Starbound

 PC
User Score
7.3

Mixed or average reviews- based on 508 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 306 out of 508
  2. Mixed: 130 out of 508
  3. Negative: 72 out of 508

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  1. Alexander_Z
    Jun 19, 2014
    1
    As is the game is unfinished. That wouldn't be so bad except in seven months time they have done nothing of note besides expand as a publisher. Work on Starbound has slowed to a crawl. The game itself is in a state where it is little more then 2D Lego's and there are other block building games out there that are more complete and cheaper then the asking price of this unfinished work. IAs is the game is unfinished. That wouldn't be so bad except in seven months time they have done nothing of note besides expand as a publisher. Work on Starbound has slowed to a crawl. The game itself is in a state where it is little more then 2D Lego's and there are other block building games out there that are more complete and cheaper then the asking price of this unfinished work. I would love to talk about the gameplay more but there simply isn't any to be had as the work is simply not fun at all in its presently and likely soon to be rushed out 1.0 state that is slated to be missing features. As is the developers have also gone back on their word several times involving the mechanics and gameplay, date of release, and are blaming their userbase for these faults. 2015 at the time of this writing slated as the release date. They have been noticably changing the release date since -2012-.

    I find this one of the most disturbing early access games on Steam in terms of lost potential. I would warn people to instead pick up Terraria, Minecraft, or a host of other games in a better state and that are still being worked on diligently. What is here is only the most basic of block games and looks to remain that way so I give this a 1. Chucklefish at present is to concerned with other matters to make this game the product it could have been.    … Expand
  2. jecoconono
    May 19, 2014
    10
    Don't follow what the haters say. Play the game yourself and you will see that its amazing. The music, the art, the adventure is all greatly done, and plenty of mods from the community and the fact that you need little to no knowledge to mod the game too, its just a amazing game! Sure, it might be terraria-like but its mostly pure inspiration. Its a great game, and don't forget that itsDon't follow what the haters say. Play the game yourself and you will see that its amazing. The music, the art, the adventure is all greatly done, and plenty of mods from the community and the fact that you need little to no knowledge to mod the game too, its just a amazing game! Sure, it might be terraria-like but its mostly pure inspiration. Its a great game, and don't forget that its currently just a beta so things will change often.… Expand
  3. Grenzor
    Aug 12, 2014
    0
    This came is a scam. Don't consider buying it. For 11 months they haven't released a single major update, and it's still in the 1st stage of early alpha.
  4. oneplayer
    Sep 7, 2017
    6
    A huge fan of Terraria and bought this game to play with friends thinking it would be a space version of Terraria. Despite buying a server for 3 months, we stopped played after just a few days. The boss fights are lacking, the the planets have a lot of variety but still feels empty. Planet exploration is quick but the world feels small due to the randomly generation missions. The missionsA huge fan of Terraria and bought this game to play with friends thinking it would be a space version of Terraria. Despite buying a server for 3 months, we stopped played after just a few days. The boss fights are lacking, the the planets have a lot of variety but still feels empty. Planet exploration is quick but the world feels small due to the randomly generation missions. The missions are always fetch this and that. Not that bad if you never play Terraria. But if you have, this game is actual less fun.… Expand
  5. adrenilinmatt
    Nov 17, 2019
    10
    why is the user score for this game so low lol, i see that most of the negative reviews are from release date when the game was unfinished early access. this is ridiculous reason to rate a game 0/10.

    heres a 10/10 to counter the ridiculously low scores.
  6. Game_Chip
    Mar 20, 2017
    9
    Really cool game! I love the story a lot and I love that you can explore other unknown planets just like Mass Effect. In my opinion I think this game is a combination of Minecraft, Terraria and Mass effect! (In a good way) Love the art style, really shows that pixel-based games can turn out to be amazing games! I give this game a 9/10!
  7. Lhetre
    Jun 18, 2017
    10
    Amazing game, so much todo, so much to explore, so much to build. Possibly better than Terraria - advice may vary.
    PS Look at the date of the reviews, the game has deeply changed as of version 1.7, June 2017, and is still being updated with content.
  8. Reinsol
    Dec 15, 2016
    9
    For me, Starbound lived up to the hype. I was an early beta player and playing it after 1.0 was like playing a whole new game. Good times solo and playing with a buddy, base building feels good and tech skills and developer dungeons keep it interesting.
  9. failboy84
    Jan 7, 2017
    10
    amazing game.... there's not much to be said as I haven't really played hundreds of hours (yet) but from the first intro I can tell its already an awesome game. the soundtrack is literally epic, and I don't use that word lightly or often, but in this case its fitting. Every new track I hear is well timed with the games cutscenes and events and sends shivers down my spine.

    The graphics    amazing game.... there's not much to be said as I haven't really played hundreds of hours (yet) but from the first intro I can tell its already an awesome game. the soundtrack is literally epic, and I don't use that word lightly or often, but in this case its fitting. Every new track I hear is well timed with the games cutscenes and events and sends shivers down my spine.

    The graphics are awesome (for a 2d tile based game) and the particle effects add a lot to the scene (rain is especially nice looking, when its wind for example).

    but the main thing that seems to keep me hooked is the sheer volume of content... there's just SO MUCH. I played a while online with my brother (who has played a lot more of the game than I have) and he has an amazing arsenal of bizarre and interesting weapons, all very different from each other.

    My only issue with the game is the performance. I couldn't get the 64bit version to launch and the 32bit version I can play never gets above 50fps on my machine (which isn't a beast pc but can play AAA titles just fine.) however for this game, anything above 30fps really is fine, is still looks smooth and doesn't feel choppy at all...

    so to sum up..... I got several new AAA games for Christmas this year and yet starbound is the game I will be playing for 2017.    … Expand
  10. c0b4ltl1ghtn1ng
    Jan 9, 2017
    8
    I've been with Starbound since the late Koala stages (they named their beta stages after animals, instead of 0.1 or 0.38) and I say 'pick this one up' as much as I did back then.

    If you've played Terraria, then you're already in a familiar field: 2D Minecraft-like, except this one is a bit more floaty. The Combat can seem kinda slow and unbalanced at times (in both directions, mind) but    I've been with Starbound since the late Koala stages (they named their beta stages after animals, instead of 0.1 or 0.38) and I say 'pick this one up' as much as I did back then.

    If you've played Terraria, then you're already in a familiar field: 2D Minecraft-like, except this one is a bit more floaty. The Combat can seem kinda slow and unbalanced at times (in both directions, mind) but the real area Starbound shines is the exploration.
    Beam down to a Planet, scour it for ores and/or treasures, or just enjoy the scenery above and below ground all the way to the Small Meteorites orbiting the atmosphere above or the planet's molten core bellow. When you're finished, tell Scotty to beam you back up, find a new planet, and repeat.

    Of course, the game does still have it's faults.
    During it's Beta phases, there was no real goal in how to progress through the game, aside from 'get the bestest gear ever.' Now that it's released we finally have a story driven plot:
    Some big tentacle monster destroyed Earth, and you gotta stop it form destroying the rest of the universe, somehow. Sounds Noble, right?
    Unless you focus on the story, it can get outright forgotten about. That's a good and bad thing: There's so much to do anyway, but it's part of the game that just feels lackluster compared to everything else. It can easily be plowed through in a few hours, although there was a recent update that adds post story content. I've not checked that out yet

    Apparently some people have been having problems just running the game since it's official release. I do not know why, it's always run smoothly for me. Try running it in a different display mode, is what I'd suggest (if windowed, try fullscreen, etc).

    And the mods, oh golly the mods. At once point the Devs made it a clear goal to make the game as easy to modify as they possibly could, and it still shows today. As of right now, Starbound's Steam Workshop has a little over two Thousand separate mods for it, although totaling to 3500. The second number, however, includes the outdated mods that were abandoned due to a dry update period.

    Overall, I say get this game, and get a friend or two to get this game, too. The vastness of space is best explored with buddies.    … Expand
  11. RustyHeart
    Oct 23, 2018
    10
    I'm really flabbergasted to see a 7,2 for user score. I suppose it's votes during early access. But Starbound changed since this period. It became a really complete game. Pixel art is marvelous. The story is cool and you've some greats awesome updates ! Like Mechas and spaces stations. You've such possibilities to have fun, especially with your friend.
  12. SurrealKitten
    Sep 1, 2020
    5
    Pretty fun early on, until you realize the main story is a grindfest with little actual plot and repetitive missions.

    Want to get to the next boss? Search galaxy after galaxy for procedurally-generated artifacts to search. So interesting! Want boss weapons? Go through the same 20 minute long stages over and over again to farm for that 10% drop! Want legendary artifacts? Dig for 10    Pretty fun early on, until you realize the main story is a grindfest with little actual plot and repetitive missions.

    Want to get to the next boss? Search galaxy after galaxy for procedurally-generated artifacts to search. So interesting!

    Want boss weapons? Go through the same 20 minute long stages over and over again to farm for that 10% drop!

    Want legendary artifacts? Dig for 10 hours on 100 different planets, good luck in the dark! Or use admin mode and speed up the process, while rendering the game much less fun.

    Things like these eventually suck out the charm of the game. Potential buyers beware.    … Expand
  13. HondaSalesman
    Feb 7, 2020
    10
    This is a late review but all of the gripes from early patches in the games life have been revisited, with more content being added on a somewhat regular basis. The game-play is fun and engaging, with the movement getting better and better as you progress throughout the game. It's non-linear story is, while not the most original, is fun and unique in it's own sort of way. All and all it'sThis is a late review but all of the gripes from early patches in the games life have been revisited, with more content being added on a somewhat regular basis. The game-play is fun and engaging, with the movement getting better and better as you progress throughout the game. It's non-linear story is, while not the most original, is fun and unique in it's own sort of way. All and all it's just a fun crafter that you can spend hour after hour enjoying.… Expand
  14. S3XU4LH34L1NG
    Nov 15, 2022
    6
    The game is fun and very very deep in terms of crafting, companions upgrading, ... the typical builder / minecraft stuff. But imo it demands too much time, everything is just a tad too annoying. It kinda reminds me of lost ark.
  15. neowiz73
    Jan 18, 2017
    10
    Amazing 2D story driven sandbox game, similar to terraria but you are able to explorer a limitless amount of planets that have a very wide variety of creatures, biomes and landscapes. with a lot of hidden dungeons and treasures to find, even recover old artifacts from fossil locations.
    You can meet NPCs that are interested in being a crew member of your ship that will help enhance your    Amazing 2D story driven sandbox game, similar to terraria but you are able to explorer a limitless amount of planets that have a very wide variety of creatures, biomes and landscapes. with a lot of hidden dungeons and treasures to find, even recover old artifacts from fossil locations.
    You can meet NPCs that are interested in being a crew member of your ship that will help enhance your team if you choose to have them along or just leave them on the ship to continue to enhance your ship in various ways.
    a lot of random side quests can be gained from the various NPCs that dot all of the planets.
    Build anything like you can in minecraft but with a lot more variety of block types and furnishings to add a lot of appeal to the decor. then you can add people to each building or house and create your own civilization.
    with the update of 1.2 you are now able to terraform any biome into whatever biome you like.
    there seems to be more updates to come and more fun to be had in the coming months and years.    … Expand
  16. Sjalka
    Aug 3, 2016
    5
    Starbound is kind of average in my opinion. It does not shine in any respect - delivers about what you expect .. and does not let you down in any significant way. Maybe there are a little too many side scrolling pixel-art survival games out these days - but Starbound simply does not stand out.

