Housemarque is back with Saros, a proposal that takes the thrilling and hostile essence of Returnal and polishes it with more accessible edges. Set on the alien planet Carcosa, we control Arjun Devraj, an enforcer for the Soltari corporation investigating the disappearance of three teams. As in its predecessor, death is not the end: the planet redesigns itself and the narrative advances through cryptic visions.
The technical evolution of the death-rebirth cycle 🎮
The Finnish studio has worked on a more refined procedural generation system than in Returnal. Carcosa's biomes reconfigure after each death not only in their layout, but also in the distribution of enemies and resources. The camera maintains the third-person perspective, but load times have been drastically reduced thanks to graphics engine optimization. Combat remains frantic, with weapons now offering more varied modifications and a mobility system that allows for more precise slides and jumps. Enemy artificial intelligence has also been adjusted to react less predictably, forcing the player to adapt their strategy in each cycle.
Dying in Carcosa: the new corporate extreme sport 💀
Being an enforcer for Soltari must be like working at a startup: they send you to a hostile planet, you die repeatedly, and the company only gives you cryptic visions as compensation. Arjun Devraj probably signed a contract that said temporary death not covered by health insurance. The good thing is that, at least, Carcosa's design changes every time, so you don't get bored seeing the same rock while waiting for your character to reconstitute. That said, it's too bad Soltari didn't invest in a better map.