Fight to bring beautiful colors back to a hand-crafted world of darkness and discover the story of Europa, a young warrior, and her ghostly childhood companion, Apino.
Modeled estimate, not a reported figure. How we estimate →
Prices
Each in the currency that store quoted — not converted: the gap between two rows is the publisher's pricing, not an exchange rate.
Discounts
Every price cut of more than 20% we have observed, in each market that quoted one, with this game's chart position on either side of it. These are episodes, not a model: a sale is one event, and one event cannot tell you what the next one will do.
Reviews, worldwide (the counter carries no country): 2/day in the week to Aug 23 → 2.14/day in the week after.
For scale, across Steam · Top Sellers · Brazil over the last 30 days: the 24 chart moves that followed a price cut of more than 20% went a median of 9 places towards #1, and the 2,404 moves with no price cut behind them went 2 away. One store, one chart, one country — it is the only place we have enough observations to say even that.
Prices outside the United States have been collected since 6 August 2026 and chart positions since 19 July 2026, so a cut older than that has no market to compare and a market that joined later has no history yet. Nothing here is converted between currencies.
About
9 Years of Shadows is a side-scrolling Metroidvania by Halberd Studios. Travel alongside Europa, a brave warrior determined to enter the mechanical giant Talos and stop the corruption within before it swallows the world in darkness. Battle through tainted creatures, meet charismatic musicians and uncover the truth behind the curse that robbed the land of all color.
Many have tried to venture inside the twisted depths of Talos, a dormant fortress where several civilizations have settle over centuries. And, after losing everything she held dear, Europa has nothing holding her back from attempting what others could not achieve. As a noble fighter who refuses to be bound by the curse, she must enter the castle, find the source of corruption, and return the color once and for all.
This adventure is not for Europa to face alone. Inside the giant, she befriends Apino, a cute floating bear who seems to possess magical abilities that can restore color and replenish the health of his allies. He is also able to shield his companions from the multiple dangers that roam Talos’ hallways.
While exploring the castle, Apino can cleanse the corruption around Talos and shoot a variety of projectiles that can destroy dark crystals and inflict damage:
A fist that punches upwards when conjured.
A blast that travels along a surface until collision
A cyclone that returns to Apino like a boomerang.
Use the elements to your advantage to travel the map dynamically. Acquire the elemental armors that were once treasures to ancient civilizations and change on the fly and unlock special abilities to traverse your way: from swimming against waterfalls to traveling underground tunnels or gliding through warm air currents.
Harness the power of lightning, water, earth, and fire. Surprise bosses while you switch armors, perform strong halberd combos, and exploit your foes’ weaknesses to pave your way through the heart of the shadows.
Music is all but the soul of the game. Revitalize the world while you listen to a moving soundtrack composed by Miguel Hasson, as well as soothing pieces scored in 432hz by celebrated composers Michiru Yamane (Castlevania series) and Norihiko Hibino (Metal Gear Solid series). Meet these guest composers as in-game NPCs who aid in Europa’s quest throughout the game.
Music is the binding thread that combines gameplay and storytelling: collect musical notes and perform a healing lullaby to restore your health.
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"Literally stunning"
Keen Gamer
"A stunning Metroidvania"
GamesRadar+
"Excellent & responsive combat"
Game Rant
"Delights all the senses"
GameLuster
"Two thumbs up"
LadiesGamers
Sums Steam only; GOG, PlayStation, Xbox, Epic, Nintendo publish no volume signal, so the true total is higher by an unknown amount.
| Store | Price | Audience | Score | Chart | Est. revenue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SteamYou are here | $19.99 | 3.4Kreviews | 77% | — | $1M |
| $7.99−60% | 578ratings | 84% | — | not modelled | |
Engagement
Reviews
Themes across 152 recent reviews and how positive each mention is. A keyword signal, not full sentiment analysis.
Reviews
This is a game that tells its story exceptionally well. The game mechanics are very unique and the ways they are used to illustrate themes and plot points genuinely had me impressed. The art style was also phenomenal and I am very satisfied at the completion of this game. My one detractor woulld have to be that some of the bosses felt a little gimmicky but i could count the examples on one hand. Overall, a very polished game and one I could see myself playing through again in the future. Highly Reccomend!
