this is a great DLC, and helps validate my claim that returnal could've been a better game if the roguelike elements had been retooled. this DLC ends up being less roguelike and more arcadey third-person shooter, which works a lot better for this formula imo. improvements include that the tower of sisyphus has guaranteed drops in it that housemarque was able to design its challenges around. there's still choice to be had in these drops as well (do you go for the health upgrade or the damage upgrade? which penalizing parasite do you go for? etc.), so it never feels like the game is taking you on a railroaded experience.

but, most importantly, you're given a guaranteed random level 3 gun by the second floor to pick from, which suddenly makes every single run feel like it can 100% be my fault as opposed to "i got stuck with the shitty base pistol and died because i couldn't get something else to drop". i know i've harped on this, but the guns are such a vital part of returnal as an experience, so amplifies the player experience to get more self-expression from the getgo. these things sound small, but they add up to making the moment-to-moment gameplay retain that fun, frenetic energy while also keeping the player consistently challenged. lastly, algos is a great boss and honestly blows the base game's bosses out of the water for me. he's simple, but focused, and it's refreshing that the game staggers out his second and third phases so you can get comfortable with his first one.

yeah, i'm just really impressed that they were able to refine what didn't work about base game and turn it around here. this has overall made me more positive on returnal as a package, and seeing this much improvement in a free DLC surpasses my expectations. if anything, this has made me interested in seeing what housemarque puts out next, because i can see this being part of an upward trend in quality for them.

Anything good I said about Returnal still pretty much applies here, this DLC serves to scratch the itch of wanting to play it without committing to the usual roguelike elements of it, and going for a more arcade vibe.
Originally I had no plans of playing it because I thought it was just a simple endless mode + it had no co-op, so I wouldn't be able to play it with my brother, but I was told it had some new additions to the lore to expand Selene's relationship with her mother, (plus more and more greek mythology references keep popping up, that apply surprisingly well to the game, and I'm just a nerd for that kind of stuff), and I think it does that pretty well!

Except for this epilogue cutscene you can unlock after the ending that kind of falls flat, other that, I see myself coming back to this game occasionally whenever I want to scratch the itch of this specific type of gameplay loop

I wrote this review at 1am so it might not be my best sorry if its hella incosistent lol

Returnal: Ascension takes Returnal's mechanics back to the developer Housemarques origins of fast paced arcade gameplay. That's not to say that Returnal didn't have that, it's just Ascension is a more streamlined version. Gone is the more methodical exploration in place of pure combat and above all speed. Keeping your score multiplier going, hitting that teleporter as quick as possible for the biggest obolite reward. Just constantly keeping the pace going to aim for new heights. It's all the better for it and at times and absolute thrill. The story parts, cyphers and scout logs are all there to add to the lore of the main game of course. They tend to be in the tower hub or occasional safe room with power ups however to keep the flow going when the action starts.

Along with the infinite tower score attack challenge this free release also added in online co-op for the main campaign. It's a cool mode and how I actually started playing Returnal with a friend but it does have it's limitations. There is this irritating tether that pulls the players together if they get to far apart which with some of the teleporters can yo yo you both till it settles. The game wasn't designed with co-op in mind and the house sequences, some equipment and other things either can't be done or carried over so we were playing through each area at least twice. It's also a little unstable at times with connection issues, when joining it somehow disrupts our private chat every single time meaning we have to mute and unmute our headsets etc.

Despite these few hiccups though the content added here is of a high quality. It's addictive fun and a great compliment to the main title. Now I might go make another run, highest I've reached so far is only phase 4 floor 14....

+ Fast arcade firepower.
+ Free.
+ Adds interesting and creepy new story content.
+ Online co-op....

-...which has obvious flaws due to being patched in after the game was out.