Returnal

Returnal’s core conceit is about breaking the cycle. Selene crashes her ship on the mysterious—and dangerous—planet of Atropos, and every time she dies, she is returned to the crash site. The world changes around each time she sets out anew, learning new things about her situation on the alien planet and figuring out how it all ties together. The goal is to find a way to free Selene from this vicious unending cycle of death and rebirth, but Returnal is so good, I never want the cycle to end.

While there are a few difficulty issues and some iffy story beats, Returnal is a fantastically brutal, rewarding, and deeply atmospheric sci-fi action game.

Up to this point, there certainly have been games that act as selling points for the PlayStation 5, however, Returnal isn’t just a tech demo or optimized version of a PS4 game: it’s a must-play for anyone with a PS5 who isn’t afraid to work through the frustrations of dying over and over again. From the incredible use of the DualSense controller to the intriguing way the story is told overrun after run, to the addicting and satisfying combat, Returnal begs the player to hold off going to sleep for just one more try. After all, as Selene constantly reminds, “you can do this. You just need to tr...

Returnal is an astounding game, one that easily and instantly claims the proud title of being Housemarque’s best game to date, and is an unmissable killer app very early in the PS5’s life.

As much as Returnal carved a niche of its own on PS5 as a stunning third-person shooter that had been masterfully blended with roguelike design, so too does it manage to inhabit a similarly unique place for PC gamers in 2023. One of the best PlayStation exclusives of 2021 has ended up being one of the best and most glossy PC shooters of 2023. Long may PlayStation Studios incredible run of PC ports continue.

Returnal is an incredible experience, which combines a replayable rogue-lite structure with heart-pounding bullet-hell gameplay.

Complex systems are made simple, by committing their clutter to muscle memory, and play—good play, at any rate—requires that you, like Selene, ride its enigmatic loop.

“Returnal takes full advantage of the PS5's features to give players a fast and furious sci-fi spectacle.”

Returnal is a tightly designed roguelike with some of the best gameplay the genre can provide, and it's the first game since Demon's Souls to provide a reason to own a PS5.

Returnal stands as Housemarque’s most ambitious title yet, taking the studio away from the arcade genre and into uncharted territory. By a good margin, that gamble is a success. Returnal delivers in spades where it counts most, delivering a mostly-excellent experience that embraces the studio’s history and charts a path forward. Selene’s harrowing adventures on Atropos are wonderfully conveyed through exploration and discovery. Though the ending doesn’t fully deliver on the hours of build-up, it’s still a worthwhile tale to explore. The combination of roguelike design with third-person bullet-...

This PS5 port is a blast in the heat of battle, but feels trapped between two genres.

Returnal’s shooting mechanics are solid, the game is gorgeous, the enemy variety is nice, and the boss fights are stellar. So, it’s a shame that literally everything else kind of falls apart. The rogue-lite aspects are sub-par at best and outright bad at worst.