Attention, Silksong sickos: Katanaut might be your next Metroidvania

I absolutely hate it when I’m deep in unraveling the mysteries of an abandoned space station when an unknown horror begins to hunt me down. Not only do I have to fight through wave after wave of disfigured, horrific figures draped in the tatters of their spacesuits, but now I have to find a blood altar? It’s a living, I guess. 

It takes guts to drop a Metroidvania-style game the same week as a juggernaut like Hollow Knight: Silksong, but solo developer Voidmaw boldly forged ahead and released Katanaut, a fast-paced action RPG with roguelite elements on a sprawling space station. Katanaut takes clear inspiration from horror and action titles like Dead Space, Carrion, and Warframe, and manages to create an interesting little onion of a game. 

I play as Naut, a sci-fi samurai with a sick katana, a decent pistol, and a couple of slots for unlockable abilities. Each run, I’m encouraged to switch up my build — I might run into a sweet shotgun to replace my pistol, but if I’m even luckier, I might find a dagger with a homing device that teleports me to its landing spot after each throw. I experiment with powerful explosions, tornado projectiles, and dashes that eviscerate everyone in my path.