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Ex Vitro

Ex Vitro Game Cover
94%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:graphics, story
Most mentioned negative aspects:stability
94% User Score Based on 94 reviews

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PCWindows
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Ex Vitro Game Cover

About Ex Vitro

Ex Vitro is a single player platformer game with horror and science fiction themes. It was developed by Evolver Dynamics and was released on January 31, 2024. It received very positive reviews from players.

FEATURES: A retro love letter to the Metroid series, with a few quality of life adjustments, such as teleporters, rechargeable ammo, item collection tracking by area, and more Discover journal entries hidden throughout the facility, explaining the grim fate of humanity and its war against the galaxy Uncover the nature of the main character and their role in the conflict Collect and upgrade po…

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Ex Vitro screenshot
Ex Vitro screenshot
Ex Vitro screenshot
Ex Vitro screenshot
Ex Vitro screenshot
Ex Vitro screenshot
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Reviews

94%Audience ScoreBased on 94 reviews
graphics9 positive mentions
stability1 negative mentions
  • Excellent love letter to Super Metroid with addictive exploration, smooth gameplay, and immersive atmosphere.
  • Engaging and well-written story with interesting lore delivered through data logs, enhancing the game's dark sci-fi narrative.
  • Free to play with high-quality level design, varied weapons, enjoyable boss fights, and solid progression pacing.
  • Controls can feel clunky or rough, especially the crouch and jumping mechanics, which occasionally cause frustration.
  • The game is relatively short (2-4 hours) and considered too easy by many players, lacking challenge on normal difficulty.
  • Visuals are retro-styled and may feel dated or unpolished to some, with occasional bugs and technical issues like softlocks.

  • graphics

    24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    38% positive mentions, 49% neutral mentions, 13% negative mentions

    The graphics are distinctly retro, evoking early 2000s freeware and pre-rendered styles reminiscent of classic Metroidvania games like Super Metroid and Donkey Kong Country. While some find the visuals dated or initially off-putting, many appreciate their charm and atmospheric quality, especially in later, moodier sectors with strong environmental storytelling. Overall, the art style complements the game's nostalgic design and enhances the immersive, old-school experience.

    • “A love letter to Super Metroid with smooth gameplay, addictive exploration, and beautiful visuals, all for the beautiful price of free.”
    • “The graphics, gameplay, environment design, and everything else is a loving tribute to one of the greatest games ever made.”
    • “The visuals and sound effects are really well utilized in this to create a very atmospheric experience.”
    • “I didn’t like the game much when I first started it due to its visuals that reminded me of cheap PC games from 1995 to 2000 when some devs discovered render graphics for the first time.”
    • “The HUD visuals are very dated, resembling free 2000's flash games and not just because the game is in 4:3 aspect ratio. There are some bugs like misplaced loading zones and weird hitbox interactions with some walls and enemies.”
    • “I will say the controls need some work, the visuals are outdated, but the story and log entries are quite nice to read.”

  • story

    23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    57% positive mentions, 30% neutral mentions, 13% negative mentions

    The story is engaging and well-written, featuring immersive worldbuilding through environmental storytelling and data logs that gradually reveal a grim, thought-provoking narrative. It balances direct and indirect storytelling, appealing to fans of exploration and lore without overwhelming exposition. While some find segments verbose or wish for less upfront exposition, overall the narrative effectively complements the gameplay and atmosphere.

    • “But above that, you learn the story of everything that has happened in this universe as you play and find these data logs, which was really interesting, especially for people who love a good narrative that isn't completely 'tell don't show'.”
    • “+ immersive storytelling & worldbuilding (data logs paired with the environment is fantastic. The dev really knows how to write and make an intriguing and fascinating world).”
    • “This isn’t a happy story, it’s as grim as it gets with humanity the perpetrator of a galactic genocide for their own benefit until the alien races united and fought back.”
    • “Plus, the story of this game is really bad.”
    • “Needs a bit more indirect storytelling.”
    • “I personally think the story would have been much more effective without the exposition dump on the main menu.”

  • gameplay

    19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    37% positive mentions, 63% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The gameplay is a well-executed homage to classic Metroidvania titles, featuring smooth, addictive, and approachable mechanics centered around exploration, upgrades, and varied biomes. While generally praised for its balanced difficulty, level design, and atmosphere, some minor frustrations with specific mechanics like ducking and shooting controls were noted. Overall, it offers a fresh yet faithful experience with a satisfying core gameplay loop.

    • “A love letter to Super Metroid with smooth gameplay, addictive exploration, and beautiful visuals, all for the beautiful price of free.”
    • “"Ex Vitro" is a classic Metroidvania game that does everything pretty well, from the visuals to the gameplay mechanics with interesting level design choices and a pretty approachable difficulty curve.”
    • “Addictive gameplay loop that combined with its main gameplay mechanics makes the game feel pretty smooth and easy to get into.”

  • atmosphere

    13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game excels at creating a dark, immersive, and oppressive atmosphere reminiscent of classic Metroid titles, enhanced by atmospheric music and ambient sound design. Players appreciate the game's vibe, which effectively combines exploration and storytelling, though some may find the text-heavy lore overwhelming. Overall, the atmosphere is widely praised for its ability to engage and evoke a creepy, captivating experience.

    • “Amazing game that nails the oppressive atmosphere of the first two Metroid games.”
    • “I have played through it multiple times; it has such a dark and immersive atmosphere I couldn't help but read all the lore as I played.”
    • “The visuals and sound effects are really well utilized to create a very atmospheric experience.”

  • music

    9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    56% positive mentions, 22% neutral mentions, 22% negative mentions

    The music in the game is widely praised for its atmospheric and ambient qualities, effectively capturing the Metroid vibe and enhancing the overall immersive experience. Some players highlight standout tracks and great design, though a few note occasional generic moments and the lack of volume controls for music and sound. Overall, the soundtrack significantly contributes to the game's polished and evocative atmosphere.

    • “Great design and soundtrack, along with a nice story with awesome pieces of lore found along the way.”
    • “I'd love a soundtrack release, the music is atmospheric and ambient, perfectly capturing the vibe of Metroid.”
    • “Music is fitting to the game and the experience is highly polished.”
    • “Music ranges from atmospheric to generic elevator muzak to one or two good and fitting ones.”
    • “A volume slider for music and sound would be appreciated - there are none at this time.”

  • stability

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The game is mostly stable given that it is free, but users have encountered some bugs and glitches, particularly noting an unusual experience with the last boss.

  • emotional

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Players find the game emotionally impactful, evoking strong feelings such as sadness due to its brevity, which leaves them wanting more.

    • “The only downside is that this game made me cry for being too short.”
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Play Times

3h Median play time
3h Average play time
3-3h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 1 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Ex Vitro is a platformer game with horror and science fiction themes. Common tags for Ex Vitro include indie, exploration, metroidvania, retro, combat and others.

Ex Vitro is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 3 hours playing Ex Vitro.

Ex Vitro was released on January 31, 2024.

Ex Vitro was developed by Evolver Dynamics.

Ex Vitro has received very positive reviews from players. Most players liked Ex Vitro for its graphics but disliked it for its stability.

Ex Vitro is a single player game.

Similar games include Haiku, the Robot, Axiom Verge, Ghost Song, Environmental Station Alpha, Out There Somewhere and others.