Possessor(s) is a fast-paced action game that gets off to a slow start

I remember being blown away by the 2024 reveal trailer for Possessor(s), the new game from Hyper Light Drifter developer Heart Machine. The trailer features a striking art design, where an animated 2D character explores and fights in side-scrolling environments with gorgeous 3D backgrounds, and it’s all set to moody, powerful music. The final game, which came out this month, wasn’t quite as awe-inspiring as that initial trailer made it seem, and I almost quit it — but I’m really glad I saw it to the end.

In Possessor(s), you play as Luca, a girl who is possessed by Rehm, a demon from another realm. After a catastrophe strikes, Rehm saves Luca’s life by creating legs for her — but from then on, Luca serves as a host for Rhem, meaning they can talk to each other all the time and occasionally see into each other’s memories. The two have a contentious relationship. They bicker constantly, which sometimes made them difficult for me to care about. But over the course of the game, their relationship evolves as they come to understand more about each other and the worlds they came from.

Heart Machine describes Possessor(s) as a “fast-paced action side scroller,” but this is a Metroid– or Castlevania-style game through and through. You’ll explore an interconnected world with distinct zones, spend a lot of time looking at the map to try and find the next path to explore, and collect helpful traversal upgrades like a wall run to help you access new areas. Very early on, you’ll pick up a whip, and it serves double duty as an exploration tool to cross large gaps and a key weapon in battle.

Fights are inspired by platform fighters like Super Smash Bros., meaning they’re fast-paced and crunchy, and you’ll take on enemies with weapons inspired by regular things you might have around your house. My usual strategy consisted of whaling on enemies up close with a large baseball bat, shocking them with an electric blast from a cellphone to create space, and flinging demonic silverware across rooms to hit faraway targets. Parrying is a key part of fights, too.

Early on, though, Possessor(s) was very tough. Regular enemies hit hard, and if you lose focus for just a second or get caught in an unlucky combo, you can die without any time to react. Dying sends you back to the Possessor(s) equivalent of Dark Souls bonfires, but the return trips to where you died can be long, arduous, and filled with danger. (The game also uses a Souls-like flask system, swapping flasks for painkillers to let you recover health.)

Usually, I like that kind of challenge, but something about Possessor(s)’s level and enemy design often made the early game feel more frustrating than fun for me. I also got very lost after the first few hours, exploring way more of the map than I needed to because I couldn’t figure out how to get past some mysterious walls with glowy cracks on them. I contemplated putting down the game for good.

However, after finally learning how to open those walls (use the whip!), getting a few health and painkiller upgrades, and seeing more nuance to Luca and Rhem’s relationship, I started to enjoy the game much more. I finally settled into the satisfying Metroid loop of exploring a new area, finding a new upgrade, using that to get to the next boss, getting the next MacGuffin, and then doing it all over again in the next zone.

Possessor(s) didn’t possess me in the way that I expected it might. Based on my initial impressions, the game seemed cooked in a lab to appeal to my exact tastes. I just needed to have some patience. The game culminated in a final level that really put my skills to the test and a striking battlefield for the final boss. As I watched the credits roll, I realized it had all finally evoked some of those feelings I had watching the game’s first trailer.

^{Possessor(s) is out now on PC and PS5.}