Shio similar games & best alternatives

Shio

PC (Microsoft Windows), Mac • 2017

Should you play it?

“Shio” is a challenging platformer game in which you deep and moving story by jumping from lantern to lantern. If you are big fan of Super Meat Boy, you will like Shio as well!

What works
  • Beautiful and unique art style with strong chinese cultural elements
  • Immersive and fitting soundtrack
  • Challenging and rewarding platforming gameplay
  • Well-designed levels with varied mechanics
  • Engaging ambiguous story with collectible lore
Things to keep in mind
  • Very high difficulty with low tolerance for error
  • Some control and input issues reported
  • Occasional bugs affecting gameplay
  • Storytelling can be too obscure and fragmented
  • Lack of multiplayer or social features

What to play next

Top picks

Games that feel the closest overall

  • GuGu Pizza : Delivering Pizza to the Space Station? Boss, this is just not right!

  • BLACKHOLE

  • Wild Dive

  • Cursed to Golf

  • White Knuckle

  • Fork Parker's Holiday Profit Hike

  • Fly'N

  • Gizmo

  • Circa Infinity

Hidden Gems

Less popular games with surprisingly high similarity

  • GuGu Pizza : Delivering Pizza to the Space Station? Boss, this is just not right!

  • Circa Infinity

  • On Rusty Trails

If you liked…

Recommendations by what you enjoyed most

  • Competence

    Garlic

  • Autonomy

    Boson X

  • Growth

    Atomik: RunGunJumpGun

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).

Shio: Broadly representative of its motivational profile, with a few distinct shifts. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Competition, Status, Story, Intimacy. Here, the score leans higher than usual among comparable games on Story. It leans lower than usual among comparable games on Violence, Relaxation.

Why this game works

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

  • Autonomy

    Game with the same Autonomy vibe

    4

    "Players have control over jumps and timing, requiring personal skill and decision-making rather than following fixed routines."

    Capsule for Boson X Boson X

    "Players have control over timing and approach to jumps, requiring precise decisions and rhythm mastery."

  • Competence

    Game with the same Competence vibe

    5

    "High skill ceiling with challenging platforming, requiring mastery of mechanics and precise timing."

    Capsule for Garlic Garlic

    "High skill ceiling with challenging platforming and complex level design demanding mastery and precise timing."

  • Competition

    Game with the same Competition vibe

    2

    "Includes time trials and leaderboards for speedrunning, encouraging comparison with others, though main gameplay is single player."

    Capsule for Grapple Dog Grapple Dog

    "Includes speedrun elements and time challenges against an in-game character, but mostly single-player focused."

  • Continuation

    Game with the same Continuation vibe

    3

    "Players report long play sessions, repeated attempts, and habitual play despite frustration, indicating strong desire to continue."

    Capsule for Squirreltopia Squirreltopia

    "Players report long play sessions and repeated attempts due to difficulty, indicating habitual engagement despite frustration."

  • Cooperation

    Game with the same Cooperation vibe

    -5

    "Entirely single-player experience with no multiplayer or cooperative elements."

    Capsule for MiSide MiSide

    "Entirely single-player experience with no multiplayer or cooperative elements."

  • Creativity

    Game with the same Creativity vibe

    3

    "Innovative control scheme and varied puzzle interactions with the environment encourage creative problem solving."

    Capsule for Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons

    "Unique mechanics like jump resets via lanterns and varied obstacle designs encourage creative problem solving."

  • Domination

    Game with the same Domination vibe

    -5

    "No evidence of power over others or dominance mechanics; gameplay is solo and self-directed."

    Capsule for STRAFE: Gold Edition STRAFE: Gold Edition

    "No evidence of power over others or dominance mechanics; gameplay is individual and self-focused."

  • Escapism

    Game with the same Escapism vibe

    3

    "Players use the game as a mentally absorbing escape with immersive story elements and engaging puzzles."

    Capsule for Infinifactory Infinifactory

    "Players engage with the game’s immersive atmosphere and story as a form of escape, despite its challenging nature."

  • Expectation

    Game with the same Expectation vibe

    -4

    "Players engage voluntarily driven by intrinsic interest and desire for challenge, not obligation."

    Capsule for WazHack WazHack

    "Players generally play out of personal desire for challenge and exploration, not obligation."

  • Experimenting

    Game with the same Experimenting vibe

    2

    "Players explore different characters, traps, and strategies, though core gameplay is consistent."

    Capsule for Bro Falls Bro Falls

    "Players explore timing, rhythm, and mechanics to overcome challenges, though core gameplay is consistent."

  • Exploration

    Game with the same Exploration vibe

    3

    "Game includes secret areas and collectibles encouraging exploration beyond main path."

    Capsule for Wings of Vi Wings of Vi

    "Game includes hidden areas and collectibles encouraging discovery beyond main path."

