Developer Housemarque has shared new details about the upcoming PS5 exclusive title Returnal revealing details about combat, weapons, and buffs in the game. Returnal is currently one of the most anticipated titles for PS5 and Housemarque is making sure that it stays that way with new details and trailers dropping for the title regularly.
The latest update comes from Harry Krueger who is the Creative Director at Housemarque. He shared the details on the official PlayStation blog where he detailed the gameplay of the title. Returnal is a unique blend of different game styles as it combines the unique explosive arcade action the developer is known for with responsive controls and bullet-hell gameplay. The game is played in third-person view and the combat is fast and frantic.
Gunplay is intense while players will also get plenty of time for some rich exploration and traversal as the game features procedurally generated environments of Atropos. The game is challenging however Harry details that it is pretty rewarding as well and has enough variety and depth for making players to keep returning to the title again and again. Check out the new combat trailer released for Returnal below:
As previously revealed, you will be playing the game as Selene who will have access to plenty of weapons and devices at her disposal to survive on the hostile alien planet Atropos. Apart from her own weapons, Selene can also find new weapons on the planet and use them against the aliens. Each of the weapon in the game is further augmented as you progress in the game. Harry describes this as:
For example, the living Spitmaw Blaster weapon starts as a shotgun archetype you all know and love. As you progress, you’ll unlock and add on various Weapon Traits, each providing a unique gameplay modifier to the base weapon’s behavior. These Weapon Traits are custom tailored for each gun type – so your Spitmaw Blaster might gain exploding shells or generate acid pools upon impact; while the Electropylon Driver might extract extra loot from enemies, or generate shields for the player. These Weapon Traits will also stack, so the combined effects can lead to many surprising results that can have unique advantages and playstyles to explore.
Every weapon also comes with an alternate fire mode that is assigned to the weapon randomly from a diverse pool of alt firing modes. These include electrical impulses of the Shockstream to the tentacles of the Tendrilpod. Pressing the L2 key halfway will allow you to aim down your sights and fire the primary mode and if you press it all the way down, it will allow you to fire the alternate mode of your weapon.
There are around 10 base weapons and more than 90 weapon traits and each trait comes with three levels and 10 Alt-fire modes for you to find and try out. However, Selene can only hold 1 weapon at a time so you will need to find the perfect weapon for you use in the game. As you encounter different enemies in the game, you will need to adapt and use different strategies to take them out which will make you switch your weapons on-the-go.
The game also treats death in a unique way. The game follows the patterns of cycles and every time you die in the game, you complete the cycle and are sent back to the start of the loop right before crashing on the planet. With each death, you will lose most of the abilities and items collected in the game however some will be available to you even in the new cycle so you can make some sort of progress with them even if you die multiple times.
One of these persisting elements is the mysterious Cthonos, an alien device that generates a random item at the beginning of each cycle. This otherworldly device is tracking your performance, and when enough progress is accumulated you will be rewarded with a brand new item for immediate use, which will also be permanently added to the pool of available loot from that point on as well.
Another unique item found on the planet Atropos is called Parasites and these Parasites change how you play the game. These provide you with both buffs and debuffs so you must be very careful while using these Parasites. For example, a Parasite may give you the ability to regenerate health when it is low but it might also make enemies leave behind a pool of acid when they die. This makes them high-risk, high-reward so you will need to plan accordingly.
Returnal is slated for release on PS5 on March 19, 2021, and you can now head over to the PSN to pre-order the game. Additional details about the game will be shared by Housemarque in the coming weeks so keep checking back here for more info on Returnal.
What do you think about the new gameplay and combat details revealed about Returnal today? Let us know in the comments section below.
