Returnal had a weird effect on me.
While I did have a fantastic time with it, it was also one of my most frustrating experiences of the year.
And while it may seem like I'm fighting against the game's own nature (which I kind of am), I have to say that this very good game would've been even better if it wasn't a roguelike.
One thing that I have to highly praise Returnal is its gameplay. It's just superb. Probably one of the main reasons you'll keep going back to it, even if it annoys you're brains out. Shooting, running, dashing, traversing through areas feels fast and great thanks to the game's sleek mobility. Control scheme is also perfection, which helps to boost fun-factor. And I won't even go into details about how well the dualsense enriches Selene's journey.
Oh and the boss fights... They'll keep your adrenaline high, but they're incredible! Graphics are also stunning. The amount of (beautiful) things on screen is crazy and marvelous. It's basically bullet hell shooter orgasm. The whole presentation is done well. It might seem a bit too much at first, but once you get it, it stays with you. Even the environments, which at first seemed repetitive, but they grew on me.
As for the story, I do admit that the ending sucks (both of them), but up until that point, it managed to keep me interested. Sure, it's minimalistic and very cryptic, but the atmosphere created by the whole 'death and ressurection in Atropos' thing was interesting. The mystery is there and pulls you in, even if your anger is telling you to stop playing.
Ok, now I have to say this: This game shouldn't be a roguelike.
Although I loved playing it, I didn't exactly have a great time experiencing it. I blame it on how Returnal approached the genre.
Each run took too long, even if you were lucky. Enemies did MAJOR damage out of nowhere and without any reason. Shortcuts were necessary, but they're almost nonexistent here. Weapon variety is good, but not all of them are actually useful. Every single item HAVE to be huge gambit. And all that packed with a very bad ending that just ruins the terrific sense of accomplishment given by the gameplay.
Returnal just feels overly unbalanced, most of the time. It's as if the RNG hates you 24/7. Mechanics are more often trying to frustate you instead of helping. You can see that in the amount of permanent power ups or skills you get - almost nothing! Just a few concerning traversing each level!
This game could've been so much better than it is.
Returnal is by no means a bad game. I did love playing it. But I'm not sure if I'd recommend it to anyone, even if you're a fan of the genre.
I had a great time, but also a major headache.
While I did have a fantastic time with it, it was also one of my most frustrating experiences of the year.
And while it may seem like I'm fighting against the game's own nature (which I kind of am), I have to say that this very good game would've been even better if it wasn't a roguelike.
One thing that I have to highly praise Returnal is its gameplay. It's just superb. Probably one of the main reasons you'll keep going back to it, even if it annoys you're brains out. Shooting, running, dashing, traversing through areas feels fast and great thanks to the game's sleek mobility. Control scheme is also perfection, which helps to boost fun-factor. And I won't even go into details about how well the dualsense enriches Selene's journey.
Oh and the boss fights... They'll keep your adrenaline high, but they're incredible! Graphics are also stunning. The amount of (beautiful) things on screen is crazy and marvelous. It's basically bullet hell shooter orgasm. The whole presentation is done well. It might seem a bit too much at first, but once you get it, it stays with you. Even the environments, which at first seemed repetitive, but they grew on me.
As for the story, I do admit that the ending sucks (both of them), but up until that point, it managed to keep me interested. Sure, it's minimalistic and very cryptic, but the atmosphere created by the whole 'death and ressurection in Atropos' thing was interesting. The mystery is there and pulls you in, even if your anger is telling you to stop playing.
Ok, now I have to say this: This game shouldn't be a roguelike.
Although I loved playing it, I didn't exactly have a great time experiencing it. I blame it on how Returnal approached the genre.
Each run took too long, even if you were lucky. Enemies did MAJOR damage out of nowhere and without any reason. Shortcuts were necessary, but they're almost nonexistent here. Weapon variety is good, but not all of them are actually useful. Every single item HAVE to be huge gambit. And all that packed with a very bad ending that just ruins the terrific sense of accomplishment given by the gameplay.
Returnal just feels overly unbalanced, most of the time. It's as if the RNG hates you 24/7. Mechanics are more often trying to frustate you instead of helping. You can see that in the amount of permanent power ups or skills you get - almost nothing! Just a few concerning traversing each level!
This game could've been so much better than it is.
Returnal is by no means a bad game. I did love playing it. But I'm not sure if I'd recommend it to anyone, even if you're a fan of the genre.
I had a great time, but also a major headache.