Single-use items, like health vials, vanish without a trace, as do the altered statuses you’re lumped with from parasites and malignant items you’re able to collect. The impermanent stuff is pretty much as you’d expect. RELATED: Citizen Sleeper (Complete) Review – A Sleeper Hit Made Even Better From the slow, lumbering stone gates that block the third biome to the mile-long bridge that separates said biome from its final encounter, there’s a bit of padding that feels less impressive. While the game is blazing fast and players will enjoy snappy loads courtesy of the machine’s power, I did find that some of the paths leading to other biomes tended to be a little drawn out in an effort to let the world load in. The sound design in the game, which is stellar, to say the least, lends itself so perfectly to the more dynamic and layered performance of 3D audio.Īll of the features built into the DualSense serve to enrich the experience, from the haptic feedback which literally lets you feel the beaded trickle of a downpour to the adaptive triggers which make it a small twitch decision to switch from aiming to alt-fire, which is handy in a game where reaction time is everything. It’s elegant and easy to understand after a few runs, as are all of Returnal’s smorgasbord of systems.Īs you’d expect from a first-party PlayStation Studios title, Returnal makes great use of the bells and whistles the console boasts. Although the weapons and their rolls found per run are random, much like most of what you’ll experience, there’s a simple proficiency system in place - experience can be gained through both kills and certain collectibles, which can be seen on the radar, and all amount to a power level that determines the strength of guns you’ll find.
Returnal reviews full#
Housemarque’s pedigree is felt in Returnal as their aptitude for bullet hell combat is at full force throughout the game’s moment-to-moment gameplay, from the identifiable patterns each enemy has to the fast and frenetic over-the-shoulder combat of a caliber not seen since Vanquish - sans the cover system. We’re strangers in a strange land in Returnal and it’s sold with terrifying efficiency. From the exotic flora to the weathered stone monuments - an impermanent legacy at first glance - it feels as though you’re drinking up the origins of this place and potentially the beginnings of all things. It’s clear there’s something not right about this place, as is evidenced by the old weatherboard house from Selene’s mysterious past, which is drip-fed at intervals that signpost progress, manifesting itself on one of Atropos’ winding, ever-changing paths.Īlthough I expect the game and its atmosphere will be compared at times to Ridley Scott’s Alien, I felt Returnal borrowed more from the Prometheus school of quiet horror and world-building. Unlike most roguelikes, I think Returnal does an excellent job of sewing the game’s core concept together with its plot. Later, as her search for answers leads her to her death, Selene discovers death doesn’t mean the end here on Atropos, instead awaking at the moment of the crash to begin her odyssey anew. Next to her is an audio log, detailing findings she had no recollection of logging. Her day takes an unnerving turn when she finds a side-arm next to her own body, an apparent copy of her very matter, dead and unceremoniously gone on the exotic planet’s surface. It’ll knock you down constantly, but it’s the finding your feet and landing the knockout blow in the title fight that makes it such a rewarding experience.Īfter being compelled toward and crash-landing on Atropos, Selene begins her search for the source of a mysterious signal a hopeful means for self-defense and escape. The game is unpredictable, insanely addictive, and it’s tougher than a two-dollar steak. Returnal, from developer Housemarque, leans into all that makes a roguelike what it is while bringing with it the creator’s own trademark flair. The beauty is in the subversion of expectation and not knowing what’s around the corner or when relief will come. Each subsequent run brings with it new learnings, but the procedural generation of the world makes it an imperfect lesson that can’t ever be taken as absolute gospel. A marriage of repetition and entropy, contending with chance itself is half the battle. On the back of Hades, the roguelike has found a rightful place in the videogame zeitgeist.
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