Watching VinnyVania has me hankering for a game in that genre. What are some good options on ps4?

Axiom Verge and Steamworld Dig 2 are on there, those are both pretty good games. Axiom Verge is probably the most straightforward Metroid game released since Zero Mission.

Shadow Complex and Guacamelee are on there. I haven't played either of those myself so I can't comment on their quality, but most people seem to like them well enough.

Salt and Sanctuary is on there, too. I played a little bit of Salt and Sanctuary but really, really didn't like what I played. The edges of the screen are really dark and everything in general felt hard to see and I really didn't like it. That said, there was definitely a lot of good word of mouth for this game when it came out so it might just be me and may be worth a shot.

Headlander is pretty good. I also second the ones listed above.

Shadow Complex and Guacamelee are both fantastic, though Guacamelee definitely has difficult platforming segments.

I played Shadow Complex back on the 360 and it was really good. Guacamelee is still my favorite Metriodvania style game in recent years.

I'll also throw my hat into the "Guacamelee is the best Metriodvania in recent years" ring.

Not sure if Hollow Knight is out on PS4 yet but that’s a pretty unique game in that style.

If you want a game similar to SOTN then Salt and Sanctuary has that gothic dark fantasy feel although it's not quite as funky as Castlevania tends to be. (in a good way)

I also think Strider (The Double Helix one) is a pretty underated metroidvania. I agree with everyone praising Guacamelee, it really is one of the best one of these in the genre. (Hollow Knight and Ori and the Blind Forest are up there but they're not on Playstation 4) I've heard Iconoclast and Dandara are pretty good but I havent played them.

@humanity: They turned their focus over to the switch version, and a possible PS4 version is still up in the air.

@ares42: Bummer, that game would be neat on PS4.

Yoku's island express. It's awesome and more people need to give it a try.

You should play Hyper Light Drifter. It's not quite a Metroidvania, but it's pretty close, and it very much evokes that same feeling of opening up a map. And, also: it's a fucking incredible game, you wont be sorry.

Of those mentioned so far, I'd recommend Steamworld Dig 1 & 2 almost without reservation. Guacamelee is fantastic, though your mileage may depend on your patience for brawling combat and tricky platforming sequences. I felt most all those elements were well done and satisfying to complete. Axiom Verge is a Metroid-ass metroidvania game, with unique and novel upgrades, but I did get lost at one point about two-thirds of the way through the game. I enjoyed Shadow Complex a lot when it came out, less so on the PS4; Not sure if it's just because I was replaying, or because the game felt dated. Salt & Sanctuary is 2D Dark Souls. You're not finding upgrades that let you advance, so much as you're unlocking shortcuts in a connected world.

Dust: An Elysian Tail could arguably fit the category. It's mostly a side-scrolling brawler, but you do acquire upgrades that allow you to access new areas of the map within each stage. The combat felt satisfying, and the story was engaging for myself and my wife watching. A beautiful art style, as well.

There are extremely few upgrades in Hob, it plays overwhelmingly like a Zelda game, but you advance by hitting switches that reshape the world around you. It just might scratch that metroidvania itch to watch a giant pillar rise up, giving you access to a plateau you couldn't reach before.

The last metroidvania I've played on the PS4 would be Strider. You can play the game without backtracking much, but it's definitely a game of picking up new abilities and weapons to unlock places you couldn't access before.

Yoku is a very good game although the last traversal power me not want to scavenge around for the the last 20%. Mileage may vary.

Thirded (Is that even a word?). That game is fantastic.

Damn dudes! Thanks for all the responses. This definitely gives me a place to start.

A lot of good suggestions here, so you have a lot of options, but just one additional one I'd add that I really liked that has a bit of a retro look and style is Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight. Plus, it's only 10 bucks!

But also, you should play Guacamelee, it's wonderful.

Shadow Complex

I was gonna say Hollow Knight was a game that I didn't like at first and ended up becoming one of my favorite games of last year.

But unfortunately it's not on PS4. I figured since it just came to Switch it had to be on PS4/Xbox, but no.

AXIOM. VERGE.

Shadow Complex is also a wonderful such game.

Defiantly Axiom Verge and Salt and Sanctuary.

Seconded. The sound design is obnoxious, too. I had to mute the game several times because it was giving me a headache. It tries so hard to be Metroid but isn't as good.

I’ll echo Guacamelee being pretty darn good. This next part might be scandalous, but I didn’t really enjoy Shadow Complex, though I’ve thought about playing it again to see if I still think that. I enjoyed Axiom Verge, though. I tried Headlander, it was fine. And I haven’t played Salt and Sanctuary or Hollow Knight but I plan to. Metroidvanias are my favorite genre but I got pretty burned out for a while there, so there are a few I need to go back to.

I’ll plug Yoku’s Island Express here, because I LOVE that game, but it’s very much its own thing even though it’s definitely a metroidvania.

And a game that I really liked that a lot of people overlooked (and that got mediocre reviews) is Song of the Deep. It’s definitely not perfect but it’s a beautiful game with totally decent music and some really interesting mechanics. So that and Yoku are my two Best Suggestions here.

Yoku's Island Express is unbelievably good

If you haven't played it yet, Batman: Arkham Asylum is a good metroidvania that has a PS4 remaster. And it is going for $10 right now on PSN bundled with Arkham city, which is a steal if you haven't played them.

Y'all lost your damn minds, Axiom Verge is awesome.

Salt & Sanctuary is probably the best 2d side scroller ive played in a really long time. It shares a lot of elements with SotN and Dark Souls. If you are looking for a challenge I'd highly recommend it.

Dust: An Elysian Tail

I'm going to go with something that is very similar in feel but may not check all the metroidvania boxes.

The new Prey is a fantastic game with a very similar feeling of exploration in it. You are in a very large environment that you slowly map out over time, you come across many obstacles that cannot by passed without creative problem solving or getting new abilities later on.

I won't gush about it to much but it's a fantastic and under rated game that feels more like a modern metroid game then the prime games do in my opinion.

Keep an eye out if Hollow Knight gets a release on PS4 it's really something special and probably one of the best in the genre. It also runs pretty well on low spec pcs if you have one.