How The Messenger blends 8-bit and 16-bit to make a revolutionary 2D game
It seems like years have passed since the last time I played an 8-bit platform game and I don't blame myself, since I started this journey in Hive I've been able to play a lot of games and very few have left a permanent mark, I think of games that I have analyzed as Narita Boy or Sonic Mania as the ones I remember the most and the ones I liked the most in this genre, being fair, I think this genre that these days is considered Retro has a very small niche and a capacity for surprise that has diminished over time, there you have Sonic Mania that with its bet between the classic and the new playable proposals has created a tribute that is worthy but still remains just that, a tribute that brings little or nothing to the table, I thought that a title like The Messenger, produced by one of my favorite indie companies, Devolver Digital, was going to make me change my mind on this whole subject, and it has succeeded, halfway.
Let's see, The Messenger also comes from a special place if we look deeper, titles like Ninja Gaiden or Castlevania have a daily tribute in this game that collects much of that essence and difficulty of the games of the 1980s and translates them to a much more modern stage, The Messenger is a title that breathes a lot of wit and humor to tell their stories, having a predecessor as remembered as Ninja Gaiden also uses much of its image to give a twist to the genre hiding many other tributes to great games of the time as we progress through the levels. Devolver's work also surprises for its staging, its graphics are quite similar to what we see in other games of the genre but the way in which it creates the areas of the game and the beauty of these unmarked the work of its competitors.
The game has not remained in a simple tribute to the titles of yesteryear and if we know how to wait we will find some pleasant surprises during the adventure, first in the gameplay that bets to have an extra element in the basis of its controls, the double jump, which is one of the basic commands of many games here does not exist or at least not in the traditional way but we will have to hit with our sword certain elements on the screen to "unlock" this double jump but more surprising is its technological facet that combines in its gameplay because we have two facets in this game, the 8-bit reminiscent of the early works of Ninja Gaiden and a part (from the middle to the end) where we unlock the 16-bit, the point is that there will be some areas at the beginning that we can not access because they are in 16-bit and that we must first unlock to then switch between dimensions (the 8-bit to 16-bit) and to understand many of the decisions of the game plus we have an excellent background story that sets a bar for an excellent adventure that pays homage to many retro games of the Megadrive or the NES.
In the story the first thing that comes out is the witty sense of humor that has its main character, a young hooded man who first fails in his duty to protect the world to then become a messenger who aims to cross the entire world ravaged by demons to deliver a scroll that can completely change the course of the world, the indie work knows how to keep the pace of his story very well and is dosing much of it along its first and second section, although if I think it loses a little rhythm near the end of the work has several moments that pay very well in the game and make the story into something more than an additive to the game.
The possibility of alternating between two worlds (the 8-bit and 16. Bits) make this title look a bit contained in the early stages of the adventure to then unleash completely in the following hours because with the open door for the 16-bit we will have a world of references to video games and popular culture all hand in hand with the humor of our beloved hood, we will also have some improvements along the way that we will unlock and at a certain point the game becomes a Metroidvania where new areas are unlocked and we will have the opportunity to explore them to get new improvements using the ability to switch to the dimension of the 16-bits.
I think this is its main facet, The Messenger is presented as a tribute adventure of retro titles but continues to become something fresh and present their cards, it takes a while to unleash the full potential of the game but throughout the adventure has solid arguments to be a memorable game, Those who are more attached to the retro classics will surely love this approach of the guys from Devolver Digital, as for me I think it opens a new way to see the games, maybe the 16-bit era has not been the most fruitful for video games because of how short it was but I'm curious about all the designs that can be done even with this way of making video games.