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Stars Reach

Stars Reach Game Cover
61%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:gameplay, humor
Most mentioned negative aspects:story, optimization
61% User Score Based on 408 reviews

Platforms

PCWindows
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Stars Reach Game Cover

About Stars Reach

Stars Reach is a single player and multiplayer open world role playing game with fantasy and science fiction themes. It was developed by Playable Worlds, Inc. and was released on August 18, 2026. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Early Access Roadmap About the Game An entire universe awaits you in Stars Reach. In this science-fantasy MMORPG, you'll visit strange, new worlds, become an explorer, and build a life on planets that react to everything you do. Your choices will change your world. And, you'll do it with every other player on a single server. Leave your mark on the galaxy! Each world responds to your action…

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Stars Reach screenshot
Stars Reach screenshot
Stars Reach screenshot
Stars Reach screenshot
Stars Reach screenshot
Stars Reach screenshot
Stars Reach screenshot
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Reviews

61%Audience ScoreBased on 408 reviews
gameplay12 positive mentions
story6 negative mentions
  • Deep, complex skill and crafting systems inspired by games like Star Wars Galaxies provide a rich sandbox experience.
  • Highly player-driven economy, player housing, city building, and government systems create meaningful social interactions and player agency.
  • Unique and advanced world simulation features such as fully terraformed planets, realistic physics, and dynamic ecosystems enhance immersion and gameplay.
  • The game is currently in an early alpha-like state with numerous bugs, poor performance, frequent lag, rubberbanding, and server instability.
  • Combat and movement are clunky and unpolished, with many creatures having questionable abilities and the controls often feeling frustrating.
  • The user interface is incomplete, unintuitive, and many key features like quests, grouping, and markets lack polish, which impacts player experience and onboarding.

  • story

    91 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    5% positive mentions, 88% neutral mentions, 7% negative mentions

    The game lacks a cohesive story, relying heavily on repetitive and simple fetch quests with minimal variation or narrative depth. Players frequently encounter mission bugs, long grind times to afford basic progression like homesteads, and little guidance beyond the initial tutorial. Overall, the story aspect feels bare-bones and unengaging, leaving players craving a more meaningful and polished experience.

    • “There are a few tutorial missions, and after that it's up to you to figure out what you want to do.”
    • “I've been on several missions (easy and moderate), they are a little repetitive at the moment but are still fun to help get the basics down and get out and explore.”
    • “Whether you want to go do missions for money, start crafting, go gathering, start building or start claiming your planet and building a city this game has a lot of what I have been looking for in an MMO!”
    • “Story: there is no story, carry on.”
    • “The quests you get can get a bit dry especially since you run around so much to the exact same spots; I hope they can add some spice to the boards.”
    • “While initially I was willing to grind out a bit to get to the sandbox elements of the game, this fetch quest system is so soul crushing I cannot keep it up.”

  • gameplay

    53 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    23% positive mentions, 68% neutral mentions, 9% negative mentions

    The gameplay offers a promising core loop featuring crafting, exploration, and skill trees, with unique MMO sandbox elements that encourage cooperative play and deep mechanics. However, it is currently hindered by numerous bugs, performance issues, limited content, and an unfinished feel typical of an early access alpha state. Despite these flaws, players appreciate the ambitious vision and evolving systems, but it requires patience and tolerance for instability to enjoy fully.

    • “My friends and I have been sinking hours into Stars Reach, and the core gameplay loop is genuinely fun and immersive.”
    • “Between the massive classless skill trees, deep exploration mechanics, intricate crafting, and the ability to literally build civilizations and governments from the ground up, the scope of what you can accomplish is staggering.”
    • “The systems that exist as gameplay operate as islands within the lake with one neat thing: the islands cooperate with each other in such depth that excites the crafter part of my brain and allows a wide variety of playstyles and interplayer cooperation, much like a civilization requires many hands making many things.”
    • “Gameplay: now an exciting action MMO this is not, I aimed at some deer and didn't even realize my guy was shooting with the rifle, also lots of bugs with aiming and shooting with the terrain modifier. The game does not run very well, even with the settings at low. The thing that bothered me the most was the space station hub feels empty, like a small outpost made hastily.”
    • “Also, in terms of actual gameplay this is extremely empty, with few basic quests/tasks, few buildings and few locations. It's pretty much an engine demo which needs to be free or taken off early access and remain in development for several more years before being allowed back.”
    • “Missions are hilariously lame, the gameplay loop is mostly traveling back and forth and the biggest challenge is to not fall asleep.”

  • optimization

    51 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    8% positive mentions, 51% neutral mentions, 41% negative mentions

    The game suffers from significant optimization issues, especially in the starting area, including lag, stuttering, frame drops, and server-related performance problems. However, many reviews note that performance improves notably after leaving the tutorial zones and that developers are actively addressing these issues with ongoing fixes. Overall, while the game currently feels rough and unpolished, it shows potential pending further optimization and refinement.

