Star Merchant

About

Star Merchant is a single player casual strategy game. It was developed by SimProse Studios and was released on March 7, 2017. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Star Merchant" is a galactic trading simulation where you become a space entrepreneur, buying and selling items, upgrading your ship, and striving to meet self-appointed goals without going broke. The game features a slick high-res UI, randomly generated items and universe, and the option to choose from 4 starting ships with different advantages. Note: The game requires 100% fonts in Windows 8 and up or 96 DPI system fonts in Windows 7, and uses 1024x768 resolution in Fullscreen mode.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

62%

Audience ScoreBased on 136 reviews

graphics4 positive mentions

story3 negative mentions

The game is simple and easy to play, making it a relaxing experience.
It offers a nostalgic feel reminiscent of older games, appealing to those who enjoy casual gameplay.
The game is inexpensive and provides some entertainment value, especially for players looking for a straightforward trading experience.

The game lacks depth and becomes repetitive quickly, with minimal challenge involved.
It has significant technical issues, including a fixed resolution that can disrupt gameplay on modern displays.
Many players feel it is a cash grab with poor graphics and minimal content, not meeting the expectations of a modern game.

graphics
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
9%
84%
7%
The graphics of the game are largely criticized for being outdated and limited, as it only supports a fixed resolution of 1024x768 with no customization options. Many reviewers describe the visuals as mediocre and reminiscent of older games, lacking in detail and animation, which detracts from the overall experience. While some find the graphics acceptable for the game's price point, the general consensus is that they are subpar and hinder the gameplay.
- “Somewhat weird space trading simulator – it has mechanics of a game from the 80s, with graphics from the turn of the millennium.”
- “There's nothing stunning about the graphics, but there's nothing I'd consider game-breaking or corner-cutting.”
- “Decent graphics, interesting story play, and a simple though tricky journey in developing your economy.”
- “Warning: due to development with an old codification, this product has no graphic configuration options and only runs in 1024x768 resolution for a 4:3 screen aspect ratio, making it unplayable in others like 16:9.”
- “There's no way for gamers to try to improve the low-quality graphics.”
- “While the artwork itself might be considered passable, the visual presentation here is negligible; it might as well be a slideshow or a YouTube video.”
gameplay
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
72%
14%
The gameplay is criticized for its outdated mechanics and simplistic design, resembling a poorly executed space trading simulator that lacks engaging elements like combat and exploration. Players report confusion due to insufficient explanations of game mechanics, and the overall experience feels reminiscent of older games, with a user interface that is more akin to a browser game. While some players find enjoyment in character development, the gameplay is generally described as uninspired and plagued by technical issues.
- “I enjoyed building up my character and felt right at home enjoying the gameplay.”
- “I had a warm deja vu feeling in the gameplay, and there are certainly similar elements to games I used to play and enjoy like Taipan, and even some elements of Santa Paravia and Fiumaccio.”
- “I had no difficulty in running this game nor its gameplay, but then thankfully I've been blessed with the ability to read and was quite aware of the graphical issue if you did meet the requirement (that being, adjust your fonts if you have them configured differently than required by this game).”
- “This is a 'new' space merchant game with old mechanics and lazy implementation.”
- “This time they've got their hands on a simplistic, poorly done 'space trading' business simulator, basically like Elite Dangerous except you cut out all the spaceship combat, spaceflight, exploration, action, gameplay, etc., and just have the raw number crunching as you buy low and sell high.”
- “A lot of pointing and clicking, no real explanation of game mechanics left me feeling confused about how the game works.”
story
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
58%
25%
The game's story is criticized for lacking a coherent narrative and proper level design, relying instead on repetitive procedural generation, which detracts from the overall experience. However, some players appreciate the underlying moral about perseverance and the potential for unexpected outcomes in life, alongside a desire for a more developed storyline related to the game's setting. Overall, while the graphics and economic gameplay are noted as decent, the storytelling aspect leaves much to be desired.
- “Moral of the story: you never know what life has in store for you, and if I had given up when all odds were against me, I wouldn't be where I am today.”
- “Decent graphics, interesting story play, and a simple though tricky journey in developing your economy.”
- “The game features no proper level design or game/story flow/plot, as they opted to try to use samey repetitive procedural generation algorithms as a substitute for adding such content to the game, to avoid doing the important job of level/map design.”
- “A storyline with a narrative about the planets and what they produce and consume would be nice.”
- “---{story}---”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
The music in "Star Merchant" is described as minimal yet enjoyable, with players appreciating the quality enough to keep it on instead of playing their own music. The battle music stands out as a favorite feature, contributing positively to the overall experience despite the game's non-reliance on sound.
- “While Star Merchant isn't the sort of game that depends on sound, I have to admit, the times I've played it, the game music and sounds were good enough to where I forgot to mute the game and play my own sort of music in the background.”
- “The battle music would have to be my most favorite feature of Star Merchant.”
- “Music and sound effects are minimal.”
- “I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
grinding
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and time-consuming, often requiring significant effort to farm cards and other items. Many express frustration with the repetitive nature of grinding, suggesting it detracts from the overall enjoyment of the game.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Tedious, tedious, tedious, tedious.”
- “Did I forget to mention it's tedious?”
monetization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization of "Star Merchant" has been heavily criticized as a blatant cash grab, with reviewers labeling it as shovelware created by the developers, Trinity Project, who allegedly recycle game templates and assets without originality. Many users feel that the game is a scam, designed primarily to profit from minimal effort and pre-existing resources.
- “Star Merchant is yet another ripoff/cash grab from serial shovelware pushers, Trinity Project.”
- “These guys do nothing but copy premade game templates and game tutorials, fill out a few things, stamp out basic levels using the construction kit templates, slap on an asset-flipped set of sprites/assets, and dump them on Steam and into cheap, nasty shovelware game bundles as cash grabs.”
- “Trying to get paid for someone else's game templates and assets... at best, this is shovelware; at worst, it's a scam/cash grab.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
25%
50%
Overall, user experiences regarding stability are mixed; while some report encountering glitches, others have played for extended periods without any issues, indicating a generally stable performance for many players.
- “Played the first game in 80 minutes, no bugs, no glitches, and I rule the galaxy.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players appreciate the game's humor, noting that it effectively combines comedic elements with solid management mechanics, despite its 2D graphics.
- “The game is 2D but has very good management and is very funny.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is largely criticized, with users expressing strong disappointment and advising others to avoid it entirely. The lack of emotional engagement or impact leads to a consensus that the game fails to resonate with players.
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of the game is praised for its relaxing quality, providing a refreshing contrast to the intensity of larger 4X and similar games. Players appreciate this calming environment as a welcome change in their gaming experience.
- “I found the relaxing atmosphere a nice break from some of the huge 4X games and other types of games I play.”