La Mulana is a 2D Dark Souls, and it's now available on Desura

Well I've just searched the PC Gamer archives for any mention of La Mulana, and found diddly squat, so the news that it's been added to Desura seems like a good a time as any to talk about this forgotten indie gem. Based on the freeware game from a million years ago, La Mulana is an exploratory platformer set in and around an ancient temple. The world design and difficulty remind of Dark Souls, while whip-cracking hero Lemeza's range of gadgets recall Metroid or Zelda. However, the game has a character and atmosphere all of its own.

This gorgeous remake adds a new art style, and tinkers about with the mechanics just a little bit so that it's not quite as punishing at the start. As someone who bounced off the original due to its sheer difficulty wall, I'd say that's a very good thing. If you've finally conquered Dark Souls, or you're jonesing for a new Metroidvania to sink your teeth into, it's worth giving La Mulana a go. The game originally launched back in July along with the new digital distribution site Playism , and it's also lurking in the bowels of Steam Greenlight , if you're looking to give your thumb something to do. There's a rather lovely 'History of La Mulana' trailer below.

Tom loves exploring in games, whether it’s going the wrong way in a platformer or burgling an apartment in Deus Ex. His favourite game worlds—Stalker, Dark Souls, Thief—have an atmosphere you could wallop with a blackjack. He enjoys horror, adventure, puzzle games and RPGs, and played the Japanese version of Final Fantasy VIII with a translated script he printed off from the internet. Tom has been writing about free games for PC Gamer since 2012. If he were packing for a desert island, he’d take his giant Columbo boxset and a laptop stuffed with PuzzleScript games.