Returnal Reviews Roundup
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Housemarque’s Returnal launches tomorrow and the reviews embargo has lifted with initial reviews now pouring in. Here’s a quick rundown of what critics think of the PS5 exclusive.
In Returnal you play as Selene, a space pilot that unfortunately crash lands on an alien planet. In her search of finding a way out of this unknown world, she is suddenly stuck in a time loop that after her death she returns back to when she crash landed on the planet to relive it all over again but this time with a different variation from enemy types to what she can obtain in her journey.
Simply put, this is a roguelike where death means you start at the beginning. An Edge of Tomorrow type of scenario with bullet hell segments that look challenging just by looking at gameplay footage. At first glance at what many think of the game, many praise it’s gameplay and mentions the difficulty pose as a turn off for certain players.
Here’s a quick rundown of the first batch of reviews before the game’s April 30 launch.
IGN (9/10): “Its roguelike runs are too long and it needs a way to save in the middle of them, but Returnal's third-person shooter action, clever story, and atmosphere are excellent.”
Gameinformer (9.5/10): “Returnal is a relentless nightmare that’s a dream to play. The journey is full of horror and terrible discoveries, but also unbridled curiosity and wonder. If you have the taste for it, this is an adventure that begs to be experienced.”
Destructoid (7.5/10): “Returnal is a mostly thrilling sci-fi action romp that suffers from a lack of scale at times. In the moment, I'm completely fixated on my run, upgrading like a fiend, and dashing around for iFrames like I was playing a Capcom game.”
Gamespot (9/10): “Returnal is constantly unsettling and consistently challenging. Its mysterious story and demanding action feel intense, urgent, and fresh. The fast-moving combat manages to appear incredibly daunting, bordering on overwhelming, without ever actually becoming insurmountable.”
VideoGamer (9/10): “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.”
Venture Beat (3/5): “The presentation mostly works, and the Prometheus vibes will win over fans of spooky, slimy sci-fi. But while Housemarque has shifted away toward more narrative and higher production values, this is still one of those games.”
Polygon (no score) : “Returnal’s biggest achievement is the way it presents the horror of being stuck in place. It’s bold and unapologetic in crafting its universe, making up for some of its more frustrating decisions by carving its own path and fulfilling its haunting potential.”
Techradar (4.5/5): “Returnal puts its own stamp on the roguelike genre, blending ever-changing levels and permadeath with an intense third-person shooter experience.”
It’s easy to describe Animal Well as a puzzle-focused Metroidvania eschewing traditional combat, where nearly every room is a puzzle room, but that falls so far short of describing just what this game is and how expertly it defies genre and classification that it feels like a disservice. Animal Well is a paragon of the art form, a game that simply must be experienced.