Starpoint Gemini
- February 16, 2012
- Little Green Men Games
- 50h median play time
An intelligent and deep open world RPG, Starpoint Gemini will give the thinking man a worthwhile adventure, though it may be a little too slow paced for some
Get on Steam"Starpoint Gemini is a tactical RPG set in a sci-fi universe, where advanced technologies coexist. After twenty years in stasis, a player returns to find Gemini isolated and drastically changed. With new political powers, advanced technology, and numerous anomalies, the player must navigate the challenges of this transformed system."
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game offers a vast open world with numerous sectors to explore, providing a sense of freedom and adventure.
- There are interesting ship customization options and RPG elements that allow players to upgrade their ships and skills.
- Despite its flaws, some players find the game engaging and enjoyable, especially for fans of the space sim genre.
- The game is plagued by numerous bugs and crashes, making it nearly unplayable for many users, especially on modern systems.
- The controls are clunky and unintuitive, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
- Voice acting and dialogue quality are poor, detracting from the overall immersion and enjoyment of the game.
- story54 mentions
- 11 % positive mentions
- 76 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The story of the game is described as having potential with an interesting premise, but it suffers from poor execution, including clunky dialogue and voice acting that detracts from the experience. While some players appreciate the variety of missions and the opportunity for free play, many find the repetitive nature of the missions and the lack of polish to be significant drawbacks. Overall, the narrative is seen as a mixed bag, with some players recommending it for its story alone, while others suggest avoiding it due to its flaws.
“Great missions and storyline mixed with great free play make this one a must-have.”
“The plot is interesting, the world is large, combat and movement is simplified but not too simple, and the missions have a bit of variety.”
“Campaign is pretty straightforward; complete missions to get to the end of a story.”
“Story and dialogues voice acting are bad, borderline horrible.”
“Dull missions, terrible combat, and horrible voice acting.”
“This game has that and more plot holes.”
- graphics19 mentions
- 16 % positive mentions
- 68 % neutral mentions
- 16 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have been widely criticized for being dated and lacking polish, with many reviewers noting that they fall short compared to other titles in the genre. Issues such as poor collision detection, washed-out backdrops, and a simplistic user interface further detract from the visual experience. While some players found enjoyment in the gameplay despite the graphics, the overall consensus is that they do not meet modern standards, especially for a game released in 2012.
“Graphics are definitely not top-notch, but flying around in your spaceship, destroying baddies, using skills and ship abilities all gives a nice feeling to it.”
“Generally, the first thing a gamer notices is the graphics, but that's only the most obvious thing and it doesn't make a game.”
“[Solid graphics, impressive combat, meaningful exploration, decent story, satisfying customization].”
“The game is far from polished and the graphics are showing their age.”
“For a 2012 game, this is quite poor, graphically outdated and the sound, especially voice acting, is lackluster.”
“Unfortunately, the graphics are inferior to other space titles such as X3, and the Russian-accented narration is nearly unintelligible at points.”
- gameplay10 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 30 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
The gameplay is criticized for being slow, grindy, and lacking polish, with mechanics that unnecessarily extend playtime, such as mandatory level grinding for plot progression. While some players appreciate the game's mechanics and interactivity, the overall experience is marred by frustrating design choices and poor writing, leading to a lack of recommendation despite its potential.
“If you examine an item in the commodities and equipment, there's no problem with the systems mechanic at all. You can learn the average price of that commodity (presumably in relation to all the ports in the game), and then when you go to purchase it, you can determine its actual price in the outpost you're in at the time.”
“Expect 20-50 hours of gameplay before you finish the plot line or get bored of playing.”
“I'm not recommending this game, despite my love for its mechanics, tactics, and interactivity; not because it's dated, not because there are a few bugs here and there, and not because of the awful dialogue in the story mode - because ultimately, they actually kind of endear me to the title.”
“The gameplay is slow and grindy.”
“The game completely lacks polish and it uses frowned upon mechanics to extend gameplay (e.g. requirement to level up 1-3 levels to progress the plot even though levels aren't even really useful beyond level 15 and having to occasionally travel through a dozen sectors to get to where you need to be).”
“It looked like it had potential, but terrible writing and frustrating gameplay mean I can't recommend it.”
- music7 mentions
- 71 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally praised for its beauty and relaxing qualities, enhancing the overall experience, especially during gameplay moments like scanning derelicts. However, some users note that the soundtrack is limited in variety, leading to repetitiveness over extended playtime. Overall, while the music is enjoyable, it may not meet the expectations set by its sequel.
“My 100+ hours of playtime is mostly catching a 20-minute nap while listening to the absolutely beautiful intro music :)”
“It is fun, it's indie, it's enthusiastic, and it has a nice soundtrack.”
“The game supports widescreen resolutions, the Steam overlay, and is complemented by a relaxing musical score.”
“The music selection leaves a bit to be desired.”
- grinding3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be frustrating, citing slow gameplay and tedious travel between sectors as major issues. The inability to effectively use the quicksave feature during lengthy dialogues and mission events exacerbates the grind, making the experience feel even more drawn out.
“The gameplay is slow and grindy.”
“Traveling to different sectors is tedious, having to navigate to the jump points.”
“It's a pity the quicksave button doesn't work, because you have to save a lot... except it doesn't actually let you save during the prolonged and tedious dialogs and during mission events.”
- stability3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is reported to be highly unstable, particularly on Windows 10, with frequent crashes occurring every 30 minutes, even in compatibility mode. Users have found it nearly unplayable due to persistent bugs and freezes, leading to significant frustration in attempts to resolve these issues.
“Extremely buggy on Windows 10; crashes every 30 minutes even when run in compatibility mode.”
“I would have toughed it out through this mess of a game, but it's literally unplayable. I spent hours trying to fix/get around constant crashes and freezes.”
“Tldr: buggy.”
- monetization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game is heavily criticized, with users expressing a strong preference for ad-laden webpages over the frustrating experience of the game's monetization tactics.
“I'd rather read a webpage 100 scrolls long with ads and annoying self-playing videos than sit through another minute of this 'game'.”
“The monetization model is so aggressive that it feels like the game is designed to squeeze money out of players rather than provide a fun experience.”
“It's frustrating to see that progress is locked behind paywalls, making it nearly impossible to enjoy the game without spending real money.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Users report significant optimization issues, particularly on older systems, where severe stuttering hampers gameplay and navigation through menus, leading some to abandon the game entirely.
“Before, on my old system, I could access the menus without any issues and play the game. However, on that system, the stuttering was so bad that I had no choice but to give up.”
“The optimization is terrible; I experience constant frame drops and lag, making it nearly unplayable.”
“Even on high-end hardware, the game struggles to maintain a stable frame rate, which is incredibly frustrating.”
