What is Saros?

SAROS PS5 PREVIEW

What is Saros? Saros is essentially Returnal 2, but with a different name and also happens to be one of our most anticipated games of 2026, but before we get to Saros, let’s quickly talk about the reason we got here.

This might be a hot take, but Returnal is one of the best PS5 exclusives. It might not seem like it, but the PS5 has been out for almost 6 years with some incredible exclusives including The Last of Us: Part 2, God of War: Ragnarok, Astro Bot, Ghost of Tsushima, Ghost of Yotei, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, and Horizon Forbidden West just off the top of the head. These are all great games, but most of these releases had the added benefit of being part of an existing IP.

What most people see in Returnal is a roguelike that makes you do the same thing over and over, which it is. But the gameplay of Returnal is deeply connected to the narrative, as it’s an allegory for someone dealing with a traumatic loss in their life, which is something that you would live over and over in your head infinitely similar to a rogue-like. The narrative and the gameplay have synergy on a level that most games fail to achieve.

Selene’s entire journey of Returnal is about working through this experience with the first boss being Phrike, who in greek mythology was the god of horror and fear. All the way to other bosses like Ixion and Algos who were the gods of loss and punishment. When you combine the gameplay with the layered meanings, it becomes clear that Returnal is a much more powerful experience than it appears on the surface and much more than your average roguelike.

IS SAROS A SEQUEL TO RETURNAL

This brings us back to Saros, which is Returnal 2, in all but name. PlayStation and Housemarque want to give Saros the best chance at success and tying it to Returnal wouldn't do that.

To begin with, anytime you launch a sequel, there is the immediate question of whether you need to play the first, which instantly segments your market potential. Furthermore, Returnal didnt sell well in the big picture. Sales numbers are hard to find, which is understandable because the estimates range somewhere between slightly over a million to slightly under two, with PC and PS5 numbers combine. Finally upon release, there were a lot of people who were frustrated with the lack of ability to save throughout your run, which eventually could get into the hours as well as this being likely many players first taste of a roguelike. When you combine all of these reasons, Housemarque made the right choice, but make no mistake, Saros is Returnal 2.

In Saros, you play as Soltari enforcer Arjun who is finds himself trapped on the hostile, shape shifting planet of Carcosa. What Arjun finds on Carcosa is the remnants of an ancient civilization that is fuelled by the eclipse. What’s evident when watching Saros gameplay is that it’s another unquestionable product of housemarque as it features all the staples with the third person action and fast paced movement the studio is known for.

Housemarque has said that Saros will be “an evolution of the gameplay first approach” that the studio takes. After decades, Housemarque has earned trust in the gameplay department with titles like Resogun, Super Stardust HD, Dead Nation and Returnal. The biggest question mark is can they repeat in the narrative department like they did with Returnal and craft an emotionally gripping storyline.

Returnal was categorically a roguelike, which meant that you started each run from scratch, but it looks like Saros is embracing more of a roguelite approach as there is mention of a permanent progressions for your suit, your abilities and always coming back stronger. In addition, the world of Carcosa is always changing, which means that you won’t be doing the same thing over and over.

THE FUTURE OF SAROS

There are a lot of reasons why Saros will have a much better chance of success than Returnal. To begin with, the name change will give Saros a fresh start. In addition to the name change, Housemarque have addressed the major criticism of Returnal at launch which was that you lost everything, which is how roguelikes work, but for the mass market, this can feel cruel and unfair.

The main talking point that Saros has used during its reveal was to “come back stronger”. Arjun has the ability to use eclipse corruption energy to unlock permanent progression items like the one shown in the trailer, which was called “second chance” that essentially gives you a bonus life in the game.

Furthermore, shortly after the release of Returnal, Sony acquired Housemarque, which now makes them a PlayStation studio. This will lead to a massive increase in marketing. Finally there will be massive increase in potential market for Saros. Just weeks before the release of Returnal, Sony reported that PS5 sales were 7.8 million and considering this, Returnal sold quite well. However, the most recent fiscal report from Sony for Q2 2025 was that PS5 sales had reached 80.3 million. The other thing of note is that in the press release for Saros, it mentioned that Housemarque was working closely with Nixxes, who have been known for handling the PC ports of PlayStation exclusive titles like Horizon Forbidden West, Spider-Man 2 and The Last of Us Part 2. This means that Saros will be coming to PC at some point and it wouldn’t be shocking if it released on day one similar to Helldivers 2 did in 2024.

WHAT IS SAROS?

This brings us back to the original question: What is Saros? Saros is a lot of things; it’s arguably the sequel to Returnal, it sounds like a roguelite this time around making the experience slightly more accessible to a wider audience, and it definitely seems like Saros is the next certified PlayStation hit.