Sometimes, against our better judgment, we do the same thing over and over again hoping for a different outcome. Developer Housemarque’s new third-person bullet-hell shooter Saros explores this idea in many ways – the roguelite level structure, the repeated combat encounters, and the internal conflicts of its main character, Arjun. It has a familiar gameplay foundation to its predecessor Returnal, too, with fluid gunplay and deft movement. But in trying to be more thematically ambitious, Saros opens itself up to pitfalls Returnal didn’t have to manage, leaving some of its more interesting threads unsatisfyingly hanging. Still, its tough-as-nails combat is worth getting good for, even when its repetition can wear you down.
Arjun Devrahj is an expeditioner for the space corp Soltari; he sports the voice and likeness of actor Rahul Kohli, who absolutely nails the leading role. His crew is sent out to investigate the disappearance of previous expeditions on Carcosa, a planet riddled with biomechanical imagery and the gothic architecture of a lost alien civilization; the science-fantasy and Giger influence is definitely used effectively here. It’s also reminiscent of the modern Doom games, especially when its chaotic combat encounters and pounding soundtrack evoke a similar feeling.
You quickly realize that something is extremely off, with each solar eclipse turning the planet into a hellscape and inducing a deep psychosis that chips away at everyone’s well-being as tensions grow increasingly hostile. There are parallels to works like Heart of Darkness or Apocalypse Now here, but Saros is more of an adaptation of the 19th century anthology “The King In Yellow” by Robert Chambers. It pulls names and themes directly from the book itself while brushing up against a little cosmic horror. You see Arjun battling with his own sanity and past decisions as you get further and have to ponder: What is Soltari’s real purpose? Does that matter? Why does Arjun keep respawning as few even bat an eye? Is any of this real? Those are all interesting questions as you unpack what Saros is really about.
You do so primarily by blasting through multiple run-based levels that make up Carcosa. The more you familiarize yourself with the unrelenting attack patterns of enemies and learn how to be effectively aggressive with weapons you vibe with, the closer you get to a flow state that speedy shooters like this uniquely tap into. It’s strongly rooted in Returnal’s design philosophies with a few edges sanded off, and while I don’t think Saros is necessarily an evolution, I came away with a sated appetite for Housemarque’s house style.
Carcosa’s various biomes are broken up into distinct levels, which themselves must be completed in a single run to make progress. It’s a different way of packaging a similar idea; levels shift ever so slightly with each run, pulling from a defined set of rooms to generate the path forward. Some rooms emphasize platforming challenges, most throw hordes of biomechanical amalgamations at you, and some are a tough mix of both. Runs do begin to blend together as the cadence doesn’t really change that much since the parameters are fairly tight. But in a game like this, death is part of the process, and each failed run is a training ground for what you ultimately need to do – get through the level as healthy as possible and defeat its boss in one fell swoop.
This largely works because, like it has done historically, Housemarque makes damn good shooters – from 2D and top-down shmups such as Resogun and Nex Machina to the third-person bullet-hell of Returnal. Speed and agility are priorities and that’s balanced with a generous tracking system for aiming, which makes Saros play a little closer to an arcade shooter. I often relied on the Onslaught Rifle that disables auto-aim altogether for powerful shots, or the Smart Rifle that homes in on targets to let me focus on mobility. Most guns come with a satisfying impact, including pistols that remain relevant throughout and the late-game ripsaws that tear through enemies with damage-over-time, all of which come with different perks and in several variations that drop randomly during runs. Saros makes brilliant use of the DualSense controller’s haptic feedback here, mapping its alternate fire modes to a half-trigger pull that you physically feel and the wind-up of your Power ability to a full-trigger pull, both of which are crucial to execute at a moment’s notice.