    Maybe i am not progressed enough to make such a call - but i would have expected a lot less    Starbound is kind of average in my opinion. It does not shine in any respect - delivers about what you expect .. and does not let you down in any significant way. Maybe there are a little too many side scrolling pixel-art survival games out these days - but Starbound simply does not stand out.

    Maybe i am not progressed enough to make such a call - but i would have expected a lot less planetary crafing and building and a lot more starship designing and so. Instead my ship is just a kind of hut in space with little to no function other than a base of operations. ... But as i said - maybe i have not progressed enough - so that might be a thing later in the game.

    Exploration is not the most exciting thing in Starbound ... because the plant(s) are not exactly very different in my opinion. Sure - there may be a slightly different background and terrain theme - but all in all ... its all quite similar.
    Added to it is the feeling that it hardly feels like a sci fi game. Equipment, weapons and all the stuff is very low tech and boring. (I like to point at the game "Sid meiers - Alpha Centauri" which allowed technology so far off in the future .. but still in a kind of logical way - that it simply felt like sci fi)

    Starbound on the other hand feels like the stone age - like one of those sci fi movies set thousands of years in the future - where they still use ballistic weapons like shotguns.

    Well - enough of my ramblings ... all in all the game is ... as i said .. average. If you liked Terraria - and you simply cannot get enough of that kind of game - Starbound might satisfy your needs.    … Expand
  17. Moo-vies
    Aug 9, 2016
    3
    Game is disappointing.
    The crafting is extremely limited. There is a total of 6 arbors to craft in the game. 6, with aesthetic variations.
    Seriously, the game is boring past the first 10 hours of discovery. There is no character whatsoever, everything is smoothed out and neutered. Story, graphics, ideas, possibilities. To release such a gut out product cut of functionalities    Game is disappointing.
    The crafting is extremely limited. There is a total of 6 arbors to craft in the game. 6, with aesthetic variations.

    Seriously, the game is boring past the first 10 hours of discovery.
    There is no character whatsoever, everything is smoothed out and neutered. Story, graphics, ideas, possibilities.

    To release such a gut out product cut of functionalities present in early access after 5 years of development is a spit in the face of the customers.

    Never again Chucklefish.    … Expand
  18. Vel
    Oct 10, 2016
    5
    First off, I would recommend ignoring all reviews before 2016, as those were for an "early acess" version, and the final game version was only released in 2016. The final release is much different than the early access version.

    Overall, I would only half recommend this game. If you enjoy 2D sandbox games like terraria, you will probably like this game. It has more story, mission, and a    First off, I would recommend ignoring all reviews before 2016, as those were for an "early acess" version, and the final game version was only released in 2016. The final release is much different than the early access version.

    Overall, I would only half recommend this game. If you enjoy 2D sandbox games like terraria, you will probably like this game. It has more story, mission, and a coherent progression. Most of the missions are a bit of a grind, but it isn't too bad. And I think the boss battles are much better than terraria.

    The down-side is that there are still bugs and issues. For instance, I was recently playing the game and my power temporarily went out. I figured this would be no big deal, I would simply load from the last time I saved the game. WRONG. The game somehow deleted my planetary bookmarks, and set back portions of the main storyline to the very beginning of the entire game (ie it somehow corrupted portions of my current save file, even though I wasn't in the process of saving when the crash happened). So there are still issues to be worked out. Be forewarned.    … Expand
  19. dafrak
    Aug 18, 2016
    5
    An average SF clone of Teraria built around hype, with no hype real score is about 5. Most of game look unifiinshed, shallow and repetitive like developer got good starting idea but lost focus on the way. Gameplay consists esentialy of collect ore1 to build tool2 to collect ore2 to build tool3 etc, then you move to another planet and start all over again. It is interesting while yourAn average SF clone of Teraria built around hype, with no hype real score is about 5. Most of game look unifiinshed, shallow and repetitive like developer got good starting idea but lost focus on the way. Gameplay consists esentialy of collect ore1 to build tool2 to collect ore2 to build tool3 etc, then you move to another planet and start all over again. It is interesting while your expand your first base but there is no sense of purpose or goals to acomplish and game quickly becomes boring.… Expand
  20. Alex_Milkovich
    Aug 3, 2016
    5
    This game isn't good or bad. If you like playing in sandboxes or if you like space theme this game will be a good purchase.
    In my case it's 5 out of 10, because:
    1) it has some bugs,
    2)it doesn't work in full-screen
    3)it's not very interesting for me
    e.t.c.
  21. Theanchorman900
    May 21, 2014
    5
    Games fun for a few hours but it lacks true depth yet. The progression is just a raw numbers game i.e stronger armors and weapons which barely vary beyond having larger numbers. The armors and weapons and armor do look visually decent but this game is mostly superficial at the moment. The Music is pretty good - although when you come across a small monster epic battle music plays everyGames fun for a few hours but it lacks true depth yet. The progression is just a raw numbers game i.e stronger armors and weapons which barely vary beyond having larger numbers. The armors and weapons and armor do look visually decent but this game is mostly superficial at the moment. The Music is pretty good - although when you come across a small monster epic battle music plays every time which detracts from the immersion. If you have read this review thanks. I'd basically advise you to avoid the hype and the rose tinted opinions of the positive scorers as the game is still a working progress. Don't let potential cloud your judgement. I'll score it higher once it earns it.… Expand
  22. JoeJoeJoeJoe
    Aug 25, 2016
    3
    This game has had excellent appeal during its Beta and Alpha stages, and I absolutely love the freedom of exploring planets and stuff. HOWEVER level design in challenges that have since been introduced give it an almost "rogue'-like appeal. I absolutely detest this, and this prevents me from enjoying the game that I know is stuck behind these extremely, extremely, frustrating and punitiveThis game has had excellent appeal during its Beta and Alpha stages, and I absolutely love the freedom of exploring planets and stuff. HOWEVER level design in challenges that have since been introduced give it an almost "rogue'-like appeal. I absolutely detest this, and this prevents me from enjoying the game that I know is stuck behind these extremely, extremely, frustrating and punitive challenges. I will never play that game, and I will never forgive Chucklefish for this.… Expand
  23. JERupp
    Jul 30, 2014
    5
    Another example of the pre-order/early-access scam. Chucklefish collected over 4 million dollars to make this game, and what we got instead was a half-baked Terraria with the ability to visit multiple boring worlds. Without the work of the independent mods for this game, I would have given it a solid 2 out 10.

    On principle, I would say to not reward this company with your patronage. On    Another example of the pre-order/early-access scam. Chucklefish collected over 4 million dollars to make this game, and what we got instead was a half-baked Terraria with the ability to visit multiple boring worlds. Without the work of the independent mods for this game, I would have given it a solid 2 out 10.

    On principle, I would say to not reward this company with your patronage. On rationality, I would say you should just go out and buy Terraria instead. You will actually be paying someone for a great game, and not to help create an "indie" publishing company that spits out half-finished games to pay for creating more half-finished games.    … Expand
  24. Ellthan
    Jul 28, 2016
    0
    Four years. A million dollars and a complete development team.

    Four ♥♥♥♥ing years, a million ♥♥♥♥ing dollars and a complete godamn development team and the result is a mediocre edge of space clone that runs like crap. The game had a lot of promise, but the developers got so much money from pre-orders and early adopters they overdosed on hookers and cocaine and forgot they were    Four years. A million dollars and a complete development team.

    Four ♥♥♥♥ing years, a million ♥♥♥♥ing dollars and a complete godamn development team and the result is a mediocre edge of space clone that runs like crap.

    The game had a lot of promise, but the developers got so much money from pre-orders and early adopters they overdosed on hookers and cocaine and forgot they were supposed to make a game after taking the money.

    Long periods of inactivity combined with procrastination led to disjointed updates and developers so utterly disconnected from the community that the majority of old time players who gave a ♥♥♥♥ about the game left and only the fanboys remained.

    The game started out with an intresting premise. Multiple differenct races each of them explore space for its own reason with its own goals, it's own allied and enemy races creating conflict and generating and truly living breathing world, its own tech and it's own special abilities, exploring to find the reason why they left their planet in the first place.

    You could be a pirate, a researcher, a space bandit fighting for your own cause beacuse your own reasons.

    Sounds intresting no?

    Well, what we got now is everyone is happy, everyone is united, no conflict, part of a united federation type deal, and your character is the newest graduate out to save the world with the other graduates from cthulu who hates all live and wants to see it gone because it gives an evil boner or whatever. (ORIGINAL PLOT ALERT, DO NOT STEAL).

    How do you save the world from cthulu? Do 5 incredibly drawn out, tedious fetch quests, 5 nonsensical dungeons and then you fight the boss.

    All races are the exact same with the only differences being cosmetic. (As opposed to earlier versions where you had unique armors with abilities and special weapons)

    Since beta from more than half the special abilities or techs (like nullifying gravity, flying, teleporting, FTL dashing, mechs ect) got completely removed , a massive ammount of custom/unique racial weapons in the game got gutted for no reason at all, the game went back to use a terrible "Damage on contact" combat system and the racial armors turned from unique special sets with different abilities to 12 different reskins of the exact same item, and ontop of that all, all the unique racial AI was removed in favour of everyone using the human one! WHY!?

    Also, in the 4 years that it has been out the devs never gave a ♥♥♥♥ to properly optimize it so it'll run at more than 10 frames per second on high end gaming PCs.

    But all that could have been easily excused.

    IF THE GAME WASN'T IN THE GAME FOR 4 GODAMN YEARS WITH A BUDGET OF OVER ONE MILLION DOLLARS!

    Honestly, I cannot in all honesty give this game a positive review, because it does not deserve a positive review.

    The developers took people's money, develivered a product that's even remotely close to what they promisd and took 4 years to do it. It's a mediocre game in a sea of mediocrity.    … Expand
  25. Airaindust
    Sep 5, 2014
    9
    This game is really fun. I'm waiting for the final build but play nightly sometimes. Anyone calling this a scam is an uninformed idiot. Tired of hearing about how they don't update because if you weren't an idiot you would know they do every night. Give the game a chance if you are interested and do your own research instead of listening to trolls.
  26. Gamer911
    Jun 19, 2014
    0
    This game just proves all that is wrong with early acess
    First release date was 2013, then 2014, now changed to 2015.
    No content added since february. Developers ban any game complain. As for the game, looks more like a tech demo than a Beta, would be better if they called it a alpha, it could be a perfect game, but the lack of any professional developer i will be amazed if then    This game just proves all that is wrong with early acess
    First release date was 2013, then 2014, now changed to 2015.

