A new trailer for this psychedelic metroidvania confirms that cosmic womb gardening is very good videogame subject matter

A new trailer for psychedelic action-platformer Ultros has me freshly excited to see what's going on in its bizarre world of plants and space demons when it releases on February 13, 2024. The game attracted our attention last year not just because of its colorful visuals, but because of its interesting looking dash, slash, and dodge combat.

Ultros is made by duo Hadoque—half of which is El Huervo, aka Niklas Åkerblad, an artist you may recognize from those trippy psychedelic melting-people portraits that so defined Hotline Miami.

For my part I am always immediately interested when you talk about a cosmic uterus containing a cyclical world-ending demon. However, when you then top that off with a trailer showing me the things which dwell in the uterus, which are terrible monsters, and also the wonders it holds which involve gardening space plants you have my attention.

"The new Himsa Ahimsa Excalation Trailer highlights the duality of ULTROS’ varied gameplay: challenging, fast-paced combat against monstrous alien creatures and enigmatic foes, alongside peaceful plant life cultivation and harmonious co-existence within the giant, cosmic uterus that is The Sarcophagus. Alongside glimpses at new creatures, players can also see new Extractor mechanics that will help birth new life into the alien world around them and unlock more options to help them play," said the publisher in a press release.

Ultros will release next month, on Feburary 13, 2024. It'll be like a little taste of my life for other people, because supposedly plants will be your only friends. How nice. Enjoy the cosmic womb in which I, too, am enwrapped.

You can find Ultros on its website, on Epic, and on Steam.

Jon Bolding is a games writer and critic with an extensive background in strategy games. When he's not on his PC, he can be found playing every tabletop game under the sun.