Sony has revealed some new details about Returnal, the action game for PlayStation 5 that launches on April 30. Some of the new information includes the adrenaline levels, the reload system, or the online boards for daily challenges -for which a PS Plus subscription will not be necessary- where we will be asked to overcome certain conditions with a specific weapon and a single life.
Sony reveals new details of Returnal
Returnal will take advantage of the DualSense controller’s adaptive triggers: “L2 will half-lock when you press it to zoom in when aiming (this also highlights the weakness of enemies by pointing it out in red),” says Sony. “Press it down to activate the alternate firing mode for each weapon. You can display the charge time of the alternate fire with the HUD, and a beep will also alert you when the reload is complete. But there’s an even cooler detail, specific to DualSense: If you hold down the trigger after unloading, you’ll feel a low-intensity vibration, which will gradually increase, replicating the weapon’s reload cycle.”
The protagonist, Selene, will have great mobility to jump, dodge projectiles and use melee combat with the sword. The interface surrounds the character to indicate the direction and proximity of these enemy attacks. “The generous reach of the grappling hook at the marked grapple points will allow her to move at high speed over large areas.”
5 adrenaline levels
There are five levels of adrenaline, a gauge that increases as you deal damage without taking damage. These levels offer improvements in weapon damage, vision – enemies marked with a red circle – more power in melee attacks and more. The problem is that on the first hit, the level will return to zero. “Weapons are instantly reloaded by pressing the trigger at the right moment, something that will earn you a damage bonus (Overload). But if you do it wrong, the weapon will jam. All weapons have an alternate firing mode and an ability that you will unlock when you have taken down a certain number of enemies. There is a wide variety of unlockable skills with which you can upgrade your weapons in many different ways.”
The integrity of the suit, equivalent to health, can be recovered and expanded with objects, while the specialty bars of the weapons indicate the power of the next weapon you get from enemies or chests -another option is to expand them with the collected objects-. Housemarque promises an arsenal of all kinds, from the most classic and earthly -pistols, rifles- to other extraterrestrial ones with unique attacks. The team points out that the sound of these shots uses 3D audio and ray tracing to calculate their positions.
A carefully crafted atmosphere
“Although gunfights are very frequent, Returnal is much closer to an exploration platformer than a shooter,” Sony says of the game’s pacing. “You won’t have to traverse a series of combat arenas in rapid succession. The level design is very varied and you’ll always have moments to explore.” Fantastic animal sounds have been introduced, strange types of vegetation, and rain that the player will be able to feel with DualSense haptic feedback.
