Game is king - they shout from the Finnish studio as they present themselves to the world as long ago as 1995.
It seems like an eternity has passed since 2020 when we were introduced to Returnal for PlayStation 5. The concept is simple; you wake up on an alien planet, your spaceship (or what's left of it) crashed next to you. And best of all, every death represents a new beginning. The gameplay loop was a simple, unrelenting bullet hell, where the slightest mistake meant returning to the crashed ship. We had to figure out why we were there and more importantly, how to escape.
Six years after Selene Vassos experienced her catharsis, it was Arjun Devraj's turn. He leads us through the eternal eclipse of Carcosa to new questions, wanderings and annoyances.
30. In April, Saros, the spiritual successor of Returnal, arrives. Through the State of Play and the first previews, the Finns revealed what we can expect under Sony's roof. The biggest change? They heard criticism about the "relentless weight". Saros introduces difficulty settings and a permanent progression system.No more returning to a crashed ship without bringing it something valuable. The studio announces that each death brings some kind of upgrade.
It will be interesting to see the reaction of fans. It was this strict roguelite system that was the heart of Returnal, but Saros brings something new – a shield function and permanent upgrades. These additions give the player the power to choose his own play style: whether to stay true to Returnal's style or fall under the influence of Carcosa's eclipse.
The first frames of Carcosa promise hours of wandering and deciphering secrets under the eternal eclipse. The sentence that echoes the preview perfectly sums up the atmosphere:
"Every time the sun dies, time stretches and tears."
How many times will the sun have to set before Arjun finds what he is looking for? Will the new additions to the game be accepted by the fans? We will find out on April 30.
