Returnal: Trophies - list Returnal guide, walkthrough

Last update: 29 April 2021

This page has a trophy guide for Returnal available on PS5. The following trophies list has their requirements. We also give you tips on how to unlock individual trophies more easily and how to unlock the platinum trophy in Returnal.

• General trophy information
• Helios
• Atropian Survival
• Past the Ruins
• Ascending the Mountain
• Through the Forgotten City
• Echoes of the Past
• Frozen in Time
• Submerged in Memories
• A Shadow in the Fog
• Ascension
• Trial by Judgment
• Silence the Song
• Inner Darkness
• Failed Escape
• Last Drive
• White Shadow
• Second Chance
• Cryptic Messages
• Cryptic Translations
• Surgical Precision
• Adapting to Circumstance
• In-Field Training
• Hardened Shell
• Risk Assessment
• Adrenaline Spike
• Irreversibly Contaminated
• Eternal Return
• Alternate Fates
• Welcome Home
• Sins of the Mother
• Visions of the Past

General trophy information

1. You can earn 31 trophies in Returnal - 1 platinum trophy, 7 gold trophies, 5 silver trophies, and 18 bronze trophies.
2. The least complicated are the trophies earned by progressing the main storyline. Separately, you can earn trophies related to defeating the main bosses and completing subsequent acts of the main storyline.
3. Trophies acquired by conducting research in the main regions/biomes pose more of a problem. In order to reach 100% completion in each location, we need to uncover all its secrets, including glyphs, xeno-archives and scout logs. This won't be possible until we progress far enough in the game to acquire the gadgets and abilities required for optional exploration.
4. Certain trophies can be earned by collecting particular collectibles. They may be earned by completing unique house sequences or for discovering xeno-archives. Some of them may force you to restart the cycle repeatedly.
5. Numerous trophies in the game are connected with exploration or character advancement. Obtaining most of these shouldn't prove too troublesome, although it may require some preparation. However, for the most part, they don't require exceptional skills.
6. Returnal doesn't have the option to change the difficulty level. This is a very challenging game that requires the player to show great skill in eliminating the strongest monsters and keeping Selene alive. Fortunately, there are various techniques and equipment upgrades available to help us increase our chances of survival. We have described them on separate pages of the guide.
7. The In-Field Training trophy requires being connected to the online game servers, but it doesn't involve direct competition with other players, only the completion of one of the daily challenges. All other trophies can be earned in singleplayer mode.

Helios

Trophy type: platinum

Trophy description: Collect all trophies.

Atropian Survival

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Learn the basics of survival on Atropos.

Comments: This trophy is earned by acquiring all the basic equipment elements in the first hours of the game, that is, while exploring the Overgrown Ruins. In our case, the trophy was unlocked once we found a melee weapon (the Atropian Blade), one of the permanent elements of Selene's equipment which she will retain in subsequent cycles (we won't have to find them again in the game world).

Past the Ruins

Trophy type: gold

Trophy description: Finish Overgrown Ruins Survey.

Comments: Finishing the Overgrown Ruins survey means finding all the secrets - the Xenoglyph Ciphers, the Scout Logs, and the Xeno Archives located in this biome-region of the world. This will require numerous attempts at exploring the Overgrown Ruins, because the location and content of the studied areas are always randomly generated.

We will only be able to compete for the trophy once we unlock all the abilities that aid Selene in exploration, so that she can easily reach everywhere.

Ascending the Mountain

Trophy type: gold

Trophy description: Finish Crimson Wastes Survey.

Comments: The requirements are the same as the aforementioned Past the Ruins trophy. The only difference is in the region/biome that needs to be surveyed.

Through the Forgotten City

Trophy type: gold

Trophy description: Finish Derelict Citadel Survey.

Comments: The requirements are the same as the aforementioned Past the Ruins trophy. The only difference is in the region/biome that needs to be surveyed.

Echoes of the Past

Trophy type: gold

Trophy description: Finish Echoing Ruins Survey.

Comments: The requirements are the same as the aforementioned Past the Ruins trophy. The only difference is in the region/biome that needs to be surveyed.

Frozen in Time

Trophy type: gold

Trophy description: Finish Fractured Wastes Survey.

Comments: The requirements are the same as the aforementioned Past the Ruins trophy. The only difference is in the region/biome that needs to be surveyed.

Submerged in Memories

Trophy type: gold

Trophy description: Finish Abyssal Scar Survey.

Comments: The requirements are the same as the aforementioned Past the Ruins trophy. The only difference is in the region/biome that needs to be surveyed.

A Shadow in the Fog

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Defeat Phrike.