  • Expression

    Game with the same Expression vibe

    -3

    "Minimal character customization or visual expression; focus is on gameplay mechanics rather than avatar personalization."

    Capsule for Fights in Tight Spaces Fights in Tight Spaces

    "Minimal character customization or expression; focus is on gameplay and story rather than avatar personalization."

  • Fantasy

    Game with the same Fantasy vibe

    3

    "Surreal, dreamlike narrative with metaphorical and abstract elements rather than realistic scenarios."

    Capsule for The Mirror Lied The Mirror Lied

    "Features a mysterious, dreamlike narrative with symbolic and abstract storytelling elements."

  • Fellowship

    Game with the same Fellowship vibe

    -5

    "No social or community features; purely solo experience."

    Capsule for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2

    "No social or community features; purely solo experience."

  • Growth

    Game with the same Growth vibe

    4

    "Players develop skill and knowledge through repeated attempts and learning level patterns."

    Capsule for Atomik: RunGunJumpGun Atomik: RunGunJumpGun

    "Players develop skills and mastery through repeated attempts and learning level patterns."

  • Health

    Game with the same Health vibe

    -5

    "Sedentary gameplay with no physical activity elements."

    Capsule for Lingo 2 Lingo 2

    "Sedentary gameplay with no physical activity elements."

  • Idle

    Game with the same Idle vibe

    -4

    "Requires constant attention and focus due to high difficulty and need for precise timing."

    Capsule for WASD : The Adventure of Tori WASD : The Adventure of Tori

    "Requires constant attention and focus due to high difficulty and precise timing."

  • Intimacy

    Game with the same Intimacy vibe

    -5

    "No close social relationships or emotional sharing within gameplay."

    Capsule for Car Mechanic Simulator 2018 Car Mechanic Simulator 2018

    "No close social relationships or emotional sharing within gameplay."

  • Leadership

    Game with the same Leadership vibe

    -5

    "No leadership or group management roles present."

    Capsule for Half-Life: Alyx Half-Life: Alyx

    "No leadership or group management roles present."

  • Progression

    Game with the same Progression vibe

    3

    "Progression through unlocking new forms and areas, collecting story elements and achievements."

    Capsule for 7th Sector 7th Sector

    "Progression through levels and unlocking story elements and achievements."

  • Relaxation

    Game with the same Relaxation vibe

    -3

    "High difficulty and frequent failures create tension rather than relaxation."

    Capsule for Wizardry 6: Bane of the Cosmic Forge Wizardry 6: Bane of the Cosmic Forge

    "High difficulty and frequent failure create tension rather than relaxation."

  • Sensation

    Game with the same Sensation vibe

    3

    "Enjoyable art style, music, and smooth gameplay provide sensory and emotional pleasure."

    Capsule for Crypt Custodian Crypt Custodian

    "Enjoyable art style and music provide sensory pleasure despite challenging gameplay."

  • Status

    Game with the same Status vibe

    1

    "Some recognition through leaderboards and achievements, but limited social visibility."

    Capsule for Freeways Freeways

    "Some recognition through achievements and leaderboards, but limited social visibility."

  • Story

    Game with the same Story vibe

    4

    "Narrative is integral and immersive, delivered through environmental storytelling and notes."

    Capsule for Obduction Obduction

    "Narrative is ambiguous, poetic, and integrated with gameplay through environmental storytelling and collectibles."

  • Strategy

    Game with the same Strategy vibe

    4

    "Requires mental challenge, planning, and problem solving especially in stealth and boss encounters."

    Capsule for METAL GEAR SOLID - Master Collection Version METAL GEAR SOLID - Master Collection Version

    "Requires planning, timing, and problem solving to navigate complex obstacles and boss encounters."

  • Thrill

    Game with the same Thrill vibe

    4

    "High tension and suspense from difficult platforming and risk of instant death."

    Capsule for Garlic Garlic

    "High tension from risk of instant death and difficult platforming creates suspense and excitement."

  • Value

    Game with the same Value vibe

    3

    "Players feel the game offers good value especially on sale, with enjoyable content and replayability."

    Capsule for SkateBIRD SkateBIRD

    "Players feel the game offers good value especially on sale, with challenging content and replayability."

  • Violence

    Game with the same Violence vibe

    -5

    "No combat or destructive gameplay; focus on platforming and obstacle avoidance."

    Capsule for Geometry Dash Geometry Dash

    "No combat or destructive gameplay; focus on platforming and obstacle avoidance."

  • Survival

    Game with the same Survival vibe

    4

    "Players must avoid instant death traps and manage limited health and lives to survive levels."

    Capsule for Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures

    "Players must avoid instant death traps and manage precise timing to survive through levels."

Last update: 10/07/2026