Sea of Stars

 PC
Sea of Stars Image
Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 48 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 271 Ratings

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  • Summary: Sea of Stars is a turn-based RPG inspired by the classics. A prequel story set in The Messenger's universe, it tells the story of two Children of the Solstice who will combine the powers of the sun and moon to perform Eclipse Magic, the only force capable of fending off the monstrousSea of Stars is a turn-based RPG inspired by the classics. A prequel story set in The Messenger's universe, it tells the story of two Children of the Solstice who will combine the powers of the sun and moon to perform Eclipse Magic, the only force capable of fending off the monstrous creations of the evil alchemist known as The Fleshmancer.
    Promising the Sabotage touch in every system, Sea of Stars aims to modernize the classic RPG in terms of turn-based combat, storytelling, exploration and interactions with the environment, while still offering a hearty slice of nostalgia and good old, simple fun.

    Key ingredients :

    * Engaging turn-based combat. Combat gameplay includes active player input during attack animations (timed hits), multi-character combo attacks, boosting, and strategic defense options to hinder enemies while they are channeling powerful attacks or spells. For a more immersive experience, there are no random encounters or transitions to separate battlefields, and no grinding. Both navigation and combat happen in the same environment.
    * Unshackled traversal. Swim, climb, vault, jump off or hoist up ledges as you run through the world with a navigation system based on platformer expertise that breaks free from the classic bound-to-the-grid tile-based movement.
    * Prequel story set in The Messenger's universe. Dozens of original characters and story arcs will take you on a captivating journey. Sometimes epic, sometimes silly, and other times emotional, Sea of Stars does its RPG duty of exploring classic themes of adventure and friendship, while also being chock-full of the unexpected twists and events you've come to expect from a Sabotage production.
    * Full-on dynamic lighting our custom-made render pipeline allows the creation of a breathtaking world coming to life by pushing the limits of 2D pixel-art games.
    * The Sabotage treatment on the turn-based RPG genre. Every system has been deeply analyzed to create an experience that pays respect to retro classics, while reworking some elements in order to offer a modernized experience free of irritants and overly lengthy sequences.    … Expand

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Sea of Stars - Announcement Trailer

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 47 out of 48
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 48
  3. Negative: 0 out of 48
  1. GameGrin
    Aug 28, 2023
    100
    Sea of Stars is an amazing-looking and sounding title that has captured all you love from classic turn-based RPGs and improved upon it. I can’t recommend this game enough; this is how you modernise and pay tribute to a classic genre.
  2. COGconnected
    Aug 29, 2023
    95
    Balance is important, so I searched high and low for something to cite as could-be-better. I found nothing. Lovingly crafted by Quebec City’s Sabotage Studio, Sea of Stars is quite a departure for the team responsible for The Messenger. It’s a risk that’s resulted in one of the most beautiful, heartfelt, and well balanced RPGs I’ve ever played.
  3. GamesRadar+
    Aug 28, 2023
    90
    It's a joy and a relief to realise that Sabotage hasn't merely mimicked classic '90s JRPG, but committed to understanding what makes them tick. Its nostalgia is neither gratuitous nor cynical, instead working disparate references together with original ideas into a coherent whole. While it's a little disappointing to discover that there's isn't great depth to the turn-based battles and other systems, the immense quality and detail in the pixel art, soundtrack, location design, characters and plot ensure that Sea of Stars remains a stunning achievement to the end.
  4. GameSpace
    Nov 2, 2023
    90
    Sea of Stars will keep players on their toes for dozens of hours with a huge variety of locations, enemies, bosses, side quests, riddles and puzzles. I have always kept both Chrono games very close to my heart, and now Sea of Stars took place next to them.
  5. Jeuxvideo.com
    Sep 4, 2023
    85
    Sea of Stars has everything from an excellent tribute to the biggest names in Japanese role-playing games of the 90s. A well-paced story, a cast of characters to which we quickly become attached for their assumed personalities. It manages to do the same amazing job as its role models, thanks to its jaw-dropping art direction and adventure-perfect soundtrack. If the fights are engaging and push the player to think about each confrontation, they tend to lengthen the good dynamics of the title. It is especially by the lack of evolution of gameplay for the characters that the players will be able to find a certain weariness. If Sea of Stars is therefore not as revolutionary as its spiritual masters in their time, it should still have a place of choice on a shelf of your toy library in 2023. It may well establish itself as the independent game of the year if Silksong remains discreet or even claim prices from much fiercer competition. More than a great performance for a UFO from the 90s.
  6. INVEN
    Sep 8, 2023
    80
    The game reinterprets classic JRPGs in a modern way. Instead of trying something entirely new, it brings together some of the great systems of classic games that were previously well-received. While combining different systems into one game is undoubtedly impressive, it falls short of delivering something more innovative and enjoyable, which is a bit disappointing.
  7. GameMAG
    Dec 6, 2023
    60
    Sea of Stars is an old-school JRPG, cut on modern molds, which because of its dragging and template solutions turns from a fun adventure into a routine work.

