DarkStar One

 PC
User Score
7.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 63 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 33 out of 63
  2. Mixed: 20 out of 63
  3. Negative: 10 out of 63
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Stain
    Jun 27, 2011
    9
    It's a space shooter AND an RPG. Awesome! It has a completely unique take on controls for a space sim(hard to descxibe). While not as tight as Descent or Freespace controls it definitely works. Your character is your ship and can be upgraded and geared out big-time.(see me screenshots) The shooting is super-fun(you can upgrade you ship with turrets as well as front weapons) and the RPGIt's a space shooter AND an RPG. Awesome! It has a completely unique take on controls for a space sim(hard to descxibe). While not as tight as Descent or Freespace controls it definitely works. Your character is your ship and can be upgraded and geared out big-time.(see me screenshots) The shooting is super-fun(you can upgrade you ship with turrets as well as front weapons) and the RPG elelments are spot on. It'll have you running all over the galaxy completing side-quests in order to upgrade enough to beat the next story mission. This game still looks great and is not very hardware-taxing which is a great combination. The story and cutscenes are complete crap but the fact that all the alien races are visualy interesting and hilariously over-acted makes up for it.… Expand
  2. ElliotN.
    Nov 8, 2006
    7
    This game has very good graphics but the story line is very loose like Freelancer and also the pirates are extremely easy to beat once you get to a certain point in the game. Also the battleships are too easy to beat. Also it's very easy to get money and upgrade and finding artifacts making your ship "indestructable". Although this is the best space game I've played yet it just This game has very good graphics but the story line is very loose like Freelancer and also the pirates are extremely easy to beat once you get to a certain point in the game. Also the battleships are too easy to beat. Also it's very easy to get money and upgrade and finding artifacts making your ship "indestructable". Although this is the best space game I've played yet it just isn't that thrilling.… Expand
  3. Dejakritz
    Jun 9, 2013
    3
    I did not experience any bugs like other viewers, but found this game to be a bore rather quickly. If you have played Freelancer, this game is that, except with 90% of it cut out. You only ever fly one ship and the upgrades you get dont make the player feel all that special, adding a fin here and there, maybe removing a fin sometimes, nothing compared to the thrill of building up savingsI did not experience any bugs like other viewers, but found this game to be a bore rather quickly. If you have played Freelancer, this game is that, except with 90% of it cut out. You only ever fly one ship and the upgrades you get dont make the player feel all that special, adding a fin here and there, maybe removing a fin sometimes, nothing compared to the thrill of building up savings and buying newer bigger ships or deciding to fly a freighter or a fighter or any of the other awesome things just about any respectable game of this genre boasts. Upgrades will eventually make you wince, because now you have to grind for money to pay for the same equipment you start with, just with higher numbers attached, so after flying through five to ten of the same winding tunnel on the same asteroid shape over and over and over in every star cluster, you will then fly to the same exact station a couple hundred times to do the same exact missions a couple hundred times as well. The systems are all the same, except some have a magenta or red hue instead of a blue hue, and some have names that sound like Blah Blah instead of Bling Zang. The voice acting is so bad that it surpasses painful, about halfway through the game I couldn't take it anymore, and muted the sound anytime anyone spoke in a situation where I could not skip it (in many cases you will fail a mission if you warp before someone has finished speaking, and most other cases you can't do anything and just have to listen). The voice acting wasn't helped by the various races that speak as slowly as they possibly can, making you turn your face from the screen in agony while half-hoping you will collide with an asteroid (which will fail to kill you as colission damage is almost nonexistent in this game) If you want to play a cool game that is a lot like this but better in every fathomable way, play Freelancer. The indoor/planetary missions in Darkstar One were something of a refreshement from the rest of the banal, repetetive gameplay, but even those don't compare to much older and cooler games like Descent. I found everything about Darkstar One to be minimal in the extreme.… Expand
  4. Kurtz
    Dec 22, 2011
    6
