The Messenger is a positively fantastic experience. It manages to evoke the feeling and style of retro platformers/metroidvanias while developing its own unique story and gameplay loop.

Each area in the game has an 8-bit version and a 16-bit version, each with its own colorful visuals and killer soundtrack. Swapping from a platformer to a metroidvania partway through the story is not something I thought a game could do, but The Messenger pulls it off effortlessly. Do yourself a favor and play this game.

100%: Making it through the Queen of Quills without dying can be challenging, but is completely possible with enough practice. Winning the DLC race with a perfect score can also prove tricky.