    No content added since february.
    Developers ban any game complain.

    As for the game, looks more like a tech demo than a Beta, would be better if they called it a alpha, it could be a perfect game, but the lack of any professional developer i will be amazed if then fulfil one promise of the many they made when they kickstarted this "game".

    20 millions funding, for delays and broken promises.

    Dont spend your money on this, dont even pirate, it isnt worth your time    … Expand
  27. DaALC
    Jul 24, 2016
    0
    This game has been in development for years, and finally has been "released",. While I am sure it is full of lovely content, there are so many utterly idiotic design choices that make this game nothing but a nightmare to play, that enjoying it is impossible.
    Super sensitive character movement, none intuitive menu systems, plenty of strange bugs, inability to hit things that are slightly    This game has been in development for years, and finally has been "released",. While I am sure it is full of lovely content, there are so many utterly idiotic design choices that make this game nothing but a nightmare to play, that enjoying it is impossible.
    Super sensitive character movement, none intuitive menu systems, plenty of strange bugs, inability to hit things that are slightly below you with a sword, torches that light up a meter in front of you , toolbar system that does not remember where you had something moments ago, menus with single items that do not auto-select this item, forcing you to make extra clicks for no reason, convoluted food/ eating system, a pointless tutorial that teaches you nothing about how the game works, character dialogues that either stay on screen for ages and cannot be skipped, or go by so fast you do not get a chance to read them entirely.... there is not one intuitive design feature to be found.
    The developers should be embarrassed that they call this a ready to be shipped game when it is so painful to play.
    0 out of 10 for the utter idiocy of everything everywhere.    … Expand
  28. powerscot
    May 12, 2014
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Starbound: Chucklefishes sci-fi tribute to Terraria. Having played 92 Hours of Starbound to date over the course of the games development - I aim to give each update a decent shot. I can honestly say that this game provides an enjoyable starting experience with an adequate set of character customization options and six playable races. There is much promise upon beaming down to your first planet. You truly feel starbound. The Strange planet beckons to be explored and the unique mobs are extremely diverse with a mix of docile and hostile creatures. There is a real variety of NPCs and structures which serve as a means to explore and potential to gain great loot. But as the game progresses and you've explored your first few planets, perhaps even killed the boss in order to move to the next sector of space, that you are experiencing a bit of deja vu. Don't get me wrong there is a respectable amount of content in game already. But not all of that content does necessarily contribute to an enjoyable game play experience. Great a fluffy unicorn plushy! - but can't I get some more weapon variety beyond a melee weapon or a gun? I've dug down into a planets core! - oh great more stock monsters...
    Don't be mistaken this game is still in development in its beta stage. It boasts a good amount of content but it's still undercooked. So unless you want to risk a belly ache, or just feel like you want to support Starbound's development, save your money at the moment. The experience is still a little thin to be called a game. I mean the last 5 of 10 tiers of gear can pretty much be skipped at the moment. Starbound lives up to its name and will take flight eventually. Give it some time and I think this will flesh out to be an enjoyable multiplayer experience. Maybe not quite minecraft or terraria but still an admirable addition to the genre of Indie Sandbox games.    … Expand
  29. Madforstarbound
    Jan 30, 2015
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Whoever said this was abandoned, never tried the nightly versions. This game is solid, Really a masterpiece of a game, with all the things a good survival game should have. And also... MOD SUPPORT! Not many games have these. and chucklefish is great at what they do. idiots, who call themselves gamers, can't hold a candle, if they knew what one is, to how amazing this game is.… Expand
  30. zombiechan
    Sep 24, 2014
    8
    I picked up Starbound months ago and I've set up a server for me and my friends. We had a great time goofing off and building stuff. Doing our usual stuff when it comes to sandbox games like this.

    The music is pleasant and I love some of the random aliens you run into. If you enjoyed Terraria but wanted to prefer Scifi, then Starbound is worth a check. (A lot of people seem to be    I picked up Starbound months ago and I've set up a server for me and my friends. We had a great time goofing off and building stuff. Doing our usual stuff when it comes to sandbox games like this.

    The music is pleasant and I love some of the random aliens you run into. If you enjoyed Terraria but wanted to prefer Scifi, then Starbound is worth a check.

    (A lot of people seem to be rating this game with zeros saying it was unfinished, but I do not know what they expected from buying a game that is in early access.)    … Expand
  31. Elroyscout
    Feb 14, 2015
    10
    This game is art, this game is soul, this game is what this culture needs to survive... sure there will allays some stupid Mushroom cloud in this culture, but that only makes this more amazing by comparison
    i know the art is hyper-generic, i know the combat system is stupid but i do not care, because that is part of the charm. the entire starting universe is lame bland and predictable,    This game is art, this game is soul, this game is what this culture needs to survive... sure there will allays some stupid Mushroom cloud in this culture, but that only makes this more amazing by comparison
    i know the art is hyper-generic, i know the combat system is stupid but i do not care, because that is part of the charm. the entire starting universe is lame bland and predictable, but the player is the one to put their own spin on it, turn their castle ship into Farmer Joe's Cornfeild, go roaming the universe with a cowboy hat or make a paintball arena on a dead planet... which we did on a whim and had such a great payoff.i know this feels unfinished, but that makes it ever more tantalizing, because this game, in early beta, has one hundred and fifty hours of playtime, while the unnamed game which many people claim that this is a ripoff of... has only fifteen minutes, because this thing feels like it has only scratched the surface of it's potential, and yet feels even more wholesome, encompassing, and unique. the races deserve a line and that line is... these may feel a bit generic, but when you actually look at the time, the philosophies, effort and lore they put into seven separate races... you want to pack you bags and move to this galaxy. Unlike other popular games, which are pretentious, silly and just make a lot a noise for the sake of noise, this thing is light, simple and sweet in telling a very simple message, in a very unique way that makes it actually viable...
    Go and explore    … Expand
  32. Orderan
    Oct 3, 2014
    6
    Bought it 9 months ago, thinking "Terraria in unlimited space, this is going to be awesome !". And it was, for a few hours. And then you realize passed a certain level, the progressing system is still the same, linear and boring mining to upgrade.

    And then you realize the game in itself feels like the developers did not know at first how hard and tedious developping fully functionnal    Bought it 9 months ago, thinking "Terraria in unlimited space, this is going to be awesome !". And it was, for a few hours. And then you realize passed a certain level, the progressing system is still the same, linear and boring mining to upgrade.

    And then you realize the game in itself feels like the developers did not know at first how hard and tedious developping fully functionnal game is. Between the game complete lack of balance and the "missing description" for hundreds of items, it does feel like it was halfway done then someone said "let's release it early access".

    And while the release of seasonnal content for valentine's day was appreciated, it really shows the issues in this game development. It is not centered on content quantity, not quality. And if you consider this game is basically still on alpha stage with no change brought in a year, you wonder where this is going.    … Expand
  33. Anoobizzz
    Jul 24, 2016
    7
    Overall - the game is great. Been playing since the release of beta back in 2014, now it is even bigger and more interesting to play BUT. The pace of the game and some of the mechanics are just unsatisfying. Sometimes caving goes way too slow and boring and sometimes same thing happens to combat. What i wanted to mention is soundtrack. It is probably just me but it is way too depressiveOverall - the game is great. Been playing since the release of beta back in 2014, now it is even bigger and more interesting to play BUT. The pace of the game and some of the mechanics are just unsatisfying. Sometimes caving goes way too slow and boring and sometimes same thing happens to combat. What i wanted to mention is soundtrack. It is probably just me but it is way too depressive from time to time and makes me want to switch to my own playlist.
    We'll see later how this game will progress as development goes on, but it is already enough for now to call Starbound a worthy game.    … Expand
  34. theirrelephants
    Aug 8, 2016
    5
    This is basically Terraria except that you can travel to planets with different tile sets.

    Kind of disappointing, but still good for a dozen or two hours of fun.
  35. TimW001
    Sep 26, 2016
    7
    This is a world builder game that fixes a lot of the flaws and annoyances of other games in the same genre. The game is best played with friends and others. It's easy to connect to your friends. it also has very light specs so anyone can play it with no lag or connectivity issues. Also no loading screens. It's a large expansive universe with diverse planets. It's simple to learn and hasThis is a world builder game that fixes a lot of the flaws and annoyances of other games in the same genre. The game is best played with friends and others. It's easy to connect to your friends. it also has very light specs so anyone can play it with no lag or connectivity issues. Also no loading screens. It's a large expansive universe with diverse planets. It's simple to learn and has fun enemies and weapons. You can dig to nearly the center of a planet and still find new things and adventures. Including portals to other worlds and underground cities.
    it also gives you the ability to build dwellings for residents who can move in and start a shop or restaurant. These buildings can be as large or small as you want. You can build it.
    I'm well over 12 hours deep in the game and I simply wish there was more direction, more quests, more story. it is a world builder and that's basically it.    … Expand
  36. godzillarandom
    Oct 3, 2014
    6
    Note: I will update this after the full game is out

    I kinda like this game,It has a potential to be good! HOWEVER,How it's being executed is questionable So here is the basic pros/cons review! Pros: Endless travel places Endless ore Good crafting fun multi-player Fun bosses Cons: Mean developers No mod support KHAN NO UPDATES. Note: Like I said,I    Note: I will update this after the full game is out

    I kinda like this game,It has a potential to be good!

    HOWEVER,How it's being executed is questionable

    So here is the basic pros/cons review!

    Pros:
    Endless travel places

    Endless ore

    Good crafting

    fun multi-player

    Fun bosses

    Cons:

    Mean developers

    No mod support

    KHAN

    NO UPDATES.

    Note: Like I said,I kinda like this game at its beta state,It's okay,NOT WORTH BUYING,Just wait til' it updates a little and then buy it,It has the potential to be the best,Yes,Better than terraria,minecraft and "PP".

    But its in beta state and this is my "Beta" score ,6/10    … Expand
  37. ninjaofthewest
    Feb 1, 2015
    8
    This is one of the most underrated game of 2014. For those who were raging about the game's problems most of these problems have been addressed and fixed. For
  38. Zen-Zinxe
    Jan 29, 2015
    5
    While the graphics and sounds are really nice. The game itself is charming and has a lot of potential, it is held back by being essentially a simplistic Terraria where you can visit different planets. It's been ages since a "stable" update was released so for those who can't be bothered to beta test the game for them won't see any changes for months at a time.

    A big update just rolled    While the graphics and sounds are really nice. The game itself is charming and has a lot of potential, it is held back by being essentially a simplistic Terraria where you can visit different planets. It's been ages since a "stable" update was released so for those who can't be bothered to beta test the game for them won't see any changes for months at a time.

