With Adventure of Samsara being the brand new addition to the Atari family of games, we can all gather together with hands held together and say thank you… Thank you, God, Atari is no longer a face that represents gaming. I mean… Never has there been a more suitable fit for the don’t get it pile as much as Adventure of Sansara. Bland gameplay, bland art style, and just plain boring everything else.
Developed by Ilex Games and published by Atari, Adventure of Samsara is a 2D-Pixel Art MetroidVania with a focus on climbing.
On the eve of Hollow Knight: Silksong’s release, I came across Adventure of Samsara. A retro piece inspired by the old era of gaming. So retro in fact, it even landed Atari as a publisher.
For those who don’t know, Atari was the big dog console in the 1917s up till the 1918s. However, their little rain came to a grinding halt with the release of ET.
I won’t hold this review hostage. If you don’t know, just Google it.
Geriatric Adventure
The adventure of Samsara begins inside an ice cave with a character who is wearing blue. This is just about the information you need to care about because, as you start playing, you will forget all about it.
Mr Blue must climb around this seemingly endless cave, finding a way out or something. All in 2D-pixel art Metroidvania fashion. That is where the metaphorical faeces hit the fan.
Many people have played Metroid and/or Castlevania in their lives. At the very least, they have played a game inspired by the two. That is where the term MetroidVania comes from.
Adventure of Samsara is different. It takes a unique approach to this trend. While most look at Metroid and Castlevania and ask the question, “How can I make this better?” Adventure of Samsara takes the concept and asks the very important question… “How could I make it worse?”
Slower character movements, fewer abilities, horrifically tiny sprites, and worst of all, bland boss battles. There is no challenge or task. You simply fight monsters by walking back and forth while waiting for them to finish their animations. It’s like Hollow Knight in .25 speed.
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Why I am Angry
I don’t get angry at bad games. Bad games are an inevitability. A studio stumbles, an experiment fails, a vision falls flat. Fine. What makes me angry are lazy games. Games that don’t even bother to fail interestingly.
The Adventure of Samsara is not a broken dream or a flawed gem; it’s the participation trophy of gaming. It exists, it’s technically functional, and that’s about it.
Every time I boot something like this up, I feel like I’ve been conned into wasting hours of my life on a product that knows it has nothing to say. Games like this dilute the medium. They drag the Metroidvania name through the mud and teach players to lower their standards.
No Adventure to be had
Adventure implies risk, discovery, and the thrill of stepping into the unknown. This game offers the opposite: monotony disguised as challenge, repetition masquerading as design.
We don’t explore; we trudge. You don’t conquer bosses; you wait for their animations to finish. You don’t grow stronger; you simply move slower toward the credits.
Metroidvania games thrive on curiosity. It’s those ‘what’s behind that wall?’ moments that hook you for hours. Samsara gives you walls, sure, but behind them lies nothing but more of the same.
The lack of ambition is frustrating. It’s a void in cartridge form, a reminder that publishing clout and retro aesthetics cannot disguise the absence of creativity.
Call it a climb, call it a journey, call it Samsara if you want. But don’t call it an adventure. My vote… Just don’t play it.
