When Housemarque first revealed Saros back in February 2025, I was immediately sold on the premise. A sci-fi action roguelite from the creators of Returnal, set on a mysterious alien planet with cosmic horror elements? That’s basically all I needed to hear. When the studio shared its first look at gameplay during last September’s State of Play, the fluid dance of dodges, shields, and gunplay looked exactly like what I was hoping for. Now, a new hands-on preview has shed even more light on the combat systems, and it sounds like Housemarque is cooking up something special.
In Saros, players take on the role of Enforcer Arjun, a member of a rescue crew investigating a human colony that’s gone dark on the alien planet Carcosa. Death isn’t the end for Arjun. Every time he falls, he resurrects back at the crew’s home base, and the level layouts shift with each return. Housemarque’s art director Simone Silvestri describes the approach as handcrafted levels, art, and combat encounters that are connected in a procedural manner, with the studio constantly playtesting to ensure a great flow across the experience.
The combat loop is where things get really interesting. Saros features a risk-reward system built around the relationship between Soltari human tech and alien Carcosan weaponry. Players can collect weapons like Hand Cannons, Rifles, and Shotguns, each with primary and alt-fire modes tied to the DualSense’s adaptive triggers. Early on, Arjun gains a Power Weapon from an alien artifact that can take down groups of enemies in a single blast, but it requires energy. That energy comes from absorbing enemy projectiles with your shield. Creative director Gregory Louden describes it as a shift away from Returnal’s “obstacle course” approach to something more like “a playground,” where charging toward enemy fire can be the smarter strategy than dodging it.
There’s also an optional eclipse mechanic that can be triggered in every area of Carcosa. Activating an eclipse transforms the biome visually and audibly while introducing deadlier projectile types that lower your max health ceiling if you’re hit. The tradeoff is increased Lucenite rewards, the game’s currency for permanent upgrades, along with corrupted versions of weapons and artifacts with unique properties. It’s the kind of risk-reward system that rewards aggressive players willing to push their luck.
Beyond the combat, Saros differentiates itself from Returnal through its ensemble cast. While Returnal excelled with solitary dread, Saros features a full crew with their own motivations and relationships that evolve as you progress. Louden says the group dynamics create “this pressure cooker of an experience, with multiple perspectives,” and even from the start, companionship brings an increasing edge of uneasiness rather than comfort.
