Solar Ash is a science fiction 3D action platformer developed by Heart Machine, published by Annapurna Interactive, and released on December 2nd, 2021. Following the release and success of Hyper Light Drifter in 2016, Heart Machine began development on its Spiritual Successor, this time taking a dip into 3D graphics and fluid gameplay. Solar Ash takes place in the same universe as Hyper Light Drifter, but there are no direct connections between the games. Their locations are also far away from one another.
The protagonist is Rei, a member of a group of space explorers known as Voidrunners, whose current mission is to activate the Starseed to save her planet from being sucked into a black hole known as the Ultravoid. In the process, she moves throughout the surreal landscape within the Ultravoid, fighting monsters and meeting the survivors of the Ultravoid's previously consumed worlds.
Solar Ash provides examples of:
- After the End: Quite a few worlds have been consumed by the Ultravoid, and Rei meets a few number of survivors from these planets. Unfortunately for Rei, this also applies to her homeworld. But there is a silver lining in the fact that a sizable group of her planet's people, although insubstantial compared to the amounts that were on her planet when it exploded ouside of the Ultravoid, are still out in spaceships exploring their vast galaxies and charting it. Also, Rei learns from Echo that the blue-green ashen clouds of the Ultravoid are the remains of her own planet.
- Apocalypse How: Class X, with planets getting sucked into and torn apart by the Ultravoid. Interestingly enough, it's possible to actually survive entry into the Ultravoid.
- Apocalyptic Log: Rei encounters several examples of this, from the Voidrunner logs to the writings and recordings of people from previously subsumed planets.
- Artifact of Doom: The Starseed, in a sense. Rather than destroying the Ultravoid, all it does is reverse time to just before the destruction of Rei's planet, forcing Rei to relive the death of her homeworld every time she reactivates it.
- Badass Cape: Rei sports a long, translucent purple cloak.
- Beast Man: The Veruki are humanoid raccoons, or perhaps tanuki given the name.
- Beautiful Void: The inside of the Ultravoid is a colorful landscape of islands floating in blue-green clouds or otherwise suspended mid-air by the Ultravoid's weird sense of gravity.
- Benevolent A.I.: C.Y.D., or Centralized Yottabyte Database, throughout the entire game is nothing but helpful and decently upbeat, even as bleak situations unfold.
- Bittersweet Ending: Rei ultimately destroys the Starseed after realizing she can never use it to save her world, and following an "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight, she's restored to her whole self. She wakes from the experience heartbroken and ashamed, but willing to move on.
- Bright Is Not Good: Don't be fooled by the bright, vibrant green of the water in the Mirrorsea. It's acidic enough to dissolve armor!
- Face–Monster Turn: Regardless of if she chooses to activate the Starseed, Rei transforms into a towering monster after succumbing to despair upon learning that the Starseed will only cause her to relive the destruction of her planet. If the Starseed is activated, this will be the conclusion of the loop before the events of the game repeat anew. If Rei chooses to destroy the Starseed, Echo is able to restore her to her old self.
- Fragile Speedster: Rei can only take up to five hits before it's game over.
- Future Spandex: The suit Rei wears and the ones she gathers over the course of the game certainly give this impression but seem to make up for it with Deflector Shields of some kind.
- Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: The Starseed and Voidtech in general are this. The origin of Voidtech is an artifact that was found in the depths of the Voidrunners home planet and enabled them to do things such as slow down time, generate energy weapons and travel near black holes in, rather flimsy looking, suits. On the other hand it appears that there is more to the Starseed than meets the eye, as it locked Rei into a perpetual cycle of spiritual and physical torment and seemingly corrupted the Voidrunners into the Remnants.
- Shout-Out: CYD looks remarkably like the protagonist of Journey (2012).
