If I would have to guess, Metroidvanias must be explored first and usually you have to get to know the map as it is not revealed to you at first. There could possibly be more platforming/ jumping around in Metroidvanias vs open world which could be just a flat terrain. Which ones have loading times and which don’t? I haven’t played too many Metroidvanias but I played for example Darksiders and that COULD qualify as a 3d Metroidvania, but also as open world, I don’t know. Can anyone who played a lot of these explain?
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No, a metroidvania is specifically a game where unlockable abilities are used to gate progression. E.g. you see a gap that you can’t get across, but later on you unlock a double jump, and realise you can use it to return to that earlier area and cross the gap.
In most open world games, the entire sandbox is unlocked from the start, and when it isn’t it’s usually gated by story progress rather than mechanics.
Another key aspect of Metroidvanias is that they’re nonlinear, there will be multiple areas you can visit at any one time, rather than a specific intended order
Metroidvanias don’t have to be 2D but most of them are. The only 3D metroidvania I can think of are the Metroid Prime games. Maybe Arkham Asylum would count, although from what I remember it tended to be more linear and there wasn’t much freeform exploration. Dark Souls and Bloodborne have some of the elements but I’d call them Metroidvania inspired rather than true metroidvanias
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