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) is a stylish little game about a teenage girl named Luca, who becomes the host for a demon named Rhem after her lower body is crushed beyond repair. The pair's trapped in a dystopian city that would tick Doom Guy right off on account of all the Hell energy being pumped into the works. When this house of cards society starts to crumble, Luca and Rhem work together to survive and find a way out.
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.