Comments: This is one of the trophies earned for defeating the main bosses of the game - we described these fights in detail in the Bosses chapter. Phrike is a boss encountered while exploring the Overgrown Ruins, which is the first region/biome of the game world.

Ascension

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Defeat Ixion.

Comments: This is one of the trophies earned for defeating the main bosses of the game - we described these fights in detail in the Bosses chapter. Ixion is a boss encountered while exploring the Crimson Wastes, which is the second region/biome of the game world.

Trial by Judgment

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Defeat Nemesis.

Comments: This is one of the trophies earned for defeating the main bosses of the game - we described these fights in detail in the Bosses chapter. Nemesis is a boss encountered while exploring the Derelict Citadel, which is the third region/biome of the game world.

Silence the Song

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Defeat Hyperion.

Comments: This is one of the trophies earned for defeating the main bosses of the game - we described these fights in detail in the Bosses chapter. Hyperion is a boss encountered while exploring the Echoing Ruins, which is the fourth region/biome of the game world.

Inner Darkness

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Defeat Ophion.

Comments: This is one of the trophies earned for defeating the main bosses of the game - we described these fights in detail in the Bosses chapter. Ophion is a boss encountered while exploring the Abyssal Scar, which is the sixth region/biome of the game world.

Failed Escape

Trophy type: silver

Trophy description: Complete Act 1.

Comments: This is one of the trophies earned for progressing the main storyline of the game. We're guaranteed to get it.

Last Drive

Trophy type: silver

Trophy description: Complete Act 2.

Comments: This is one of the trophies earned for progressing the main storyline of the game. We're guaranteed to get it.

White Shadow

Trophy type: gold

Trophy description: Complete Act 3.

Comments: This is one of the trophies earned for progressing the main storyline of the game. We're guaranteed to get it.

Second Chance

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Returned by an artifact.

Comments: The premise of this trophy is to obtain an artifact that will allow the main character to resurrect immediately upon death, without having to restart the entire cycle. An example of this type of artifact is the Astronaut Figurine, which we receive after visiting the house for the first time. In subsequent cycles, the figurine can be found, for example, as one of the items available at the Fabricator store.

Another example of an artifact with the same properties is the Child's Watch, which can also be found early on as loot. You should come across it while surveying the second biome - the Crimson Wastes.

We should get the trophy right after Selene gets knocked down in the middle of a fight and comes back to life.

Cryptic Messages

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Scan a Xenoglyph.

Comments: This trophy is very easy to get. You'll find the first Xenoglyph while exploring the Overgrown Ruins, which is the first region/biome in the game. All you have to do is interact with it for Selene to scan it automatically.

Cryptic Translations

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Unlock all translation tiers of a Xenoglyph.

Comments: This is another easy trophy associated with Xenoglyphs. Once we examine the first Xenoglyph, we will begin to find Ciphers written on the walls - an example can be seen in the attached image.

We will get the trophy once we interact with a Xenoglyph to complete the translation after we have discovered enough ciphers (our progress is preserved even after restarting the cycle).

Surgical Precision

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Perform 5 successful Overloads in a row.

Comments: This is a very easy trophy, which we can get at the very beginning of the game, just after finding the first gun. Start firing the gun to overheat it and then choose to perform an overload (a feature similar to reloading a typical weapon). Our task is to press the R2 button when the overload bar is in the rectangle - an example of said rectangle is marked in the picture.

Continue "emptying the magazine" and overloading the weapon with perfect timing. Of course, we don't have to attack anyone - all we need to do is shoot and achieve perfect overloads.

Adapting to Circumstance

Trophy type: silver

Trophy description: Achieve Weapon Proficiency level 30.

Comments: The chance to earn this trophy will only present itself during the later stages of the game - we'll most likely get it only after reaching the sixth biome. Proficiency levels are similar to classic experience levels, as they are primarily earned for defeating opponents. We can also find objects (eg. calibrators) and unlock buffs to help us reach the next levels faster.

The proficiency level restarts upon the main character's death, but we don't always have to begin earning proficiency from level 0. Every time we reach one of the further biomes near the launch site, we will find a calibrator which will automatically promote us to one of the higher levels. This will make it easier for us to level up further in order to reach the required level.

By the time she reaches biome 6 and interacts with the first calibrator, Selene should advance to level 28. This means that she will only need two more levels to reach the required level thirty. We'll need to look for opportunities to fight opponents we encounter in the Abyssal Scar, although other calibrators we might find along the way should also come in handy.

30 is the maximum proficiency level and the trophy will be unlocked as soon as we reach it. We don't need to additionally acquire level 30 weapons.

