The last few years have provided a gold mine of RPGs inspired by classic games that span the entire spectrum of the genre. Whether it's CrossCode, Cris Tales, or Undertale, there's a breadth of different RPGs that are heavily reminiscent of formative JRPGs like Suikoden or Chrono Trigger. One highly anticipated RPG that saw huge support on Kickstarter is Sea of Stars, an indie "retro-inspired turn-based RPG" that, upon first impression, looks to be capturing that same spirit artfully. Fast-forward from the game being fully funded well within 24 hours in 2020, the game's shaping up to be an excellent homage and beautiful standalone RPG in 2022.
Designed as Sabotage Studio's "dream game," the game has evolved significantly since it entered early development back in 2018. The game is headed for a release at some point this holiday, composer Yasunori Mitsuda (Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross) has jumped on to assist with the game's score, and new gameplay is starting to trickle out on Sabotage's social media in the leadup to the game's release. Game Rant recently attended a hands-off demo of Sea of Stars, primarily showing off the game's combat in-depth, alongside dungeon exploration gameplay. So far, Sea of Stars is shaping up to be exactly the kind of game old-school JRPG fans will enjoy.
One of Sabotage Studio's mission statements is striving to mix "retro aesthetics with modern design," and that very much is evident with the gameplay in Sea of Stars. Whereas The Messenger sought to reinvigorate the classic Ninja Gaiden platformers of old, Sea of Stars is clearly serving as a tribute to Chrono Trigger. Players take on the role of dual-protagonists Valere and Zale, who represent the summer and winter solstice, and are on a journey to quell the influx of monsters throughout the land. This particular demo of Sea of Stars showcased the party attempting to charter a vessel to a mysterious island in order to explore the "Palace of Illusion" dungeon.
Encounter and battle design in Sea of Stars genuinely does emphasize its Chrono Trigger inspiration well; all enemies are discovered and engaged with in the overworld, side-stepping random encounters for an organic battle system. All fights take place directly in the game's world, with a distinct focus on positioning and strategy to effectively target enemies. Players can utilize a variety of attacks, but AoE attacks paired with lining up certain enemies (as well as team attacks or buffs) can devastate the opposition. Additionally, timing button presses alongside attacks/blocks can enhance the attack and defense power of certain party actions in combat as well.
A key pillar of Sea of Stars' combat system is the "Locks" attributes of foes. These Locks are a system of affinities that can be targeted by certain elemental and physical attacks by the player's party, effectively reducing enemy defense by a percentage (depending on how many Locks a particular enemy has). Any combination of the right attack attributes can be used to break down Locks on enemies' defenses, significantly boosting the player's damage output.
Pair this with boosted attacks, varying damage types, and combo attacks between party members, and there's a free-form turn-based combat system that has plenty of room for variation. In action, Sea of Stars' systems are relatively simplistic, but can allow for any combination of attacks that the player prefers, and largely rewards players for experimenting with what's most effective. Valere's moon projectile can bounce off multiple targets at once for crowd control, while Zale's sun attacks with his sword can target both weapon and element weaknesses at once. Several elements of Sea of Stars' encounter design are meant to keep the momentum going.
All of this is in service to making Sea of Stars a streamlined experience; the combat design is meant to "flow along with the story, it's a distilled experience," according to Creative Director Thierry Boulanger. Unlike other more hardcore, traditional RPGs like Final Fantasy, Sea of Stars operates at an agile pace to keep players focused on the action and narrative. The party has shared experience, normal attacks regenerate MP for unique skills in battle, and weapons/equipment offer varying stat bonuses based on how the player wants to experience the game. Combat is inherently designed to focus on strategy in the moment, rather than XP gain or specific builds.
Aside from the combat design, all of the excitement from fans stemming from the game's incredible art style and atmosphere is not unwarranted. Though this brief preview was dedicated to showing off combat primarily, Sabotage was still able to show off the stunning art direction and atmosphere of Sea of Stars. Whether it's the vibrant port-town of Brisk filled with pirates and merchants, or the greater archipelago of Sleeper Island whose namesake comes from the sleeping serpent wrapped around the mountain, Sea of Stars has a whimsical atmosphere.
One particular highlight is the dynamic lighting capabilities, which are altered based on time of day (which the player can eventually change at will). Whether it's adjusting the ambiance for fun, or manipulating the lighting to solve a puzzle, it's a unique touch that feeds into the game's narrative without seeming out of place. Players also have a greater degree of freedom in movement by being able to climb and vault over most objects in the game, opening up each region to a surprising degree, in some cases.
While the comparison to Chrono Trigger is often the default with retro-inspired RPGs, that connection between Sea of Stars and the classic Squaresoft JRPG is largely faithful. Chrono Trigger's pacing was brisk and exciting, putting players straight into the story, while offering meaningful and interesting combat in between. Based on this preview, Sea of Stars is aiming to successfully accomplish the same. The Locks combat system is compelling, and balancing elemental strengths and weaknesses should make the game's combat interesting, while eschewing any need for grinding. Paired with the game's excellent atmosphere, soundtrack, and art style, Sea of Stars is a worthy successor to classic RPGs as well as The Messenger, once again showing how Sabotage is able to capture the essence of a genre through a modern lens.
Sea of Stars releases in holiday 2022, for PC and Nintendo Switch.