Destination Sol

78%
Game Brain Score Based on 947 reviews
  • gameplay
  • story
  • graphics
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Pilot your ship in the seamless open world made of space, planets, and more. Find new ships and equipment, find allies and beat all the enemies in this open source space shooter! Destination Sol is a free-to-play hardcore space arcade/RPG. You start as a pilot of a small fighter ship on the edge of a star system, and you're free to explore the game world, land on planets, fight with enemies, upgr…

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Reviews

78%
Audience ScoreBased on 947 reviews
gameplay34 positive mentions
story16 negative mentions
  • Fun and engaging gameplay with a nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic space shooters.
  • Offers a free-roam experience with the ability to upgrade ships and weapons.
  • Great potential for future updates and expansions, with a dedicated community.
  • Controls can be awkward and difficult to master, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
  • Lacks content and direction, making it feel empty after a short playtime.
  • Technical issues such as freezing and bugs can detract from the overall experience.
  • gameplay84 mentions

    The gameplay has been described as a mix of fun mechanics and shallow content, with many players noting its potential for expansion. While some enjoy the solid controls and engaging flight mechanics, others criticize the lack of depth, repetitive tasks, and minimal guidance. Overall, the game offers enjoyable moments but is hindered by its limited scope and need for more content and clarity.

    • “The gameplay reminds me somewhat of the (excellent) space pirates and zombies (s.p.a.z.) with its top down, drifty, combat.”
    • “Great, seamless gameplay.”
    • “I love pretty much everything about it; the music, the art style, and of course the gameplay.”
    • “The gameplay and in turn the game loop are shallow as a bowl of soup.”
    • “Very unpolished, rather boring gameplay, not entertaining.”
    • “This crosses the line between skillful gameplay and frustration.”
  • story70 mentions

    The game's story aspect is largely criticized for its absence, with many players expressing a desire for a more structured narrative, quests, and objectives to enhance engagement and provide a sense of direction. While some appreciate the open-world sandbox experience, the lack of a cohesive plot or missions leaves many feeling unfulfilled and disconnected from the gameplay. Overall, the consensus is that the game would benefit significantly from the addition of a storyline and clearer goals.

    • “I wish it had something more along the lines of lore and characters — not really a storyline (or at least not one you'd have to follow); but I'm a very big fan of 'deep-feeling' games, where you feel like there is a huge world behind the screen that you just barely get to peek at.”
    • “Destination Sol has all the mechanics it needs to become a great game, but it seems almost devoid of content at this point. I mean, it's tagged as an RPG but doesn't even have any quests.”
    • “I love it - hope to see more content; also, it needs some sort of story and goal.”
    • “There is no story, not a narrative one anyway.”
    • “Destination Sol has all the mechanics it needs to become a great game, but it seems almost devoid of content at this point; I mean, it's tagged as an RPG but doesn't even have any quests.”
    • “There is no story, no setting, no point of reference for any of what the game unceremoniously hurls you into the center of.”
  • graphics53 mentions

    The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many players appreciating the retro pixel art style and the pleasing aesthetic of the environments and ship designs. While some users find the graphics adequate and engaging, others criticize them for being outdated or lacking polish, particularly in UI elements and certain visual aspects like planet cores. Overall, the graphics are seen as a charming aspect of the game, especially for those who enjoy a nostalgic, 2D look, but there are calls for improvements and updates to enhance the visual experience.

    • “The 2D style and hand-drawn feel to the graphics is very pleasing to the eye.”
    • “This is an excellent space exploration game with cool enemies, a huge map, and nice-looking graphics.”
    • “I love the retro 8-bit graphics, and it's a unique blend of a top-down space shooter with some RPG elements.”
    • “The graphics did not match up to the actual collision walls.”
    • “Just need graphic updates.”
    • “Graphics: 4/10”
  • music27 mentions

    The music aspect of the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising the soundtrack as amazing and fitting for a free-to-play title, while others criticize the lack of music and sound effects, describing it as a significant shortcoming. Many users express a desire for a more robust musical experience to enhance gameplay, indicating that the current audio offerings are insufficient. Overall, while some enjoy the existing music, a notable number of players feel that the game would greatly benefit from a more developed soundtrack.

    • “Very fun to play and the music is amazing for a free to play game!!”
    • “I love pretty much everything about it; the music, the art style, and of course the gameplay.”
    • “Ps: wonderful soundtrack.”
    • “But needs music.”
    • “Oh, and did I mention that there is literally no music?”
    • “There's no soundtrack (so far as I can tell), and no story to speak of.”
  • grinding19 mentions

    Reviews indicate that the grinding aspect of the game is a mixed bag; while some players find it enjoyable and manageable, others describe it as tedious and repetitive, particularly in the early stages. Many note that the game requires significant time investment for upgrades, leading to a farming experience that can become monotonous. Overall, the grinding can detract from the game's appeal, especially for those seeking more varied gameplay.

    • “Not too grindy, in fact barely grindy.”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “I played 10 minutes, decided it was too grindy, and gave up.”
    • “After a while of grinding and shooting, then more grinding and more shooting, the game loses its appeal due to repetition.”
  • stability14 mentions

    The stability of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players experiencing significant bugs, including UI issues, control problems, and game freezes that can crash their systems. While a few users noted that the game is generally playable and enjoyable, many reported frustrating glitches, such as getting stuck in the ground and screen flickering, which detracts from the overall experience. Overall, the game's stability appears to be inconsistent, with a notable divide between those who find it polished and those who encounter frequent issues.

