Platformers have long been a staple of the gaming industry, challenging players to traverse treacherous terrains, overcome daunting obstacles, and test their reflexes to the limit. While many platformers offer a fair challenge, some take it to an entirely different level.
These platformers push players to their breaking point and sometimes, they can even make you rage quit! And with this spirit, we’ll be giving our takes on what we feel to be 8 of the hardest platformers to play.
1. Super Meat Boy
Regarded as one of the pioneers of modern difficult platformers, Super Meat Boy demands pixel-perfect precision and lightning-fast reflexes.
With its brutal difficulty curve and relentless level design, this game will keep you on the edge of your seat, challenging your skills every step of the way. Luckily, since this game has been out for quite some time, guides are available everywhere and just between you and us, there’s no shame in looking out for some tips and tricks!
2. I Wanna Be The Guy
I Wanna Be The Guy is infamous for its punishing difficulty and merciless surprises. Designed to frustrate even the most seasoned players, this platformer is packed with unpredictable traps and obstacles that often lead to instant death.
Truly, this game is not for the faint of heart. This game is–in some way—humorously punishing and without initial knowledge, you will be failing again and again. It is a game that makes you want to break your keyboard/controller. So, if you have temper issues you might want to dodge this one!
3. Cuphead
While not a traditional platformer, Cuphead presents players with incredibly challenging boss battles inspired by old-school cartoons—and let us stress, the aesthetics are drop-dead gorgeous.
Combining hand-drawn art with tight gameplay mechanics, this game will test your patience and determination. As the game progresses, the stages get more and more bizarre, it is to the point where you cannot expect anything. Most of the time, you’ll feel like the whole game is against you and you’re always losing out on ‘luck’.
But as they say, you got to get good if you want to overcome the Cuphead challenge! Available now on multiple platforms, you can even get Cuphead on your Nintendo Switch using our Nintendo eShop card here!
4. Super Hexagon
At first glance, Super Hexagon looks extremely easy due to its simple nature and concept. Oh boy, how wrong could we be?
The difficulty of Super Hexagon is maddening and borderline impossible. Testing your reflexes and spatial awareness to the max, this game is almost an automatic failure for non-gamers. Charged with its relentless speed and rotating hexagons, you’ll find yourself in a never-ending battle against time and precision.
Okay, maybe we’ve gone a little overboard with the non-gamer claim. We’re sure that with enough time and a lot of trial runs, you can eventually beat this game—just know you’ll be spending a lot of time though!
5. VVVVVV
VVVVVV is a unique name for a video game title. Hey, even its gameplay is pretty unorthodox where it flips gravity on its head, presenting players with gravity-defying challenges and unforgiving spikes.
And yes the game doesn’t really tell you much so you are mostly going into this game without any information. So, with nothing in mind, you’ll get scorched and dumbfounded by the absurdity of this game’s difficulty.
Even so, we ourselves really enjoy the minimalistic visuals and retro-inspired soundtrack that are able to create a captivating atmosphere. It really adds to the sense of accomplishment when overcoming each obstacle.
6. N++
As a sequel to N, N++ is a platformer that pushes the boundaries of difficulty and we even consider it more difficult than its predecessor.
This is largely due to its intricate level design, time-limited challenges, and an abundance of deadly obstacles, that force its players’ precision and quick thinking abilities. Trust us, we are expecting new players to grit their teeth a lot while playing this game, especially if they are playing it blind.
Still, this game is beatable. Keep playing and get a grip on your timing and reactions because, without these two, you can spend months and months trying to complete this game!
7. Hollow Knight
Many have regarded Hollow Knight to be one of the greatest games of all time and we wholeheartedly agree with this sentiment. This game has a healthy combination of challenging platforming with a sprawling, atmospheric world.
As you delve into the depths of an insect kingdom, you’ll face relentless enemies and intricate platforming sections that will push your skills to the limit. Imagine Hades but insanely harder. This is mostly because your tools are rather limited and without knowing the enemy attack patterns you’ll get squished.
Fortunately, this game is out for a really long while so extensive guides for its boss battles are available everywhere. Hence, if you are truly stuck, there’s really no shame in looking them up.
8. Celeste
At the heart of this article lies Celeste, an indie platformer that has captivated players with their emotional narrative, beautiful pixel art, and punishing gameplay. As the player takes control of Madeline, a young woman battling her inner demons, they embark on a journey to remember.
Celeste is a game where you need to command all your innate reaction skills like pixel-perfect precision, quick reflexes, and strong determination. Just imagine, with over 700 challenging screens to beat, you’ll have battles that will keep you stuck for a noticeable amount of time.
Excelling in its level design and offering a gradual difficulty curve, Celeste introduces new mechanics and obstacles with each chapter. From manoeuvring through tight spaces to mastering precise wall jumps and dashing through spikes, every screen is meticulously crafted to provide a unique challenge.
Whew! Looks like we’ve finally made it to the end! These 8 platformers represent some of the most challenging experiences the video game world has to offer. And if you are looking for multiplayer games that are as equally challenging, check out our hardest esports titles article here!
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