Returnal’s successor Saros launches this week, and you can play it two days early if you want to pay a little extra.
If you’re a fan of eldritch horror and manic bullet hell combat, Saros looks destined to be one of your favourite games of the year.
Developed by Housemarque, the third-person roguelite shooter sees players control Arjun Devraj (played by Midnight Mass star Rahul Kohli) as he investigates the disappearance of an off-world colony on the planet of Carcosa.
The game is set to launch on Thursday, April 30 , but if the wait is too unbearable, and you have extra cash to splash, you can play it two days early.
How to get early access to Saros
You can get 48 hours early access by purchasing the digital deluxe edition from the PlayStation Store. This is priced at £79.99 (£10 more than the standard edition) and comes with three additional in-game cosmetic items, namely the Astra armour, Onryo armour, and Midgard armour.
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It’s important to note you can only get early access by purchasing the game digitally, with physical copies arriving when the game launches on April 30, 2026.
What time does Saros early access start?
While Housemarque hasn’t specifically stated when the early access period kicks off, a countdown on the PlayStation Store suggests it will begin Tuesday, April 28 at 12am BST in the UK. It looks set to go live at midnight local time in other countries too.
If you’ve already pre-ordered digitally, you can pre-load Saros now to avoid waiting hours for it to download at midnight. The game takes up 83.33 GB of space.
What is the cheapest pre-order deal on Saros?
If you’re looking for the cheapest deal on physical copies, Currys is your best bet. If you pre-order the game there before launch, you’ll get a 10% discount from the starting price of £64.99, bringing it down to £58.49. This is cheaper than Amazon, Argos, and others.
Is Saros a PS5 exclusive?
Yes, Saros is only available on PlayStation 5. According to reports, it will stay that way too, as Sony is apparently no longer bringing PlayStation 5 exclusives to PC anymore, aside from online multiplayer titles like Marathon and Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls.
Does Saros have multiplayer?
At launch, Saros is a single-player experience. However, considering its predecessor Returnal received a co-op mode as DLC, it’s entirely possible some multiplayer functionality will be added down the line. Housemarque, however, hasn’t said anything on the subject.
Is Saros a sequel to Returnal?
While Saros builds on the foundations established in 2021’s Returnal in terms of gameplay, it’s an entirely separate story with a new protagonist. As such, you can play Saros without having experienced Returnal (although we’d recommend you do, because it’s excellent).
Saros is designed to welcome new players who were perhaps intimidated by Returnal’s high difficulty, so it’s arguably a better starting point for newcomers, even if both games are still fundamentally very similar.
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