In-Field Training

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Complete a daily challenge in Simulation Mode.

Comments: Simulation mode is initially unavailable. We need to complete at least the first biome beforehand, i.e. defeat the boss Phrike and use the key he drops to continue on to the Crimson Wastes. Next time our protagonist dies, we will be able to board the crashed ship Helios in the starting area - a new interactive terminal will appear on the right side. It can be used to initiate simulation mode.

Challenges change every 24 hours - we can complete the ones that are currently available or wait for another challenge to unlock. Challenges comprise of successively progressing through enemy-laden locations while adhering to the rules imposed by the game (location, modifiers, main weapon) and the goal is always to reach the Gateway. The trophy will be unlocked on the challenge summary screen.

Hardened Shell

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Achieve 200% Max Integrity.

Comments: As a reminder, integrity is the energy bar on the main character's suit. By default, its value is 100%. We need to seek out opportunities to permanently extend our health bar (within a given cycle). Ways to achieve this include finding particular Stat Augments or silphium deposits.

Some parasites may also increase our maximum integrity. However, we need to watch out not to dispose of the parasite by accident, as this will result in losing the integrity bar extension bonus that it provided.

We suggest the following strategy to earn this trophy:

1. Unlock access to the third biome (the Derelict Citadel).
2. Start a new cycle in biome 1.
3. While progressing through the game, search for all the available methods to permanently extend your integrity bar. In biomes no. 1, 2 and 3, we should find one station each that allows us to extend the energy bar by 25% - but we need to have enough obolite to pay for this process. This will allow us to extend the integrity bar by 75% in total.
4. The remaining 25% is obtained through parasites and artifacts that extend the energy bar's length.
5. If everything goes according to plan, then the trophy will be unlocked before reaching the end of the 3rd biome.

Risk Assessment

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Finish Calculated Risk.

Comments: This trophy is associated with finding Malignant objects. Interacting with them comes with the risk of armor Malfunction, which works similarly to a curse. Try to collect / open "contaminated" items despite the risk of taking damage.

Adrenaline Spike

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Achieve maximum Adrenaline Level.

Comments: This is a relatively easy trophy, because we "only" need to reach the fifth adrenaline level - information on the current state of adrenaline is always displayed at the bottom of the screen.

In order to increase adrenaline, we just have to kill multiple opponents in a row without taking a hit. Once we get hit by an enemy attack, our adrenaline state goes back to zero and we'll have to restart the whole process.

Irreversibly Contaminated

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Have 5 Parasites simultaneously.

Comments: The first time we learn about parasites is during the exploration of the Overgrown Ruins. Attaching each of them to the suit is optional - it will provide us with some bonuses as well as certain penalties.

In order to get the trophy, we must try to explore as many locations as possible in order to find parasites. Parasites are especially common in areas resembling the one pictured above - destroy all the purple "flowers" you find there and see what they drop.

Attach subsequent parasites even if the stat penalties are burdensome. Our goal is to have 5 active parasites at the same time, just like in the picture (in a single cycle - we will lose the collected parasites upon death).

Eternal Return

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Die for the first time.

Comments: We're guaranteed to earn this trophy, as death is one of the main features of the game.

Alternate Fates

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Retrieve 10 Scout Logs.

Comments: Scout logs are a type of collectible item. While exploring the game, keep an eye out for dead scouts - they appear in random places. Interacting with a scout's corpse will always result in playing a new log entry.

Welcome Home

Trophy type: bronze

Trophy description: Complete the first House sequence.

Comments: As Selene traverses the game world, she may come across her family home, which will stand out against the background of the alien world. The first such encounter will occur in a random part of the Overgrown Ruins.

Initially, the main character can't go inside, as she's missing the key. We need to investigate the surrounding locations in order to get ahold of the key to the house. Bring it to the house and investigate all the rooms in FPP mode. Once the house exploration scene ends, we will unlock the trophy.

Sins of the Mother

Trophy type: silver

Trophy description: Complete all House sequences.

Comments: This is the continuation of the aforementioned Welcome Home trophy. We have to complete the remaining house exploration sequences.

Visions of the Past

Trophy type: silver

Trophy description: Complete a Xeno-archive set.

Comments: Xeno-archives are one of the unique location types in the game world. Each time we reach an archive, we need to explore all of its areas and watch all the recordings. They will be permanently added to the database, so they won't disappear when the cycle is restarted.

To earn this trophy, we will need to complete a single collection, as opposed to discovering all of the archives in the game. Simply focus on progressing through the game and every time we arrive at a new archive, check if we are able to investigate 100% of it. You might need particular gadgets (such as the grappling hook) to reach some of the collectibles.