    A big update just rolled out for the game and it's finally starting to take shape, however I would definitely not recommend until they officially claim the game is in a 'finished' state. Which may be a lot longer than any one is willing to wait. Hold on to your money for now.    … Expand
  39. Kedisi
    Jul 3, 2018
    4
    It's Jule 2018 and the last update was in Oct 2017.

    The devs could swear they're doing the console version or whatever but the fact is - we have abandonware here. They had some ideas for 1.4 then "delayed" the release, then gave up cuz "weee, XBox". Come on, anybody who wanted to play SB already played it on PC. An endless universe. Great graphics. Great music. Great concept. A    It's Jule 2018 and the last update was in Oct 2017.

    The devs could swear they're doing the console version or whatever but the fact is - we have abandonware here. They had some ideas for 1.4 then "delayed" the release, then gave up cuz "weee, XBox". Come on, anybody who wanted to play SB already played it on PC.

    An endless universe. Great graphics. Great music. Great concept. A crapton of neat ideas, but like 5% of them is finished. A cemetery of ideas, if you want.. The story sucks. The balance is crap. The devs is mostly ignoring negative feedback and for some (no) reason put their own good findings in gameplay on the shelf: racial perks? yeah, cool, but no; item tags? sure, but they will be invisible; mode without stuff drop on death but with hunger? FU player. And you got nothing to do here in like 48 hours at best. Old Terraria has more content and more challenge than SB in it's current form.
    Yeah, you could say "SteamWorkshop" and mods, but guess what - Terraria was great -without- any mods.

    The devs act now like the Novakids they've introduced - took Terraria, reworked it, then lost the interest and left the game half-baked. I loved Starbound until they dumped it. Sooo salty.    … Expand
  40. slickserpent99
    Nov 25, 2016
    9
    If you like adventure games, this is the game for you. Land on a planet, travel across the surface to find old ruins and secret laboratories, or trek through a cave into the vast underground to find old, ruined outposts, underground cities, underground jungles, graves, and MOAR secret laboratories. A captivating game that will suck you in. It's a bit slow to start, but, if you put time andIf you like adventure games, this is the game for you. Land on a planet, travel across the surface to find old ruins and secret laboratories, or trek through a cave into the vast underground to find old, ruined outposts, underground cities, underground jungles, graves, and MOAR secret laboratories. A captivating game that will suck you in. It's a bit slow to start, but, if you put time and effort into this game, the payoff will be amazing. THIS is what gamers should play rather than that unfinished repetitive mess that is No Man's Sky.… Expand
  41. hassall
    Dec 16, 2016
    2
    the game is boring past the first 10 hours of discovery. for me this game is dull and boring. The crafting is extremely limited. I remember m friends telling me about this game and i played it and it just sucked. this game is no where near done.
  42. ANDRESF2033
    Jun 17, 2017
    10
    LA VERDAD YA HE JUGADO TÍTULOS PARECIDOS DE CRAFTEO COMO TERRARIA PERO NUNCA ME LLAMARON MUCHO LA ATENCIÓN , STARBOUND LO TIENE CASI ABSOLUTAMENTE TODO, DESDE MECÁNICAS DE ATAQUE HASTA AUTOS VOLADORES, ES UN BUEN JUEGO SI QUIERES PASAR UN BUEN RATO DE AMIGOS. PERO ES EL MEJOR SI QUIERES CREAR EL MUNDO QUE SIEMPRE SOÑASTE
  43. leeber222
    Jun 19, 2014
    0
    Starbound has a great idea at its core and a huge amount of potential. Sadly, I don't think the developers (a small inexperienced indie company) know how to make this game any better than it already is. Lots of empty promises and "soon" coming from the developers. Combat is tedious, exploration is unsatisfying and bland, and there's just not incentive to explore or build. There's tonsStarbound has a great idea at its core and a huge amount of potential. Sadly, I don't think the developers (a small inexperienced indie company) know how to make this game any better than it already is. Lots of empty promises and "soon" coming from the developers. Combat is tedious, exploration is unsatisfying and bland, and there's just not incentive to explore or build. There's tons of core game mechanics, all of which are shallow, undeveloped, and unbalanced at the moment. It's like they tried to make a sequel to Terraria without understand what made Terraria such a compelling and surprisingly deep game. I do not recommend you buy this game.… Expand
  44. zBedlam
    Jul 9, 2014
    0
    Let me begin by saying the game is average at best, basically a cut down version of Terraria in every regard - but that is expected given it is in "beta" status, I use the term beta in quotes because Chucklefish (the developers) seem to have no idea what a beta actually is even though one would hope they have at least one software design professional on their team. What it is at the timeLet me begin by saying the game is average at best, basically a cut down version of Terraria in every regard - but that is expected given it is in "beta" status, I use the term beta in quotes because Chucklefish (the developers) seem to have no idea what a beta actually is even though one would hope they have at least one software design professional on their team. What it is at the time of writing this review (July 2014) is more of a alpha or tech demo.

    The reason I gave it such a low score is because purchasing this game is essentially handing money over to Chucklefish in the hope that once complete the game will be good. And time and time again they prove that not only are they unmotivated or incapable of delivering a good product but they also think very little of their customer base.

    Postponing release dates and not even coming close to meeting them along with very slow development progress are the least of anyone's concerns when purchasing this game, blatantly lying to consumers, berating them, trolling them, any form of criticism against their product are labelled as "loaded" and dismissed if you are on their forums and not white knighting you can expect a ban fairly quickly. These are the kind of ways this company handles their PR, this is the kind of behavior you will be enabling if you give this company any more money.    … Expand
  45. skrik
    Sep 3, 2014
    3
    I wouldnt say its a scam like other did. I think the team wants to make a good game, but... they dont know how to. A game has to "feel right" and a big mistake in game devlopment is to add a ton of content and **** before it does. Starbound has done this mistake full force and the exploration and combat feels extremely dull and bland. On paper and on the blog it sounds awesome and I wasI wouldnt say its a scam like other did. I think the team wants to make a good game, but... they dont know how to. A game has to "feel right" and a big mistake in game devlopment is to add a ton of content and **** before it does. Starbound has done this mistake full force and the exploration and combat feels extremely dull and bland. On paper and on the blog it sounds awesome and I was super excited about it but after 9 hours ( i ve tried and retried over 4 or 5 characters along the updates) i never had fun. it's really sad to say but yep, didnt have fun a single minute.
    Fights are slow and boring, gravity is always too low and controls dont feel nervous or tight. Muddy at best. Game is super unbalanced ( which is ok for the early beta, but its been in beta for a year now and i havent seen much change...). Character progression is boring, nothing exciting to be found in exploration. "quests" to push you to a next step feel forced and break the fun a game like terraria had in its sandbox system and freedom of exploration. Terraria had genius in the fact that you could discover everything yourself ( i never had to read a walkthrough), starbound hasnt found a way to teach the player to play the game in a clever way and instead tries to take him by the hand telling him what to do turning the experience into a fetching bore.

    I have lost hope in Starbound right now. I ll come back and update my review in a few months if things have evolved.    … Expand
  46. Guyler
    Oct 17, 2014
    0
    The game looked promising back in 2013 but the developers have stopped releasing updates and refused to honour refunds after receiving significant backlash from the community, even though they originally said that they will happily give refunds to any users who pre-ordered the game and felt that Chucklefish was not delivering on their promises. On top of that, the Chucklefish moderatorsThe game looked promising back in 2013 but the developers have stopped releasing updates and refused to honour refunds after receiving significant backlash from the community, even though they originally said that they will happily give refunds to any users who pre-ordered the game and felt that Chucklefish was not delivering on their promises. On top of that, the Chucklefish moderators and admins have been relentlessly banning users for criticising them, claiming that all of the users are trolls or are breaking there rules.

    It has become very apparent that this game will never be finished.

    Starbound is nothing more than a scam at this point. The developers have already stolen my money, don't let them steal yours.    … Expand
  47. jparker782
    Jul 11, 2014
    3
    This game had a lot of potential but it seems to be effectively abandoned by its developers(save for an occasional blog post about their "progress"). Avoid this one and save your money.
  48. Whisena
    Jul 17, 2014
    1
    This game is the exact reason why I don't like early access anymore. Developers go us into buying their game with colorful promising features, and only to take our money and laugh at our foolishness for paying for unfinished product. I would never buy another early access from Chucklefish,
  49. Cik
    Feb 10, 2015
    10
    A very, very enjoyable game, even at this stage of development; there is a very appealing uncomplicated beauty, yet depth of play and entertainment that has gripped me for days. It is worth it, and will continue to be as it develops more.

    There exists a lore for every character type as well, so the RPG elements are well polished for the build-stage this game is at, and will only get    A very, very enjoyable game, even at this stage of development; there is a very appealing uncomplicated beauty, yet depth of play and entertainment that has gripped me for days. It is worth it, and will continue to be as it develops more.

    There exists a lore for every character type as well, so the RPG elements are well polished for the build-stage this game is at, and will only get better. And the npc encounters that recognize you as your race and engage you differently in many circumstances is fresh and non-repetitive.

    The exploration potential is boundless and fun, along with the building emphasis of stages based upon your completion of quests; very fun. Jetting from planet to planet, system to system, makes the whole game seem never ending; very expansive. Not to mention that I found myself wandering on the surface of various planets a lot more, which I personally enjoy, and within the depths to accumulate more resources, hidden caves and base structures which I could gain unexpected gear and weapons from. The vast amount of weaponry and uniqueness to each one is simply brilliant.

    There is so much to see and accomplish in the game at the current stage, that I very much look forward to coming back to is with each developmental improvement.    … Expand
  50. shanecavaliere
    May 1, 2015
    10
    This game is being actively developed, and improves all the time. If you're considering buying it, I'd recommend only reading reviews within the most recent couple of months. Even in its current (unreleased) form, it's absolutely better than Terraria. The gameplay, effects, sound, and attention to detail are amazing - not to mention the massive amount of content. The most recent patchThis game is being actively developed, and improves all the time. If you're considering buying it, I'd recommend only reading reviews within the most recent couple of months. Even in its current (unreleased) form, it's absolutely better than Terraria. The gameplay, effects, sound, and attention to detail are amazing - not to mention the massive amount of content. The most recent patch hugely improved the way the game is presented, so quests and objectives are easy to understand and follow. This is a really, really impressive game.… Expand
  51. SavageSalamence
    Feb 2, 2015
    7
    People realize now that it has been updated, it has no longer been not updated
    This game will entertain you for quite a while, but it doesn't have as much depth as it may seem. It's a great exploration game with a brilliant soundtrack, but it doesn't quite deliver a deep and progressive experience like other games such as Terraria do
  52. gyrate
    Jul 11, 2014
    0
    This is not a game it is the shell of a game, and it's been a shell of a game for over a year. Chucklefish has forums minions and a plethora of reasons for it. They sell it on Steam where it's early access. This gives one the impression that you will be playing the game as it is developed. Sure you will, but not on Steam where they haven't updated the game for seven months. Instead you canThis is not a game it is the shell of a game, and it's been a shell of a game for over a year. Chucklefish has forums minions and a plethora of reasons for it. They sell it on Steam where it's early access. This gives one the impression that you will be playing the game as it is developed. Sure you will, but not on Steam where they haven't updated the game for seven months. Instead you can go to their website and read about their updates. That's right forget about having them delivered to you. What you are purchasing here is a "story" about someone building a game. This is a novel it is not a game. However, if you love Terraria and only desire to build things in a new setting this might suit your taste. If you can get past the pokemon looking graphics and the extremely lame enemies, your hero looking like something found in a cereal box free for pc in 1985, or having pretty much nothing to do but gather material and build you may very well love this game. Had I known that a small group of people will vehemently defend this game and act like everyone else has a problem I'd have passed. What you are buying here is a game where you can build things with materials that you gather, and join a cult. A cult of people that likely own goat simulator, tree simulator, rock simulator...… Expand
  53. Kislen
    Aug 12, 2015
    7
    The gameplay is fun, interesting - I like the plans and ideas they have. The music is amazing, the visuals look great.

