Between the Stars
- March 7, 2024
- Isolated Games
- 11h median play time
Get on Steam"Between the Stars" is a single-player spaceship action game with strategy elements. Command your crew, manage resources, and engage in real-time combat while exploring a vast, procedurally generated galaxy. Upgrade your ship, recruit new crew members, and make important decisions that will determine your fate in this immersive space adventure.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game has beautiful graphics and engaging ship combat.
- The story is interesting and features well-written dialogue.
- The RPG elements, including crew management and dice rolls, add depth to the gameplay.
- The controls are clunky and can be difficult to master.
- There are numerous bugs and performance issues that hinder gameplay.
- The voice acting is often cheesy and detracts from the overall experience.
- story1,665 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 69 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The story in "Between the Stars" has received mixed reviews, with many players appreciating its engaging narrative and character development, often likening it to a blend of classic sci-fi and tabletop RPG elements. However, criticisms include its linearity, predictability, and reliance on text-based storytelling, which some find tedious. While the game shows promise with its intriguing plot twists and choices that impact gameplay, many players express a desire for more depth, variety in missions, and a complete storyline, as it remains unfinished in its early access state.
“Very easy to get into nice options for weapons and ships (but would love to see more bigger ships) was not expecting how good the story and side stories are written.”
“The story, the art, the voice acting, everything is great.”
“The story is compelling and exciting, it is easily my favorite part of the game so far and while I was disappointed I could not finish the story, it was only because I was seriously into it!”
“Combat is fine, RPG elements are fine, story is bland and boring.”
“The story reads like a young adult novel.”
“The story is mundane, not engaging, and predictable.”
- gameplay492 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 58 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game is a mixed bag, featuring engaging space combat and unique mechanics like dice rolls for decision-making, which some players find enjoyable while others see as overly simplistic or frustrating. Many reviews highlight the game's solid graphics and sound design, but also point out issues such as repetitive missions, lack of clear tutorials, and poorly explained mechanics that detract from the overall experience. While the core gameplay loop has potential, it suffers from balance issues and a lack of variety, leading to a somewhat uneven experience.
“The right mix of depth/complexity and accessible, easy-to-pick-up mechanics.”
“The gameplay is fun, the ships are awesome and feel powerful.”
“The gameplay loop is engaging, and the main story and side missions are compelling enough to make you want to keep playing.”
“Barely any gameplay and that which does exist is pathetically simple.”
“The bad: the camera is janky as hell, it feels like it's lacking some gameplay features with regards to shield management, there are some missions which force you to fail even when you might be in the position to succeed if the enemy ship wasn't made invulnerable.”
“The gameplay can feel repetitive at times, with missions lacking variety and progression feeling slow.”
- graphics303 mentions
- 62 % positive mentions
- 34 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game have received generally positive feedback, with many players praising the stunning visuals, detailed ship designs, and vibrant space environments. While some noted issues with character models and occasional graphical glitches, the overall aesthetic and art direction are considered impressive, especially for an indie title developed by a small team. However, a few reviews mentioned that the graphics can feel repetitive or average in certain aspects, but the immersive space combat and beautiful effects often compensate for these shortcomings.
“The graphics are stunning, the space combat is seamless, simple yet complex enough to provide a challenge.”
“This game's graphics are very good, with beautiful ships, effects, scenery, UI, and an excellent photo mode that pauses time and allows a free camera, so you can share the game's beauty with others.”
“The visuals are stunning, with detailed ship designs and vibrant space environments adding to the sense of immersion.”
“Average graphics and extremely repetitive gameplay.”
“The character models are okay at best, however, and anything besides space travel and combat has no graphics besides a few static pictures and text descriptions.”
“It's Starpoint Gemini 2 with a graphics engine from 2004 and extremely bad controls.”
- music115 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 46 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many praising its quality and ability to enhance the sci-fi atmosphere, often drawing comparisons to soundtracks from series like Battlestar Galactica. However, several players noted that the soundtrack can become repetitive over time, leading to a desire for more variety and ambient tracks. Overall, while the music is generally well-received, there are calls for additional content to keep it fresh and engaging throughout gameplay.
“This game's music is really good and sets the mood very well.”
“Great sense of immersion into a futuristic sci-fi galaxy, wonderful screenshot opportunities and music is amazing.”
“The soundtrack, although quite small, is still super addictive and pulls you into the sci-fi setting.”
“The soundtrack can get repetitive quickly.”
“Similarly, the music is annoying: overly dramatic and sounds like there's only a single track.”
“After a few hours of gameplay, game events become so repetitive that you want to tear away one of your limbs to use it to kill yourself... the same track in the background is so annoying after some time of playing that you have to suppress the music.”
- grinding62 mentions
- 6 % positive mentions
- 6 % neutral mentions
- 87 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game has received mixed feedback, with many players finding it tedious and repetitive, particularly in combat and upgrading systems. While some appreciate the satisfaction of kitting out ships and earning resources, others feel that the grind can become overwhelming and detracts from the overall enjoyment. Overall, the game is described as slow-paced, with certain mechanics, like docking, contributing to a sense of tedium.
“Surprisingly not grindy.”
“It's not too grindy, even if you want to save up for a nice ship.”
“Space traveling isn't tedious.”
“Interesting concept and some of the aspects of the game are fun, but it is very grindy and the ship combat currently is completely underwhelming.”
“But overall, the game is just slow and tedious for what it offers players.”
“Very tedious game.. can't really find anything good to say about the game.”
