Sea of Stars

 PC
User Score
7.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 271 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 189 out of 271
  2. Mixed: 30 out of 271
  3. Negative: 52 out of 271

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  1. Shadowslayer64
    Sep 11, 2023
    7
    TL;DR version: Not as good as Chrono Trigger. Play that instead.

    Game is a mish-mash of systems from different JRPGs, but unlike those JRPGs, these systems serve no purpose in this game other than to just "be there." Just to say, "remember that JRPG you loved? We have that mechanic in this game yeahhhh." Music is not memorable like Chrono Trigger. Yasunori Mitsuda is in the credits, but    TL;DR version: Not as good as Chrono Trigger. Play that instead.

    Game is a mish-mash of systems from different JRPGs, but unlike those JRPGs, these systems serve no purpose in this game other than to just "be there." Just to say, "remember that JRPG you loved? We have that mechanic in this game yeahhhh." Music is not memorable like Chrono Trigger. Yasunori Mitsuda is in the credits, but he must have composed only like 1 track for the marketing. Writing and story is god awful. Little to no attention to detail on the lore and worldbuilding either.

    The best thing I can say about this is the visual style, and that's what attracted me to it, but the more I play, the more disappointed I get. Puzzles are also average at best. Hit a lever, step on a switch, put the key in a hole; basic stuff. Nothing that will stimulate your IQ. Game is also woke, which is surprising for a JRPG, but it's a western developer we're talking about (Sabotage Studio is from Quebec Canada), so that's not completely off the table either. When you do a JRPG right, you can't be woke. Japan is a homogenous culture.

    Also, it's not challenging in combat either. Pretty brain-dead. If a character dies, will resurrect for free with 50% HP. So even if you're asleep at the helm, you would likely still win.    … Expand
  2. Xanos12
    Sep 11, 2023
    5
    The beginning of the game starts promising. But after around 10 hours the story and dialogue get worse and worse. The battlesystem gets boring and annoying, you are using the same attack pattern as in the beginning of the game. The difficulty is WAY too easy. XP Scaling and leveling up feels not rewarding.
    I quit the game after 20h.
  3. 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 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,    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
  4. Fate49
    Sep 10, 2023
    6
    After Chained Echoes who really understood what makes a good old school RPG, Sea of Stars is a disapointment.
    Visuals are incredible and the soundrack is nice, but that's pretty much it
    Pacing is really weird, chara development is nearly non existent and battles are legit awful and repetitive. I really wanted to like this game but whenall you're thinking is "Chrono Trigger was doing    After Chained Echoes who really understood what makes a good old school RPG, Sea of Stars is a disapointment.
    Visuals are incredible and the soundrack is nice, but that's pretty much it
    Pacing is really weird, chara development is nearly non existent and battles are legit awful and repetitive.
    I really wanted to like this game but whenall you're thinking is "Chrono Trigger was doing this better 30 years ago", then it means Sea of Stars failed to do what it was meant to.    … Expand
  5. projectjacky
    Sep 7, 2023
    5
    The writing is at a high school fiction level, with middle school grammatical mistakes. Chained Echoes had a writer but not an editor. Sea of Stars has neither a competent writer nor an editor at all. The art is gorgeous and the gameplay is nice (for the first couple hours) but repetitive. It's the same gameplay loop in hours 1-2 as it is in hours 25-26 of your playthrough. TimedThe writing is at a high school fiction level, with middle school grammatical mistakes. Chained Echoes had a writer but not an editor. Sea of Stars has neither a competent writer nor an editor at all. The art is gorgeous and the gameplay is nice (for the first couple hours) but repetitive. It's the same gameplay loop in hours 1-2 as it is in hours 25-26 of your playthrough. Timed attacks/blocks are ambiguous and unsatisfying. Very overrated and it shows critics may have only tested the game for a few hours. As you can see user score continues to go down.… Expand
  6. TheW4tchT0wer
    Sep 6, 2023
    5
    I'm glad to see, at the time of writing, that others feel there is something off about this game. I really enjoyed this studio's other game, The Messenger, so when I heard they were making a JRPG like Chrono Trigger, I was rather stoked. When the demo dropped over this past summer, I downloaded it immediately - and was left a bit disappointed. I knew they would have to cut certain featuresI'm glad to see, at the time of writing, that others feel there is something off about this game. I really enjoyed this studio's other game, The Messenger, so when I heard they were making a JRPG like Chrono Trigger, I was rather stoked. When the demo dropped over this past summer, I downloaded it immediately - and was left a bit disappointed. I knew they would have to cut certain features out for that, so I still held out some hope that the full product would lay my doubts to rest. Except they didn't.