    The game is lacking content. If you want to dress your character up, decorate your house or build a neat looking house there's LOADS of content, but exploring lacks enough variables to keep it interesting, and there is little in terms of crafting equipment at this    The gameplay is fun, interesting - I like the plans and ideas they have. The music is amazing, the visuals look great.

    The game is lacking content. If you want to dress your character up, decorate your house or build a neat looking house there's LOADS of content, but exploring lacks enough variables to keep it interesting, and there is little in terms of crafting equipment at this current time.

    I enjoyed the game, but it definitely needs some more meat to be added to it.    … Expand
  54. Knoxx
    Dec 23, 2014
    8
    Starbound is a great game it has so much content the planets you can explore the terraria gameplay the random encounters with aliens quests and much more if you like terraria you will like this game if you like space exploration you will like this game as well
  55. Raymond123
    Mar 2, 2015
    9
    The game is like a great and remastered version of terraria with diffrent worlds, quests, and a home ship. It has tons of long-term play abilty and provides quests which helps you along your way instead of you wondering what to do. You can also choose from several specieas, each with a slightly different story and ship. Great fun! Get for pre-release before the price raises!
  56. Popcultures
    Aug 24, 2015
    10
    Starbound is like space exploring adventure. Millions of planets to see and explore with randomly generated biomes and buildings. You can find villages, research facilities, castles, and the list goes on and on. There are currently 6 different races that all have their own unique weapons and armor. This game is still early access, but it still blows my mind on how awesome it is. FunnyStarbound is like space exploring adventure. Millions of planets to see and explore with randomly generated biomes and buildings. You can find villages, research facilities, castles, and the list goes on and on. There are currently 6 different races that all have their own unique weapons and armor. This game is still early access, but it still blows my mind on how awesome it is. Funny dialogue with random NPCs and cool biomes to explore. Speaking of biomes, there is a lot of em'. Underground slime biomes, mushroom villages, gnome villages, so many things to find.

    I love this game, and so should you.    … Expand
  57. Prodigyfire
    Feb 2, 2015
    10
    Anyone who rate this game below a 7 is lying, this game is just beyond comprehension of most people, and those are the people who put below a 7, anyone above that knows a good game when they see it, and we can clearly see the potential Chuckle Fish has out into this awesome game. If I could rate higher then a 10 I would, because this game is just pure awesomeness on our planet.
  58. Fharl
    Aug 15, 2014
    0
    Two years ago, Tiyuri (Starbound's lead developer) left the Relogic Team (responsible for Terraria) and began his own project. Since then, he's been responsible for a quite successful faux-Kickstarter that landed him $4M for the purposes of "speeding up beta," signed on with Steam for an additional estimated $15M, moved the majority of his team to an incredibly expensive-to-live-in cityTwo years ago, Tiyuri (Starbound's lead developer) left the Relogic Team (responsible for Terraria) and began his own project. Since then, he's been responsible for a quite successful faux-Kickstarter that landed him $4M for the purposes of "speeding up beta," signed on with Steam for an additional estimated $15M, moved the majority of his team to an incredibly expensive-to-live-in city (minus Bartwerf, one of his more talented programmers), and failed to deliver much beyond a tech demo for an entire universe of promises and assurances. Having failed to meet the 2013 deadline and with 2015 rapidly approaching, it seems that the "1.0" sticker will be applied to this game in order to avoid dishing out the refunds that so many Early Access supporters have been clamoring for since they realized that they were only inflating the massive ego of the sprite artist that nearly sank Terraria before it even left port by stealing Final Fantasy V sprites for Redigit to use. If you liked Terraria, you're in good company. Tiy loved it so much, he ripped it off himself.… Expand
  59. Vas
    Jun 29, 2014
    8
    This great game has a lot you can do in the beginning. If you don't cheat or get help from players, you can be entertained for many days gathering what you need to go up to the next level. You can create structures and traps and fun designs as well. With mods, you can add a lot more to your game which will make it last longer and more entertaining. There are endless planets you canThis great game has a lot you can do in the beginning. If you don't cheat or get help from players, you can be entertained for many days gathering what you need to go up to the next level. You can create structures and traps and fun designs as well. With mods, you can add a lot more to your game which will make it last longer and more entertaining. There are endless planets you can visit so you can always go far away to a planet no one will find to build your stuff, in order to protect it. Planets of different sizes and types, so there is always a unique planet to find, with many unique NPCs and bases.… Expand
  60. Zipprian
    Sep 9, 2014
    7
    The game is initially very fun and kills a lot of time. After a while it gets extremely repetitive and the different races are really just different visually, they all play exactly the same.
  61. 3dsboy08
    Feb 1, 2015
    9
    Very nice game. Extremely detailed and awesome to play. When the Upbeat Giraffe update was released, it made the game a LOT more fun to play. Play it, it is worth the 20$.
  62. Lunrun
    Oct 11, 2015
    10
    After the development's hiatus, Starbound is finally back into full-swing with regular updates and content. The recent addition of colonies adds quite a bit of depth to building in the game, and good things seem to be happening with the progression and combat. The art style is rather charming, and the game's humor keeps even some minor additions amusing.

    Furthermore, the game has a    After the development's hiatus, Starbound is finally back into full-swing with regular updates and content. The recent addition of colonies adds quite a bit of depth to building in the game, and good things seem to be happening with the progression and combat. The art style is rather charming, and the game's humor keeps even some minor additions amusing.

    Furthermore, the game has a surprising amount of potential for good builds and servers. My friends and I have built everything from space-bars to giant lasers, a steam-punk planet, an Avian home world, you name it! Even Terraria at its present height doesn't have this much potential for building flavor.

    Also, seriously, why is the OST so good? It's kinda ridiculous. They brought in some straight-up piano and fancy instrumentation for it. It's just another example of how damn ambitious this growing indie game has been.    … Expand
  63. Vulfie
    Jan 9, 2016
    5
    This is a hard one to comment on.

    Is it fun? I think so. Did I enjoy it more than Minecraft and Terraria? Yes I did. I really did. I enjoyed the feeling of exploration in this game. You come across so many NPC towns, cities and colonies. So many dungeons, so many quests. It feels like you are exploring a pre-existing universe, and not just dumped on a blank-slate planet and have to    This is a hard one to comment on.

    Is it fun? I think so. Did I enjoy it more than Minecraft and Terraria? Yes I did. I really did. I enjoyed the feeling of exploration in this game. You come across so many NPC towns, cities and colonies. So many dungeons, so many quests. It feels like you are exploring a pre-existing universe, and not just dumped on a blank-slate planet and have to build it up yourself. I realize that's what a lot of people like about Minecraft and Terraria, and maybe that's why so many people went into Starbound expecting the same when it's actually quite different.

    But can I recommend this game in its current state? Hmm... There is no question that this is game, even in Early Access, is far better made than the majority of games I've played in the last few years. The quality that went into this game puts Fallout 4 to shame, and that game had an enormous budget and a professional development team (Are you getting tired of indie games being vastly superior to AAA releases? Me too.)

    But I guess I can't ignore the elephant in the room any longer. Yes it is Early Access. It has been Early Access for 2 years now, and will probably remain in Early Access for a long, long time. Starbound is shaping up to give games like DayZ and Project Zomboid a run for their money in the "Which game will be finished first" race. Project Zomboid has been in Early Access for almost 5 years now and I think it's safe to say that Starbound will probably still be Early Access 3 years from now too. I have unfortunately ran into the EA wall a few times in Starbound. Heavy frame drops at random points, a lot of items in the game do not have their functions in place yet, racial traits are not in place yet... So on.

    Does that make it a bad game? No. It's still very enjoyable, and like I said it's remarkably high-quality. But Early Access... Pay full price for a game that may never be finished... I'm sure many of us on Steam have fallen into that pit before and you probably don't want to put yourself in that position again. I can't blame you.

    Summary:

    As it stands, I enjoyed this game a lot. I enjoyed the sense of exploration and adventure. I enjoyed having one tool that mines, cuts down trees and destroys backgrounds. I enjoyed exploring NPC cities. I enjoyed having a ship you can make your home, and upgrade it to add more and more rooms. But I just can't recommend this game (Or any game) while it's stuck in Early Access. Especially if it has been stuck there for as long as this game has been. And there is a strong possibility that this game will never be finished.    … Expand
  64. hellONkeys
    Jul 22, 2014
    1
    I am relatively new to the steam experience, and after enjoying Terraria I was excited to try Starbound after reading the "Developers" pitch of the game. As I haven't tried an early release title before, I figured "What the Hay... Ill get a little experience before the game is released!" That was over a half year ago. Now I have been extremely patient waiting for a full release, and mayI am relatively new to the steam experience, and after enjoying Terraria I was excited to try Starbound after reading the "Developers" pitch of the game. As I haven't tried an early release title before, I figured "What the Hay... Ill get a little experience before the game is released!" That was over a half year ago. Now I have been extremely patient waiting for a full release, and may have continued to do so, until I read that they have MILLIONS of dollars from gamers like myself yet the game is still far from being released! I feel like I have been hornswaggled! The Devs have used our hard earned money to purchase expensive plane tickets to England, for prime office space, and who knows what else, and the game has been pushed back for release until 2015? That seems completely absurd! Top it all off with a recent progress post on Chucklefish forums from a head Dev that states he has no idea what the other Devs are exactly up to! Look it up for yourself on the official forums! Never again will I invest in an early access game because of Starbound. I don't think the game will ever be finalized. Lesson learned.… Expand
  65. eponymous
    Jun 29, 2014
    6
    Strong foundation with a lot of potential. A number of times in co-op MP my friends and I would comment that Starbound has some great foundation mechanics for an awesome game. Either large scale content releases need be released or strong community modding is required to complete what still feels like a slightly hollow game. There is a skeleton of progression but not much in the way ofStrong foundation with a lot of potential. A number of times in co-op MP my friends and I would comment that Starbound has some great foundation mechanics for an awesome game. Either large scale content releases need be released or strong community modding is required to complete what still feels like a slightly hollow game. There is a skeleton of progression but not much in the way of end-game. It represents reasonible value but in current form wont be a minecraft or terraria quality time-vampire.… Expand
  66. Okami
    Oct 7, 2014
    6
    Starbound...well.

