Returnal // Cocosette
One of the best parts of moving to a new neighborhood is trying out local shops and cafes, in search of new snacks for my Sunday morning gaming sesh. Still fairly new to this side of town, I went for a walk in search of grub and found a coffeeshop not a block away. The pastry pickings were sparse, but a humble little brown package was just the thing to catch my eye.
I took this approach when trying Returnal, a roguelike from Housemarque. As a newcomer to the genre, I was curio—oh who am I kidding, I was desperate to justify the half grand I dropped on this whack-ass stupid box that looks like someone left their TiVo in a hot car. Of course I knew I'd be using my PS5 mainly for backwards compatibility for at least a year, but like a fool I was hopeful. Replaying the same games I've played before—but this time in 60fps with no load times—it's not enough! Don't get me wrong, I'm not aching for more unstarted games. My current backlog could last me at least two more presidential administrations. But the reason I have a backlog is because I indulge in FOMO, picking up new games to ignore the monumental list of years-old titles I feel guilty about ignoring. With no snazzy PS5 games, I'm forced to confront my guilt. Don't make me look at my faults, Sony! Give me raytracing, not introspection!
With no other options, I opened up my Cocosette, popped in Returnal—no idea what to expect and... Turns out they both fucking rock. A Nestle product from Colombia, Cocosette is a layered wafer cookie: crispy, sweet, and just a hint of coconut flavor. It's the perfect pairing for a morning coffee, especially for those of us tired of the typical croissant or chocolate chip cookie. Imagine a Big Kat stripped its chocolate off and went on a tropical vacation.
Returnal has a similar familiar-but-fresh vibe. We are Selene, an astronaut who crash lands on an alien planet. Again. And again. Every time she dies, we start right back at square one. But each round brings a new configuration of rooms and randomly generated weapons and pick-ups. I personally don't have much history with roguelikes, but I found multiple frames of reference to latch onto. Traversal is frantic and relies on dodging, not unlike my beloved Control. Creature and world design is Giger-esque, a sci-fi that's simultaneously vintage but also pretty novel for AAA action. As a Souls-head, the repetitive gameplay was like a warm blanket. Obviously you're not memorizing room layouts here—since they rearrange with each run. But your navigation and combat strategy improve as you lather, rinse, repeat. My attachment to Selene's moveset reminded me of "character action" games like Devil May Cry. Her actions and reactions to enemies become second-nature, invoking a flow state that doesn't end on death. It never felt unfair as I knew exactly what to do differently next time. Combine this constant learning with intriguing plot reveals about Selene's past, and what will start as a short "I'll just hop in for a run" often turns into "It's 1am and I'm halfway through the game."
At least for me! A major point of discussion around Returnal is its difficulty, particularly in light of its lack of save points. Aside from slowly unlocking the library of power-ups that could appear, progress doesn't carry over. Nor are there save points mid-run. The best you can do is suspend the game using the PS5's sleep mode, which can fall victim to a power outage or firmware update. Even with a way to save, the game's lack of options neglect a whole population of players who either can't or won't subject themselves to hours of working out their trigger finger. I implore developers and gamers like myself to realize that not everyone plays a game like this for the skill-based challenge. And to say that toggling that off wouldn't be the "true" Returnal (or Souls for that matter) is quite reductive and insulting to the game itself, as it's so much more than just an exercise in hand-eye coordination. While that's why I'm a day 1 player for these games, I don't believe the artistic intent is hampered by simply adding accessibility and difficulty options. Quite the opposite: it would let more people play the fucking game! And isn't that why we're here?
So put Cocosette in more stores, dammit! A wafer cookie filled with coconut cream isn't for everyone. But you never know until you try.
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