SAROS – Tips and Tricks to Come Back Stronger
SAROS is almost here, and for fans of Returnal, you’ll be glad to know that Housemarque has knocked it out of the park yet again. The trademark bullet ballet is back, and this time, with various improvements throughout, it’s a much more forgiving yet still challenging title.
While players may struggle to understand the inner workings of SAROS, the climb need not be a puzzle. Here are some SAROS tips and tricks to ensure you come back stronger!
*Spoilers Below*
SAROS – Tips and Tricks to Come Back Stronger
Do Not Underestimate Your Starting Hand Cannon
SAROS starts you off with a measly hand cannon, but this weapon is not to be underestimated, especially with the right upgrades.
When choosing early weapons, an automatic rifle may often seem like the wise choice, but for new players who are still getting used to the combat style of SAROS, a simple hand cannon would suffice, especially when it has the Bouncing Bullets upgrade.
Bouncing Bullets will ricochet between enemies, and even if you are not aiming directly at the enemy, they can bounce off walls and still hit the enemy. This is extremely useful and can help with the first biome of the game, Shattered Rise, and can even beat the boss easily because the first boss has multiple target points, which Bouncing Bullets can handle without worry.
If a hand cannon is not your style, we would recommend switching to a Smart Rifle and not its other variants (Onslaught or Tactical).
Sometimes, It Is Best to Dash Into Projectiles
In SAROS, the best instinct is often to strafe side-to-side or dash sideways to avoid incoming projectiles. While it’s almost always the case, enemies will sometimes throw massive bullets, making the only logical choice to dash forward. Dashing sideways or backward against these projectiles might get you caught in their trails, so it would be the correct call to dash forward.
Later in the game, you’ll get introduced to Red Projectiles, which cannot be phased through when dodging, so your best bet here is to either completely avoid them or figure out a way to deal with it through other means…
Don’t Rush Into Rooms
SAROS shares many similarities with Returnal, and if there’s one thing that still works, it’s lying back and blasting enemies from afar. Before heading into a new room, do a quick check for enemies so that you can take them out before they even notice you. If the room spawns more enemies, depending on the layout of the room, you can retreat to the previous room and keep your distance so that you can conserve your health. Every little bit of HP helps on your way to the boss, and if you have to “cheat” your way through it by sniping enemies, then so be it.
Leave HP Recovery Items Behind if You Need to Go Back to Them
If your HP is full, then you won’t automatically pick up any HP recovery items (called Aether). Leave them behind, but remember where you left them, because you can technically backtrack and go back for them if you take any damage in the later rooms. These HP recovery items are tough to come by in the early hours, so having a source of HP recovery to come back to is a good idea.
Later in the game, you can use the Lucenite you collected to make Aether drop more, ensuring you are always topped up before you head into any boss encounter.
Use Grapple Points Wisely
Some rooms in Saros will lock you in a Solar Cage, meaning you are trapped in the room with a bunch of enemies, making staying alive a bit of a challenge. Later in the game, you’ll gain the ability to latch on to parts of a room by pressing the Triangle button, and this not only zips you in and out of combat while repositioning away from the enemies, but it also renders you invincible while doing so. It goes without saying that abusing this when a swarm of bullets is headed your way will prove to be very useful.
Choose a Lane and Make it Quick
Another reason for approaching a room slowly in SAROS is that some rooms will make you choose between two rewards, similar to Returnal. These rooms will usually make you choose between a Large Aether/HP Recovery Item and a Red Upgrade, and you only have time to pick one up.
Health is almost always the correct answer here, and if you see a room ahead with these choices, make a beeline to the Aether and don’t look back, there are many more upgrades to pick up later but health is always a priority.
Save Your Carcossan Keys for Locked Rooms
In SAROS, one of the rare rewards you can get is a Carcossan Key, which will allow you to access locked rooms that usually hold multiple rewards and resources, or use the Yellow Upgrades, which give you upgrades to your Power Shot (L2+R2). Using a valuable key on a Yellow Upgrade is almost never worth it unless you don’t run into any locked rooms. The wise thing to do is ALWAYS save your keys for the locked rooms.
Choose Your Upgrades Wisely
SAROS is a game of choices, and how far you make it into your run will depend on skill, but also on the upgrades you choose to pick up. When given the choice between two options, choosing health over a stat upgrade is almost always the correct answer, unless you are at full HP.
One of the rewards you can choose from is something called Halcyon, which is an extremely important resource that allows you to unlock important upgrades on your grid, like improving the effectiveness of HP Recovery items. Halcyon can be picked up normally during a run, but it can also appear from upgrade points, so when it does, always pick up Halcyon.
Don’t Be Scared to Pick Up Corrupted Upgrades
In SAROS, when you trigger the eclipse, you basically make things harder for yourself because your usual upgrade pickups will now come with a penalty. If, before the eclipse, you pick up a +5 Drive upgrade, activating the eclipse will now apply a penalty to this upgrade, like dropping Lucenite when you are hit.
Not all penalties are scary. If you need to pick up an upgrade with a penalty, these are the penalties that you can live with:
- Heavy Fall Damage
- Taking damage briefly jams the main weapon
- Deal less damage when stationary
Penalties like dropping Lucenite when hit are dangerous pickups, as Lucenite is a resource that is needed for your permanent upgrades. Another dangerous penalty is Frenzied Hostiles, where enemies will deal more damage every time you hit them.
Don’t Forget to Use Your Power Shot Often
SAROS has a new mechanic in which Arjun can absorb Blue Projectiles to turn them into a power shot (L2+R2). This can be used repeatedly without worry, as it is easy to refill, so use it up every time to deal major damage to enemies and even bosses.
Later in the game, Arjun can unleash an Overdrive Attack (L3+R3), which is basically an ultimate move. This is harder to come by, and it takes a while to fill it back up, so save these for extremely tough encounters with Alpha enemies or the level boss.
