The Prisoning: Fletcher's Quest Review

Video GamesReviews

Feb 11

A struggling game developer battles his subconscious in this not-quite-a-Metroidvania.

Elden Pixels and resurrected publisher Acclaim bring us The Prisoning: Fletcher's Quest, a short side-scrolling platformer with Metroidvania elements. The premise, about a game developer on the brink of mental collapse who explores his own subconscious while under hypnosis, gives the game a lot of opportunities to be funny, but the humor rarely rises above random weirdness, and the narrative feels more like a framing device. If you're looking for something that digs into mental health with real emotional weight, this isn't it; check out the game I reviewed yesterday, The Perfect Pencil, instead. Still, the polished 16-bit presentation successfully leans into the game’s sillier tone, and that counts for a lot.

The platforming gameplay evokes classic Mega Man. Fletcher moves through rooms packed with enemies and hazards. Like Capcom’s Blue Bomber, Fletcher can only have a limited number of bullets onscreen simultaneously—one to start—forcing careful timing. Controls are tight and responsive, matching the precision the gameplay demands.

Challenge comes largely from Fletcher’s limited health: one hit makes him lose his hat, and the next one kills. Thankfully, checkpoints are frequent enough, but the Assist Mode option lets you restart from the current room instead, for those who get too frustrated.

As far as Metroidvanias go, Fletcher’s Quest only qualifies loosely. Ability gates appear from time to time, but mostly just funnel you into new areas rather than create the layered backtracking the genre is known for. The map feels more like interconnected levels than an open, maze-like world. Procedural generation reorders the rooms in each area each time you play the game, but this feels more like a gimmick than a meaningful feature because there’s rarely a reason to return through an area when you can just fast travel.

The chunky 16-bit pixel art is charming and vivid, with exactly the kind of bright, saturated color palette you’d expect. Enemy designs, the manifestations of Fletcher’s anxious psyche, are where the humor works best, visually if not narratively. The tile-based environments are detailed enough to stay interesting throughout, and the catchy, energetic chiptune soundtrack is a perfect tonal match for the game.

The Prisoning: Fletcher’s Quest may be shallow as a Metroidvania, but judged as an action-platformer, it’s a great time. Tight controls, excellent pixel art, and plenty of personality carry it through its runtime. Just approach it for what it is and not what you might expect.

The Prisoning: Fletcher’s Quest is available now on Steam and Nintendo Switch.