a substitute needs to match
Mongoose Rodeo describes Crowsworn as a souls-like action game set in a giant interconnected world. Its current Steam description advertises more than 120 unique enemies, more than 30 unique boss encounters, rune customization, side quests, hand-drawn 2D animation and a souls-like story. The official site summarizes the central premise this way: “In Crowsworn you will explore a giant interconnected world that is inhabited by vicious enemies and monsters.”
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The game’s announced weapons also shape the comparison. The scythe suggests close-range reach and sweeping melee attacks; pistols promise a ranged option; and Corvian magic points to a distinct supernatural toolkit. Because the game is unreleased, nobody can verify how those systems feel in practice. The recommendations instead match its stated design goals against released games.
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- Exploration: Does the world connect into a meaningful whole, with routes opening when you gain new abilities?
- Combat: Does the game emphasize fast attacks, deliberate danger, ranged options, parries or boss learning?
- Atmosphere: Is the tone gothic, grim and violent, brightly fantastical or mythological?
- Traversal: How much of the appeal comes from precision platforming and movement upgrades?
- Difficulty: Is the game a forgiving entry point or a demanding souls-like test?
On those measures, Hollow Knight is the strongest all-round substitute, but the other four serve different versions of the wait.
The five best choices, ranked
| Rank | Game | Choose it for | How it overlaps with Crowsworn | Where it differs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hollow Knight | Closest overall match | Interconnected exploration, ability-driven backtracking, hand-drawn 2D presentation and demanding bosses | Its own setting and combat identity; it does not reproduce Crowsworn’s announced weapon trio |
| 2 | Blasphemous | Grim combat and dark fantasy | Brutal hack-and-slash action, upgrades, executions, gothic horror and souls-like difficulty | More explicitly violent and oppressive in tone; movement is not its primary selling point |
| 3 | Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown | Movement-forward exploration | Metroidvania structure, exploration, precision platforming and action-RPG progression | Mythological Persian setting and time manipulation create a more accessible contrast to Crowsworn’s horror |
| 4 | Ori and the Will of the Wisps | Fluid traversal and visual atmosphere | Metroidvania exploration and strong movement expression | Expressive, emotional fantasy rather than a grim combat analogue |
| 5 | Nine Sols | A modern challenge pick | Action-metroidvania structure and a demanding contemporary alternative | Choose it as another difficult modern game, not as a one-to-one tonal replacement |
1. Hollow Knight: the closest overall match
Why it belongs at the top
Hollow Knight is the best answer to “What should I play after Hollow Knight while I wait for Crowsworn?” only if you have not already played it. Team Cherry’s official Steam listing calls it “a classically styled 2D action adventure across a vast interconnected world.” That single description overlaps with the most important part of Mongoose Rodeo’s pitch.
The match is strongest in four areas: the world is built around connected regions rather than isolated stages; new skills and abilities change which routes you can reach; the presentation is hand-drawn and dark; and boss encounters are a major part of progression. Team Cherry’s 2017 listing names more than 130 enemies and 30 bosses, giving the game the breadth expected from a long-form exploration adventure.
What to expect
Choose this when your priority is the feeling of learning a world. You are not merely moving from one level to the next: the appeal comes from remembering blocked passages, recognizing how separate areas connect and returning after an ability changes your options. That structure is the clearest released example of the ability-gated backtracking Crowsworn advertises.
Rank #2
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The atmosphere also lines up better than any other recommendation. Hollow Knight is bleak and hand-drawn without relying on the explicit gore emphasized by Blasphemous. Its scale—more than 130 enemies and 30 bosses according to the Steam listing—also makes it a sensible choice for readers who want a substantial wait-time game rather than a short diversion.
Who should choose it
- Players who want the closest overall exploration substitute.
- Readers coming from Hollow Knight-like world design rather than from a particular weapon system.
- Anyone who values atmosphere and boss variety as much as moment-to-moment combat.
2. Blasphemous: the best grim combat match
Why it fits
Blasphemous is the strongest choice for the violent, dark-fantasy side of Crowsworn. The Game Kitchen and Team17 describe it as “a brutal action-platformer with skilled hack’n slash combat set in the nightmare world of Cvstodia.” Its official Steam tags include Metroidvania, Souls-like, Dark Fantasy, Gore, Difficult and Gothic.
That combination makes it a better recommendation than a generic action-platformer when your interest is the word “souls-like” in Crowsworn’s description. The game foregrounds brutal combat, upgrades and savage executions, so the emphasis is on surviving threatening encounters and mastering a harsher tone.
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Blasphemous is a tonal and combat match, not a promise that every movement or weapon system will feel the same. Crowsworn explicitly advertises a scythe, pistols and Corvian magic; no current official description establishes equivalent ranged and magical loadouts for Blasphemous, so it is better to choose it for its hack-and-slash identity rather than for weapon-system similarity.
Rank #3
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It is also a less welcoming recommendation if you primarily want fluid traversal. The reason to pick it is the nightmare setting, gothic imagery, difficult encounters and violent combat loop. If those are the features that made the Crowsworn trailer or description appealing, start here.
Who should choose it
- Players who want grim fantasy and explicit horror over colorful adventure.
- Souls-like fans looking for difficult combat and boss-focused progression.
- Anyone who considers atmosphere and brutality more important than movement experimentation.
3. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown: the best movement-forward choice
Why it fits
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is the newer, mobility-focused alternative. Steam records an August 8, 2024 release and tags the game Metroidvania, 2D Platformer, Exploration, Precision Platformer and Action RPG. Those labels directly address the traversal side of Crowsworn’s design brief.
