5/5 ★ – Pepperonii's review of Returnal.

Returnal is a genre defining rouge-like that keeps you coming back for more. Housemarques shmup DNA runs heavily through it's veins and is best exhibited through the level design, audio, and combat. You are Selene, a deep space scout employed by Astra Corporation. After crash landing on the planet Atropos, you discover that Selene has been here countless times before. Unable to remember previous expeditions through Atropos, she sets off once again to uncover the source of what's keeping her trapped here in the seemingly endless Cycles. Each "stage" of the game places you in a procedurally generated biome. The first biome, Overgrown Ruins, is a dark, dense area filled with weapons, upgrades, and plenty of hostile life forms. Each room you enter will vary from tight corridors to wide open spaces. Since each room is generated randomly you may find yourself entering one teeming with enemies, other times you might just discover that stronger weapon you desperately needed. I find it to be most beneficial to explore as many rooms as possible..but don't be greedy. I've had my fair share of runs ruined by overestimating the challenge of a room and having my health depleted, my items used up, and my spirit... broken. Make yourself a build you're comfortable with and test your skills against the biomes boss. One thing that truly impressed me about the level design came when I entered the second Biome, The Crimson Wastes. A seemingly endless desert who's vistas are interuppted by the occasional dilapidated building. The contrast between these two biomes can be jarring. The first being a constricted, dark, dense ruin to a wide open, brightly lit, vast desert. It gives you more freedom of movement and really let's the combat shine. The combat in Returnal is precise and fast paced. You'll find yourself quickly dashing between enemies while simultaneously dodging the blanket of projectiles hurling their way to you. One wrong move and you lose precious amounts of life as well as buffs you gain through combat. One of the components of the combat system is Adrenaline bonuses. To gain these bonuses, you kill enemies without taking damage. Stack your adrenaline up and you'll receive a buff based on the level of Adrenaline. These can range from enhanced vision, to greater proficiency rates for weapons, to gaining more precious obolites you can use to purchase upgrades and items. Stacking adrenaline, buying items and upgrades, and looking for better weapons will be the key to your success on Atropos. Luckily for Selene, the aliens who inhabited the planet have left a variety of weapons for her to use. You start out with her basic issue pistol but can find much better suited weapons to combat the hostiles of the planet. You'll find weapons such as the Tachyomatic Carbine, which is a powerful machine gun, the Spitmaw Blaster, a powerful shotgun that packs a punch, or my personal favorite, the Hollowseeker. Implied by the name, it shoots bullets that seek out your enemies and has a rapid fire rate that makes it a satisfying tool. Each weapon you find will have a trait that defines it. Some will also have different base stats as well, so you might find two Spitmaws but one might have better range, or a trait that allows it to fire on full auto, or do more damage to a staggered enemy. This is also where weapon proficiencies come in. The higher your proficiency rating, the better weapons you can use, and the more damage you can deal. Each weapon has a proficiency rating. In the first biome most weapons will be between 0-3, while in the subsequent biomes you'll find higher leveled weapons so make sure you're leveling up your proficiency accordingly. Mastering movement and finding a weapon that's best suited to your play style will be essential in your playthrough, however there are other things you can use to assist you as well. Selene can use Parasites found in the world to augment her suit and weapons with different abilities, but it comes at a price. A parasite might give you faster reload speeds, but increase the damage you take from a fall. You may find one that slowly heals you overtime but reduces your melee damage by 50%. I used parasites in my playthrough but you definitely need to take into consideration the buff vs debuff and decided what works best for your play style. They can be your greatest asset or your most detrimental liability. Pick your parasites responsibly. Atropos is a harsh, unforgiving environment but keeping your wits about you and using your senses will be integral to your survival, especially your sense of hearing. Get yourself a good pair of headphones and use the power of the PS5's 3D audio to immerse yourself into Atropos completely. Returnal really comes alive when you can hear all the sounds of the world. The environments feel alive and active, aside from the enemies you face, you get the sense of the ecosystems inhabiting the planet. You hear the chirping of bugs, the muffled sound of a stream in the distance, or one of the enemies trying to get the jump on you from behind. While playing Returnal with headphones on I was able to better anticipate my movements. I could hear the click of my weapon much clearer and knew when to tactically reload it to get me back into the battle faster. I knew when an enemy was approaching me from all sides. It's the kind of immersion and gameplay you don't get by listening to it on your TV speakers. It's truly amazing how second nature it feels once you get accustomed to the different sounds and audio cues. You'll find yourself performing actions by hearing, and not by seeing. This is the kind of attention to detail I expected from the developers of Resogun which also had very crisp and detailed audio. Returnal is a very special game. It truly is a next generation experience that unfortunately is only held back by the number of PS5's available to play it on. If you do currently own a PS5, Returnal is essential for your collection and really shows off what the PS5 can do. It's face paced, beautiful, and is sure to be not only a genre defining game, but a console defining game for this generation.