New Returnal PS5 trailer reveals creepy, imposingly tentacled enemies and bosses
Returnal. (PlayStation)
Forthcoming PlayStation 5 (PS5) exclusive Returnal has a new trailer showing off its enemy designs.
The PS5 game is a roguelike third-person shooter developed by Housemarque, where the alien world shifts around you each time you die.
A number of imposing enemies are shown in the PS5 trailer, from the leaping Titanops, to the mechanical Automaton and the insect-like Gorgolith.
Then there’s the darkly angelic Ixion, the fungal Mycomorph, and even a being that resembles lead character Selene.
She leaps and dodges around their bullet-hell shots of coloured plasma, a necessarily agile heroine in a twisted alien hellscape.
In a PlayStation blog, creative director Harry Krueger explains the creative process in designing the enemies.
“When creating the organic enemies of Returnal, one of the biggest sources of inspiration for me was looking at bioluminescent deep-sea creatures…The way these creatures move deep underwater, with their long tentacles and bioluminescent highlights, can often appear majestic, beautiful and downright terrifying,” he says.
The team developed their own special tentacle VFX technology that’s used liberally throughout the PS5 game, adding to its unique alien aesthetic.
The effects will both highlight incoming attacks and provide satisfying feedback to the player.
Returnal. (PlayStation)
“While each enemy has its own distinctive personality and its own uniquely identifiable attacks patterns, we have also tried to find the best synergies and pairings between enemies to ensure they work together gracefully,” says Krueger.
“We want to ensure our combat scenarios feel consistently challenging and deeply rewarding, but also avoid veering into the unfair or incomprehensible.”
Developer Housemarque is known for their PlayStation exclusives Resogun, Super Stardust HD and Dead Nation.
Returnal sees them not only take on third-person perspective, but a more narrative-focused cinematic experience.
Previous trailers have shown off the alien world of Atropos as well as a strange derelict house players will return to frequently to uncover the game’s mysteries.
As a PlayStation exclusive, Returnal is one of the hottest games to arrive on the platform in the near future.
Returnal is released exclusively for PS5 on 30 April and you can pre-order it from Amazon. Check out the new trailer below.
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