Star Ocean: First Departure R

 Switch
User Score
7.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 19 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 19
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 19
  3. Negative: 3 out of 19

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Adriella01
    Feb 22, 2020
    7
    The story was nice. It sticks to the star ocean lore and most of its genre, except the typical 3D openworld style in the previous games. Instead you are running around oldschool on the worldmap just like in Final Fantasy I - VI. Just like in the previous games they included a big list of items and skills.. Unfortunally it did not hold my interest for longer than about 12h, but it hasThe story was nice. It sticks to the star ocean lore and most of its genre, except the typical 3D openworld style in the previous games. Instead you are running around oldschool on the worldmap just like in Final Fantasy I - VI. Just like in the previous games they included a big list of items and skills.. Unfortunally it did not hold my interest for longer than about 12h, but it has content for at least 20+h and you have the usual past story grind content. The cheap price was reasonable to its content.… Expand
  2. r3giment
    Dec 8, 2020
    7
    I had fun. But it was forgettable. The team did a fantastic job remaking this in the style of Star Ocean 2. It really is a gorgeous game with unique towns and cities.

    The combat is okay. I'm not a huge fan of the real time action combat. This game also does a TERRIBLE job of explaining things to you early on. Crafting, etc. These are all so important because the game gets instantly    I had fun. But it was forgettable. The team did a fantastic job remaking this in the style of Star Ocean 2. It really is a gorgeous game with unique towns and cities.

    The combat is okay. I'm not a huge fan of the real time action combat. This game also does a TERRIBLE job of explaining things to you early on. Crafting, etc. These are all so important because the game gets instantly difficult at one point mid-way and you sit back and say to yourself - WTF just happened. The game is not difficult per se. But by the things it doesn't tell you that you need to do to become more powerful - it DOES become very difficult. So if you are new to star ocean, do some reading before you start the game. it'll help you in the long run.

    I really enjoyed the story. Not a Trekkie but reminds me of Star Trek in a small sense. At the end of the day, I'm sure I'll forget what this game was about in the next few months.    … Expand
  3. Jman1115
    Dec 8, 2019
    9
    Game is engaging both from a combat and story perspective. Amazing how well a game can hold up over 20 years later. Well worth the 20 bucks if you like rpgs.
  4. Starfree
    Jul 27, 2020
    8
    Star Ocean is an amazing game with a very interesting story. Even tho it tackles Space Travel, Time Travel, Teleportation, and Intergalactic politics it’s simple enough to not feel like an alien to this vast world, even tho you play as one. Now this game is a port of a 2007 remake of a 1996 game so it definitely shows its age. The combat is extremely simple and not nearly as engagingStar Ocean is an amazing game with a very interesting story. Even tho it tackles Space Travel, Time Travel, Teleportation, and Intergalactic politics it’s simple enough to not feel like an alien to this vast world, even tho you play as one. Now this game is a port of a 2007 remake of a 1996 game so it definitely shows its age. The combat is extremely simple and not nearly as engaging compared to other RPGs, and transitioning between scenes are very blocky and always sudden. And as most Japanese RPGs that took this long to be translated into English there are a lot of scenes that feel like the missed the mark. And the some of the English voice actors are painful to listen too. Luckily the game gives you the opinion to chance the voice acting to Japanese. Still won’t next the text problem but at least you’ll get passion for the corny text. There are a lot better RPGs out there. But at only 20 hours and a low price it’s not a bad game to get invested into. It’s a cute little experience that I’m glad I started and am excited to finish.… Expand
  5. Flow4all
    Apr 2, 2022
    2
    The history can be interesting for anyone... But the combat system is just to smash a button.

    Not recomended when the 70% of time you're battling smashing a button. Boring as fk
  6. Reekum
    Jan 6, 2022
    5
    Somehow feels very disjointed in every aspect. Battle system is a mess about who gets stunlocked, half of the skills trees ain’t necessary and are kinda cryptic.
    Story is between unremarkable and bad.
    They say some developers who left tales of phantasia created this game, clearly the best stayed with phantasia which is a far superior and more cohesive experience. I don’t feel any    Somehow feels very disjointed in every aspect. Battle system is a mess about who gets stunlocked, half of the skills trees ain’t necessary and are kinda cryptic.
    Story is between unremarkable and bad.