Short and sweet, if you can tolerate some design choices, especially in exploration and fast travel that costs currency to unlock and use. This reflects in currency available to purchase health and magic upgrades, because at the endgame, you might actually have to grind for money. Traversal is fun, as there is some light platforming and the sense of flow was nice. Combat is simple, but responsive. It doesn't evolve too much, apart from the charge attack and its effect with upgraded armor. Defense and survivability come down to your magic barrier, which depletes fast after each hit. If you miss your quick event recharge, you have to wait for a safe moment to do a full recharge; this is important during boss battles, but all are doable. Also, enemy variety is not too great, so after a two or three hours, you will meet just slight variations in color and attack patterns. There is a weakness/resistance system to damage, but you won't suffer too much if you don't pay that much attention to it. Art direction and music are beautiful. Character design is cool and armors feel straight out of Saint Seiya and Sailor Moon, so that's a plus for me. Sadly, quests and side characters do not offer much depth, as this is a pretty straight forward game. Completing side quests is important for endgame. If you like the art style, and simple but responsive combat, that rewards observation during boss fights, this is a one and done kind of game that might appeal to you. It's a really decent first effort, and I'm waiting for the devs' next game.
Media
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Every market we collect.
Genres
Stats
All-time low is the lowest price we've recorded for this game since we started tracking it.
Languages: English*, Spanish - Latin America, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese - Brazil, Russian, Simplified Chinese*languages with full audio support
| $19.99 |
| 184ratings |
| 79% |
| — |
| not modelled |
| $19.99 | 50ratings | 86% | — | not modelled |
| $19.99 | — | — | — | $0 |
| $19.99 | — | — | — | not modelled |
Matched by title — a reused name can pair the wrong games. * is a critic aggregate. Prices and positions are each store's United States storefront; Epic charts worldwide. Audience and Score too, except Steam's, which is worldwide.
Hours played at review time, across 153 reviews with recorded playtime.
positive critical· bar length = how often the theme comes up
El juego es bueno en general, personalmente no entiendo el porque de tanto odio hacia el juego, sí, es cortito y fácil pero eso no significa que sea un mal juego, puedes pasarlo bien y entretenido sin la necesidad de sufrir y eso no significa que sea malo. Si bien la historia no es algo ultra descabellado y complejo, y creo que se pudo aprovechar mejor en algunos aspectos como el tema del gigante, pese a esto sigue siendo una historia decente y disfrutable. La jugabilidad está bien, el único momento donde sentí que fallaba es al dar la patada hacia abajo después de usar el doble salto, fuera de eso, realmente no creo que haya tenido ningún problema en la jugabilidad, es fluida y esta bien hecha, y de nuevo, es sencilla y eso no significa que sea malo. El único verdadero "inconveniente" que le encontré es que por breves periodos al momento de usar algún ascensor o teletransportador el juego se congelaba por unos breves segundos, ya sea que no te deje mover o que no deje abrir el mapa, pero al estar en una zona segura tampoco es que sea algo injusto y mueras o recibas daño por ello, así que también es un "error" que pasa sin pena ni gloria. Para ser el primer juego del equipo desarrollador creo que hicieron un buen trabajo de forma general, espero ansioso disfrutar de sus futuros proyectos! Si tienes ganas de probar y disfrutar un metroidvania que no te rompa la cabeza, creo que merece mucho la pena darle su oportunidad, es un buen juego.
虽然很多人觉得操作粗糙，战斗欠打磨，但是我还是要给好评，因为我从游戏中能体会到创作热爱，对车田正美和萨姆斯&baby的热爱，可以说整个游戏的整体感让我玩完是有悠长余韵的（虽然一眼就能看出结局），游戏性和细节上的不足我也懒得抠，我不觉得用三A游戏的标准去评判小体积游戏这不好那不好有什么意义，只能说希望以后的作品能更多的打磨吧（其实我最怨念的是不同盔甲的像素小人看着风格差别不大）
As other people have mentioned, the art is impressive and a pleasure to look at. Definitely the highlight of the game. Music was good and there were even a few memorable tracks. Gameplay is nice, if a bit easy. In all the boss fights combined I don't think I died more than twice, which I don't think I have ever achieved in any other metroidvania. Mainly the healing mechanic is pretty broken. It's fun to use though, allows for very aggressive combat, just don't expect much of a challenge. Moving around the map is also very satisfying once you unlock a few traversal skills. The character is pretty nimble and the transition between skills is surprisingly smooth. There are some weird things like not being able to open the map for a few seconds when you enter a new area, or having to move away from npcs and approach them again to be able to talk to them, but the game is short enough that this didn't drive me nuts. Power ups are pretty straightforward, nothing novel there. Story by far the worst part of the game. There is some world building but there is no cohesion, it's like grabbing pieces from different puzzles and forcing them together. They also pretty much dump all the plot at the very end. Most bosses also feel completely unrelated to the story and they're just there because the game needs bosses. Most of them were fun though. Overall I had a good time, got it as part of a bundle and I'm happy with my purchase.
