Lords of the Black Sun
- September 12, 2014
- Arkavi Studios
- 6h median play time
From diplomacy to war, there are far better games to occupy your time in this genre even if some are getting on in age. There are some fantastic ideas with some really great potential, but you can’t build a game on potential. Eventually, you need to go somewhere with those ideas… and Lords of the Black Sun doesn’t.
Get on Steam"Lords of the Black Sun" is a turn-based 4X strategy game set in space. Players must explore the galaxy, expand their empire, exploit resources, and exterminate enemies to become the dominant force. The game offers a rich political landscape, deep combat and diplomacy systems, and a variety of unique alien races to interact with.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game has some nice ideas and potential for future updates.
- Turn-based gameplay allows for strategic planning and decision-making.
- The music and sound design are appreciated by some players.
- The game is plagued by constant crashes and stability issues.
- It feels unfinished and lacks depth, with very little content compared to other 4X games.
- The developers have abandoned the game, leaving it in a state of disrepair and frustration for players.
- gameplay68 mentions
- 15 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this title is widely criticized for being unpolished, boring, and plagued by numerous bugs and crashes, making it often unplayable. While some reviewers see potential in the mechanics and express hope for future improvements, many feel that the current state of the game lacks depth and engagement, comparing it unfavorably to older titles. Overall, the gameplay experience is described as frustrating and uninspired, with calls for better tutorials and more refined mechanics.
“Haven't seen some progress in the past few months as it is a small indie company, but looking forward to see patches and updates to enhance gameplay.”
“Mechanically, the game is sound - as stated above, it's the sort of thing strategy gamers claim to love and want.”
“I bought the game a while ago really for no reason except I love strategy games, I love the concept of the game but these early bugs have made gameplay hard (I understand it's an alpha) but with each new update this game gets more and more enjoyable. Glad I picked it up, can't wait for the complete game.”
“Even when you're lucky enough to not encounter a crash to desktop, the gameplay itself is not quite up to scratch.”
“Every aspect of gameplay feels like it was half finished and left in its most basic form.”
“A sound enough game, but buggy as all get-out, including mysterious crashes dumping the player straight to desktop, floating point errors (especially in population counts), along with no help (combat and planet building could do with a bit of extra information on how to actually do them...) makes this a fairly poor experience even if one gets invested in the gameplay.”
- stability54 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is widely criticized for its severe stability issues, with users reporting frequent crashes, freezes, and numerous bugs that render it nearly unplayable. Many reviewers describe it as a "buggy mess" and express disappointment over its unfinished state, suggesting that it feels more like an early alpha than a completed product. Overall, the consensus is that the game's stability problems significantly detract from the experience, making it not worth the investment.
“It's a buggy and incomplete mess.”
“Interesting game, however crashes and freezes make it unplayable.”
“The game frequently crashes, freezes, etc., and the combat/invasion system is horribly broken and bugged.”
- graphics47 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 66 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received overwhelmingly negative feedback, with many users describing them as outdated, unappealing, and reminiscent of much older technology. While some early access artwork appeared promising, the actual gameplay visuals are criticized for being simplistic, lacking depth, and filled with placeholder graphics. Overall, players express disappointment, feeling misled by promotional materials that showcased better graphics than what is present in the game.
“The game leaves a pretty good first impression, with very nice and clean graphical information.”
“The game map, even though presented in a very simplistic fashion, works very well and offers a ton of graphical variety.”
“[*] great space visuals”
“No depth, awful graphics.”
“The graphics are kind of horrible for a 2010+ game.”
“The interface and graphics are a lot more dated than they should be.”
- story10 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 60 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
The game's story is criticized for being virtually nonexistent beyond the introduction, with incoherent faction backstories and a lack of meaningful direction. Reviewers express disappointment in the absence of a compelling narrative or unique gameplay elements, likening it to a generic copy of other space strategy games. Overall, the story fails to engage players, contributing to a sense of frustration and dissatisfaction.
“Oh, the story they put in for the factions makes no sense: the terrain race was once of Earth, then because of certain events they left and went to a new universe where they built a thriving civilization. And then the game starts, and your very advanced human race that has been on the planet for years now doesn't even have a factory, police station, research lab, or medical lab; all you have is a shipyard! What?!”
“I have to say this game has no direction, and that is the problem. Everything in this game is just as normal as everything in every other space strategy game but lacks a strong point like an impressive political system, ship system, combat system, or some awesome AI. But nope, they didn't focus on a story or anything special; it is a copy-paste game in my opinion, and I would like my money back.”
“Last but not least, there is no story; the battles are turn by turn.”
- music9 mentions
- 56 % positive mentions
- 11 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the quality and find it enjoyable, others describe it as forgettable and insufficient to enhance the overall experience. Despite the positive remarks about the soundtrack, many feel that it does not compensate for other shortcomings in the game's design and graphics.
“The music is really good and the game is interesting but a little clunky.”
“I like the in-game music.”
“Great soundtrack, fantastic ideas, race options, even if the differences are somewhat negligible.”
“The graphics are unappealing; the universe seems to be on this weird grid-like system. The music is not enough to keep you engaged, but it is pretty nice. The tech, hahaha, what an excuse! It feels like they spent no time on it.”
“forgettable music”
“forgettable music”
- monetization6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized as potentially exploitative, with users questioning the developer's intentions and suggesting it may be a cash grab. Additionally, the advertisements are described as misleading, presenting an attractive facade that does not reflect the actual game experience.
“I'm not sure if the developer ever actually intended to complete the game, or if this was a simple cash grab right from the start.”
“Also, the advertisements look beautiful, and are beautiful lies.”
“The advertising material and wallpaper images selling the game are grossly misleading.”
- optimization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's user interface is poorly optimized for player experience, with cumbersome menu navigation that requires excessive actions, detracting from overall enjoyment.
“The UI isn't optimized for a player's experience; it's hard to see even a neophyte developer looking at the UI and thinking, 'the players are going to love this.' Most of the menuing takes more actions than is really necessary.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of "Star Lords" shows notable progress from its alpha version, indicating a growing depth in storytelling and character development, though it still requires further refinement before its full release.