    They say some developers who left tales of phantasia created this game, clearly the best stayed with phantasia which is a far superior and more cohesive experience. I don’t feel any interest in trying another game of the series, the game elements are all over the place.

    Bought it for 10 dlls but still I feel dissatisfied.    … Expand
  7. Flammie
    Dec 2, 2020
    6
    Star Ocean: First Departure R is an action RPG originally released on SNES then PSP if I undersrand correctly, the graphics are not significantly improved but the pixel art is decent and the bad 3d is not too bothersome. The battle system is not very exciting, 95 % of the game it is easy button smash with approx. few boss battles and a difficulty spike at the end where you might need toStar Ocean: First Departure R is an action RPG originally released on SNES then PSP if I undersrand correctly, the graphics are not significantly improved but the pixel art is decent and the bad 3d is not too bothersome. The battle system is not very exciting, 95 % of the game it is easy button smash with approx. few boss battles and a difficulty spike at the end where you might need to manually use items or cast a spell or two. The battle is also very slow, and gets interrupted for most spells, and there is no fast-forward feature or turbo button so you have to keep button smashing and waiting. The plot is one of the strongest part of the game, it is good enough to carry through. The crafting systems, all umpteen of them are super boring and random luck nonsense, I did not bother with most of it and the game really makes you not want to by destroying most stuff you are trying to craft even at full skill levels. The music is nice, but the sound effects are annoying and the voice acting is quite bad as was usual back in the days, it doesn't help that in the battle the characters shout out every move they do which easily means same move 3 times a second with head exploding screachy voice. Get it from discount at most if you have nothing else to play.… Expand
  8. SocratesGoneMad
    Jul 5, 2022
    10
    Despite originally being released in 1996, this game feels way ahead of its time and is one of the best games I've ever played. The characters are fantastic and they have so many unique and interesting interactions. What's even more amazing is how many characters are optional, yet they still have enough lines of dialogue with each other that they never feel half baked. In addition, theDespite originally being released in 1996, this game feels way ahead of its time and is one of the best games I've ever played. The characters are fantastic and they have so many unique and interesting interactions. What's even more amazing is how many characters are optional, yet they still have enough lines of dialogue with each other that they never feel half baked. In addition, the plot is excellent, feeling like a classic Star Trek episode. Lastly, the customization you can do with the characters is incredibly sophisticated, especially for an older game. If you like jrpgs this one is not to be missed.… Expand

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
74

Mixed or average reviews - based on 4 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
  1. Nintendo Insider
    Dec 19, 2019
    70
    At this game’s core, it’s a very average game that set the framework for a very great sequel. I think if Square Enix gets an opportunity to do this again with Star Ocean: Second Evolution, I can easily see them knocking it out of the park.
    Read full review
  2. Nintendo Life
    Dec 4, 2019
    60
    There's certainly still some fun to be had for sure, the mixing of fantasy and sci-fi on offer here is an endearing one, and it's noteworthy for the handful of novel features it introduced to the genre back in the day but - with a story and gameplay that were pretty average at the time of its release and haven't aged particularly well in the interim - it's definitely an experience recommended specifically for fans and those of us who wish to see the superlative second game in the series get the chance of a Switch re-release.
    Read full review
  3. NintendoWorldReport
    Dec 4, 2019
    80
    Star Ocean: First Departure R is an overall port of a good game. It stands out in a few ways from its contemporaries, mostly in its Tales-esque battle system and character recruitment and affection minutiae. My best recommendation for First Departure R might be that it’s a story-heavy RPG that spins a yarn compelling enough to keep you engaged while also delivering a battle system that is breezy and not as technical. Star Ocean has a lot of complexities underneath the hood, but taking it at face value can leave you with an approachable and enjoyable adventure.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »