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Cathedral similar games & best alternatives

Cathedral

PC (Microsoft Windows), Mac, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Linux • 2019

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Quick resume

Make your way through more than 600 rooms, and unravel the secrets of your past by finding the five elemental orbs. Cathedral features a vast world, meant for exploring!

Global score

73/100

Genres

Action, Adventure, Indie, Platform

Similar games

    Pros

    • Vast and well-designed exploration
    • Challenging and satisfying boss fights
    • Tight and responsive controls
    • Rewarding upgrades and abilities
    • Engaging pixel art and soundtrack

    Cons

    • Steep difficulty spikes especially late game
    • Some obtuse puzzles and backtracking
    • Limited story and character customization
    • Slow base movement speed early on
    • Few quality of life features like teleportation

    Analysis

    A very typical example of its motivational profile. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Relaxation, Survival, Violence, Fellowship. Here, the score leans higher than usual among comparable games on Exploration. It leans lower than usual among comparable games on Expression, Status.

    How to use the graph
    Similar games map

    Each dot is a game. They are arranged from the same motivation profile as in the “Motivations” section below. Closer dots usually mean more similar reasons to play (exploration, competition, relaxation, etc.)—not that one game is “better” than another.

    • Larger dot with a light outline: the game you are viewing.
    • Colour: groups of games with comparable motivation patterns (statistical clusters).
    • Hover a dot to see the game name; click to open its page.
    • Scroll or double-click the chart to zoom out and see more games.

    Why don’t the axes read like a score? This view uses t-SNE: it only keeps who is close to whom. The scales are not “good to bad” or hours played—they separate groups on the map. Read distance between dots, not the axis numbers.

    Motivations

    • Autonomy
      4

      "Players freely explore a vast interconnected world with non-linear progression and multiple abilities to choose and master."

    • Competence
      4

      "The game offers challenging combat and boss fights requiring skill, pattern recognition, and mastery of abilities."

    • Competition
      -4

      "Focus is on personal progression and exploration without mention of PvP or leaderboards."

    • Continuation
      4

      "Players report long playtimes (20+ hours), habitual exploration, and repeated attempts at difficult bosses."

    • Cooperation
      -5

      "Single-player experience with no cooperative or multiplayer elements described."

    • Creativity
      3

      "Players engage in exploration, puzzle solving, and ability usage, though within a structured metroidvania framework."

    • Domination
      -5

      "No evidence of exerting control or superiority over others; gameplay is individual and skill-based."

    • Escapism
      4

      "Players immerse in a large fantasy world with challenging gameplay, providing distraction and engagement."

    • Expectation
      -4

      "Players engage voluntarily out of interest and enjoyment, with no indication of obligation or pressure."

    • Experimenting
      3

      "Exploration and puzzle solving encourage trying new paths and strategies, though some ability swapping is constrained."

    • Exploration
      5

      "Core gameplay involves discovering secrets, backtracking with new abilities, and uncovering a large map."

    • Expression
      -3

      "Limited character customization; focus is on ability upgrades and exploration rather than avatar personalization."

    • Fantasy
      5

      "Set in a fictional fantasy world with knights, magic, and mythical bosses."

    • Fellowship
      -5

      "No social or community gameplay elements; experience is solitary."

    • Growth
      4

      "Players develop skills, learn boss patterns, and acquire new abilities and upgrades."

    • Health
      -5

      "Typical sedentary gameplay with no physical activity or rehab elements."

    • Idle
      -4

      "Requires focused attention and continuous engagement, especially during challenging combat and platforming."

    • Intimacy
      -5

      "No evidence of forming close relationships or emotional social interaction."

    • Leadership
      -5

      "No leadership or group management roles; single-player experience."

    • Progression
      5

      "Strong emphasis on collecting upgrades, items, and unlocking new abilities to progress."

    • Relaxation
      -2

      "Challenging difficulty and boss fights create tension; some players find it frustrating rather than relaxing."

    • Sensation
      3

      "Enjoyable pixel art and chiptune soundtrack provide sensory stimulation and nostalgic appeal."

    • Status
      -5

      "No social recognition or status systems described."

    • Story
      1

      "Light story presence; focus is on gameplay and exploration rather than narrative immersion."

    • Strategy
      4

      "Boss fights and puzzles require pattern recognition, planning, and tactical use of abilities."

    • Thrill
      3

      "Difficulty spikes and challenging bosses provide suspense and excitement."

    • Value
      4

      "Players report high content volume and replayability for the price paid."

    • Violence
      3

      "Combat and defeating enemies and bosses are core gameplay elements."

    • Survival
      3

      "Players must avoid damage and manage health to survive challenging enemies and bosses."

    Where to buy

    Come talk about it on Discord!

    Last update: 29/04/2026