Topic: Returnal

@Just_2_milky That’s the same for me, the 3Diness and the shooting / dashing mechanics are just so well implemented in Returnal. The story is damn good too.

I’ve not checked out the trophies for Hades so good to know that’s one. I might probably already halfway there but only because you can’t walk past without wanting to pet it 😆

@Th3solution great thanks for confirming that!

Yeah it really does, I kept falling and missing the ledges! Was not expecting it to do that!

Haha I'll be honest the Biome numbering thing suits me fine as I'm rubbish at remembering names!

Can't see me playing it today. Had far too much beer yesterday, and I don't think Returnal is the sort of game I can cope with hungover!

Hey all I've been reading this thread with interest, I don't have returnal but am at the point now where I'll be purchasing my next game.

I can play for around 2-3hrs max on an evening, so the lack of save function is putting me off. Am I to presume that this isn't a game for me then? I'm not really keen on leaving the console on overnight in rest mode.
It'll either be this or ratchet so welcome any thoughts

@MatthewJP You will potentially still be able to make good progress in that amount of time, depending on how quickly you pick things up. I wouldn't worry about using rest mode, I used it all the time when I was playing Returnal and didn't have any problems.

@MatthewJP yeah, you could to a really good run in 2-3 hours. I am about 45-50 hours in and have used rest mode a lot, and I haven’t hade any problems. If you can get it for 50 it’s an absolute steal and a must have ps5 game!

Amazon has it for 50$ and other stores probably do to, just didn’t check

Thanks both, that's food for thought. I'm a 'physical' gamer so having finished resident evil village I'll trade that in for a decent amount off the next one. Returnal is tempting even though I'm a complete newbie at this genre, it seems a lot of people are hooked on it once getting into it

@MatthewJP believe me I was too. After beating the 1st boss I went downstairs to have a glass of water, and I could not hold the cup as my hands were shaking! 🤣 fast forward and I’ve beaten the game and am close to the play! If you are determined, you can do it!

@MatthewJP I was not sure whether it would be my thing as I've not really enjoyed games in the same genre, but Returnal had its hooks into straight away.

@MatthewJP You've definitely got to experience this game, it's truly awesome. I'm far from the worlds best gamer but Returnal makes you want to be better and you'll want to pick yourself up even after you've been well and truly knocked down.

@Just_2_milky I was exactly the same with pretty much every boss encounter at the first time of beating. Couldn't believe how much my hands were shaking, it's very much both a physical and psychological effort to take them down 😀

I'm not one for holding onto games after completion and building a library, so traded in RE8 today and got returnal - if I hate it, I've only paid £37 and will eventually trade it in for ratchet anyway.

Having a blast so far. The visuals and framerate have to be experienced as YouTube videos do not do it justice at all. Stunning to look at and play, superb audio especially with headphones and what excellent use of the dualsense. Amazing a studio with 80 staff have done this so quickly and so early in the generation.

Lots to take in and learn, and not got to the first boss yet but managing to do OK considering I'm not a great gamer.

I'll have a shock and be disappointed when this current run ends as I've really taken my time over it and explored like you would do a 'normal' game when I know it'll throw me right back to helios at any minute...

@MatthewJP tip that I wish I had starting out. Investigate all of the blue upside down triangles on your map, but it sounds like you're already doing that. If you see health too far up or down for you to reach, don't worry. Eventually, you'll be able to get everything you see. Last one, if you see an astronaut for sale, buy it!

@MatthewJP Always good to hear someone else enjoying Returnal. It’s early days for you yet but it’s only going to get better, and maybe slightly tougher, but definitely worth it! 😀

Good tips thanks! As its almost 1am I'm calling it a day but I got to the 2nd phase of the first boss with very little integrity so reckon I can do that tomorrow. The boss fight was pretty amazing - the visuals and music.
Also inside the house - creepy. Got some PT vibes from that

@MatthewJP Glad you are enjoying it! Along with an Astronaut I reccomend buying a big health vial for the boss, as that means you have 3 lives to tackle it.

@MatthewJP One little tip for the early game too, in the first biome you can sometimes use those grabby tentacle things to lift you up to platforms you can’t otherwise reach. Those extra obolites or health boosts might just be vital!

This game is brutal! 10hrs, 20 deaths and I still haven't beaten Phrike!
In those 20 deaths I've only faced him twice and only had the astronaut twice.
Quite amazing how the game keeps a grip on you though, still itching for another go after every death.
The stats don't bode well for me with the rest of the game lol

@MatthewJP I think Biome 1 can be really difficult as you have such limited weapon choices and, as the weapon levels are so low, much fewer scope to get interesting weapons and perks.

Keep going though! One of my early game tips is to use melee more; it one-hit kills smaller enemies and can be used against bigger enemies to either stagger them quickly or take a good chunk of health off them once they are staggered.

Don't be afraid of watching some videos of the boss fights for tips either and it sounds strange but it can be useful to record and watch your unsuccessful attempts sometimes to see if there's one move you're not reading or something you're not quite timing right.

Hey guys, just finished Biome 6. Fair play, this one took me some time to figure out! Had a good set up in the end which helped. Really liked the boss, didn't find it too difficult but I clicked what to do right away. Ending to act 2 was..... Interesting!

I've just gone back through the thread after seeing @Th3solution also was confused what to do next. So that'll be the next bit.

I've really enjoyed the game. Got a teeny bit annoyed a couple times when I died stupidly, but wow the gameplay, visuals, all very good.

Just editing as I have a question I want to include spoiler tag for;

@NedStarksGhost You don't really need to finish any of the biomes in Act 3, save for beating Ophion once again at the very end. Most of the sun face fragments are pretty easy to come by and you don't need to get them in one run. In biome 2 I found the fragment in the first part of the biome and I think it's always in that part. In 3 and 5 it's guaranteed to be in a very specific place. Once you get all 6, you just need to visit the house again in biome 4 and then fight Ophion and you're done.

@MatthewJP Go on, you can do it! It took me a few attempts to get out of the first biome but it’s totally possible once you’ve got things sussed. Try and be aggressive so that you are dashing forward and always picking up the obolites. That way you will have more to spend at the fabricators and it might make a difference in the battle against Phrike.

Also if you are struggling you could always have a tinker with the controls. A few things I did was turn on always sprint and also reduced the dead zone on the left stick so I was reacting faster. You could also remap the buttons more to your liking. I know some people got on better with dash remapped to one of the shoulder buttons.

@NedStarksGhost Congrats on finishing act 2!!