STAR-BOX: RPG Adventures in Space
- August 17, 2015
- Michael Flynn
Get on Steam"STAR-BOX: RPG Adventures in Space" is a retro-styled open-world RPG set in a sandbox universe in the year 4135. Players can explore alien worlds, abandoned cities, and space-stations while collecting items, weapons, and armors. The game features dynamic events and tactical combat, with players having the opportunity to lead a rebellion against a corrupt government and capture enemy vessels. The choices made by players will impact the story and gameplay experience.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game has an interesting concept and a solid foundation for a potentially great RPG experience.
- Exploring randomly generated planets and ships offers a lot of depth and an infinite area to explore.
- The storyline is engaging and enjoyable, with fun old-school style graphics.
- The game is plagued by numerous bugs, crashes, and unresponsive controls, making it frustrating to play.
- The user interface is clunky and inconsistent, leading to a poor overall experience.
- Despite its potential, the game feels unfinished and lacks the polish needed for a commercial release.
- story18 mentions
- 11 % positive mentions
- 72 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The game's story is described as engaging and enjoyable, but it is often overshadowed by game-breaking bugs and stiff controls, which detract from the overall experience. While players appreciate the fun of exploring space and completing missions, many feel that the narrative lacks depth and direction, leaving them wanting more substantial content. Overall, the story is seen as a positive aspect, but its potential is hindered by technical issues and a lack of variety in missions.
“Controls are a little stiff, but the storyline is engaging and enjoyable.”
“I hope the developers continue on with it and come up with many more missions and not just political.”
“The biggest sin I think this game engine brings to the table is that it overshadows the story.”
“You are spending so much time being annoyed by it that you just don't even care about the story.”
“It is an ARPG at its core, with a story, albeit short at the moment.”
- optimization14 mentions
- 14 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is severely lacking, with players reporting significant performance issues, including frame drops and crashes even on high-end systems. The combat mechanics feel sluggish and unresponsive, contributing to an overall frustrating experience. Many users recommend waiting for improvements before purchasing, as the current state is riddled with bugs and a poorly designed options menu.
“I would suggest holding off for a bit longer until the dev gets around to improving his game's performance, interface, and quality in general.”
“The developer is also in the habit of deleting posts about performance from the Steam forums without rhyme or reason.”
“Very poor, even for a game made in RPG Maker - very unoptimized to the point the game becomes unplayable after using the first wormhole in the tutorial. I selected 'random space' to explore before heading to the Earth faction, as the tutorial implied.”
“The game isn't optimized, runs poorly on new systems, the options menu is an abysmal joke, and there are so many bugs that it's not worth $10.”
“Even on a high-performance machine, I experienced frame drops and crashes; even when the game isn't lagging, it still feels like I'm struggling to execute the controls I want because of the awkward mechanics.”
- graphics12 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are a mixed bag, featuring a nostalgic old-school style that some players appreciate, while others criticize the poor integration of various freeware space graphics packs, resulting in an unattractive visual presentation. Additionally, the game suffers from performance issues, with limited graphical options and a resolution cap that hinders the overall experience, particularly when attempting to exceed the engine's intended 640x480 resolution.
“The graphics and music are great too.”
“The game has fun old-school style graphics (I enjoy it at least, not everyone's cup of tea I understand though).”
“Not certain how a game with RPG Maker graphics and only being about 212 MB in size can be so laggy.”
“No graphical options apart from being able to toggle full screen. The game doesn't work at a resolution above 1080p, and the resolution can't be changed within the game (INI hacks needed, even by the dev) as that is against RPG Maker's terms and conditions, mainly because that engine was only designed to work in 640x480. Frame rate (and user experience) plummets the more you try and push it past that resolution.”
“Graphics are taken from multiple freeware space graphics packs and really don't look good all mixed together.”
- music10 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 30 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players finding it atrocious and monotonous, while others appreciate the variety offered by a jukebox feature. Many users express relief at the option to turn off the music, suggesting that improvements in sound design could enhance the overall experience. Despite the divisive opinions, the game's concept is generally regarded as solid.
“The graphics and music are great too.”
“I love the music and the cute little jukebox to change up the tunes :) The game has a friendly developer that is open to suggestions.”
“The concept of the game is solid, and with better sounds and music, it could really shine.”
“The music and sound are atrocious; thankfully, there is an option to turn off the music.”
“This game is awful. The interface is clunky, the controls are basic at best, and even though you can change the BGM, I could poke out my eardrums with an ice pick if I have to listen to the 8-bit monotone music again.”
“The music and sound are atrocious; thankfully, there is an option to turn off the music.”
- gameplay10 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The gameplay has been criticized for its poor performance, including low framerate and laggy controls, which significantly detracts from the overall experience. Even on high-end machines, players report frame drops and awkward mechanics that hinder control execution, leading to frustration. While the game's concept shows potential, the execution fails to deliver a fun and engaging action-oriented experience.
“Can't tell you much more about the gameplay as I could only bear playing for about 30 minutes due to the very low framerate and associated laggy feel of the controls.”
“Even on a high-performance machine, I experienced frame drops and the aforementioned crashes; even when the game isn't lagging, it still feels like I'm struggling to execute the controls I want because of the awkward mechanics.”
“The concept is interesting, but the overall lack of integrity in gameplay breaks any hope you may have for it right now.”
- stability6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is widely criticized for its instability, being described as buggy and unfinished despite being marketed as a completed product. Reviewers note that while it shows potential and can be enjoyable, it requires significant improvements to address its inconsistencies and technical issues.
“This game is buggy, unfinished, and fun... it needs so much work from the developer. I like it, it looks promising, but it is not in early access; it is really sold as a finished game.”
“It's buggy and inconsistent (which is more a limit of cramming something ambitious into the RPG Maker XP engine).”
“Buggy and unfinished.”
- grinding2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players appreciate that the action RPG emphasizes skill over grinding, distinguishing it from many turn-based RPGs that often rely on repetitive grinding for progression. This focus on skill-based gameplay enhances the overall experience and engagement.
“This action RPG rewards skill, as opposed to just rewarding grinding like many turn-based RPGs do. It's not turn-based, obviously being an ARPG.”
“This action RPG rewards skill, as opposed to just rewarding grinding like many turn-based RPGs do. It's not turn-based, obviously being an ARPG.”
