Planet Stronghold

About

"Planet Stronghold" is a sci-fi role-playing game with tactical combat and base-building elements. The story follows Lieutenant John Russo, who is tasked with protecting a colonial fort from alien attacks and managing relationships with fellow soldiers. The game features multiple endings based on player choices and the option to engage in romantic relationships with various characters.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

67%

Audience ScoreBased on 72 reviews

story12 positive mentions

music3 negative mentions

The game introduces a cool sci-fi universe and offers an enjoyable journey with a crew of characters, reminiscent of Mass Effect.
Despite its simplicity, the game provides a fun experience with multiple routes and engaging romantic options.
The worldbuilding, art, and music contribute to an overall charming atmosphere, making it a worthwhile play, especially on sale.

The combat system is imbalanced and can be frustrating, with slow pacing and a lack of meaningful strategy.
The writing and character development are often criticized as shallow and simplistic, leading to a generic story experience.
Technical issues such as lag and bugs detract from the overall gameplay experience, making it feel less polished.

story
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
63%
13%
The story has received mixed reviews, with many describing it as generic, shallow, and simplistic, lacking depth in character development and dialogue. While some players found it sufficient to drive gameplay and provide a sense of progress, others criticized it for being filled with clichéd plot twists and weak writing. Overall, the narrative is seen as a blend of visual novel and RPG elements, offering a fun experience despite its shortcomings.
- “Great story, interesting development.”
- “This is a pretty fun game, the gameplay is pretty good as far as JRPGs go, and it had a good story.”
- “It's a mixture of a visual novel and an RPG, and it takes modern Bioware games as its role model, with its focus on companions, romance, and story, while still maintaining a fair number of RPG mechanics, albeit with a fraction of the budget.”
- “The story is shallow.”
- “You're supposed to either unify all races and bring peace or do the opposite (depending on whether you side with the prince/shiler or the king). I sided with the prince, but there's barely any story at all. You just get a few lines from the prince/shiler, go to a race, defeat or make a decision based on skill, go back to the prince, and repeat for the rest of the 7/8 other races.”
- “The balance of the game is really poor and the story simply doesn't make up for the rubbish combat.”
gameplay
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
33%
22%
The gameplay of "Planet Stronghold" is described as a blend of visual novel and RPG elements, offering an entertaining experience with interesting choices and a science fiction setting. While the combat mechanics are considered passable and the writing is criticized for being poor, the game provides a fun, light 10-hour playtime that keeps players engaged without becoming tedious. Overall, it draws inspiration from modern Bioware games, focusing on companions and romance, despite its limited budget.
- “As narrative games go, Planet Stronghold is difficult without being crushing, and has a lot of interesting choices and gameplay.”
- “What I also like about Planet Stronghold is the science fiction setting and gameplay, since there are far fewer sci-fi RPGs than fantasy ones.”
- “It's a mixture of a visual novel and an RPG, and it takes modern Bioware games as its role model, with its focus on companions, romance, and story, while still maintaining a fair number of RPG mechanics, albeit with a fraction of the budget.”
- “That's how bad the RPG mechanics are.”
- “While the combat gameplay is passable, the writing is beyond bad, heaping contrivance upon awkward shoe-in on top of nigh-endless obsequious player-praising that would make an Elder Scrolls writer blush.”
- “Still, it's an entertaining, light 10-hour game, which is over before you can get really bored with the mechanics.”
character development
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
33%
17%
Character development in the game is generally well-received, featuring diverse romance options and RPG elements like skill checks and inventory management. However, some players feel that while the initial impression of dynamic development is strong, it diminishes over time due to the ability to save at any moment, leading to a desire for deeper and more fleshed-out character arcs.
- “It's basically an RPG (character development, inventory, choices, skill checks!), it has all the cool romances (3 for male, 3 for female, each having a gay-only option); the fights are turn-based.”
- “I always play the female character in RPGs and take the yuri/lesbian relationship option(s) if available; character development isn't lacking, but I'd prefer it to be better fleshed out.”
- “It seems like there is a dynamic skill and character development at first glance, but it quickly wears off as you can save at literally any time during both conversations and battles.”
- “It seems like there is a dynamic skill and character development at your first glance, but it quickly wears off as you can save at literally any time during both conversations and battle.”
music
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
75%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it unremarkable, while others appreciate it alongside the worldbuilding and art. Overall, it appears to be a decent but not standout aspect of the game.
- “I like the worldbuilding, art, and music.”
- “The music is unremarkable and fails to enhance the overall experience.”
- “The soundtrack lacks creativity and does not leave a lasting impression.”
- “The music feels generic and does not contribute to the game's atmosphere.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, with long and repetitive battles that detract from the overall experience, even on medium difficulty.
- “Replaying is tedious.”
- “Even on medium difficulty, the fighting is long and grindy.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is highly regarded for its replayability, with users highlighting its fun, cute, and romantic elements that contribute to an entertaining experience. Players find multiple reasons to revisit the game, enhancing its overall value.
- “Still a great game, highly replayable for a few reasons.”
- “It's fun, cute, romantic, entertaining, and possesses replay value.”
graphics
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
The graphics are generally praised for their charm, with particularly attractive character graphics (CGs), although some users note that the overall development of the romances is lacking.
- “The character graphics are stunning, adding a unique charm to the overall experience.”
- “The visuals are captivating, making every scene a delight to behold.”
- “The art style is beautifully crafted, enhancing the immersive quality of the game.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with users reporting significant performance issues that detract from the overall experience.
- “On top of the poor combat and the bad writing, the game's performance is appalling.”