See all 52 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 50 out of 72
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 72
  3. Negative: 11 out of 72
  1. ColdHand
    Sep 10, 2023
    10
    This game blew my mind. Everything in it is perfect : the gorgeous look, the astonishing score, the clever combat mechanics, the movingThis game blew my mind. Everything in it is perfect : the gorgeous look, the astonishing score, the clever combat mechanics, the moving story... It's definitely my 2023 GOTY and does a banging entry on my top 10 best games of all time. Ignore the (very few) bad comments : it's a masterpiece if you're even curious about turn-based RPG.… Expand
  2. gabrieldavid3
    Aug 30, 2023
    10
    These are the games we have to support and the devs we have to protect. Thanks sabotage studio guys for this game. So far this is my indie GOTY.
  4. Ipurua
    Aug 30, 2023
    10
    Necesitaba este juego para quitarme el mal sabor de boca de Diablo 4, gracias Sabotage Studio por crear algo de calidad y no algo mediocreNecesitaba este juego para quitarme el mal sabor de boca de Diablo 4, gracias Sabotage Studio por crear algo de calidad y no algo mediocre como el 99% de juegos de hoy en día.… Expand
  5. ChiIIaoi
    Sep 4, 2023
    9
    Review só pra lembrar a nota que eu dei pro jogo:
    Jogo mt bom, agora só escrever pra passar dos 75 caracteres.
  6. LilacZ
    Sep 7, 2023
    8
    As of writing this review I have 100%'d the game.

    Well made, enjoyable game with an overwhelming amount of effort put in. The game is slow    As of writing this review I have 100%'d the game.

    Well made, enjoyable game with an overwhelming amount of effort put in. The game is slow paced and is fairly consistent from start to end and this can be both a good and bad thing

    Liked:
    + Stunning graphics and animations, this was the strongest part of the game
    + An impressive amount of love put in, everything feels deliberate and even side content felt fleshed out, this can be applied to every point even the things i disliked
    + Late game side content was rewarding and interesting
    + Ingredients and cooking great system, and I prefer this to usual RPG consumables

    Mixed:
    = Almost every aspect of the game stays fairly consistent and does not evolve/change too much. Anything you like or dislike, you will feel the same way for the whole game, some things like combat became a bit stale over time as a result
    = Interactive combat means combat animations has to be slower, combined with generally slow story pacing means the game can feel very slow for some

    Disliked:
    - OST and sound design felt forgettable, credits to there being multiple versions of songs and ingame jukebox though
    - Minigames were weak. "Wheels" favored 1 strat throughout and fishing was extremely frustrating and dull until upgrades (which required fishing)
    - Felt lack of certain battle mechanics like buff/debuffs, dots etc

    Bugs:
    - Encountered a bug near water dungeon that sequence broke couple locations forward, got me stuck and I lost about 1.5 hours of progress
    - Sometimes in combat characters go off screen and makes it impossible to time actions since you cannot see them    … Expand
  7. adrianompo
    Sep 10, 2023
    7
    Definitely overhyped.

    The gameplay and exploration are decent, but the progression is sloppy, rendering even the good mechanics boring and    Definitely overhyped.

    The gameplay and exploration are decent, but the progression is sloppy, rendering even the good mechanics boring and repetitive over time.

    The soundtrack is good, but nothing really memorable. Same goes for the graphics and technical aspects. It's a pleasant but not amazing experience on this regard.

    The story, however... it is a pile of trash. Poorly written, shallow protagonists/villains and close to non-existant character development. A few funny dialogues here and there, but those were unfortunately rare exceptions rather than the rule.

    Though I support games like these being released (especially) by small teams. it didn't justify the hype received. The first hours were a blast, but it felt like doing chores not long after that.

    Comparing Sea of Stars with Chrono Trigger is completely exaggerated. Whoever says that is being fooled by their own nostalgia.    … Expand
  8. Odradek
    Sep 4, 2023
    0
    After 15 hours played something "funny" happened. I got killed by some random birds and chose the option "continue" to keep playing. So theAfter 15 hours played something "funny" happened. I got killed by some random birds and chose the option "continue" to keep playing. So the game loaded a file -who knows how -of a past saved game where I had been playing for just 4 hours-ish... Needless to say this means goodbye for me playing this game. Might check the ending on youtube. Thanks for making me waste that time...
    I wanted to end it in order to have a complete opinion. But here goes nothing.
    (Clears throat)
    Nostalgia is a dangerous thing. Specially because it is all about what you understood of an entertainment product when your brain was not fully developed. And there comes the problem of this game. You just need a few hours to noticed how half-baked it is. Sea of Stars shows a colorful and attractive visual style... and that's it. It's OST is extremely overrated,it's combat system is too simple and repetitive and it's dialogues are far from funny or interesting. There's no dramatic weight whatsoever during the story, some characters make decisions completely out of the blue and only to make the story move on artificially. Let alone it has the most obnoxious, irritating, shallow character ever written in all fiction story. I'm serious, the main engine that kept me playing the game was the hope to see this character die alone in pain. Every like spoken by this character was worse than the previous. Just terrible.
    After wasting all these hours my only hope is that somebody reads this and decides not to play this game. Or at least waste their money on it. Thank the gods I played it on Game Pass.
    If you are thinking about checking it out, don't. Go play (or re-play) Chrono Trigger. Revive your own nostalgia. Don't let others try to convince you of their vision of what was cool, or funny, or moving, or epic, or just fun... this game is not.    … Expand

See all 72 User Reviews

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Awards & Rankings

19
#19 Best PC Game of 2023
20
#20 Most Discussed PC Game of 2023

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