Which Momodora games should I play before this one?

[ｗｉｓｅ狼]

I don't have a lot of free time but wanting to pickup a 2D metroidvania style game to carry around with a steam deck, loved Bloodstained: RotN. If want to derive the most enjoyment out of the game, do I need to play all previous Momodora games, just III and RutM, or does the in-game summary suffice?

[Nefais]

the game does offer a quick rundown on the whole story, however the most similar game to this gameplay wise is RUtM, but its not necesary to understand this game.

[ovum]

I've only played 4 and half of 3 before starting this one and honestly I really don't think you need the previous entries to enjoy yourself. They do a nice job of condensing the story down for it to be easy to understand. At most you'll miss a couple of references to previous in-universe historical events

[Hauntings]

I never actually finished Momodora (4) Reversie of the Moonlight and I can't for the life of me remember what happened. Buuut I'm over halfway through the game and it doesn't seem that important to have prior knowledge. There are some returning characters that would maybe bring back memories, but it seems like it's not at all required to understand the story and have a good time.

[Emerald Lance]

MutM was a prequel set hunreds of years (possibly thousands?) in the past, and it isn't really necessary. It's really really good though.

Momodora 3 is worth playing, both because it's also really good and because it takes place before this game.

[Clead HeavenHell]

Minoria was quite decent, and the ending song stuck with me, but remember Reverie Under the Moon being quite fun with the quest pathing and the secrets.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2wBl3kIYcg

Another fun metroidvania to play on the Steam Deck is Guacamelee if you like the humour, quite short, but still enjoyable.

[h.arle]

I actually played the four Momodora games this week (and have played Minoria before) just to recall the games. It's a very mild time investment: I kept track of how each one took me and, in release order: 1h30m, 1h, 1h15m, and 6h (RuTM taking a bit longer than you might otherwise because I played on hard and kept re-doing bosses until I killed them without getting hit). I don't think you need to worry much about missing anything related to the story (there's an in-game recap/retell that is actually more explicitly detailed than the previous games' actual story, imo), but they're all pretty good, bite-sized games (well, RutM aside, since it's a little longer). 1 and 2 are free on itch., and 3 is like $2 here.