Pampas & Selene: The Maze of Demons similar games & best alternatives

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Pampas & Selene: The Maze of Demons

PC (Microsoft Windows), MSX2, Nintendo Switch • 2024

Should you play it?

Join Pampas and Selene as they overcome monsters, demons, and the Dark Priest with the help of the gods themselves! Explore this co-opvania 8-bit platformer alone or with a friend. This retro game is a loving tribute to an MSX2 masterpiece from the creator of UnEpic, Ghost 1.0, and UnMetal.

What works
  • Faithful retro metroidvania experience
  • Unique co-op mode with separate screens
  • Large map with secrets and quests
  • Challenging and fun boss fights
  • Affordable price with good content
Things to keep in mind
  • Some bosses favor one character in co-op
  • Final boss difficulty spike
  • Some grind for enemy powers
  • Minor bugs reported in co-op
  • Achievements disabled in co-op mode

What to play next

Top picks

Games that feel the closest overall

  • Primal Planet

  • Astral Ascent

  • Roguelands

  • Cat Quest II

  • Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos

  • Coridden

  • Lost Castle 2

  • Absolum

  • Hammerwatch Anniversary Edition
Hidden Gems

Less popular games with surprisingly high similarity

  • Super Cane Magic ZERO - Legend of the Cane Cane

  • Ys X: Nordics

  • Tearscape
If you liked…

Recommendations by what you enjoyed most

  • Exploration

    Bastard Bonds
  • Fantasy

    Romancing SaGa -Minstrel Song- Remastered
  • Autonomy

    Famaze

Similarity map

Explore nearby similar games and see why they’re close.

How to use the graph
Similarity map

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

  • Purple star: this page’s game — everything on the map is relative to it.
  • Coloured chips: click to highlight games that mainly differ on that motivation; click again to reset.
  • Dotted line: link between this page’s game and the one selected for comparison.
  • Hover a dot for a screenshot preview, score, and top score gaps; click to compare in the panel on the right.
  • 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 (hidden on purpose).

Pampas & Selene: The Maze of Demons: A very typical example of its motivational profile. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Cooperation, Fellowship, Intimacy, Leadership. Here, the score leans higher than usual among comparable games on Exploration. It leans lower than usual among comparable games on Competition, Leadership.

Why this game works

A motivational profile of the game, with the closest similar game for each player motivation.

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  • Competence

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  • Competition

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  • Continuation

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    "Players report long play sessions, replayability with secrets and achievements, and anticipation for new episodes."

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  • Cooperation

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  • Creativity

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  • Domination

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    "Co-op play emphasizes shared effort and mutual support rather than dominance or power over others."

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  • Escapism

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  • Expectation

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    "Players engage voluntarily out of interest and nostalgia; no indications of obligation or pressure."

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  • Experimenting

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  • Exploration

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    "Large world map with many unique locations, secrets, and lore encourages discovery."

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    "Large castle map with many dungeons, hidden secrets, and quests encourages extensive discovery."

  • Expression

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  • Fantasy

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    "Set in a fantasy world with gods, magic, and mythical creatures; strong roleplaying and imaginative fiction elements."

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  • Fellowship

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    "Community and co-op play foster social connection, though multiplayer is limited to two players."

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  • Growth

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    "Players level up characters, learn new skills, and improve their gameplay abilities over time."

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  • Health

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  • Idle

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    "Requires focused attention during exploration and combat; not designed for idle or background play."

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  • Intimacy

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    "Co-op play encourages social interaction, but no evidence of deep emotional or intimate connections."

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  • Leadership

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    "Co-op play is collaborative with no clear leadership roles; players support each other equally."

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  • Progression

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    "Strong progression through leveling, unlocking locations, collecting items, and completing quests."

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  • Relaxation

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  • Sensation

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  • Status

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  • Story

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  • Strategy

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  • Value

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Last update: 12/07/2026