Reynand Wu
There is an enduring, almost magnetic appeal to the "villain protagonist." From the classical literary anti-hero to the modern subversion of video game tropes, the act of stepping into the shoes of an antagonist offers a perspective rarely explored in traditional hero-centric narratives. As the old adage suggests, "Every villain is the hero of their own story"—and when you shift the perspective, the world’s greatest threats often reveal themselves to be the most compelling protagonists.
In the realm of the Metroidvania—a genre defined by exploration, backtracking, and the steady acquisition of power—this trope hits particularly hard. When you are the one holding the blade, the virus, or the hunger, the map feels different. Here, we explore ten standout Metroidvania titles where you don’t just fight the monsters; you are the monster.
The Psychology of the Antagonist-Protagonist
Before diving into our list, it is worth noting why this subversion works so effectively in the Metroidvania genre. In a standard adventure, the player is driven by the desire to "save the world." In these titles, that motivation is stripped away, replaced by survival, vengeance, or in some cases, the literal destruction of the world. By playing as the "bad guy," developers allow players to experiment with moral ambiguity, turning the act of "leveling up" into a terrifying escalation of threat rather than a heroic ascent.
1. GRIME: The Hunger of the World
Topping our list is GRIME, a title that leaves little room for interpretation regarding your moral alignment. In most games, you save the world; in GRIME, you are a "Spiral Heart," an entity whose primary purpose is to consume and destroy existence itself.
The game’s mechanics reinforce this narrative. You don’t just defeat enemies; you absorb their traits and essence. The sheer audacity of the premise—fighting to bring about the end of the world—makes for a uniquely unsettling experience. It is a masterclass in tone, where the atmosphere is as suffocating as the protagonist’s goals.
2. Infernax: The Path of Evil
Infernax is a fascinating case study in player choice. While the game presents a traditional 8-bit aesthetic reminiscent of classic Castlevania titles, it subverts expectations through its morality system. Players are given the agency to decide their fate, with nine distinct endings available.
What lands Infernax on this list is the explicit "Path of Evil." When you choose to lean into the game’s darker narrative branches, you aren’t just playing a character who makes tough choices; you are actively engaging in villainy. With its brutal pixelated gore and co-op options, it remains one of the most mechanically satisfying and morally flexible Metroidvanias on the market.
3. Fearmonium: A Phobia in the Making
Mental health has become a common theme in indie games, but Fearmonium approaches the subject from a perspective that is as creative as it is chilling. Rather than playing as the person suffering from trauma, you play as a personification of an unhappy memory.
Your goal? To evolve into a full-blown phobia inside the mind of a teenager. With an art style that echoes the surreal, rubber-hose animation of Cuphead, Fearmonium manages to be deeply unsettling. It turns the internal struggle of a human mind into a literal playground for a monster, challenging the player to find empathy for an entity that is essentially a waking nightmare.
4. Biomorph: Identity Theft as a Mechanic
In many Metroidvanias, you gain powers by finding upgrades. In Biomorph, you gain power by becoming your enemies. The core mechanic involves literally transforming into the creatures you defeat.
This isn’t just a combat gimmick; it is a fundamental shift in how you interact with the game’s world. By stealing the form of your adversaries, you unlock new paths and abilities. It forces a unique relationship between the player and the enemy roster, as you are constantly evaluating every creature not as a threat, but as a potential new "skin" to add to your arsenal.
5. Doomblade: The Cost of Power
Doomblade plays with the classic "cursed weapon" trope with frantic, high-octane energy. You play as a weakling who discovers an ancient, malevolent blade. The power fantasy here is intoxicating, but it comes with a steep price tag: corruption.
The game is a constant push and pull between the player’s agency and the blade’s insatiable desire for revenge. As you tear through the forces of "good," the game subtly reminds you that you are merely an instrument of destruction. It’s a fast-paced, visceral experience that captures the feeling of losing oneself to a greater, darker power.
6. Prototype: The Not-So-Good Guy
While often categorized as an open-world action game, Prototype features the structural DNA of a Metroidvania, focusing heavily on mobility, map mastery, and ability-based progression. Alex Mercer is arguably one of the most "jerk-ish" protagonists in gaming history.
From the consumption of civilians to his role in the creation of the Blacklight virus, Mercer is a villain in every sense of the word. The game doesn’t ask you to redeem him; it asks you to enjoy the carnage. It remains a hallmark of the "evil protagonist" sub-genre, proving that sometimes, players just want to be the catastrophe.
7. Maneater: The Apex Predator
Some might argue Maneater is a shark simulation, but its structure—exploration, gated areas, and constant evolution—is pure Metroidvania. You play as a shark, driven by a simple, primal hunger and a deep-seated thirst for revenge against the fisherman who killed your mother.
The brilliance of Maneater is that it doesn’t try to make the shark "good." It embraces the terror of being an apex predator. You aren’t saving the ecosystem; you are disrupting it, eating your way up the food chain until you become the unstoppable force of nature that the world fears.
8. Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow
Dawn of Sorrow serves as a bridge between the classic vampire-hunting formula and the darker narrative possibilities of the Castlevania series. Soma Cruz, the protagonist, is the reincarnation of Dracula himself.
The game forces players to grapple with their heritage. Do you succumb to the dark power within, or do you fight to remain human? The potential ending where Soma embraces his villainous nature and effectively becomes the antagonist provides a chilling "what-if" scenario that remains a high point for the franchise’s narrative ambition.
9. Metroid II: Return of Samus
Including Samus Aran on a list of villains might seem controversial, but context is key. In Return of Samus, the titular hero is tasked with the systematic extinction of an entire species on SR388.
While Samus is a hero in the grander scope of the franchise, this specific chapter paints her as an exterminator—a cold, calculated force of destruction. It is a dark, lonely, and morally heavy chapter that stands out for its somber tone and the sheer finality of the mission. It is a reminder that in the right light, even the greatest heroes can look like the villains of the story.
10. Carrion: The Monster’s Perspective
Finally, we have Carrion, the definitive reverse-horror experience. You play as an amorphous, tentacled creature of unknown origin, escaping a research facility. You are not the hero fighting the monster; you are the monster fighting the scientists who thought they could contain you.
The game is a visceral experience that makes you feel powerful, slimy, and utterly terrifying. By flipping the script on the classic "lab experiment gone wrong" movie trope, Carrion allows players to revel in the destruction, using their newfound DNA upgrades to systematically dismantle the facility’s security.
Implications of the "Bad Guy" Narrative
The shift toward playing the villain in Metroidvanias serves a deeper purpose than mere shock value. These games challenge the player to reconsider what defines "heroism." When the goal is consumption, survival, or destruction, the traditional metrics of success—saving civilians, protecting the weak—are replaced by a darker, more primal sense of accomplishment.
Furthermore, these games highlight the flexibility of the Metroidvania genre. Whether it’s the body-horror of Biomorph, the psychological dread of Fearmonium, or the raw power of Carrion, the genre has proven that it can host any story, provided the map is deep enough and the movement is fluid.
As we look toward the future of game design, we can expect more developers to lean into these complex, "villainous" narratives. After all, if the player is going to spend 20 hours exploring a map, they might as well have a compelling reason to be the person—or thing—tearing it apart.
Jia Lissa
Laily UPN