The biggest value of this game is the graphic compartment, best pixel art i've seen in a metroidvania, the way they use colors really attracted me to play another hour and another hour (finished in 2 days). The special life-shield mechanic was really interesting and fun to decide when it was time to attack with it or it was best to keep it to survive waves of attacks from enemies. I liked the story and the end made me really sad (Apino in the heart) The game has some minor flaws, for example a lot of bosses were too easy and finding ways to defeat them without risk wasn't hard, and i did find some minor glitches both that required to restart the game losing some progress. In the end the game was enjoyable and if you are searching for a metroidvania to start playing the genre or a short game to spend some time in relax this is the game for you PS: tzwiii!!!!
Este juego no es perfecto pero sigue siendo muy bueno. Lo que más me ha gustado es el apartado visual, los escenarios estaban muy bien ambientados, los colores son nítidos y contrastan bien con tu personaje por lo que no pierdes de vista. Las diseños de personajes y enemigos están muy bien hechos, las múltiples transformaciones de la protagonista dejan en claro su inspiración en animes como ¨Saint Seiya´´ y ¨Sailor Moon¨. La música cumple con su cometido que es ayudar a la ambientación y a la inmersión. Contras Varias de las mecánicas del juego intentaron ser innovadoras y originales pero muchas de estas se pareciera que sonaban mejor en el papel que en la práctica. La barra de vida: Esta compuesta de 2 partes, un conjunto de orbes color rojo y al lado un barra de color azul. La barra color azul funge como una especie de escudo y al agotarse las orbes de color rojo pasan a ser tu "Barra de vida", esto significa que si tienes 2 orbes solo podrás resistir 2 golpes antes de un game over. Cierto, el juego ofrece mecánicas para restaurar la barra de escudo; uno te exige quedar estático oprimiendo un botón hasta que se recupere tu escudo y el otro método es una especie de quick time event en el que si oprimes el botón de recuperar salud en el momento correcto poco después de que se agotó tu barra de escudo puedes recuperar de inmediato la mayor parte de este. Peleando con los enemigos a lo largo del mapa no es tan grave pero con lo frenéticas que llegan a ser las peleas con los jefes es difícil encontrar la oportunidad para recuperarse o para prestar atención en el timing para recuperar el escudo. En teoría al dominar las rutinas de los enemigos deberías poder vencerlos sin perder barra de escudo el problema es que a lo largo del juego deberás usar un proyectil el cuál depende de esta misma barra, cada disparo del proyectil reduce un poco el escudo y esto es peor en las peleas de jefe donde puedes perder casi toda la barra tan solo usando el proyectil. Otro problema del juego es que hay muchas zonas que te obligan a usar alguna transformación ya sea porque es la que resiste un ambiente hostil o requieres una habilidad especial para atravesarla y precisamente al usar estas habilidades pierdes capacidades ofensivas o simplemente no puedes utilizar la transformación que tiene ventaja elemental contra los enemigos del lugar ya que en dichas áreas no puedes cambiar de forma. No me malinterpreten, no es mal juego, creo que si gustas de los metroidvanias le debes de dar la oportunidad a este juego.
juegazo, te extraño champ
Denle una oportunidad, está perrisimo. Usar a Apino fue de lo mejor, a veces se pone cardiaco cuando no centras bien la barra para recargar tu magia/escudo jaja.
A solid plattformer, but the healing mechanics of the "shield" was not a good idea from the devs. Otherwise, its beautiful. 8/10
Players by region
Where this game's players are, estimated from review languages.
Players also reviewed
The games this title's players most often review too — audience affinity.
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