    Not a fantastic game by any means. Outclassed by others in the genre. Gameplay wise it is pretty repetitive. Although there are lots of things to do such as smuggling they lack depth and incentive to actually do them because 'shooting bad guys' usually happens regardless. There is some re-playability here, I myself finished the game twice to see what a different ship build would be like.Not a fantastic game by any means. Outclassed by others in the genre. Gameplay wise it is pretty repetitive. Although there are lots of things to do such as smuggling they lack depth and incentive to actually do them because 'shooting bad guys' usually happens regardless. There is some re-playability here, I myself finished the game twice to see what a different ship build would be like. The game is a little cheesy though especially in the dialogue. If you are going to buy this I would hope you get it from a bargain bin.… Expand
  5. Cargan
    Mar 21, 2013
    9
    I first played this game when was first released and enjoyed it immensely ive played it threw close to 20 times over years it has some simplistic aspects that could of been fleshed out more but i suppose they had to work with what they could and stay in budget. one thing i found is you cant just collect parts and level up to get unfair advantage as there two parts for sure if lvl up shipI first played this game when was first released and enjoyed it immensely ive played it threw close to 20 times over years it has some simplistic aspects that could of been fleshed out more but i suppose they had to work with what they could and stay in budget. one thing i found is you cant just collect parts and level up to get unfair advantage as there two parts for sure if lvl up ship too fast makes em impossible… Expand
  6. AlexD.
    Aug 17, 2006
    10
    It's the bomb. Seriously. I haven't had this much fun since Colony Wars: Red Sun on the Playstation. And X-wing before that. You just don't get seem to get decent space shooters like this any more. If you liked those, you'll love this. Equipping your ship with an absolute arsenal of weapons and then kicking some pirate butts in glorious 3D (play it on a projection It's the bomb. Seriously. I haven't had this much fun since Colony Wars: Red Sun on the Playstation. And X-wing before that. You just don't get seem to get decent space shooters like this any more. If you liked those, you'll love this. Equipping your ship with an absolute arsenal of weapons and then kicking some pirate butts in glorious 3D (play it on a projection screen) -- what's not to like?… Expand
  7. JonesR
    Dec 1, 2011
    9
    Following the likes of Wing Commander and the X-wing series, DarkStar One is certainly not an original concept, but it is still an incredible space opera--a well delivered story, great voice acting, an open galaxy, intuitive user interface, multiple side missions and other fun stuff will keep you entertained for many hours. Trade, smuggle goods, steal cargo, kill pirates, or just go postalFollowing the likes of Wing Commander and the X-wing series, DarkStar One is certainly not an original concept, but it is still an incredible space opera--a well delivered story, great voice acting, an open galaxy, intuitive user interface, multiple side missions and other fun stuff will keep you entertained for many hours. Trade, smuggle goods, steal cargo, kill pirates, or just go postal and kill anyone you meet. The limited side missions get repeatedly boring after a while, especially given the vast number of solar systems, but there are keyboard shortcuts for everything allowing you to skip most mundane tasks. The space combat is really enjoyable and gets progressively more difficult as the story progresses. Add ship upgrades and you ultimately become one bad hombre. I got roughly 40 hours of enjoyment--your mileage may vary. This is not a space simulation--it is highly action based. Space shooter fans will not be disappointed.… Expand
  8. I_Am_Turok
    Oct 4, 2012
    6
    2012 and the game plays quite nicely. I have Windows 7, and so far no bugs like the many forums have reported. The missions are repetitive, the storyline, well hardly engrossing, but get it for cheap, play it for 30 minutes at a time, and it is quite nice. It's Xwing/Elite style fighting. Personally I prefer the better cleaner environment of X3, this is too colourful for my liking, but2012 and the game plays quite nicely. I have Windows 7, and so far no bugs like the many forums have reported. The missions are repetitive, the storyline, well hardly engrossing, but get it for cheap, play it for 30 minutes at a time, and it is quite nice. It's Xwing/Elite style fighting. Personally I prefer the better cleaner environment of X3, this is too colourful for my liking, but it's easy on the eye. And easy to play, mostly. Oddly you often need to take your hand off the joystick, press space plus action the mouse to do something, then return to the joystick. Bizarre UI, who thought that would be good. (For a 2006, I'm quite tolerant of it, but I see XBox had a 2010 version. I hope it is vastly improved and deeper for Xbox, if this game were to be released in 2010 I'd be far more harsh on it).… Expand
  9. ShodanSpectre
    Jul 10, 2014
    5
    Below is a critical review from a person who likes really hardcore sims - where run out of ammo, fuel, oxygen and battery power.

