The PlayStation 5 adds another game to its first-party stable this week with Housemarque\u2019s <\/span>Saros<\/span><\/i>. Like the studio\u2019s previous effort <\/span>Returnal, <\/span><\/i>this new title is a third-person roguelike set on an alien world where nearly everything is hostile in some way and death is a sure thing.<\/span><\/p>\n However, <\/span>Saros<\/span><\/i> sports many key differences from its predecessor, particularly on a narrative level. As Arjun Devraj, players explore the planet Carcosa to learn how it\u2019s affected his Echelon IV crewmates, previous Echelon teams before them, and ultimately Arjun himself. If <\/span>Returnal <\/span><\/i>had a simple setup, this one is more involved, largely because it\u2019s not as solitary an experience: throughout the game, Arjun interacts with several other characters, mostly in the Passage hub between runs. And when he\u2019s not talking to them, he\u2019s learning about what they\u2019ve gone through via logs (of the text, audio, and holo variety) that paint unpleasant pictures for everyone who\u2019s jotted their thoughts down.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n For a studio with a \u201cgameplay first\u201d ethos, the type of cutscenes PlayStation games are known for might not fully fit with players\u2019 image of what Housemarque is. But as creative director Gregory Louden told io9 last week, this was a \u201cnatural evolution\u201d of what the team had done with <\/span>Returnal<\/span><\/i>. To him, there\u2019s a good chance the two games would\u2019ve been \u201cquite similar\u201d had <\/span>Returnal <\/span><\/i>featured more characters rather than focusing on its lead Selene. But the response to that game\u2019s narrative and what it did with her inspired the studio to \u201cpush the characters and audience\u201d with its next title, hence the supporting cast\u2014a call made early into development to help players understand how Carcosa was transforming anyone who set foot on it.<\/span><\/p>\n To senior narrative designer Khalil Osaimi, <\/span>Saros <\/span><\/i>builds on the \u201cisolation\u201d of <\/span>Returnal <\/span><\/i>by incorporating \u201cmultiple lenses\u201d to give players a distinct complexity with Arjun and Carcosa. Finding the right balance of giving players enough narrative organically without sacrificing gameplay pacing was an iterative process and one he called \u201cvery tricky, but very fun.\u201d The most important story nuggets are, in both men\u2019s eyes, \u201crewards\u201d for players to receive after surviving tough encounters or boss fights\u2014but getting the fullest picture will depend on how much players piece together from the logs found during their many, many runs.<\/span><\/p>\n Louden feels Housemarque\u2019s characters are \u201cdiscovered, not told,\u201d and it\u2019s through logs and differing viewpoints where players can get more insight into Arjun. <\/span>Saros\u2019<\/span><\/i> marketing has been cryptic on his reason for coming to Carcosa, but that, along with who he is and how the planet\u2019s affecting him, shifts throughout the game depending on whose perspective he\u2019s being viewed from, including his own. That even goes for the eclipse; Osaimi called the celestial event one of his favorite characters in the game for the storytelling opportunities it provides. Voice logs found during the eclipse see their subject become more and more mad near the end, and animated clips that play after Arjun\u2019s death(s) carry their own bit of narrative meant to help drive the player forward.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cCome back stronger\u201d isn\u2019t just a tagline; it\u2019s the driving ethos of <\/span>Saros<\/span><\/i>. Repetition is core to the roguelike experience and to Louden, a perfect fit for the type of cosmic horror Housemarque\u2019s been exploring. Just off the planet\u2019s name and the significance of color, any players who know supernatural literature (or remember <\/span>True Detective\u2019s <\/span><\/i>first season) probably connected some dots between the game and Robert Chambers\u2019 1895 short story collection <\/span>The King in Yellow<\/span><\/i>. Like the inclusion of more characters, this was a choice spurred by <\/span>Returnal<\/span><\/i>; <\/span>that game was inspired by H.P. Lovecraft, so it only made sense for the team to go further and look to what inspired <\/span>him<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen we explored the idea of a new dark sci-fi world, we knew we wanted to keep exploring cosmic horror. Delving further into that genre and going to its deepest reference point was decided quite early in development, similar to the eclipse and \u2018Come back stronger,’\u201d Louden explained. \u201cWe had so many references, but [<\/span>King in Yellow<\/span><\/i>] resonated with us, and we took that to make something entirely new.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n A handful of times during our interview, Louden regarded\u00a0Saros\u00a0<\/em>as an \u201cevolution\u201d of Housemarque\u2019s previous work. Early on, he said he was \u201creally proud\u201d of how things have come together\u2014and now that\u00a0Saros <\/em>is out, PlayStation 5 owners can see the story for themselves\u2026 give or take a few dozen deaths.<\/p>\n Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what\u2019s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote><\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/GBCEPnV6avJnCyrr5PXmjT.jpg\")
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