Saros Review

Let's get the obvious comparison out of the way: yes, Saros is basically Returnal 2. Same studio, same genre, same DualSense wizardry, same "die, learn, repeat" structure. If that bothers you, this review isn't going to change your mind. If it doesn't, keep reading, because Housemarque has gotten noticeably better at this. The combat is the star. It was the star in Returnal too, but Saros has this... flow to it that the previous game only hinted at. Every weapon has a distinct feel through the adaptive triggers, you can tell what you're holding without looking at the HUD. Dodging through bullet patterns while maintaining fire is still the core skill test, and Housemarque has tuned it to the point where clean runs feel like playing an instrument. It's the kind of game where you die and immediately hit "try again" because you know what you did wrong. Carcosa is a better setting than Atropos. The King in Yellow influence gives it this cosmic horror identity that's genuinely unsettling rather than generically alien. Biomes reconfigure between runs thanks to in-lore solar eclipses, which is a clever way to justify the roguelite shuffle. And it looks incredible on UE5, bioluminescent caverns, ruined alien structures, cosmic vistas that make you forget you're about to die. The big improvement over Returnal is progression. Death still hurts, but you keep meaningful upgrades between runs. Weapon mods, suit capabilities, permanent stat bumps. It's the change that makes Saros more approachable without making it easy. You're still going to die plenty. You're just going to feel less punished for it. Arjun Devraj, played by Rahul Kohli, anchors the story with more personality than Returnal's Selene had. The narrative is more ensemble-focused, with crew interactions that make you care about what happens between the shooting. That said, the story can get abstract to the point of confusion, cosmic horror is hard to explain clearly, and Saros occasionally loses the thread. Base PS5 shows some strain during the most chaotic fights. Post-game content feels thin compared to the density of the main run. But those are footnotes on what's easily one of the best PS5 exclusives this year.