The community asked for this functionality from the game’s launch, and Housemarque added it to Returnal along with the photo mode.

Returnal and, therefore, Housemarque have won the affection of the public. Its roguelike and bullet-hell proposal in an alien and hostile environment has placed the game as one of the titles to consider on PS5, resulting in a “mega success” for the developer studio. However, the long duration of their games has led many players to demand a save system to pause and continue ‘runs’ where appropriate. And, after several months since its launch, Housemarque launches an update that implements this functionality along with a new photo mode.

The news of this update can be read on the PlayStation blog, where the characteristics around its so-called „Suspend cycle” are specified: a system that allows players to save at a point in the game, turn off the console and continue the adventure at any moment. However, this will create a point of return to the game that will be deleted as soon as we reload, forcing us to make another save point if we see it necessary.

Therefore, we could say that Housemarque has finally managed to adapt to the player’s needs since it had admitted that such functionality clashed with some systems in the game. In this sense, the developer warns that the “Suspend cycle” cannot be used in boss battles, cinematics, first-person sequences, or during intense combat scenarios. Because, from the studio’s perspective, “we believed that there are certain moments in Returnal that are best experienced in a non-fragmented way to preserve the intended challenge and fluidity.”

After all, players will enjoy the game more deeply with its new photo mode, also included with the update. As we have seen in other games, a mechanic will allow us to capture the crudest battles or landscapes characteristic of the title with the help of angle changes and photo filters: a functionality that we can access as soon as we pause the game.

In this way, Housemarque gives us more reasons to return to Returnal, which will facilitate access to that large number of players who have not reached the final boss of the adventure. And, if you have already completed this difficult title, remember that Housemarque has plans beyond Returnal, as it has confirmed that it wants to make bigger games after its purchase by PlayStation.