


Even its main character feels cut from the same cloth as the drifter. Despite ditching Hyper Light Drifter’s signature pixel style for smooth 3D textures, it’s still instantly recognizable as a Heart Machine game with its deep purples. Solar Ash is a 3D action-adventure game where players explore gorgeous, surreal spaces. Instead, it’s entirely about movement - even during its most action-packed moments. Solar Ash doesn’t dial in on hack-and-slash action like its predecessor. While its colors and atmosphere are familiar, the developer has made some fundamental shifts to its style.

Heart Machine isn’t looking to do the same trick twice, and that became clear when I attended a demo event for its long-anticipated follow-up, Solar Ash.