    The graphics and music are all very well done and hearken back to the golden days of SNES JRPGs. However, the plot, pacing, and characters are all lacking. I feel like perhaps one of the reasons the game felt off was that there is a lot of telling, but not so much showing. Old JRPGs, you'd have the goofy character knocking things around or something like that. While there are some from other NPCs, the early cast of the game (before ultimately refunding) had their own personalities, but felt flat. The promise of it eventually getting better wasn't enough to keep me hooked. Hopefully this studio takes a crack at another retro style of game, as they do have a lot of talent! I think they just need to learn from this experience if they try for another JRPG; or hire a better writer and scenario planner.    … Expand
  7. seojoon98
    Sep 5, 2023
    6
    The fact that it is a Western-made JRPG and the existence of a cut scene is worthy of high praise, but the character's development is monotonous and the story is unattractive.
  8. Jonnythedark
    Sep 4, 2023
    6
    The funny thing about nostalgia is that it clouds our judgement and creates bias. Sea of stars very much does play the nostalgia gimmick by pulling things you loved from Chrono trigger, wild arms and golden sun but one thing it doesn't do is create originality. The one game I wish it pulled from is its modern peer chained echoes, with a depth to its story you don't see in a lot of NRPGsThe funny thing about nostalgia is that it clouds our judgement and creates bias. Sea of stars very much does play the nostalgia gimmick by pulling things you loved from Chrono trigger, wild arms and golden sun but one thing it doesn't do is create originality. The one game I wish it pulled from is its modern peer chained echoes, with a depth to its story you don't see in a lot of NRPGs (nostalgia RPGs) chained echoes took everything the classics did and amplified it. Sea of stars is a good game... Don't get me wrong but it also takes a solid 15 to 20 hours to have it's "lavos" moment. That moment when you see the depth of the bigger picture. 15/20 hours in to a 25/30 hour game for the "holy sh**" moment seems like too long.

    I have sea of stars 6 out of 10 because despite being born of the classics it's done nothing new for itself other then play the part of homage.    … Expand
  9. RowanBlack
    Sep 3, 2023
    5
    When I play Pixel retro games I compare them against my experience playing other graphical similar games from the ps1 aera. This one would be a mid ranking game of that time. While the sea of stars is solid I didn't find anything special enough about it when compared against games made 20 years ago. No voice acting, standard story beats, okay characters. Sea of stars was missing modernWhen I play Pixel retro games I compare them against my experience playing other graphical similar games from the ps1 aera. This one would be a mid ranking game of that time. While the sea of stars is solid I didn't find anything special enough about it when compared against games made 20 years ago. No voice acting, standard story beats, okay characters. Sea of stars was missing modern advancements that could have made it more than a mid tier game that could have been made over 2 decades ago. When compared against final fantasy 7 8 or 9, suikoden, xenogears, parasite eve; sea of stars doesn't shine as bright.… Expand
  10. MaeTico
    Aug 30, 2023
    7
    It's a nice, funny game, with excellent art, and an excellent soundtrack, but there's a lot of missed potential on the mechanics/combat system, and it definitely gets repetitive and you kind of lose interest halfway through just asking yourself, is it worth it?
  11. Massraider
    Aug 30, 2023
    5
    A childish, naive plot. Standard mechanics. In my opinion, this game is overrated. I liked only the graphics.

Awards & Rankings

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

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 48 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 47 out of 48
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 48
  3. Negative: 0 out of 48
  1. Impulsegamer
    May 13, 2024
    86
    Sea of Stars is wonderfully evocative of the RPGs of yesteryear, recalling strong memories of Chrono Trigger and the like. Gorgeous pixel art is backed up with a soundtrack that for the most part is very pleasant to listen to, even if some of the loops do tend to repeat themselves a little too quickly. It seldom distracts, and almost always adds to the scene.
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  2. 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.
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  3. 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.
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