Games like Headlander

Retro-futuristic action-adventure where you control robotic bodies by docking your head. Explore a sci-fi world, solve puzzles, and uncover a conspiracy.

90% positive from 1,052 · 2016 · 19% finish it · Steam Deck Verified · $19.99 · Lowest ever $1.99 (2020-11-25)

Sci-fiActionMetroidvania Platformer ComedySide Scroller

Six games like Headlander

Momodora: Reverie Under The Moonlight

93% positive from 11,770 reviews201627% finish itDeck Playable

This is a 2D action platformer with challenging combat and exploration. Players use melee combos and dodges to fight enemies in a dark fantasy world.

What players likedPlayers praise it as a fun, polished, and challenging retro-style Metroidvania with beautiful pixel art and atmosphere.

The catchInstant-death spikes and heavy enemy damage send you back to sparse save points.

Both are tagged Side Scroller, Metroidvania and Action.

Games like Momodora: Reverie Under The Moonlight →

Touhou Luna Nights

97% positive from 4,775 reviews2019Deck Playable

Touhou Luna Nights is a Metroidvania action game featuring time manipulation and a tense graze system. Explore a unique world with attractive dot graphics.

What players likedPlayers praise this challenging Metroidvania for its unique time-stop mechanics, rewarding gameplay, and beautiful pixel art.

The catchSold as a metroidvania but the map is small, linear and barely worth exploring.

Both are tagged Side Scroller, Metroidvania and Platformer.

Games like Touhou Luna Nights →

STRIDER™ / ストライダー飛竜®

81% positive from 4,223 reviews201410% finish itDeck Verified

This is a side-scrolling action game featuring fast-paced ninja combat with a plasma sword. Players traverse a large interconnected world, fighting diverse enemies with agile movement.

What players likedThis remake of Strider is a fun game, praised for its faithful recreation of the original.

The catchCapcom patched in Enigma DRM a decade after release, and performance suffered.

Both are tagged Side Scroller, Metroidvania and Platformer.

Games like STRIDER™ / ストライダー飛竜® →

Vigil: The Longest Night

86% positive from 3,597 reviews202015% finish itDeck Verified

A side-scrolling Metroidvania action game with deep combat and gear customization. Explore a dark world, fight monsters, and uncover mysteries.

What players likedPlayers praise its good graphics, music, atmosphere, and varied weapons/skills, making it a unique and mesmerizing experience.

The catchThe map is broken and unreadable, which leaves you lost in a large metroidvania.

Both are tagged Side Scroller, Metroidvania and Platformer.

Games like Vigil: The Longest Night →

Timespinner

86% positive from 3,131 reviews201848% finish itDeck Verified

This is a 2D action-adventure platformer with time manipulation mechanics. It features pixel art, magic orbs, and familiar companions in a story-driven quest.

What players likedPlayers praise Timespinner as a charming, responsive Metroidvania, often compared to Symphony of the Night and DS Castlevanias, with good world-building and a coherent story.

The catchThe story is dialogue heavy and the writing is juvenile enough to skip outright.

Both are tagged Side Scroller, Metroidvania and Action.

Games like Timespinner →

Frontier Hunter: Erza’s Wheel of Fortune

83% positive from 2,065 reviews202414% finish itDeck Playable

A Metroidvania action-adventure game with smooth combat and exploration. Players fight monsters, solve mysteries, and develop their character.

What players likedPlayers praise this fun anime-humor Metroidvania RPG for its engaging character builds, combos, and magic, which can make players fall in love with the genre.

The catchMovement and combos feel janky, with inputs that often fail to register cleanly.

Both are tagged Side Scroller, Metroidvania and Action.

Games like Frontier Hunter: Erza’s Wheel of Fortune →

More like this: Metroidvania Sci-fi Platformer Comedy

More about Headlander

What players liked

Players praise its beautiful 80s sci-fi art style and satisfying, manageable gameplay with fun mechanics and puzzle-solving.

The catch

Doors keyed to body colour turn progress into a constant fetch for the right body.

Reviews: 90% positive from 1,052
Released: 2016
Finish it: 19% of players
Steam Deck: Steam Deck Verified
Price: $19.99 · Lowest ever $1.99 (2020-11-25)
Play: Single-playerFull controller support

It is here because it sits in the band this site looks at: well reviewed at 90% positive, but with 1,052 reviews, far fewer than the household names carry.

View Headlander on Steam

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