A merciful distance from Silksong, gorgeous dystopian Metroidvania with Smash Bros combat, a veteran team, and a director who hates the word Metroidvania gets November release date

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Possessor(s) from Hyper Light Drifter dev Heart Machine is coming soon

Possessor(s) screenshot of white haired girl Luca with green horns
(Image credit: Heart Machine)

Alx Preston, game director of Possessor(s) at Hyper Light Drifter developer Heart Machine, told me earlier this year that he hates the term Metroidvania because it sounds weird, doesn't convey much information, and "Japan did it better" by calling these things "search action" games instead. I respect the stance, but alas, I don't make the rules: Possessor(s) looks like a fun Metroidvania fusion, and it finally has a release date.

The new Possessor(s) trailer confirms that Heart Machine's latest will be out on November 11 on PS5 and PC (Steam). It's the studio's first game with veteran publisher Devolver Digital. As good as Hyper Light Drifter was, its best release is still Solar Ash, for my money, but this one may surpass it.

POSSESSOR(S) Gameplay Overview | PS5 and PC on November 11 - YouTube POSSESSOR(S) Gameplay Overview | PS5 and PC on November 11 - YouTube
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Surviving this quarantined "mega-city" boils down to a lot of platform fighter combat which proudly takes cues from the likes of Super Smash Bros. and folds in unlocks like a downward smash, wall run, and grapple-like whip.

Heart Machine says directional inputs and juggling can enable extensive combos in Possessor(s), improvised weapons like cell phones and a guitar bring unconventional moves to the mix, and the 2D action finds more literal depth in Heart Machine's lavish 3D environments.

I spoke to several members of the Possessor(s) design team at GDC 2025, and from the oddball characters to the crimson vibes, they were definitely speaking my language. I'm in a search action mood after Hollow Knight: Silksong, and I plan to indulge it in the weeks and months ahead, so this news has come with perfect timing.

Now that Silksong is out, we can obsess over this Hollow Knight-flavored Metroidvania that had a huge Kickstarter 4 years ago, and the devs are ramping up the teasers.

Austin Wood
Austin Wood
Senior writer

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.

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