    I bought this Game 2013 in Early Access, was hyped by the "Future Feature List". Eventually I played around 100hrs, with Friends on a Server, and a bit Singleplayer. After all that, and around one Year later I can summarize it as follow: Graphics are nice, sound and music are nice. The Basic Ideas and concepts sound good in theory. But: -For a Year now    Starbound...well.

    I bought this Game 2013 in Early Access, was hyped by the "Future Feature List".

    Eventually I played around 100hrs, with Friends on a Server, and a bit Singleplayer.

    After all that, and around one Year later I can summarize it as follow:

    Graphics are nice, sound and music are nice.
    The Basic Ideas and concepts sound good in theory.

    But:
    -For a Year now there are no new Updates. (besides silly valentines day items)
    -Performance is just incredible bad. Lag on High End Machines, unplayable on standard PCs.
    -Game Progression makes absolut no sense and is dull like hell.
    -Most of the random generated Items are totally worthless
    -Lots of Bugs and so many missing features...
    -NPCs are just senseless placeholders, most items are too.
    -Childish and whiteknighting community who defend all negative aspects to the death.
    -grindfest for getting to the next level, to start all over again to get to the next level, repeat...

    So in fact you spend alot of time mining material to build a nice house, city etc. from. But then you have nothing to do, no reason to explore the Universe etc.

    The Developers startet to make some other games meanwhile...honestly I think this game will never be finished.

    My advice would be to stay away till there is a really major update with some real progression and missions that make sense.

    It is some Fun in Multiplayer if you know the people you are play with, and have a powerful rig to handel the game.    … Expand
  67. nxss
    Apr 6, 2015
    1
    Dear diary,

    We are on 2015 and Starbound is still an EA. Since I bought the game, I've married and now I have 2 kids. Hope someday my kids can see the game release.

    tl;dr: scam..
  68. Alexanderrieke
    Jun 30, 2015
    10
    Look a lot, and I mean A LOT of people have said things like game is unfinished. And it was abandoned by developers. They are ignorant fools with no creativity. I beg you to ignore them. Starbound is a great game. It may not have much content but it has endless amounts of servers and communities! If you have already beat the game, don't worry! It's just the beginning. Go find new friends,Look a lot, and I mean A LOT of people have said things like game is unfinished. And it was abandoned by developers. They are ignorant fools with no creativity. I beg you to ignore them. Starbound is a great game. It may not have much content but it has endless amounts of servers and communities! If you have already beat the game, don't worry! It's just the beginning. Go find new friends, or build a giant house, or build a giant house with your friends. Maybe make a faction or help someone. Or join one of the great player communities. Or use one of the endless mods made by players. Starbound is a canvas. Many people have drawn on it to make a beautiful painting. Now it is your turn to make your painting. What will you decide?… Expand
  69. Woollenhat
    Aug 6, 2014
    9
    Most fun I have had in years in any kind of game, especially coop. Art is wonderful, music is great and building stuff is incredibly satisfying, if you are creatively inclined.

    That being said, it really is still in a very rough state and it is clear that it is far from finished. Once you have 'cleared' the content that is available at the moment, there is not much or nothing in the way    Most fun I have had in years in any kind of game, especially coop. Art is wonderful, music is great and building stuff is incredibly satisfying, if you are creatively inclined.

    That being said, it really is still in a very rough state and it is clear that it is far from finished. Once you have 'cleared' the content that is available at the moment, there is not much or nothing in the way of dungeon crawling, questing etc.

    Yet I find the criticism displayed here unreasonable, because it actually does not criticise the game, but the development cycle. A game taking long to develop is actually not valid criticism of the quality of the game**

    If I judge what I have gotten for my money, which is 70-80h* of delightful gameplay for about 15€ or so, then I can say that this is great value and has left me highly satisfied. Would I like to continue playing with more content? Hell yeah. But I'll have to wait till the game is properly out.

    *mostly coop. Probably would have been much shorter, if I had played entirely solo.

    ** I am not suggesting that people cannot be rightfully upset at having the release date pushed multiple times if they have been fans of the first hour. But the rating should not reflect your estimate of how well the development progresses, but what the game offers right now in its current form — which I personally find more then satisfying.    … Expand
  70. hakai124
    Jul 24, 2016
    3
    For a game that's allegedly finished it sure feels like a beta. Oh wait *launches game and reads the window*, it appears to say Starbound Beta.

    Joking aside this game has a myriad of problems, some good things too but mostly problems. Pros: Decent presentation Good soundtrack For me runs better than it ever has before but I understand a lot of people are having problems with it.    For a game that's allegedly finished it sure feels like a beta. Oh wait *launches game and reads the window*, it appears to say Starbound Beta.

    Joking aside this game has a myriad of problems, some good things too but mostly problems.

    Pros:
    Decent presentation
    Good soundtrack
    For me runs better than it ever has before but I understand a lot of people are having problems with it. That being said it still has random frame drops on my machine. GTX 970, AMD FX-8350
    A lot of different loot and cool abilities
    Varied surface landscapes

    Cons:
    Incredibly poor UI decisions; draggable windows that don't stay put in between closing and pulling them back up, the hotbar can't be truly customized to put things where you'd like them, inventory/options/crafting all accessed from separate buttons (this is an issue for me because this game is similar enough to terraria that the UI feels like it should be the same)
    The questing is generally terrible fetch/delivery quests
    The varied planet surfaces don't matter when you spend a large portion of time underground
    Mining and digging a straight tunnel is tedious
    The endless save wipes between every version (this doesn't matter if you're new but for anyone whose been playing since the early access release this is a problem)
    The whole game is a grind

    I could go on and on but honestly it's not worth it. If you've played Terraria and think this looks good, just play Terraria again. All that being said if I have to give this game a score it gets a 3/10.    … Expand
  71. ReviewBros
    Jul 9, 2014
    8
    its a really cool sci fi game. ive played around 6 hours and loving it. its like mine craft and terrairer put together but set in the future. with over 20 weapons and diffrent materials makes it great. a must buy for addictive gamers.
  72. Nataruma
    Aug 9, 2015
    9
    I don't understand why people think there's nothing but a linear grind, when really you have a vast galaxy to explore as you like. Apart from that, you can on your travels come across and collect different outfits, weaponry, furnishings (A LOT) and find weird and wacky locals to interact with. There's been significant content updates since 2014, with another pretty significant update justI don't understand why people think there's nothing but a linear grind, when really you have a vast galaxy to explore as you like. Apart from that, you can on your travels come across and collect different outfits, weaponry, furnishings (A LOT) and find weird and wacky locals to interact with. There's been significant content updates since 2014, with another pretty significant update just around the corner from the time of writing this review.

    Those who keep comparing it to Terraria really shouldn't. I hated Terraria, but I love Starbound because the focus seems more to do with exploration than "survive this horrendous attack on your house", and the tools and crafting system seem more intuitive to me. Not to knock the survival genre game, but it's not my favourite, and Starbound has elements of combat within it, but it doesn't take away from the enjoyment of the game or lay waste to all your hard work within one bad blood moon attack.

    I'd also like to add that multiplayer really adds more enjoyment to the game, just because everything's more fun with friends, you can also set yourselves interesting challenges with the power of your imagination, like who can terraform a planet faster, or who can build the biggest monstrous building in a set amount of time. The options are literally only as limited as your brain power ;)    … Expand
  73. Blazington
    Jun 26, 2014
    9
    Vastly superior to Terraria with its own original ideas and concepts-- and don't let anyone tell you differently. Starbound makes the 2D survive-and-craft sandbox game feel limitless, which other games of the genre generally fail to do.

    It achieves this by letting you fly to planets, explore generated cities and villages, and collect a huge amount of furniture and objects. There is a    Vastly superior to Terraria with its own original ideas and concepts-- and don't let anyone tell you differently. Starbound makes the 2D survive-and-craft sandbox game feel limitless, which other games of the genre generally fail to do.

    It achieves this by letting you fly to planets, explore generated cities and villages, and collect a huge amount of furniture and objects. There is a lot of depth to this game, and it keeps on growing. Better played than read about.    … Expand
  74. MetacriticWeeee
    Jan 4, 2015
    0
    As many have pointed out, the game is basically a scam. I purchased it when it originally released on Steam over a year ago, progress has been laughably slow for a game that has made millions of dollars on Kickstarter and Steam Early Access. I still find it amazing that they could not have hired just a few more people to work on the game and get content pushed out at a decent rate. ThereAs many have pointed out, the game is basically a scam. I purchased it when it originally released on Steam over a year ago, progress has been laughably slow for a game that has made millions of dollars on Kickstarter and Steam Early Access. I still find it amazing that they could not have hired just a few more people to work on the game and get content pushed out at a decent rate. There are 'nightly' builds, which are as you can imagine very regular releases, but they are not stable and typically result in crashes. The community surrounding the game is horrendous, devote fanboys on one end, and those who feel swindled on the other. There is supposedly a large update coming out first quarter of this year, but if it's like anything like I've come to expect from Chuckelfish.. Well, I'm not holding my breath. Would strongly recommend against purchasing this game and supporting poor developers. They don't deserve your money.… Expand
  75. HeyItsAze
    Jun 29, 2014
    10
    This game is one of the best games ever, you can fly to other planets,you can create amazing building with the furniture so please ignore those haters and try this game out

    .PS the soundtrack in this game is amazing
    you should listen to, "On the beach at night"
  76. Starbound
    Jul 26, 2016
    10
    Incredible. I bought Star-bound from steam 4 years ago for 15$. It was worth its money THEN, now here we are four years later with the 1.0 update (Leaving Orbit). It took a LOOOONNNG time for the game to come out, but the reason it took that long is because the community kept growing. The Developers (Chuckle Fish games) were flooded with money, the kick starter goal was annihilated (in aIncredible. I bought Star-bound from steam 4 years ago for 15$. It was worth its money THEN, now here we are four years later with the 1.0 update (Leaving Orbit). It took a LOOOONNNG time for the game to come out, but the reason it took that long is because the community kept growing. The Developers (Chuckle Fish games) were flooded with money, the kick starter goal was annihilated (in a good way) and Chuckle Fish wanted to give the community, a game that was worth the money that the community had put in, and they did it. The music is some of the BEST MUSIC I have ever heard in video games, AND the music isn't loud and in your face its in the background as you're focusing on collecting ores or exploring an alien planet, this is competing with my favorite game AND one of the best games on Meta-Critic: Cave story. The art style is joyous to say the little detail is what pushes this game to a ten instead of a 9. Oh, and if you're reading: ignore the other reviews that say this game is a linear grind, because it's not. IT'S THE BIGGEST METROID-VANIA THAT YOU HAVE EVER SEEN (sorry for the caps I had to get the point across). But at the same time it's not, its a RPG, and a Exploration, and a Terraria-LIKE game it doesn't copy Terraria but the Tier system is like it. I haven't even begun to talk about the Bosses (No Spoilers). All of them are different and unique, (No Spoilers) The Final Boss, while not being too hard, is FUN, it is PURE FUN, I won't talk about his attacks (even though i want to). The quests, while yes, SOME being fetch/Delivery quests, they make sense. The People who give you quests live on an asteroid, so it makes sense that they might need some Iron or some Silver, that just makes sense to me. Sorry for rambling on this long, if you couldn't tell I really like the game, so I'll end this here with one last thing:

