Returnal

Our analysis

Buy rating for the PC port. Incredible looking with insane visuals and intuitive gameplay, though micro stutter issues can pop up at inopportune times.

Our analysis

Returnal is a superb, memorable experience with excellent movement, combat and a haunting alien world. Its punishing runs, uneven difficulty and limited long-term replayability may deter some players, but the creator loved it.

Our analysis

A rare AAA rogue-lite that blends tight, frenetic third-person shooting with Metroid-style permanent upgrades, an intriguing mystery, and standout audio and visual design. Combat feels fantastic and the bosses are highlights, but the punishing difficulty and hour-long runs make losses sting. Its biggest shortcoming as a rogue-lite is a limited, mostly passive item pool and stingy rewards, which limit build experimentation and long-term replayability.

Our analysis

A solid chunk of hard sci-fi that plays like a roguelite Metroid Prime by way of Prometheus, with intriguing isolated plot threads that keep you pushing forward. The fast, responsive controls suit the bullet-hell chaos well, though the murky environments and a camera hugging the protagonist too closely make incoming threats hard to read. It's deliberately hard and unforgiving, sometimes skating into unfair, leaning as much on luck as skill.

Our analysis

A standout PS5 roguelike whose compelling story and setting set it apart from genre peers, reading like a good book while delivering fast, mobility-focused third-person combat. The weapons, with random alt-fire modes and traits, are the star, and clever milestone shortcuts plus tech-gated areas keep repeat runs fresh. It runs buttery smooth at 4K60 with stellar audio, offers 30 to 50 hours, and earns a must-buy recommendation, with only a minor wish for more music.

Our analysis

A great PS5 debut for Housemarque with fantastic, satisfying combat, a wide variety of weapons with random alt-fires and traits, and an intriguing if fractured narrative. Metroidvania-style exploration upgrades and meaningful malfunction-laden loot decisions add depth, and bosses double as rewarding checkpoints. Two overly similar biomes, sparse permanent progression, and minor tech issues like map lag are drawbacks, but it remains a replayable blast worth the higher price.

Our analysis

A satisfying and fun PS5 roguelite shooter from Housemarque with white-knuckle, responsive run-and-gun combat, awesome bosses, beautiful sci-fi biomes, and excellent DualSense feedback. The deep web of parasites, artifacts, and RNG-driven loadout management can feel like a bit too much, and the inability to save mid-run plus occasional crashes make it a hard sell for some. Strongly recommended, but only if this punishing, unforgiving style is genuinely your thing.