Pick it when the promise of exploring a large map matters, but you especially want to move through that map with precision. The precision-platforming classification makes it a useful contrast to the heavier, darker combat emphasis of Blasphemous. It is also the recommendation for readers who want a mythological adventure rather than gothic horror: its Persian setting and time-manipulation premise give it a distinct identity.
What makes it a contrast pick
This is not the closest tonal analogue. Crowsworn is presented as a dark, souls-like story with vicious monsters, while The Lost Crown frames its fantasy through Persian mythology and time manipulation. The overlap is structural and mechanical at the broadest level—Metroidvania exploration, platforming and action-RPG progression—not visual mood.
Rank #4
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That difference can be an advantage during a long wait. If you want to practice route-finding and movement without committing to another oppressive horror world, this is the cleanest choice on the list.
Who should choose it
- Players who value precision platforming and mobility above grim atmosphere.
- Readers who want a modern release rather than an older classic.
- Anyone looking for a more accessible-feeling alternative to a souls-like horror game.
4. Ori and the Will of the Wisps: the expressive traversal alternative
Why it fits
Ori and the Will of the Wisps is the recommendation for readers who care most about fluid traversal, polished presentation and emotional atmosphere. Its official Steam storefront confirms it as a current metroidvania product page, and its role in this list is deliberately comparative rather than literal: it shares the exploration framework while moving away from Crowsworn’s grim combat identity.
Choose Ori when the part of the Crowsworn pitch that excites you is the idea of flowing through a connected 2D world and expressing yourself through movement. It is a better fit for readers who want visual beauty and a strong emotional register than for readers specifically seeking gore, executions or souls-like pressure.
Why it is not ranked higher
The game is included because metroidvania structure and traversal are central to the comparison, not because it is a close match for the announced scythe-and-pistols combat fantasy. If your mental picture of Crowsworn is a bleak monster hunt with punishing bosses, start with Hollow Knight or Blasphemous instead.
Who should choose it
- Players who put movement feel and visual polish first.
- Readers who want a gentler tonal counterpoint to gothic horror.
- Anyone who sees Crowsworn primarily as an exploration game rather than a combat challenge.
5. Nine Sols: a modern challenge pick
Why it is on the list
Nine Sols is a current Steam-listed action-metroidvania and a concise recommendation for players seeking another modern challenge. Its current Steam listing establishes its place as a difficult contemporary alternative, but it does not provide enough verified detail to claim that its weapons, bosses or atmosphere reproduce Crowsworn’s specific design.
That makes the decision simple: choose Nine Sols if you want a newer action-metroidvania to test your skills while waiting, not if you need the closest possible match for the Corvian magic, pistols and scythe concept.
Who should choose it
- Players who have already finished the better-known classics on this list.
- Readers looking for a modern, demanding action-metroidvania.
- Anyone comfortable treating “similar” as a genre and challenge connection rather than a direct tonal comparison.
Which game matches the part of Crowsworn you care about?
| If your priority is… | Start with… | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| The closest complete package | Hollow Knight | It combines interconnected exploration, ability-gated routes, hand-drawn presentation and substantial boss content. |
| Dark fantasy and brutal combat | Blasphemous | Its official description and tags explicitly emphasize hack-and-slash combat, Souls-like difficulty, gore and gothic horror. |
| Movement and precision platforming | Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown | Its Steam tags identify it as a Metroidvania, 2D platformer, exploration game and precision platformer. |
| Fluid traversal and emotional atmosphere | Ori and the Will of the Wisps | It offers a metroidvania framework while intentionally contrasting with Crowsworn’s grim tone. |
| A newer challenge | Nine Sols | It is a current action-metroidvania listing suited to readers seeking a modern test. |
A practical play order while Crowsworn remains undated
Because there is no confirmed launch window, choose a sequence based on the feature you want to investigate rather than trying to “prepare” for a release date that has not been announced.
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- Start with Hollow Knight if you want to understand the interconnected-world and ability-gated-backtracking appeal at its fullest.
- Move to Blasphemous if the dark-fantasy combat and souls-like language are what attracted you to Crowsworn.
- Switch to The Lost Crown when you want a movement-heavy change of pace built around precision platforming and exploration.
- Play Ori and the Will of the Wisps when you want traversal, presentation and emotional atmosphere rather than another grim combat test.
- Use Nine Sols as the modern challenge option after you have exhausted the more direct comparisons.
You do not need to play all five. The ranking is a decision tool: select the game whose strongest feature matches the reason you are waiting for Crowsworn.
Availability and what is still unknown about Crowsworn
All five recommendations are released or currently listed storefront products, while Crowsworn is not yet available. Steam currently gives the game a “To be announced” release status. Mongoose Rodeo’s official site invites players to wishlist it, but no launch date, price, platform list or final technical requirements are currently provided.
That uncertainty matters when comparing games. A released title can be judged by its actual exploration, combat and performance; Crowsworn can only be compared against its announced goals. Its more than 120 unique enemies, more than 30 unique boss encounters, rune customization, side quests, hand-drawn animation and three named weapons describe the intended scope, not a finished product that readers can play today.
Bottom line: start with Hollow Knight, then choose by emphasis
Hollow Knight is the closest overall substitute for Crowsworn. Blasphemous is the better answer for grim, violent souls-like combat; Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is the movement-first option; Ori and the Will of the Wisps is the expressive traversal alternative; and Nine Sols is the modern challenge pick. Since Crowsworn remains undated, this gives you a complete route through its announced influences without pretending that any released game can reproduce an unreleased combat system exactly.
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