Sleeper hit of the year!

This.

Topic is about Returnal and the reviews it's getting. So, let's stay focused on that. This is your everyone's in thread warning, so doing otherwise may (and likely will) lead to some kind of moderation. 

you should make sure you don't go to Australia. Games there have been 100+ in some cases for years, and CAD to AUD is pretty much on par. (I'm also Canadian)

Also, based on what I've experienced so far....89.99 is worth it for Returnal. Strange, since I was one of the ones who used to say Returnal looked like it wasn't worth it. I used to straight up say that it was the least interesting PS5 exclusive shown thus far. However, now that I've played it, I'll encourage you to rethink your stance a bit on its value. It really is as good as the reviewers say, and while it seems repetitive from afar, the actual gameplay loop makes its 25-50 hour play time (more if you are the kind of person who replays games or goes for 100%) is absolutely engaging and fun. 

I'm only a few cycles through its loop, but I'm liking it a lot. I will obviously update and alter my thoughts on the game as time goes on; if it turns out the late game sucks or it gets boring far before I actually finish it, then I'll say so. As for now, I am a convert. I went from thinking this game was the lamest on Sony's docket to one of the most original and unique games I've played in a while. Plus it's a new IP. That matters. I don't see much potential for a sequel, though. Nothing wrong with one-offs. 

As for the console wars cropping up again...I mean, it is an exclusive. Of course that's going to happen. 

Bought the game off Amazon, CAD 102 here after tax. Worth it. I don't have a ps5 yet but don't mind paying full price for a Housemarque game. Plus I'll have a nice shiny ps5 game box to look at while waiting for a ps5 to become available here.

GST, “high wages” and because we are “far away” from the rest of the world makes everything more expensive. As an example, a USD$300 tv in the US is about AUD700-800 over here. Even if the AUD is not half the value of USD.

As for this game in particular, and many others like Ratchet and Clank: Drift Apart, surprisingly, the most expensive retailer here (EB Games) is having a promotion where you can trade-in 2 games valued at $10 and pay an extra $49 to have the game. 

So if you find any cheap games that cost $10/each and the trade-in value is $10 or more, you could end up getting this game and ratchet and clank for AUD69 each. And that’s what I did :)

#11 on Amazon and has been consistently moving up! Way better than I expected. I’m even more impressed by this, bc I feel like a higher than normal proportion of people will buy this digitally, bc it still has a low/medium budget feel to it, as well as being a new IP. I’m planning on buying digital for these reasons, despite buying most games physical.

I think a lot of people slept on this until they saw the reviews. I had no plans of buying it at full price until I saw reviews and listened to some podcasts. Now, I plan to buy tonight. 

Yes, that’s amazing! I was genuinely concerned for Housemarque, bc I felt like Returnal was destined to fail as a result of the high price. Thought they may be at risk for going under. I’m very pleasantly surprised that so many people are paying that $70 price. I’ll be buying it likely tonight as well.

I know it’s at #11 on Amazon US, but do you have any info on where it’s at in other countries?

I had never even heard of the game until today and bought it off Amazon after reading a couple reviews. Nice surprise, always had good times with Housemarque. Awesome to see them make the leap to a so called full game.

Developer is playing coy, but I get impression they will be adding mid-run resume (auto-save).

watch some gameplay vids. Shmup is a very apt descriptor of how the third person shooting elements are handled.