Forgot password
Enter the email address you used when you joined and we'll send you instructions to reset your password.
If you used Apple or Google to create your account, this process will create a password for your existing account.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Reset password instructions sent. If you have an account with us, you will receive an email within a few minutes.
Something went wrong. Try again or contact support if the problem persists.
returnal zero punctuation yahtzee croshaw housemarque

Returnal – Zero Punctuation

Recommended Videos

This week on Zero Punctuation, Yahtzee reviews Returnal.

Want to watch Zero Punctuation ad-free? Sign-up for The Escapist + today and support your favorite content creators!

We have a merch store as well! Visit the store for brand new ZP merch.

Transcript

When you think about it, aren’t we all trapped in cycles of one kind or another? Cycles of work and sleep, hopefully not at the same time. Cycles of eating creme eggs and shitting them out to make room for more creme eggs. Perhaps there lies a universal truth in the premise of this week’s subject, Returnal, in which the protagonist is trapped in an existentially horrifying cycle of death and resurrection in pursuit of an answer to the overhanging question: is it worth buying a fucking PS5 yet? And the related question, is it finally time to have an interaction with an eBay scalper that doesn’t end with you picking bits of broken teeth out of the treads of your shoes? Well let’s not go nuts. Returnal is, in the simplest possible terms, a roguelite, a game with procedurally generated maps that you have to start from scratch every time you die. Only this is a roguelite with triple-A graphics and financial backing, and as tends to be the case when triple-A gets its cakey fingers into something that indie and retro circles have been playing with since Peter Molyneux still had all his own hair, they’re acting like they fucking invented the concept, why else would they name the game after it.


The Escapist is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy
Author
Image of Yahtzee Croshaw
Yahtzee Croshaw
Yahtzee is the Escapist’s longest standing talent, having been writing and producing its award winning flagship series, Zero Punctuation, since 2007. Before that he had a smattering of writing credits on various sites and print magazines, and has almost two decades of experience in game journalism as well as a lifelong interest in video games as an artistic medium, especially narrative-focused. He also has a foot in solo game development - he was a big figure in the indie adventure game scene in the early 2000s - and writes novels. He has six novels published at time of writing with a seventh on the way, all in the genres of comedic sci-fi and urban fantasy. He was born in the UK, emigrated to Australia in 2003, and emigrated again to California in 2016, where he lives with his wife and daughters. His hobbies include walking the dog and emigrating to places.