Review: Ghost Song – A Potent Mix Of Metroid And Dark Souls, But Maybe Not On Switch

Songs of praise.

Over the past decade, the Metroidvania has seen a tremendous resurgence in popularity. And yet, it’s easy to forget how far we’ve come. If we rewind the clock back to the year 2013, the Metroid and Castlevania franchises were on ice and the indie Metroidvania scene was only just beginning to take off. That’s when Matt White launched a Kickstarter for a Super Metroid-inspired game, titled Ghost Song, which smashed through its original funding goals and went into full production. Now, nearly a decade later, Ghost Song has finally been released on Nintendo Switch, and it is a wonderful homage to some of the genre’s greatest entries, although Switch perhaps isn’t the best place to play.

In the first few minutes of the game, you’ll immediately notice that Ghost Song has two primary inspirations. Level design, enemy designs, and atmosphere influences are clearly based on Metroid. Single-block vertical platforming reminiscent of Super Metroid and the primary enemy design looking eerily similar to a Chozo will make any Samus fan feel at home. As for gameplay, however, Ghost Song instead draws heavily from Dark Souls. You lose your currency when falling in battle, having to trek back to where you last died in order to reclaim them. Using those, you can choose to level up certain stats, like health or damage, at statues around the map. There estus flask equivalents, which can be used at any time and refilled at save points.

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