    BUY IT    … Expand
  77. Krogort
    Sep 19, 2014
    1
    Seems to be one of many early access/kickstarter scam.
    Dev team cashed out after filling their pocket due to the hype generated by the announcement and early release.
    We are left with little content and a total lack of support from the developer.
  78. arruu
    Aug 3, 2016
    6
    This game would've got a much higher User Score if it had been released before Terraria.
    The game has a lot of items, missions, lore, great ideas, etc .... But still, I find the end product very dull, and its gameplay extremely repetitive and boring.
    -Despite all the loot, digging isnt remotely as rewarding or thrilling as in Terraria. -Despite all the planets they are not distinct    This game would've got a much higher User Score if it had been released before Terraria.
    The game has a lot of items, missions, lore, great ideas, etc .... But still, I find the end product very dull, and its gameplay extremely repetitive and boring.
    -Despite all the loot, digging isnt remotely as rewarding or thrilling as in Terraria.
    -Despite all the planets they are not distinct enough to encourage visiting them.
    -Despite the variety in the enemies, the AI and the design arent great, and most of them feel kind of the same.
    -Despite they had plenty of time to develop it, this game has ended the same way it started :
    Lots of promises and potential but none became true.    … Expand
  79. MAJLich
    Jan 13, 2017
    4
    Not worth playing. The beginning of the game I was motivated to play. Soon after, the game becomes repetitive as you progress, the controls become cumbersome. It really lacks true depth. I get a slight lag when there is lot going on and slows my movement down to change equipment that causes me to die.
    There is infinite building but you can't get the detail easily and no benefit building    Not worth playing. The beginning of the game I was motivated to play. Soon after, the game becomes repetitive as you progress, the controls become cumbersome. It really lacks true depth. I get a slight lag when there is lot going on and slows my movement down to change equipment that causes me to die.
    There is infinite building but you can't get the detail easily and no benefit building on these worlds. Just a standard building game. I can't seem to get the benefit of more crewman either.
    The last boss is virally impossible for me at least since it's near impossible to dodge and the lag slows my play down just enough that I can't heal by one click or even two clicks of the mouse.
    Overall, becomes boring and the controls are too cumbersome for boss battles. What a disappointment. The critics score is too high. Less than average game.    … Expand
  80. Vasot
    Jun 10, 2017
    9
    After the developer decided to release Update 1.3 (The Spacefarer expansion update) the game has become really awesome. Not only you can explore planets but you can also explore space and space stations. The game now is really huge with plenty of things to do also there is a significance gameplay improvement all around with the latest patches. The game is huge and very entertaining it'sAfter the developer decided to release Update 1.3 (The Spacefarer expansion update) the game has become really awesome. Not only you can explore planets but you can also explore space and space stations. The game now is really huge with plenty of things to do also there is a significance gameplay improvement all around with the latest patches. The game is huge and very entertaining it's one of the best indie games despite the low quality graphics… Expand
  81. Amir-Hadzi
    Jul 31, 2016
    8
    Starbound is a great game and very enjoyable but it has some of it's flaws. Art style , music and gameplay of the game are great, follow that up with vast ammounts of planets (areas) to explore and you can have hours of fun. Combat was one of the things i loved most when it comes to this game because of pure variety it has, you have axes, guns, rifles, huge eyes laser weapons and so on...Starbound is a great game and very enjoyable but it has some of it's flaws. Art style , music and gameplay of the game are great, follow that up with vast ammounts of planets (areas) to explore and you can have hours of fun. Combat was one of the things i loved most when it comes to this game because of pure variety it has, you have axes, guns, rifles, huge eyes laser weapons and so on...
    It's Terraria inspired and it looks like Terraria but people who played both games will know the difference but games is really a game of it's own not a Terraria clone. Biggest weakpoints of the game are:
    -Interactions both with characters and items/blocks and the inability to hit something under you with weapons
    -Bad story it's just bad
    If you can overcome this flaws you will enjoy the game and you can look forward to updates with a lot of content that will give you another reason to explore. Also this game features a good multiplayer system where you can have tons of fun with friends.
    Best qualities of the game are:
    -Variety in combat, as i have said numerous weapons and great variety of enemies to defeat each with it's special attacks.
    -Music just good soundtrack for me at least
    -Art style it looks very nice and it's enjoyable to explore those beatyful looking worlds
    -Lot of content
    -One of the closest things to No man's sky with a galaxy to explore (lot smaller honestly) but if you are not able to play No man's sky this is game for you
    Conclusion: Starbound is a game with rocky start that's why there are so many bad reviews but now it's actually enjoyable game. Rare game that acutally isn't much overpriced. If you decide to buy it you can have tons of fun from it's many features from fun multiplayer to good singleplayer.    … Expand
  82. NOVEANO
    Jun 5, 2014
    9
    This is the game in have always dreamt to play, a game where you explore the entire universe! There is endless exploring, and amazing lore. Unbelievable structures procedurally generated, I live terraria but this is a step forward. Better graphics, and the music... The music is the best music I have ever listened to in a video game. I can't wait to have this game on my ps4 or vita,This is the game in have always dreamt to play, a game where you explore the entire universe! There is endless exploring, and amazing lore. Unbelievable structures procedurally generated, I live terraria but this is a step forward. Better graphics, and the music... The music is the best music I have ever listened to in a video game. I can't wait to have this game on my ps4 or vita, developers are great as well and keep updating for free all the time.
    This game is unmissable!    … Expand
  83. vanhaver
    May 25, 2014
    10
    Don't listen to these ignorant fools who wouldn't know a good game if it flew out of their ass. Play this game. Simple as that, it's absolutely fantastic w/ an amazing soundtrack to boot! The makers of this game have really committed themselves to this project.
  84. HumanTrash
    Feb 13, 2015
    0
    Four years and millions of dollars later, the game's dev still hasn't delivered on its promised features.

    The lead dev's attitude doesn't do much to toward spurned fans, doesn't help, either.
    "It's not what I promised you when you bought it, but it's practically finished and you've had your money's worth of fun!"

    In a sane world, this developer would be bankrupt.
  85. aceofspace
    May 1, 2016
    3
    Boring. Incredibly boring. No meaningful content, progression feels pointless, combat mechanic is dull, exploring is only skin-deep (one "procedural" world is as good as any other). The one single plus is that some of the writing is decent. But oh man, that combat is terrible.

    A great concept ruined by its execution.
  86. vanjavk
    Aug 13, 2016
    0
    Welcome to screen saver simulator. Yes that's what this game is, a screen saver. Yes it's nice, graphics are calming music is soothing but I don't want to call it a game. Just because you press few buttons and move around doesn't make it a game (well it does, but a game with 0 score)
  87. YungDizuck
    Feb 6, 2015
    6
    First off, I'm going to preface this review by letting prospective buyers know that it's still in beta, and yes, there have been character wipes and there's still bugs. If this, or early access, are potential bugaboos for you, I'd recommend waiting until the full 1.0 release. That said, let's get to the review.

    First off, we'll talk aesthetics. Chucklefish has opted for a 2D style pixel    First off, I'm going to preface this review by letting prospective buyers know that it's still in beta, and yes, there have been character wipes and there's still bugs. If this, or early access, are potential bugaboos for you, I'd recommend waiting until the full 1.0 release. That said, let's get to the review.

    First off, we'll talk aesthetics. Chucklefish has opted for a 2D style pixel graphics art style, with fairly fluid animations, cursor facing, scrolling skyboxes and backgrounds. There's multiple races to choose from, each with their own unique characteristics, styles and backstories. (Some of which have barely been touched on, but you'll get a rough estimate from some opening flavor texts, and by collecting unique logs through out the game.) It's bright, it's colorful, it's fluid.

    Mechanically, it's very similar to Terraria and Minecraft, only on a much larger scale, as crafting, building, smithing, tech and many other collectables, furnishings, weapons and tools can be crafted from various ores, or combinations of resources. (Oil + iron = steel, and so forth.) You are given a ship that you must collect items to repair, and a set of missions to get you acclimated to what the game will require you to succeed at in order to progress. The downside, is that while the game is more fully fleshed out than during the prior versions, a lot of it is still barren and buggy, which is a shame, because there's definitely a ton of potential. Combat is done in one of two ways, melee, or ranged. Melee offers a variety of weapons, daggers, swords, axes and spears, some of which can be found in chests throughout the planets you visit and mine. Ranged is guns, beam weapons, bowguns, and hunting bows, some of which can be upgraded. Lastly, tools. Tools are important, but the newest update has dropped the durability of practically all of them, which forces you to carry spares that don't stack, which has dropped their importance to upgrading your matter manipulator. Mining plays a HUGE role in this game, and is probably one of its biggest time sinks, as a mechanic. That said, the upside is that the rate of occurence of unique tombs, bases, new underground biomes and other encounters has increased since the last update. Obviously, this entire mechanic is still quite tedious, especially considering how tools have been nerfed.

    Now I'll touch on music and sound, which, in my opinion, is meant to be charming, and instruments have actually been in the game for quite some time, which allows your character to play bits of music in the game. It adds flavor, if nothing else.

    Now I'll summarize. The bits and pieces of a great game are here. The rate of which the dev team is tying those pieces together, has been slow and tedious. There has been a massive addition of content added during the big update, but unfortunately, so have a lot of new bugs, some of which stonewall progress. If they were just annoying visual glitches, I'd dismiss them, but some of them are runtime crashes during missions. That's a major no-no, and something their QA should have caught before the update. I'm giving this a solid 6 of 10 as of right now. My recommendation is to wait until it's closer to being finished and bug free.

    (Full disclosure: I have 17 hours in game during the past week, 200+ on various builds total.)    … Expand
  88. Sir_Swag117
    Jan 19, 2016
    10
    This game is absolutely awesome. It is very fun, especially when joining an RP server or something. It doesn't update often, but it is absolutely AWESOME.
  89. ReidW
    Aug 2, 2016
    10
    a Great game for COOP. I understand this game has some high negatives but I suspect this is due to the fact that this game was pre-alpha. It's now released and Awesome! even the pre-alpha game was a blast, but it ran out of content after 30 hours.

    I've played 30 hours with the released version so far and have no sign of running out of content! I'm excited and glad I supported this    a Great game for COOP. I understand this game has some high negatives but I suspect this is due to the fact that this game was pre-alpha. It's now released and Awesome! even the pre-alpha game was a blast, but it ran out of content after 30 hours.

