Releasing on May 29, Scar-Lead Salvation is a single player third-person shooter developed by Compile Heart, the studio behind the Hyperdimension Neptunia series. With this new release, Compile Heart has stepped into completely new territory, this being their first die-and-retry hardcore shooter.
Automaton previously talked to Scar-Lead producer Hiroshi Aoki about how the game was shaped by its sexy clothes damage system. Picking up from there, we find out more about how Aoki drew inspiration from Housemarque’s Returnal for Scar-Lead Salvation’s game design.
Scar-Lead Salvation has some noticeable similarities to Returnal, and Aoki admits that, while developing the game, the team thoroughly studied the game and took inspiration from it – he himself completing all of the game’s trophies. “Returnal has a very simple game design, but […] once you get the hang of the system and figure out what kind of playstyle makes it enjoyable for you, the fun is immediately taken up a notch – that’s what makes Returnal so captivating for me. Additionally, in Returnal, the greatest winning strategy is to not take any damage, and that is something we also implemented in Scar-Lead Salvation.” In Scar-Lead Salvation, you need to make efficient use of dodges and parries to navigate the barrage of bullets coming your way and spare protagonist Willow from taking damage.
According to Aoki, Scar-Lead Salvation introduces an “Exo Skill” system – equippable skills that buff the protagonist and don’t disappear from your equip slot even after you die – this is also inspired by Returnal. Initially, Compile Heart intended to keep the game’s mechanics very simple, but it ended up being quite packed with content. Although this means players might initially struggle a bit before discovering a playstyle that works for them, Aoki believes the added depth is one of Scar-Lead Salvation’s strengths.
However, what really distinguishes Scar-Lead Salvation from Returnal are the weapons, Aoki notes. While the game offers more orthodox types of weapons too, players will also be able to select more unique options, like lock-on lasers or beams. He adds that while working on the game together with co-developer Neilo, both parties had the freedom to do what they wanted and brought their favorite game elements to the table – all of which culminated into Scar-Lead Salvation. “The reason why this game ended up being a third-person shooter at its core is because of my personal biases,” Aoki explains. “When it comes to pure gameplay, if the game has shooting and dodging, that doesn’t mean it’s enough for it to become a third-person shooter, so we made sure to be mindful of the pace at which enemies appear, as well as the way we lay out our maps.”
Aoki also mentions that, while making the game, the developers were conscious of overseas gamers’ tastes too, explaining that they reduced the conversations between characters in favor of the action – “We would be happy if [overseas fans] felt that the gameplay was well-made compared to other developers’ [TPS] titles.”
For this game, it seems like the team focused on making the gameplay itself take the spotlight – and according to Aoki, this is extremely difficult to do if you’re trying to make a TPS game. It is a completely new challenge for the developers, and also a genre they have much respect for, so it’s understandable that they wanted to nail it even on their first try. “In my whole career, I’d never worked on a game in the third-person shooter genre. However, it is a genre that I usually play and love, and it felt somewhat “ideal” to me, as in, I’ve always wanted to develop a game like that.”
Aoki also shared his stance on live service games and where Scar-Lead Salvation stands among its peers in the TPS genre. “I believe there are a lot of titles in the current gaming industry that are trying to compete in the market with their huge volume of content and microtransactions. On the other hand, I’m sure there are many people that still haven’t forgotten about how fun it is to play games that have replay value. I think those types of games where you can just stoically enjoy the action and keep improving your skills have become quite valuable nowadays.”
“I think Scar-Lead Salvation is a game that can give you the same unique sense of achievement like when you’re playing arcade games – inserting coins one after another and polishing your skills as you retry. So, if you have confidence in playing Western action games, please give this one a go too!”
Scar-Lead Salvation will be launching on May 29 for the PC (Steam), PS5 and PS4.
