Housemarque announces Saros, its Returnal successor

At today’s State of Play event, the “one more thing” closing the show was the reveal of a new game from Housemarque. The new title, Saros, was only shown in a cinematic trailer that revealed little about the gameplay, but did tease details about the story and setting and that the gameplay will build on the studio’s previous title, Returnal. Saros is expected to launch sometime in 2026.

The cinematic trailer shows the protagonist, Arjun Devraj, played by Rahul Kohli, a Soltari Enforcer trapped on a world called Carcosa under the gaze of an eclipse. He prepares to battle a multi-armed monster that appears to launch a bullet hell-style attack in the final seconds of the reveal. Housemarque will reveal more details about the gameplay later this year.

Housemarque is coming off of the success of its previous title, Returnal, which it namedropped specifically during the reveal. The roguelike third-person shooter, which launched in 2021, sold over one million units within two years and won numerous awards, including Best Action Game at the 2021 Game Awards. According to Housemarque, it created a new IP for Saros because it wanted Returnal to “stand on its own.”

Regarding how Saros differs from Returnal, creative director Gregory Louden said in a blog post, “A key gameplay distinction between Saros and Returnal is permanent resources and progression making every death valuable. After every death you will face a changed world, but in Saros you will be able to choose and permanently upgrade your loadout from an evolving set of weapons and suit upgrades to “come back stronger” to overcome the challenges you face on Carcosa.”