Review pixelcrypt 3/5 · Dec 9, 2025
Nice compact metroidvania with solid level design
Alruna reminds me quite a bit of Astalon (one of my top 3 metroidvanias of all time). It has super dense level design, tons of secrets, great flow, great puzzles, and solid chunky pixel art. At the same time, it doesn't quite have the same enjoyability as Astalon, due to its wonky controls and underwhelming abilities.
Instead of the standard …
Alruna reminds me quite a bit of Astalon (one of my top 3 metroidvanias of all time). It has super dense level design, tons of secrets, great flow, great puzzles, and solid chunky pixel art. At the same time, it doesn't quite have the same enjoyability as Astalon, due to its wonky controls and underwhelming abilities.
Instead of the standard abilities like double jump, you will find 4 seeds that have multiple purposes - some help you traverse, some solve puzzle elements, some will damage enemies, and some will do a combination of these. You start off the game with a high jump and a dash/slide. You soon learn that all of these abilities have secret secondary functions, like finding hidden passages or collecting items from a distance. So, they are highly creative and unique, but at the same time feel a bit more like Animal Well type abilities that don't have the same classic excitement (for me) as the Metroid-style abilities.
It is a solid ~3-4 hour metroidvania that largely works because of its intricate and fun-to-unlock level design. I appreciate the creativity and uniqueness of the gameplay mechanics, but I definitely prefer the more standard and simple traversal types of abilities in 99% of metroidvanias. I definitely still recommend it though, and I appreciate that the game is somewhat doable to 100%
6.7/10 for me