Total eclipse of the start.
Bullet-dodging PlayStation shooter Saros has welcomed a sizeable Zenith update today, which has the twin aims of making the game both more accessible for those who haven't played it (or are struggling to get into it) and more replayable for those who have.
The headline additions are a quickfire boss-rush mode, a New Game Plus mode, an entire new layer of modifiers to make runs easier and harder, and - very appealingly - a slow-mo option to slow the game down.
The Slow Game Speed option can be varied depending on preference and can be activated either manually or automatically. You choose how much it slows the game down by; a video of it makes it look a lot like slow-mo in many other games, providing crucial thinking time in Saros you otherwise struggle to get.
Developer Housemarque said in a blog post it was "always wary" about toning down its games. "Although we realise our games can look intimidating at first, we didn’t want to compromise the combat system of Saros by reducing the projectiles that put the 'bullet' in 'bullet ballet'," it said. Hence the new slow game speed.
The new game modifiers allow you to tune the difficulty depending on what kind of challenge you're up for. If you want a bit of help, there are 10 new Protection modifiers you can apply. An example given was of a Corruption Melee Enhancement, which unleashes the game's deadly Corruption that builds up on you for huge melee damage.
Meanwhile, if you want to make the game harder, there are Trial modifiers. An example given was of Hostile Regeneration, which allows crowd-controlled enemies to quickly regain health unless you close to melee and finish them off with a strike.
The New Game Plus mode is called Eclipse Layers, and it activates once you've cleared the game. Each new Eclipse Layer represents a more intense version of the game with altered rules, apparently, and each has various prerequisites required in unlocking it; some require a certain amount of modifiers to be in effect, for example.
In step with this, Arjun now wears a cool sun-like crown during the Eclipse Layers - and his armour glows golden - that grows depending on the modifiers you have in play. The crown is also essential for seeing 12 new story visions Housemarque has added to the game for you to find.
Finally, Overlord Rush is the boss-rush mode that's designed to be played in 10-minute bursts, giving you a 'set' of the game's bosses to fight. A final set - Totality, it's called - has you face all eight Overlords in one continuous gauntlet.
Saros released in April on PS5 and was well reviewed, though it had a sluggish start in terms of sales, especially compared to predecessor of sorts, Returnal. Housemarque doesn't seem concerned, though, saying "this is just the start of the discussion", and that there's plenty to "tweak and add" and work will continue for "a while". This Zenith update is presumably a major part of that work.
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