    I've played 30 hours with the released version so far and have no sign of running out of content! I'm excited and glad I supported this game on Early Access.    … Expand
  90. CaptainPlatypus
    Oct 11, 2015
    10
    I just can't get my head around people not recommending this game. Stupid haters are gonna hate a guess. I have put 170 well spent hours into this masterpiece. The soundtrack is beautiful, The gameplay is awesome. There is so much lore to the game that you could write a book as long as Harry Potter 5 for every piece of it. This is by far my favorite game, and I would recommend this toI just can't get my head around people not recommending this game. Stupid haters are gonna hate a guess. I have put 170 well spent hours into this masterpiece. The soundtrack is beautiful, The gameplay is awesome. There is so much lore to the game that you could write a book as long as Harry Potter 5 for every piece of it. This is by far my favorite game, and I would recommend this to anyone that likes science fiction. This game is like a cross between Terraria and Startrek, and it is filled with so many hilarious references. I absolutely ADORE this game and everyone that likes Science fiction will to. Great job Chucklefish.… Expand
  91. wytas2
    Aug 19, 2014
    0
    This "game" is a scam.The devs arent even uptading it.Its just a list of what they want to (not) add.The last real uptade was last year.They just keep prototyping "uptades" and taking money
  92. mmmMatto
    Sep 7, 2015
    7
    The most recent update added a decent amount of new stuff, so after a hiatus from early access I started a new character and played a bit again.

    The game isn't novel in the slightest. It's usually compared to Terraria, and rightfully so, and compared to the aforementioned If you've played that game you know what to expect. Differences (positive, negative, or neutral, your choice)    The most recent update added a decent amount of new stuff, so after a hiatus from early access I started a new character and played a bit again.

    The game isn't novel in the slightest. It's usually compared to Terraria, and rightfully so, and compared to the aforementioned If you've played that game you know what to expect. Differences (positive, negative, or neutral, your choice) include: Different species to choose from... the crafting system isn't as complex... there are more NPCs... it's slightly more quest-oriented... and it's in space...

    It costs more than Terraria so I suggest waiting for a Steam sale if you want to pick it up.

    Final thoughts: It's not original in the slightest. It costs more than Terraria so if you want to check it out wait for a sale. It won't take that many in-game hours to see most everything so it's not really worth $15. That said it's pretty fun for about a week so it gets a pass by a narrow margin.    … Expand
  93. SelfAwareLlama
    Jul 30, 2015
    9
    The game has been in development for longer than I care to remember. Every 'major' update we receive tend to be pointless. I remember the update where all they did was add in pets that do absolutely NOTHING. Not what I consider a major update. Meanwhile they've had a ridiculous amount of funding from people who pre-ordered the game on their website and have made little progress.
    And    The game has been in development for longer than I care to remember. Every 'major' update we receive tend to be pointless. I remember the update where all they did was add in pets that do absolutely NOTHING. Not what I consider a major update. Meanwhile they've had a ridiculous amount of funding from people who pre-ordered the game on their website and have made little progress.
    And meanwhile Chucklefish are wasting their time and resources publishing countless other indie games when they can't even finish developing their own game!    … Expand
  94. tpenterties
    Sep 4, 2014
    10
    Nomis!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
  95. R77
    Jul 23, 2016
    4
    There were high expectations for this game after three years of development and a long beta process, and it missed almost all of them.

    The Good: - The music is excellent, and the game sounds great overall - The art style is fun - The variety of weapons (although the combat mechanics make this almost meaningless) The Bad: - The inventory system - which should be the core of a    There were high expectations for this game after three years of development and a long beta process, and it missed almost all of them.

    The Good:

    - The music is excellent, and the game sounds great overall
    - The art style is fun
    - The variety of weapons (although the combat mechanics make this almost meaningless)

    The Bad:

    - The inventory system - which should be the core of a game with thousands of items - is badly broken. This is after years of testing. There are now five separate inventory screens, and the UI that controls them is clunky and frustrating. Items that used to stack no longer do, which leads to inventory crowding almost immediately.
    - The story is bland and unoriginal. This would be fine if it wasn't a mandatory part of the early-game, but you're now required to run the same broken dungeon you were in beta before you can do any real exploring. It still sucks.
    - The quest hub/town area has undergone only cosmetic changes since early beta, only now there's a story dungeon sloppily cobbled onto it.
    - You now drop healing items and other important items on death on the normal difficulty mode, which adds a layer of meaningless frustration.
    - Combat is the same 'try not to let the monster hit you' snoozefest as before, only now you sometimes have functional weapons when they aren't glitching out.
    - Enemy variety was supposedly going to be huge, but I found myself running into the same six aliens over and over. I guess this got scrapped?

    I know $15 isn't very expensive, but considering how much money these developers made through early access and what a long development cycle this had...I expected much more. Unless Starbound gets the fixes it still needs and an almost complete inventory/combat overhaul, I see no reason to come back. Save your money.    … Expand
  96. Dark_D3s7r0y3r
    Aug 12, 2016
    10
    You really gotta take reviews before the proper release date with a grain of salt. This game did have a long period of early access, yes, but what many people forget is that this is an indie game that only charges a fourth of the price of a full game release and still managed to actually deliver a full game's worth of content. It's arguable whether this game would actually be worth $60,You really gotta take reviews before the proper release date with a grain of salt. This game did have a long period of early access, yes, but what many people forget is that this is an indie game that only charges a fourth of the price of a full game release and still managed to actually deliver a full game's worth of content. It's arguable whether this game would actually be worth $60, but its $15 asking price for an entire universe of sandbox planets to explore that all feel both familiar and unique, seven interesting races with dozens of codex entries that flesh out their background, a full-length campaign that integrates with your exploration to encourage traversing the universe, a crew system that gives unique followers and passive bonuses based on who you recruit, and full mod support for the community to do practically whatever they'd like with all of this... I honestly couldn't ask for much more beyond making the game fully 3D, but No Man's Sky seems to indicate that that may not be such a good idea.

    Starbound integrates Role-Playing with sandbox and exploration in such a unique way and only has a $15 asking price. For the over 400 hours of enjoyment I've gotten out of it, I would be doing it a disservice to not rate it a full 10. It's been a long journey through the stars for me, and I can forsee a longer yet one in the years to come.    … Expand
  97. Dreganius
    Oct 11, 2015
    10
    I've owned this game since its first stage of alpha, and felt it was a very well put together game. The updates were slow for a while, but now, the developers are quite actively trying to improve the game. I'd recommend reading only the recent reviews, as things have greatly improved.
    The community is good, the gameplay is good, but in my experiences the game really shines as a    I've owned this game since its first stage of alpha, and felt it was a very well put together game. The updates were slow for a while, but now, the developers are quite actively trying to improve the game. I'd recommend reading only the recent reviews, as things have greatly improved.
    The community is good, the gameplay is good, but in my experiences the game really shines as a roleplaying platform. The assets are very numerous, it's possible to change each individual color on any piece of clothing (with a third-party web-app called SBSE) and the RP communities are great. It's incredibly easy to create custom assets (such as guns, etc) that EVERYONE can see without needing mods, and is overall a very highly moddable game. I would highly recommend it to anyone wanting a good adventure, and especially people who like RPing.    … Expand
  98. ZippyRagu
    May 21, 2014
    9
    I believe this game is truly something of beauty and amazement. It's lore is the best I've seen in a long time, combined with the aspect of building, combat, and most important, exploring. Hopping from planet to planet, system to system, makes the whole game seem never ending. So much to see do and build is beyond anything I've seen in a long time.

    What makes this game differ from an    I believe this game is truly something of beauty and amazement. It's lore is the best I've seen in a long time, combined with the aspect of building, combat, and most important, exploring. Hopping from planet to planet, system to system, makes the whole game seem never ending. So much to see do and build is beyond anything I've seen in a long time.

    What makes this game differ from an incredibly similar game like Terraria? One thing major thing that caught my eye was the animations. They're beautiful, bouncy and fun to look at. Even swinging a sword feels good. Another major difference is that this ones more surface-based. You'll be finding yourself wandering on the surface a lot more which I personally enjoy, considering you may encounter npcs like avians or glitches, which are actually birds and robots.

    I encourage anyone questioning whether or not to purchase this to not be off put by reviews that say it's not worth it because its a Terraria clone. Many have said the same thing about Terraria and Minecraft in fact, that Terraria is just a 2D clone of Minecraft, which depending on your definition, really isn't. I say take a risk, spend a few bucks, and have a great time exploring the universe. Creativeness bursts within this game.    … Expand
  99. kaltorak
    Jul 28, 2016
    9
    The 1.0 release is awesome. I played this game looong ago on early access, and while it had potential, it wasn't good enough. Now I have been playing non stop since release.

    It's a terraria, with some significant differences. Fighting and building are more separated. On planets, you don't fight much. There is fighting, just not a lot. There you dig, explore and build. Then, there are    The 1.0 release is awesome. I played this game looong ago on early access, and while it had potential, it wasn't good enough. Now I have been playing non stop since release.

    It's a terraria, with some significant differences. Fighting and building are more separated. On planets, you don't fight much. There is fighting, just not a lot. There you dig, explore and build. Then, there are missions and instances, where you are not allowed to build or dig, where the real fighting takes place.

    Another major difference is that you improve your armor like in terraria, by crafting, but weapons are all found exploring. It's much more centered around exploring than terraria. On the other hand, there's less variety in useful items than terraria. I would say starbound has more blocks and decorative items, but it has less real usefull items (still has a lot).

    IMO 1.0 starbound is a very polished game and an awesome experience.    … Expand
  100. PenisMan69
    Jun 14, 2014
    7
    Starbound is a pretty good game, but very unfinished. It's updated frequently, but mostly with Holiday content (Want to dress up like Santa Claus? You'll be happy. Want more than a few hours worth of gameplay? You probably won't be.)
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Awards & Rankings

54
#54 Best PC Game of 2016
32
#32 Most Discussed PC Game of 2016
74
#74 Most Shared PC Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
81

Generally favorable reviews - based on 21 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 21
  3. Negative: 0 out of 21
  1. Everyeye.it
    Oct 24, 2016
    82
    Starbound is one of the very few games that gets both "open world" and "sandbox" done right. The amount of activities available is astounding and the best part is you can avoid them all, if you wish to do just that.
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  2. CD-Action
    Oct 14, 2016
    85
    The price to fun ratio is amazing, but Starbound’s biggest advantage is the freedom it offers. I took a long break from Elite Dangerous to play this indie gem – it’s that good! [10/2016, p.58]
  3. Games.cz
    Sep 19, 2016
    70
    Starbound is not as polished and debugged as other games, and sometimes it may seem repetitive. But compared to more "modern" sci-fi games its explorative, almost melancholic spirit and emphasis on building catches your heart. Spare a few hundred hours of your time, the ultimate boundary once again calls for the survey.
    Read full review
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