'There's a serious lack of persistent upgrades in Returnal, and it sometimes makes progression feel like a thankless task,' Hood said. But these are unfortunately few and far between. The RNG can screw you just as easily.'ĭying will at least give you the opportunity to learn more about the world you're in and a chance to get permanent buffs, which should ease the pain. I didn't beat that boss because I figured it out, I beat it because I happened to have the right equipment. The random nature of equipment drops means you're often at the mercy of RNG. I also don't think it's particularly fair. It's harder than simply existing during pandemic times. It's harder than a rocket-propelled diamond. 'I know that automatically makes people think I'm just crap, but Returnal is harder than a right hook from Mike Tyson in his prime. 'This is a hardcore game, and I'm not saying that just because I am, unfortunately, a game journalist,' wrote TheGamer's Kirk McKeand in his 3.5/5 review.

Rooms and what's in them will change every time, and you'll lose your weapon and any advantage you might have when you die. Like most roguelikes, the randomised aspect of what you'll find during each run is what will make or break you. In his 4/5 review for GamesRadar+, Ben Tyrer labelled Returnal an 'Alien-meets-Groundhog-Day nightmare.' The title incorporates all the usual tropes of a roguelike, but in AAA package. The game is tough for me - and I play Dark Souls to relax.' Gene Park, The Washington Post 'I didn't get very far in Returnal, and it's not for lack of trying. Equipped with a high-tech suit, Selene sets out to battle her way across Atropos and break the loop, which will allow her to escape.' But Atropos is stuck in a time loop, meaning that each time Selene dies - and she will die frequently - she begins a new life cycle starting at the crash site. 'Returnal is centered around space pilot Selene, who crashes her ship, Helios, on an alien planet called Atropos. 'Developer Housemarque has blended the ever-changing levels and permadeath of roguelikes into a game that is otherwise a blockbuster third-person shooter,' said TechRadar's Vic Hood in her 4.5/5 review. Its Metacritic score stands at a very good 86 at the time of writing, which is on a par with previous title Nex Machina: Death Machine. Returnal is a PS5 exclusive from the studio that previously brought Resogun and Nex Machina to players. The game is tough for me - and I play Dark Souls to relax.' The Washington Post's reviewer, Gene Park, actually didn't score the game because he wasn't able to make it to the second area of the game in time for publication. Needless to say that the difficulty level in question is far from being user-friendly.

Like Sekiro: Shadow Die Twice in 2019, and many other games before it, Housemarque's roguelike third-person shooter shipped with only one difficulty level and sparked an intense debate among press and consumers alike. It's challenging to introduce Returnal without immediately mentioning the debate around difficulty it has sparked.

Returnal crashing