A hidden gem that first premiered during the PS5 reveal event in June, 2020, may be exactly what fans of BioWare's third person shooting mechanics have been craving since the initial launch of Anthem failed to scratch the itch. Returnal looks to be a much less story-heavy title, although it does have a time travel mystery intertwined into the gameplay, but it has gunplay and abilities that are reminiscent of the original Mass Effect trilogy.
The most recent trailer for Returnal, premiering at The Game Awards, has given play a whole new look at how the endless cycle will work as players fight alien beasts with sci-fi weapons and abilities. Between the upcoming Mass Effect: Legendary Edition, Outriders, the Anthem overhaul, and this new PS5 exclusive, 2021 is looking to be a strong year for third person, sci-fi shooters.
On the narrative side of things, the new Returnal trailer doesn't seem to be implying the familiar type of galaxy-fairing adventure as the Mass Effect series, but there does appear to be a mystery to uncover on a foreign planet. While it's likely that the colorful cast of characters BioWare is famous for won't be showing up in the upcoming title, Housemarque has succeeded at developing a compelling narrative before. Granted, it isn't the story that acts as the connecting thread between these games, but the gameplay loop, which will likely feel much less broken up by the stories that are attached to every other event in Mass Effect.
Fast-Paced Movement
One of the key aspects to Mass Effect's combat, and one of the strongest mechanics BioWare gave to Anthem, would be the fluid, fast-paced movement that gives players command over a battlefield. This can sometimes be lost as players spend all of their time ducking behind cover and firing from downrange, but it can have a massive influence over combat for players who specialize in close-quarters-combat and shotguns. However, Returnal may be making more organic use of this quick traversal by limiting cover and pitting players against more alien monsters than it pits them against gun-slinging humanoids.
The ability to quickly dash around the map appears to be the primary source of safety in Housemarque's upcoming title, with this speedy traversal being the difference between life and death in most encounters. In the gameplay trailer for Returnal, the player character can be seen to dash from side to side and jump exceedingly high with the assistance of a type of jetpack. These are all traversal abilities that are common for a number of science-fiction games, but the way they are presented is remarkably close to Mass Effect's similar mechanics.
Sci-Fi Abilities
Games in the sci-fi genre often take the Arthur C. Clarke quote about advanced technology and magic to all new levels, as phrases like "quantum abnormality" are thrown around to explain what are essentially spells in otherwise grounded stories. It looks like Returnal isn't going to be much different, not only with the player character seemingly stuck in some sort of time-loop that will likely fuel the main objective of the game, but also with strange alien powers appearing around the world. Similar abilities appear in several BioWare titles, often having differing effects between different alien races in Mass Effect.
The most notable ability seen in the Returnal trailer appears to be a type of death shockwave that sends a pulse outwards in all directions, combined with glowing yellow orbs that shoot out and track down enemies. Some of the aliens fought in the trailer appear to have similar looking abilities, so this may be a sort of Metroidvania situation where the abilities are learned from powerful enemies as they are defeated. This isn't quite the same as how intelligent alien races in Mass Effect are able to stand on somewhat equal footing as the player character, but it does lead to a similar gameplay experience of receiving and throwing the same abilities back and forth.
Expansive Arsenal
Many of BioWare's titles aren't traditional looters, so comparing Mass Effect to Borderlands 3 would be a bit of a missed assertion, but loot and collectables are still a large part of the experience. From what can be seen of Returnal, it doesn't look like massive amounts of loot will be a primary aspect of the gameplay loop either, but that doesn't mean that the arsenal will be much different from Mass Effect. The dozens of weapons available in each game is one of the largest draws to the Mass Effect series, with sniper rifles, grenade launchers, shotguns and pistols that fire sticky explosives, and the standard assault rifle all giving different ways to engage in combat.
Housemarque only showed off two of these weapons in the gameplay footage of Returnal's new trailer, but what can be seen does show that there will be drastically different types of weapons at play. From what fans can see so far, there will be an assault rifle that fires as expected, as well as a large shotgun type weapon that shoots a spread of projectiles. A pistol also appears in some cinematics, but the gameplay footage doesn't show how it works, with much of what Housemarque has revealed of Retrunal focusing primarily on the assault rifle.
Alien Monsters
The final connection is actually in one place where the combat of the Mass Effect series is weakest, and might have even been one of the more disastrous parts of Anthem's combat. From what has been shown of gameplay, it would appear that almost every enemy in Returnal will be some kind of alien creature that attacks with biological weapons, like spitting poison or slashing with sharp claws. These types of enemies are often clash with cover shooting, making them one of the aspects of Mass Effect: Andromeda that needs improvement in a sequel.
While these enemies were often aggravating and broke the normal flow of combat in Mass Effect, Returnal seems to be setting a new precedent for how animalistic aliens should be treated in future games. This may be a measure of success that BioWare will need to keep in mind for the next Mass Effect title, with creatures that are built to fit in-line with the gameplay, instead of break it. From what has been shown so far, Housemarque might step into a top spot in the genre if Returnal plays as good as it looks.
Returnal is set to release on March 19th, 2021, for PS5.