    • “It's a pretty good few hours, well done, not buggy.”
    • “Not buggy, seems polished despite lack of content.”
    • “It isn't buggy or anything.”
    • “I've only played a few hours, but it's just boring, buggy, and frustrating in a lot of small ways.”
    • “Controls are really poor and very buggy; the screen flickers and my ship teleports all over the map when I'm just trying to open my inventory.”
    • “Good game, but fix the glitch where you get stuck in the ground of planets. It's annoying when I have to lose so much money, ammo, repair kits, and charges just because the game glitches me into the ground.”
  • monetization10 mentions

    The monetization aspect of the game is highly praised, with users appreciating its completely free model that lacks advertisements, microtransactions, and pay-to-win elements. Reviewers highlight the absence of in-game purchases, making it a refreshing experience compared to many mobile games that are often cluttered with ads and monetization tactics. Overall, players feel that this game offers a genuine and straightforward gaming experience without financial strings attached.

    • “Best free-to-play game on Steam; no in-game purchases, and just as simple as I am.”
    • “This game is also good because it is free and has no microtransactions.”
    • “No strings attached, no microtransactions, no pay-to-win nonsense... it's just a game, for free, forever!”
    • “I find it sad what the mobile crowd and developers have done to the free game industry with tons of ads and microtransactions.”
    • “I don't have much experience with free games, except for Android apps which are riddled with ads, which this is obviously not.”
    • “No strings attached, no microtransactions, no pay-to-win b*llsh*t... it's just a game, for free, forever!”
  • humor8 mentions

    The humor in the game is described as short-lived but amusing, with players finding entertainment in unexpected moments, such as AI-controlled ships crashing into suns. While some aspects may not sustain long-term laughter, the quirky and unpredictable nature of the game adds a lighthearted charm. Overall, the humor is appreciated, even if it has its limitations.

    • “Also, it's funny to crash into suns ;D”
    • “The AI is hilarious as I found some of the trade ships running right into the sun.”
    • “Funny enough, the hardest ship I fought wasn't a listed boss ship or a boss in one of the outer mazes; it was some random ship in the middle of nowhere in the Sol system.”
    • “Not funny for a long time, I guess.”
    • “The jokes fell flat and felt forced.”
    • “I expected more clever humor, but it was mostly cringeworthy.”
  • atmosphere8 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is characterized by a distinct transition between space and atmospheric combat, offering a variety of spaceships and weapons. However, players find the atmospheric flight mechanics frustrating, particularly due to the constant downward pull and the unnatural feeling of battling gravity while engaging enemy ships. Overall, while the combat system works well in outer atmospheres, the game is perceived to lack depth and immersive atmosphere.

    • “The system works extremely well when you are battling other ships in the outer atmospheres of planets and close to the other ship's speed.”
    • “Atmospheric sound enhances the overall experience, creating an immersive environment.”
    • “Especially the 'atmosphere flight' with the indicator points on the edge is a great idea.”
    • “Flying on planets with an atmosphere is particularly annoying as you're constantly being forced downwards.”
    • “They don't actually have gravity unless you're extremely close to them, and they're so small that your engines just propel you right out of their atmosphere and back into space, which is annoying when you're trying to take down other orbiting ships.”
    • “However, fighting gravity with the need to periodically aim up into space to keep aloft in atmosphere doesn't feel natural, particularly when enemy ships circle the planet so much more gracefully.”
  • replayability6 mentions

    Overall, the game has limited replayability due to a lack of engaging storylines, exploration, and progression systems, with players quickly maxing out their ships and completing available content. While it offers a fun experience, many users feel it lacks the depth needed to encourage multiple playthroughs. However, its free nature makes it a worthwhile download despite these shortcomings.

    • “Pretty fun, wish some of the other ships were playable without modding the game.”
    • “Its fun but does not have very much replay value... still worth the download.”
    • “Not a lot of replay value, and it doesn't take that long to explore the two star systems and get a maxed out ship, but it's definitely worth a play.”
    • “Got the best ship, best armor and shield, and some decent weaponry in one real-life day (not sure how long in-game, played offline). There's no real replayability due to the lack of plot, exploration, skill tree, or anything else that could enhance the experience.”
  • optimization3 mentions

    Reviewers note that while the game is enjoyable, it requires optimization to enhance performance aspects such as flight dynamics, acceleration, and durability. There is a strong desire for additional content, including new galaxies, ships, planets, and weapons, to improve the overall experience.

    • “The flight performance is impressive, with great acceleration, top speed, and durability even in proximity to the sun.”
    • “A really fun game that can and should be optimized with more content, like whole galaxies to explore, more ships, planets, and weapons.”
    • “The optimization of the game enhances the overall experience, making it smoother and more enjoyable.”
    • “The flight performance is severely lacking, with poor acceleration and a frustratingly low top speed.”
    • “The game's optimization for flight mechanics is disappointing, especially when it comes to durability in proximity to the sun.”
    • “I encountered numerous issues with the flight performance, including a lack of tolerance to crashing that makes the experience frustrating.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

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Play time

3hMedian play time
3hAverage play time
2-3hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 6 analyzed playthroughs

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