    The pros: decent eye candy graphics. Unlike many space sims - the cutscenes include decently rendered characters and dialogues. The cons: From the very first minutes this game hits you with the perspective that you will be farming money to buy "upgrades" to    Below is a critical review from a person who likes really hardcore sims - where run out of ammo, fuel, oxygen and battery power.

    The pros: decent eye candy graphics. Unlike many space sims - the cutscenes include decently rendered characters and dialogues.

    The cons: From the very first minutes this game hits you with the perspective that you will be farming money to buy "upgrades" to your ship. The upgrade system is pretty straightforward and dull - there are about 10 different types of systems on your ship or so, each system can be unpgraded. The highest level is 10. And of course you start with ALL systems at lvl 1. Even though the plot/backstory suggests that you get a _really_cool_ ship from your father as a graduation present - you in fact get an equivalent of classic newbie set of gear that is nothing but a substitute for upgrading to something decent. On the very first station where you start at there are lvl 2 components in the market that make you feel just how awesome your dad's present is, and give you a reason to go farm some money.

    The farming, or rather, the plot missions - give a "spy-kids" feeling: if you go to salvage some abandoned container well of course there will be a bunch of pirates incoming at the exact moment you come, of course they will die easily but of course they will never retreat.

    The fighting itself is a rather arcadish close-range pew-pew dogfight, and the space locations seem rather small and crowded. Unlike, i.e. StarShatter, or EVE, where anything less than 10 kilometers is considered close range, and you gotta know your weapons' specs to use them effectively!

