Sony has announced the new project by developer Housemarque, the creators behind Returnal. The new game is called Saros, and it’ll be available on PlayStation 5 in 2026. The reveal came as part of Sony’s latest State of Play presentation.
Evolving from Returnal
Acquired by Sony back in 2021, Housemarque is a Finnish game development company that has previously worked on multiple projects for Sony systems and PC. Their list of previously released games includes Outland, Resogun, Alienation, Matterfall, Nex Machina, an, most notably, Returnal, which is currently available for PS5 and PC.
Returnal: Every Boss Fight
We fought and defeated every boss in Returnal, and here we have a compilation of all these epic fights.
The new project is a single-player action game with third-person view and a storytelling that emphasizes mystery. While the company aims to capitalize on their strengths from previous projects, they decided to make a new IP rather than turn Returnal into a franchise, as creative director Gregory Louden points out in a newPlayStation Blog post.
As part of the announcement, the companies shared a first look at the game. This first trailer, however, is entirely focused on realistic cinematic elements to give players a tease of the tone of the experience. The gameplay will be revealed in another trailer later this year.
Saros tells the story of Arjun Devraj, whose performance was done by British actor Rahul Kohli. His previous roles on TV series include Napoleon Usher in The Fall of the House of Usher, and Sheriff Hassan in Midnight Mass. Keep in mind that Housemarque has already revealed that Arjun isn’t the only one in Carcosa and more non-playable characters will be revealed in the future, but details are scarce at the moment.
Arjun is a Soltari Enforcer who’s looking for something in the distant and isolated space colony on Carcosa, a place where an ominous eclipse lingers. Despite the circumstances, he’ll fight against everything to find something precious that the developers are currently keeping a secret. Nonetheless, what we do know is that the story revolves around his efforts to create a new future.
In the video, we get to see Arjun on a desolate beach. As he wakes up with the waves hitting his face, he stands up little by little. His posture and facial expression clearly show that he’s very tired. Nonetheless, he decides to take up his big firearm model and walk towards the eclipse on the horizon. The video shows a giant monster with eight arms getting up from the water as Arjun narrates a short summary of his circumstances and motivation.
Besides the video, Sony has also shared a few screenshots of the trailer to showcase the details of the cinematic teaser.
Unlike Returnal, Saros will feature elements of permanent progression. As players try to survive the circumstances and fail, facing multiple deaths along the way, they’ll have the chance to become more powerful and acquire weapons and suit upgrades. As such, the game is closer to a “rogue-lite” definition than roguelike, allowing players to get stronger over time instead of forcing them to lose it all.
The new project is a single-player action game with third-person view and a storytelling that emphasizes mystery.
More details will be available later this year, once the developer shares more information on the game. The first gameplay trailer is scheduled for 2025, though the companies haven’t provided a specific date.
Review: Returnal
Returnal stands as Housemarque’s most ambitious title yet, taking the studio away from the arcade genre and into uncharted territory.
