SAROS review: Housemarque comes back stronger with PS5’s most striking game yet

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In 2021, Returnal established Housemarque, a small Finnish studio, as a major player in the gaming world. After years of creating smaller, arcade-style games, they demonstrated their potential with this ambitious title. Now, with the release of SAROS, they’ve proven Returnal wasn’t a one-time success. Despite some initial issues, SAROS shows that Housemarque can truly excel when given the resources to do so, exceeding even the brightest elements of their game world.

SAROS is exceptional in nearly every way. It’s their most ambitious story so far, far more complex than Returnal, and each surprising twist keeps you hooked. While their previous game felt polished, SAROS adds new features and clever gameplay changes that make it even better. It’s a truly mesmerizing shooter experience.

The game features a beautifully crafted world that you’ll constantly want to revisit. You’ll find yourself rooting for the main character, Arjun Devraj, even when he makes mistakes. This same captivating quality draws you in and encourages you to fully immerse yourself in everything SAROS has to offer.

SAROS is a truly unique gaming experience, building on what came before but offering something completely new. It’s a must-play, though you might want to wait a few weeks for the developers to fix a few minor issues first.

SAROS screenshots

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What is SAROS about?

SAROS is a fast-paced, challenging bullet hell shooter with elements of roguelike games. If you fail a run, you return to base to prepare for another attempt. Each playthrough is unique thanks to random equipment, upgrades, and a constantly changing planet, Carcosa, ensuring no two attempts are ever quite the same.

This time around, the game is different than you might expect. The developers really focused on letting players ‘come back stronger,’ as the first teaser highlighted. Unlike Returnal, where you lose everything and start over completely, SAROS is more lenient and forgiving.

The game now features a detailed upgrade system where you can significantly improve your stats, unlock lasting benefits, and even gain a second chance if you die. However, these upgrades don’t make the initial game much easier. Expect a tough 10-15 hour journey through the main story before you unlock the much larger endgame. While things can become easier in the endgame, we’ll discuss that later.

Rahul Kohli powerfully portrays Enforcer Arjun Devraj in this chilling science fiction horror story. While his performance occasionally feels a bit repetitive, this might be intentional, considering his character’s relentless and secretive mission. Kohli guides us through a narrative that’s far more ambitious and unsettling than anything the game developer Housemarque has attempted before.

Throughout the game, you’ll meet a large and diverse group of characters – some you’ll interact with directly, and others you’ll learn about through recordings and messages. They all contribute to building a picture of Carcosa, a world that has descended into chaos. While the game is impressively ambitious, I worry that it sacrifices close, personal connections in its attempt to be epic.

Comparing this game to Hades and its sequel is natural, considering how the game is structured. However, while those games build depth through repeated interactions with a diverse cast, this game offers fewer meaningful connections. You don’t spend enough time with the characters to truly become invested in their stories. This might be intentional, as the protagonist is very focused on his own mission, but allowing players more time to experience the world and get to know the crew would have significantly improved the experience.

“Arcade is dead. Long live arcade.”

Housemarque has always prioritized excellent gameplay – it’s at the heart of everything they do. This commitment is clear in all their games, from the Stardust series to Nex Machina, and continued with Returnal. Now, they’re taking that dedication to a new level with SAROS.

Playing SAROS is an exhilarating experience – it’s incredibly fast-paced and fluid. You’ll have instant access to a wide range of moves, including jumping, dashing, grappling, shielding, and reflecting attacks. Staying still is your biggest weakness. Expect intense combat where you’ll be shooting, punching, and charging through waves of visually stunning aliens, all while dodging a constant barrage of incoming fire.

When I first saw this game in Finland, the developers said it wasn’t just a frantic shooter, but more like a graceful dance of bullets. After finishing the game, that description feels perfectly right. You’ll move through arenas of all sizes with incredible fluidity, leading up to some truly amazing boss fights – some of the best in gaming.

The game looks fantastic and runs incredibly smoothly on the PS5, even with all its impressive visual effects. Losing never feels cheap; it always comes down to your own decisions – like the gear you chose or the path you took. Skilled players can even beat multiple bosses in a row on their first try, though it’s definitely a challenge.

The upgrade tree provides permanent progress in SAROS. By earning modifiers, you can gradually increase your base stats, such as health and how quickly you gather resources. The further you advance in the tree, the more significant these improvements become. While these upgrades won’t automatically make you a better player, they do give you a small advantage with each new attempt.

While some worried this would make the game too easy, I didn’t find that to be true during my playthrough, especially since you can add optional challenges to increase the difficulty. If you really want a tough experience – like playing with no stat boosts at all – go ahead, but be prepared for a real challenge.

Endgame woes

As Returnal players discovered, the ending isn’t really the end – there’s still a lot to explore in the world of Carcosa, and many intriguing story lines are left unresolved. However, this is where my experience with the game began to decline.

Unlike some games where the challenge stays consistent, this one gets easier as you progress. Once you start finding logs and completing side objectives, the gameplay can become repetitive. You’ll eventually find yourself able to rush through levels and skip most fights without much difficulty.

The review build had several frustrating issues. Initially, many collectibles were impossible to obtain – even finding them in the shifting world was difficult, but players couldn’t pick them up to advance the story. A patch released before the review embargo seemed to address some of these problems, but I couldn’t verify all of them. I also experienced issues with teleporting; attempting to travel to different areas often resulted in a white screen and forced a game restart.

I’m confident these issues will be fixed in future updates, but they were definitely frustrating while I was playing.

Verdict

Even with a few minor issues, SAROS is Housemarque’s best game yet. It’s a truly impressive experience, boasting the incredibly polished and exciting gameplay they’re known for, alongside an ambitious story, top-notch production, and outstanding sound design – everything about it is remarkable.

Five years ago, after playing Returnal, I noted that Housemarque was a studio to watch. Now, they’ve proven themselves to be among PlayStation’s best first-party developers – right up there with studios like Naughty Dog, Insomniac, Santa Monica, and Polyphony. They’ve definitely earned that recognition.

Wow, Housemarque really outdid themselves with this new game! It’s not just good, it’s seriously amazing, and it feels like they’ve proven they’re one of the very best developers out there. As a fan, I’m so impressed!

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2026-04-24 10:20