- stability56 mentions
- 21 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 79 % negative mentions
The game's stability is a mixed bag, with many players reporting significant bugs and glitches, particularly in inventory management and mission progression. While some users have experienced minimal issues and found the gameplay enjoyable, others have encountered game-breaking problems that hinder progress. As an early access title, expectations for stability should be tempered, with many acknowledging the potential for improvement despite the current instability.
“For an early access game, the content that exists is fully functional and bug free.”
“For an early access game, it's really bug free and worth a try; the price is good, I've had worse for the money.”
“Interesting story, fun gameplay, and relatively bug free considering it's so new.”
“The inventory/menu controls are buggy; sometimes they don't work at all, and the only solution was to save and restart.”
“Extremely buggy game, terrible controls, hidden stats, zero balance or even sensible weapons/equipment design, and a lack of player agency.”
“And it is buggy in a way that you can't even proceed further after 1 hour of playtime, due to mission bugs, etc.”
- humor52 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is frequently highlighted as a standout feature, with players enjoying its mix of hilarious dialogue, self-aware writing, and absurd side quests. While the humor can range from light-hearted and cheesy to dark and poignant, it often complements the game's themes of existential dread and emotional complexity. Overall, the comedic elements, including quirky characters and unexpected events, contribute significantly to the game's charm and replayability.
“It's just hilarious a lot of the time.”
“The dialogue, both written and voiced, is also solid and humorous, though the game does have some moments that can be dark/somber, fitting for what life in space would most likely be.”
“The game is also remarkably self-aware and funny because of that.”
- optimization34 mentions
- 24 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 29 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has received mixed feedback, with many players noting significant performance issues, bugs, and frame rate drops, particularly on medium settings. While some improvements have been made, the overall consensus is that the game is currently demanding on system resources and requires further optimization to enhance the experience. However, as it is in early access, there is hope for future updates to address these concerns.
“It is pretty demanding on video resources for what it is, but I am sure more optimization will come as development continues.”
“Being early access, there are a few areas to improve upon of course, but the game is perfectly playable, enjoyable, and the performance is good.”
“A new update for performance, so what's not to like?”
“Fix numerous bugs and lags (optimizations) that constantly force you to restart the game or see random icons bugging out.”
“Has potential, but it's terribly unoptimized. On medium settings, I can barely push 30 fps with this game, and I have a decent computer that can run most things.”
“Poor technical optimization, repetitive gameplay.”
- emotional14 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its ability to evoke a range of feelings, from laughter to tears, particularly through tragic scenes and heroic character deaths. While some players found the emotional moments impactful, others felt that the timing of these moments detracted from their overall emotional engagement. Overall, the game successfully creates a narrative that resonates deeply with players, allowing for significant emotional attachment to the story and characters.
“The story is great and the prologue can make you shed a tear.”
“It's rare that I encounter a game that allows me to become emotionally attached to the characters and the overall story.”
“I laughed, I shed a tear, and most of all I thoroughly enjoyed my playthrough of Between the Stars.”
- atmosphere14 mentions
- 71 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive qualities, with players highlighting the vibrant universe, engaging soundtracks, and the intensity of space battles. However, some reviewers feel that it could benefit from a more lively environment and deeper storytelling to enhance the overall epicness and character development. Overall, while the atmosphere is strong, there are suggestions for improvement to make it even more captivating.
“The atmosphere is amazing, with ships docking at stations and a living universe wherever you go. The music and sound effects contribute to an all-immersive galaxy.”
“The soundtrack is really good and helps to build a great atmosphere.”
“It is very atmospheric being a part of larger battles that you experience in the story.”
“Somehow it reminds me of 'Schleichfahrt'; there's also been storytelling by text boxes, but the atmosphere in battles was denser. I know it's early access, and the story is not bad, but the only thing that's lacking for me is to illustrate more of the epicness of the main story and more depth of the characters. Maybe also more strict consequences of the shown behavior.”
“- needs to have a more lively atmosphere.”
- replayability12 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is a mixed bag; while some players appreciate the variety offered by different text adventure choices and branching storylines, others find the random missions repetitive and express concerns about the main story's limited replay value. Many hope for future updates to enhance sandbox options and expand gameplay elements, which could significantly improve replayability.
“All of these elements lead to a game that is fun to play and probably offers replay value.”
“Most of the replayability comes from different text adventure choices that depend on the success of die rolls.”
“Found the random missions a bit too repetitive, and the replayability of the main story might be a problem; there seem to be some very serious branches, but that starts only deep into the story.”
“- lack of replayability at this point - I guess it's because the game is not done. Hope more will be added as I can see this becoming a Kenshi in space, which I can really get behind.”
“Now get to that completion, devs -- maybe expand the sandbox options a little too (more engagement & contract options, more ships to play with, and definitely more unique weapons) -- will help replayability.”
- character development4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Character development is a significant aspect of the game, as players must thoughtfully assign points that influence their character's statistics through a 'perk' system. Each decision made during character design directly impacts gameplay, enhancing the overall experience.
“Character design is fairly important and raises the question of how best to assign your points.”
“This is not a bad thing, however, as each choice the player makes has an impact on the player themselves, as character development can actually affect statistics using a sort of 'perk' system as you advance.”
- monetization4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviews on monetization are mixed, with some players perceiving the game as a genuine passion project rather than a cash grab, while others feel it lacks substance and is primarily focused on profit, leading to frustration and requests for refunds.
“Fix the game and maybe I'll change my opinion, but this game to me felt like a cash grab that tied up time for a refund.”
