Cult of the Lamb has taken the internet by storm from the moment it was shown off. Something about the unique combination of a cute little town builder and making a fanatical cult stole people’s hearts! While the game is a little flawed in places, it’s managed to amass a fan base hungry for more.
Cult of the Lamb is many types of games in one: a cute town builder, an action Roguelike, a cult manager, and even more under the surface. Everyone has their own reasons for loving the game, and as such, no one game can appeal to each fan. But each of these games holds a small aspect of Cult of the Lamb, so no matter what you loved about it, something here should be for you.
10/10 Wandersong
If you fell in love with the cute aesthetic and strange brand of wholesomeness, Wandersong might be the adventure just for you. Wandersong follows a lovable bard who learns that the entire world is about to end, and he needs to save the world with singing! Though don’t be fooled; this simple story takes many twists and turns along the way.
The main gimmick is that every problem is solved through singing, and the game offers quite a lot of puzzles and platforming out of this mechanic! Plus, just singing as you go around is fun too. But really, the main attraction is the lovable characters and fun adventure that gets surprisingly emotional. That’s all that can be said without spoiling things, so go try it.
9/10 World of Horror
If you’re looking for something that follows the more creepy aspects like the cult, sacrifice, and bishops, World of Horror may be for you. Inspired by the works of Junji Ito, World of Horror is an old school RPG where you try to save your town from one of several eldritch horrors by collecting items, upgrades, and solving the mysteries of your town.
The game boasts a lot of content to explore, with the mysteries being randomized each run and a wide selection of choices within each of them. These quests will be brutal, though, as you’ll need everything you have in order to just barely survive — not to mention that the game is actually quite creepy and disturbing at times. If you’re up for a less cutesy eldritch experience, World of Horror is the game for you.
8/10 Stardew Valley
The king of farming sims is the natural choice for anyone who enjoys the resource management and life simulation aspectsof Cult of the Lamb. Stardew Valley is about getting away to a cozy rural town to start a farm, getting to know new people, and making a new llife for yourself.
Stardew is the ultimate cozy experience with so many ways to play how you want. Whether you want to farm, fish, mine, fight, befriend, or just relax, Stardew doesn’t judge and lets you do your thing! With every aspect having tons of depth and things to unlock, you’ll be able to sink plenty of hours into this game.
7/10 The Binding of Isaac
Was Cult of the Lamb not disturbing enough for a Roguelike experience? In that case, The Binding of Isaac may be more your flavor. The game immediately sets the tone as you play as Isaac, fleeing from his mother trying to sacrifice him to god. Isaac will have to contend with bloody abominations and biblical demons. This game earns its content warning, so keep that in mind before trying it out.
The game itself doesn’t get any easier on the player as it is tough as nails and full of RNG. Where items in most Roguelikes offer a small boost, items in Isaac decide whether you steamroll the final bosses or die to the first one. But, this makes for a very fun and wild experience and with plenty of characters to unlock, bosses to fight, and things to discover. The game always gives you a reason to come back.
6/10 Cultist Simulator
If you enjoyed creating your doctrines and performing rituals but want more of that cult experience, Cultist Simulator may give you that fix — if you can unravel its mysteries. Cultist Simulator is a card game where understanding the very mechanics is part of the challenge. The game follows several starting characters as you are led into discovering cult knowledge and founding your own cult.
The only problem is that the game never quite explains how to do things, creating an experience of parsing through the game to discover how to explore, perform rituals, and to ascend to the Mansus. Even once the mystery wears off, the game makes for an excellent strategy game of managing time and resources. If you want an experience unlike anything else, give this game a shot!
5/10 A Hat In Time
If you want a purely cute adventure without the cult, A Hat in Time is a wonderful 3D platforming adventure. Inspired by titles like Mario 64, Sunshine, and Banjo Kazooie, A Hat in Time is a 3D platformer collectathon. The game sees you losing your spaceship’s fuel on a strange planet, and you must travel across various lands in order to recover the fuel.
The game sets up a handful of fun colorful worlds with plenty of unique missions in each. These are made a lot more fun to navigate with the game’s excellent movement that flows together and makes platforming as natural as possible. Combine that with silly characters and gimmicks for each level, and you have a game that’s hard to not love.
4/10 Animal Crossing
Cult of the Lamb has often been described as a darker take on Animal Crossing, so this recommendation might be on the obvious side, but that doesn’t make it any less of a great choice! Both games are all about moving into your own little town and getting to know the residents while taking care of chores to earn more upgrades.
Despite the comparisons, the games are quite different. While Cult of the Lamb is focused much more on customizing your town, Animal Crossing is all about customizing your home and simply being part of the town. On top of that, Animal Crossing is a much slower game that asks less of the player — perfect if you just want to relax at the end of the day.
3/10 Enter the Gungeon
For a more action-based experience with some of Cult of the Lamb’s silliness, Enter the Gungeon is an excellent Roguelike. Gungeon follows a strange but simple premise: there is an ancient temple on an alien world with living weapons and ammo and a treasure at the heart of it: a gun to kill the past. You venture in as one of several adventurers to right your previous wrongs.
Gungeon is a hectic top down shooter that takes the term ‘bullet hell’ more literally. You’ll constantly be going through intense firefights with cute creatures to progress deeper through the Gungeon. The game has plenty of different guns to unlock and find, but in the end, Gungeon will ask for a high level of skill, so expect to sink many hours into this one.
2/10 Spiritfarer
For those wishing to get to know the cultists more as in-depth characters, Spiritfarer is a beautiful experience to get lost in. In this game, you find yourself taking over for Charon the boatman, guiding animal spirits towards the true afterlife as they reflect on their previous lives and come to terms with the end.
The game focuses on sailing around to gather items and people, building up your boat, and keeping your passengers happy and fulfilling their requests. It keeps the player hooked with always having something new to collect, craft, or see at any moment, while also hitting you with a lovable cast of characters who will gut punch you when they have to say their goodbyes.
1/10 Hades
For the other side of the coin, Hades is likely the greatest inspiration for the combat and dungeon crawling side of the game. You play as Hades’ son, Zagreus, as you trek through the Greek underworld, fighting through lost souls and battling mythological figures, all with the hope of escaping to the surface.
Hades is a sublime Roguelike with a wide array of weapons, plenty of options and builds through runs, and fun frantic combat and bosses! On top of that, Hades manages to craft quite the narrative — even more than Cult of the Lamb — with a beautiful story and a lovable cast you get to know through each run. Definitely check out Hades for a more action-packed experience with just as much heart.
