PlayStation’s latest showcase is catching a lot of flak for its lack of high-profile first-party releases, and while that criticism is certainly valid, that doesn’t mean the showcase didn’t have its fair share of unique and intriguing reveals, even if they were on the smaller side.Ghostrunner 2,Plucky Squire, andTowers of Aghasbawere all perfect examples of smaller reveals that still packed a sizeable punch, andUltroscertainly belongs on that list as well.
The very first game from new Swedish studio Hadoque,Ultroswas by far one of the most unique-looking games revealed during PlayStation’s Showcase. A 2D side-scroller with incredibly bright and trippy visuals,Ultroslooks like it takes the best parts ofa modern Metroidvaniaand gives them its own unique, bold look, and that might be exactly what the genre needs right now.
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Ultros Is a 2D Metroidvania With a Unique Hook
Art direction is one of the most underrated elements in modern-day video game design, though it’s slowly becoming a bigger selling point. As games transitioned fromthe fifth generation of consolesto the sixth, a big shift in art direction came with it. As games became more technologically advanced, demand for more realistic graphics and art styles increased, leading to the washed-out greys and browns that dominated the Xbox 360 and PS3-era of video games. But over the last few years, games have started to deliver more diverse art styles, and for Indie games this has been an excellent way to stand out from the crowd.
Ultrosseems to be the latest Indie game embracing this trend, putting its bold and expressive art direction front and center of its marketing. In a recent PlayStation Blog post aboutUltros, the game’s Design Director spends a good portion of the article emphasizing the game’s unique art style, detailing just how important it is to the experience.Ultroshas apparently hired El Huervo, the talented artist behindHotline Miami’s immediately recognizable aestheticand the one responsible for givingUltrosits incredibly unique psychedelic art style. According to the blog post,Ultroswill also use a mix of hand-drawn art, dynamic camera angles, and colorful sprites to deliver a “hypnotic effect.”
But whileUltros' art style is more than enough to turn heads, its implementation in the game and its themes seems to be the thing that’ll capture fans' attention in the long run. Set aboard a mysterious gigantic sarcophagus floating through space,Ultrostasks its players with fighting their way through the ship, exploring every inch of it to unravel new parts of the mystery. A large part ofUltrosis its roguelike gameplay, which is explained in the story via an in-game Sci-Fi loop, similar to the likes ofDeathloopandReturnal. With mystery and confusion at its heart,Ultros' trippy and bright art style seems to perfectly fit the game’s themes and tone.
Withhuge successes likeHollow KnightandDead Cells, the 2D Metroidvania genre has only gotten increasingly popular over the last few years, and more and more Indies have tried to use the genre to their own advantage. Even now, there are countless 2D Metroidvanias set to release in the near future, ranging from already well-known brands likeBlasphemous 2andHollow Knight: Silksongto lesser-known newcomers likeDoomblade. It’s more important than ever for an Indie likeUltrosto stand out from the crowd in any way it can, and that’s exactly what its psychedelic art style does.
