The Messenger

When you're fully geared up and The Messenger is hitting you with brand new stages and challenges that you haven't seen before, The Messenger is an amazing, must-play experience. Taken as a whole, it's brought down only by fetch quests that make The Messenger last several hours longer than it feels like it should.

Inspired by the 8-bit and 16-bit action-platformers of yesteryear, The Messenger is an ambitious and well-balanced side-scroller that's as difficult as it is funny.

But for those of us who love gaming history, and the ways it still impacts games today, The Messenger is a shaggy but lovable adventure that shouldn't be skipped as we enter the fall games deluge

The Messenger is a terrific throwback to action platformers like Ninja Gaiden with welcome twists. While a mid-game identity crisis detracts from the experience, it's still an adventure worth taking

The Messenger is without a doubt one of the best indies available on the Switch right now. It has a lot of competition with the sudden sea of metroidvania games available, but its stunning look, fantastic soundtrack, and clever writing coupled with the amazing gameplay put it a step above the rest. When I walk away from a game every night only wanting to play more, there's little to complain about.

The Messenger is a rock solid action platformer that balances out its retro stylings with modern touches and brilliantly slick controls. Blasting through the lengthy story is compelling, as new story beats and abilities are thrown into the mix. It perhaps flies a little too close to the sun later on as you hunt down the final few collectibles, but by and large, it's a cloud-stepping joy. Fans of 2D action games should have a blast with this, and that's a message we're happy to pass along.

2D side-scrolling action games like The Messenger may be a dime a dozen these days, but you'd be missing out on something special by passing this one up. Featuring a surprisingly long campaign, an incredible soundtrack and tight, challenging level designs, The Messenger stands as a shining example of great game design. We'd highly recommend you pick this one up; it's the very definition of a modern classic.

Truth be told, these are but brief and minor gripes in what is a twenty hour quest (should you aim for a full 100% completion) chock full of charm, wit and some of the most mechanically-sound and cleverly-designed platforming you're likely to find this side of 2018.

The Messenger is a tightly controlled 2D platformer that also mysteriously feels haphazard in design at times. The highs and lows of the platforming and enemy design make for a very uneven experience, especially later in the game as the difficulty continually gets ramped up.

The Messenger executes the perfect experience of play, narrative, and style.