    Overall - an arcadish pew-pew space shooter with decent graphics and a simple storyline. If you can close your eyes on it being very childish - you can enjoy the game. If you're looking for a space SIMULATOR - look elsewhere.    … Expand
  10. keefbaker
    Oct 27, 2013
    9
    Ignore the poor FMV and bad characterization, instead concentrate on the fantastic elite style gameplay and shoot the heck out of stuff. Like space games but find the X universe a little too daunting? Get this!
  11. Comi
    Jan 30, 2007
    4
    Game itself is nice, but its completely full of bugs. If you can stand the bugs, the game is fine, but for me, the bugs kill the game. Thumbs down to Ascaron Entertainment for releasing such a shamefully buggy game.
  12. JoeK.
    Mar 25, 2008
    0
    GREAT GAME!
  13. DarrenMc
    Dec 12, 2013
    8
    This is the closest in the modern age you will get to Freelancer.Music is great,Graphics are great and combat is fun and the trading is more streamlined and intuitive unloike borefests like the X series.
    I found myself addictive to this game.
    The controls aren't quite as precise as Freelancers but the whole game has a similar feel.
    Great view in this game also.
  14. Kilio
    Dec 14, 2021
    10
    Lovely graphics, realistic movement, good story, stellar voice acting, terrible combat and mentally impaired AI.
  15. WayneW.
    Nov 19, 2006
    7
    So tell me what space games have come out that can offer a ship that can be upgraded so many ways,and you can see evolving and morphing throughout the game? The critics o this one seem to omit that fact,and the fact that it lends itself very nicely to the story. My single complaint is the repetetiveness of the missions taken on in the trade stations,looks to be about 6 or so of the same So tell me what space games have come out that can offer a ship that can be upgraded so many ways,and you can see evolving and morphing throughout the game? The critics o this one seem to omit that fact,and the fact that it lends itself very nicely to the story. My single complaint is the repetetiveness of the missions taken on in the trade stations,looks to be about 6 or so of the same type and exact briefing on EVERY single station! That being said, this is still one of the most pleasant surprises I have had in a space game since KoToR. Bug eyed terrans aside (grin)This game is fun, does tend to get boring after about 4 hours or so, but by that time It's time for a soda break any way.… Expand
  16. RobE.
    Oct 5, 2006
    7
    A reasonable game throughout, but ultimately unremarkable. Smooth space fighting along the lines of wing commander. Decent story, typically corny euro dialogue. Don't expect the depth of X here. To upgrade your ship, you have to collect the magic boogers or whatever. They're marked on the map. go there, fly in the asteroid, collect them, move on. This process was boring enough A reasonable game throughout, but ultimately unremarkable. Smooth space fighting along the lines of wing commander. Decent story, typically corny euro dialogue. Don't expect the depth of X here. To upgrade your ship, you have to collect the magic boogers or whatever. They're marked on the map. go there, fly in the asteroid, collect them, move on. This process was boring enough that the devs included the option to bypass it by flying to the space station instead. All in all a great space engine that is hindered by uninspired gameplay.… Expand
  17. GolovA
    May 21, 2012
    7
    Yet again i wanted to give this game a 6.5. But rounded - 7 it is :)
    In any case - this is a space flight sim with a rather nice implementation of the ship's upgrade which is based on player experience. However, mission do tend to become similar very fast. Controls are a little weird but i got used to them. However - it's weird that while you can strafe left and right you cannot    Yet again i wanted to give this game a 6.5. But rounded - 7 it is :)
    In any case - this is a space flight sim with a rather nice implementation of the ship's upgrade which is based on player experience. However, mission do tend to become similar very fast. Controls are a little weird but i got used to them. However - it's weird that while you can strafe left and right you cannot strafe upward or down (descend and ascend). Weird.
    Xpansion is a much more deeply involving experience, even if you do not choose to pursue the main plot. Dark Star is basically Expansion Lite (very lite!) :)    … Expand
  18. tech-noir
    Sep 17, 2011
    7
    Customizing your ship with weapons and special abilities is the best part about this game. While space battles are well done, fun, and with good physics, it does get boring somewhat quickly. The main missions and side quests can be interesting as it progresses through the storyline, but it does not give you a feeling of great accomplishment as you go through them. The trading aspect of theCustomizing your ship with weapons and special abilities is the best part about this game. While space battles are well done, fun, and with good physics, it does get boring somewhat quickly. The main missions and side quests can be interesting as it progresses through the storyline, but it does not give you a feeling of great accomplishment as you go through them. The trading aspect of the game can and might as well be ignored completely. It provides you with minimal profits in comparison to the other means to acquire credits. Speaking of credits, I completed the game with 8.5 million credits in my possession. After a while, the amount of credits you accumulate will become obsolete, as you will have more than enough to get whatever you want. The game suffers from extreme repetitiveness, which also creates tedium and dullness when you do the same two or three activities over, and over, and over, and over. Simply put, the game is about 20 hours too long. The developers should have been more concise and implemented more diverse aspects in more ways than just this. The end game is surprisingly bland and unexciting. Also, throughout the game, you are given a false sense of freewill. Your progress is almost completely linear. It took me about 31 hours to complete.… Expand
  19. Babaganoush
    Nov 20, 2012
    5
    Extremely bland. You'll be wondering if there's any other missions than shoot these fighters or the occasional cruiser. You are given an assortment of weapons per class upgrade yet it usually the current race sector's weapons that are the best choice. The economy system is decent, but it's nothing complicated. Voice acting is very mediocre. Eona's (your forced sidekick) probably the worstExtremely bland. You'll be wondering if there's any other missions than shoot these fighters or the occasional cruiser. You are given an assortment of weapons per class upgrade yet it usually the current race sector's weapons that are the best choice. The economy system is decent, but it's nothing complicated. Voice acting is very mediocre. Eona's (your forced sidekick) probably the worst part of the game though. She's like a Navi from Ocarina of Time and there's no option to shut her up with her bland remarks of stating the obvious. Yes. I know there's one on my tail, Eona, the display state that. Yes I know, my shields are down... why can't I just space you...… Expand
  20. TsukasaHiiragi
    Aug 18, 2014
    0
    Darkstar One could have been a contender in the Space Sim genre but crippling bugs, some of which are complete showstoppers ruin the game. One of the worst bugs involves an infinite loading loop when travelling to different systems, this bug so far has never been fixed and no-work-arounds other than a complete full reinstall of your operating system if your one of the unlucky people toDarkstar One could have been a contender in the Space Sim genre but crippling bugs, some of which are complete showstoppers ruin the game. One of the worst bugs involves an infinite loading loop when travelling to different systems, this bug so far has never been fixed and no-work-arounds other than a complete full reinstall of your operating system if your one of the unlucky people to get this bug. This bug is most likely caused by some remnant of the Starforce DRM because even reinstalling the game does not fix this particular problem.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

96
#96 Best PC Game of 2006
56
#56 Most Discussed PC Game of 2006
30
#30 Most Shared PC Game of 2006

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
71

Mixed or average reviews - based on 33 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 33
  2. Mixed: 20 out of 33
  3. Negative: 0 out of 33
  1. GameWatcher
    70
    Darkstar One is as cold and empty as space itself once the novelty of trading or being a "system rebel" wears off.
    Read full review
  2. PALGN
    70
    Constricted. It isn’t so much that Darkstar One is a bad game, it’s just that the developers failed to optimise on good ideas - it seems as though they took the easy way out rather than expand on them.
    Read full review
  3. Eurogamer
    80
    The key element of the game, of course, is combat and here it excels...Compared to many of its peers, Darkstar One may seem slight - but what it does, it does expertly.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »