Returnal’s latest patch once again aiming to make more Deceased Scouts appear • Eurogamer.net

Developer Housemarque has released a new patch for its PlayStation-5-exclusive sci-fi roguelite Returnal, this one aiming to increase the number of Deceased Scouts appearing during player run-throughs, among other tweaks and bug fixes.

Deceased Scouts, in the very possible scenario you’ve yet to see one, are supposed show up while playing Returnal with an online connection, and represent other players who’ve died while attempting to best the horrors present on the planet Atropos. The idea is that players can either scavenge or avenge these corpses to increase their ether or gain other rewards, but many have reported a distinct lack of Deceased Scouts in their game since launch.

Housemarque initially attempted to fix the problem with Returnal’s ill-fated 1.3.3 update, which was pulled after players began reporting it was corrupting save games. A follow-up patch, officially known as 1.3.6, reinstated most of the bug fixes yanked alongside 1.3.3, with the exception of those missing Deceased Scouts. Which brings us to today.

Returnal players should find that Deceased Scouts will now appear with the frequency Housemarque originally intended upon installing today’s 1.3.7 update. There are more fixes where that came from, however, as outlined below.

• Fixed an issue with Deceased Scouts not appearing as often as intended.
• After having one of their Deceased Scout corpses scavenged, players will no longer receive a negative-effect parasite on startup.
• Fixed an issue where the Ophion boss might disappear after a player uses the Reconstructor during the fight.
• Fixed a rare audio bug causing loud noises during combat.
• Fixed a small number of issues where players might become stuck in various rooms.
• Fixed several issues where the player might encounter a black screen during the credits or whilst playing.
• Multiple fixes for rare crashes during gameplay.

As ever, Housemarque suggests players in the middle of an active run turn off auto-update on PS5, unless they want to wave goodbye to their hard-earned progress – an issue experienced by Eurogamer’s Chris Tapsell and recounted in his otherwise Recommended Returnal review.