Early on in Returnal's marketing, it was revealed that players would be able to find the corpses of other fallen players. Much like bloodstains in Dark Souls, interacting with these would let the player see a glimpse of their fellow scouts' life just before it ended. At launch, this feature was mysteriously absent from the game, but it was finally patched in with the most recent update. Players can now come across these fallen scouts during their runs and can opt to either avenge them to gain four ether or spend three ether to scavenge them instead.
Ether is a fairly abundant resource in Act 2 of Returnal, especially since it caps out at 30. Once the player has purchased everything from the Cthonos outside of Helios, the only thing it is used for is cleansing malignant items. This can really save a run when used at the right time, however, so players may be tempted to avenge a fallen scout.
Approach the corpse of another player and hold triangle to analyze it the same way the player analyzes undiscovered items. This will cause the scout's final moments to play out on the screen, and afterwards players will have the option to avenge them. Follow the button prompts to avenge and a tough enemy will begin to spawn. This is usually one of the mini boss enemies from whichever biome the player is in, but it will be a more powerful variant. Throughout the fight, purple lasers will spawn and track the player, and the enemy will have more HP and deal more damage.
These fights can be extremely challenging, especially if the player is not well equipped. It's a good idea to save this for the end of a biome, as if the player does it early on they will struggle to deal enough damage. In order to survive this ordeal, players will need to stay mobile, keeping in mind that purple beams can't be dashed through, and focus on dealing damage whenever there's an opening. Never avenge a fallen scout with low integrity, as that is a surefire way to end a run prematurely.
With the four ether the player earned from defeating the enemy, players can get Obolites from an Obolite Repository, cleanse malignant items, or hold onto it for later. This is a permanent resource, so players won't lose it even if they die and have to start a new run.
Returnal is available now on PS5.
