Sea of Stars: Sunset Edition

really good game

I’m enjoying it thus far. Not my favorite turn based JRPG but not my least favorite either as it doesn’t really do anything different but it doesn’t really do anything poorly either. I wouldn’t go out of my way to play it as a newcomer but if you want a mostly decent turn based game then consider checking it out if you have nothing else that strikes you fancy on your backlog.

This game reminded me why I loved turn based combat, but also gives it a modern spin. The fact that you can power up your attacks, and also cut the damage received with the quick time events was a great idea. Also, puzzles where on the easy side but still very fun. For the price this is an absolute steal and the devs have also given a bunch of updates for free, and extra content. Highly recommended that you try this game if you like FF6 and Chrono Triger.

Juegazo

This game is very much a mixed bag. It looks great, the music is good and the battle system is okay, but the story is not great, the characters are not developed and the battle difficulty is all over the place. Also, the action commands are not very intuitive, especially when it comes to blocking certain attacks. Also, the Wheels minigame is awful.

A very pretty pixel art JRPG. Seriously, this game looks gorgeous. Gameplay-wise, it's pretty classic turn based combat with a few twists that mostly serve to spice it up - some quick time "perfect parry/hit" stuff. Movement in the maps is also a bit diversified with the ability to climb, move along ridges and jump gaps. None of which really changes the functionality much, but it keeps the interactions with the environment a bit more fresh. The story isn't hugely memorable but I have to say it did get more emotional and gripping later on. The dialogue is very basic stuff. The fights can be challenging, the game has overall few encounters but hard, even those with ordinary mooks. The bosses can require a bit of strategy but nothing major. Ultimately, it's a fun game if you like classic JRPGs. It probably won't blow your mind but it's still a good time.

This isn't a bad game per se, but boy oh boy is it oversold. - The things that are sold as being "like Chrono Trigger" either aren't, or are severely lacking in depth. Walkabout is a bit like CT, albeit slower. Multi-PC abilities do exist, though not very many of them. There are some area-based targeting abilities, though as far as I can tell the options are just one size of "circular AoE." The variety, the storytelling, and just the joy of CT are not present at all. - Writing is good. Characters are decent (although the central two are bland). Story is acceptable but unexciting. Storytelling isn't great, the game relies a lot of "lets cut and see what the villains are up to now while they narrate their plans for the player." Some theming choices are weird -- for example, there's a huge amount of overly goofy pirate dialogue. - Graphics and sound are solid, but nothing to write home about. - Combat is OK at first, and has some novelties, but loses steam and becomes repetitive. - Wildly linear / No exploration. Like not just a linear sequence of events or locations, but every area is a fixed sequence of linear hallways, platforms, whatever. There's almost no meaningful exploration whatsoever. - The puzzles are also basically all "do these exact things in this exact order." They are very intuitive, but you're basically just guided along on a string by wherever the hallway/narrow cliff/etc leads you. - Map design involves an absurd amount of tightrope walking and crawling along the side of a cliff for no reason whatsoever. It IS cool the first time but it then shows up 10 times in every area. Both confusing and annoying. - You do want to look for chests in out of the way spots, but after the first hour or two, they basically all contain the same collectable each time, which does nothing until very late in the game. There are a lot of things like this, where the reward is a let-down. - Equipment progression is both sparse and boring, with trivial upgrades or no choices when you do get the chance to do it. - Weird bugs with the play controls. Default keybinds aren't great, and some of them don't get remapped even when you change them in settings. You may have to reset your keybinds to dock the ship; etc. This could be worse, it's just irritating. Walking is slower than it needs to be. In conclusion, if you have a Chrono Trigger itch, go play Cosmic Star Heroine instead. Or Chained Echoes, even. And if you don't... well, there's a lot of RPGs out there, and this one's really in the middle of the pile.

The base game is fun. The story is pretty standard high magic fantasy. The two "Main" characters have just enough personality to not be silent protagonists, but don't really add anything to the story. Their mission is the driving force, but it doesn't really feel like it truly matters to them. The writing leans very heavily on the rest of the colorful cast to do the emotional heavy lifting. The gameplay is a mix of turn-based combat and timed button presses to make the most of your skills. The environments are nice, but nothing to write home about. All in all, I'd give the base game a solid 7.5 out of 10. The base game could use a little more polish, but it's still fun. Now to the thing that nearly everyone and their brother didn't like: the DLC. Long story short: not a fan. I got about 25ish minutes into it, and wasn't having any fun. So, I stopped and never went back. I'd recommend the base game and I'd tell most people to skip the DLC.