    • “I have a bit over 2 hours into the game and still doing the noob quests, but so far I've had no lag, no stuttering, no server issues, none of that negative stuff I read from others with just 10 minutes in the game trolling in reviews. So far I've had nothing but an enjoyable adventure on an alien planet with cool vibes and exciting encounters!”
    • “As of August 21, the team had identified and fixed a significant netcode problem that was causing performance issues, resulting in noticeable FPS improvements.”
    • “For anyone complaining about lag or performance issues, things get much better once you get out of the tutorial area.”
    • “Horrible optimization and jank: severe frame rate drops, constant hitching, micro-stutters, and rubber-banding regardless of specs.”
    • “Performance problems, lag, stuttering, broken character models, and other visible bugs make it feel closer to an internal alpha than a product ready to be sold to the public.”
    • “Terrible performance despite such low detailed graphics - their engine programmers clearly do not know what they're doing.”

  • graphics

    47 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    11% positive mentions, 74% neutral mentions, 15% negative mentions

    The graphics receive mixed feedback, with some praising the unique, stylized sci-fi art and vibrant worlds, while many criticize the outdated, basic visuals, poor textures, and jerky animations. Performance issues like lag and graphical glitches further detract from the experience, making the overall presentation feel unpolished and incomplete. Although the art style may appeal to some, technical shortcomings and lack of refinement remain significant concerns.

    • “The graphics are great, the worlds look beautiful and I have had so many breathtaking moments while exploring.”
    • “Many things will change over the next few months and the graphics just got an overhaul and look even better than they did a month ago.”
    • “Visually, Stars Reach isn't aiming for cutting-edge photorealism, but the graphics are still quite pretty for the most part, giving the galaxy a vibrant, stylized charm.”
    • “It lags really bad, rubber banding... your grappling hook graphic will stay connected hundreds of meters away because of this... you'll shoot something and it will appear with your damage numbers on it hundreds of meters away.”
    • “Graphics are missing textures, UI is horrible, animations are whack, movement is jerky.”
    • “The graphics are extremely basic, the animations are stiff, the interface and tutorial are clumsy, and the overall presentation looks years behind what should be entering early access in 2026.”

  • stability

    29 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    7% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 93% negative mentions

    The game’s stability is notably poor in its early access alpha state, plagued by bugs, glitches, lag, and unfinished features, leading to a janky and occasionally frustrating experience. However, many users acknowledge this is expected for an early release and appreciate the developers' efforts and the game's unique potential despite the current technical issues.

    • “Runs great on the base Xbox One for what it's worth.”
    • “Should you buy the game right now if you want a polished, mostly bug-free early access release game?”
    • “Unfortunately, it's severely undercooked, janky, buggy and just not interesting enough to keep playing.”
    • “Tl;dr: the early access release is a horribly buggy mess and people are reasonably upset given the price.”
    • “It is currently running extremely poorly, looks pretty bad, is Cyberpunk 2077 level of buggy and most of all is your typical 'players will create content' delusional sandbox MMO.”

  • grinding

    15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    Grinding in the game is often described as tedious and repetitive, involving extensive time spent on gathering, crafting, and grinding missions to progress or obtain homesteads. While the classless progression system offers freedom from forced roles, many players find inventory management and farming mechanics overly tedious, with some gameplay elements feeling like artificial time sinks rather than meaningful content.

    • “After farming way too many boring repetitive missions to buy myself a homestead, I had no clue on what to do.”
    • “You are pigeon-holed into grindy FedEx quests in order to get land to build on.”
    • “Gating earned recipes behind arbitrary inventory limits isn't meaningful gameplay—it's just a tedious time sink designed to mask a lack of content.”

  • monetization

    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 14% neutral mentions, 86% negative mentions

    The monetization is widely criticized as a cash grab, with users feeling the game relies heavily on early access payments, cosmetic packs, and plans for microtransactions and subscriptions, creating a perception of greed and financial exploitation rather than genuine development support.

    • “You cannot take investor money, then do a Kickstarter, then release a paid alpha on Steam as early access with cosmetic 'support' packs when those funds run out, with plans to eventually release microtransactions and a subscription to gain access to some game features, and expect people not to view it as greed.”
    • “Steam Early Access cash grab.”
    • “It is a cash grab in the fact that they needed an infusion of cash to continue development, so charging for an EA to do additional testing fulfills that need.”

  • humor

    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Users find the game's humor largely derives from its buggy, quirky moments like glitched character models and amusing in-game titles, providing some laughs despite technical issues. However, missions and gameplay are seen as dull, with humor mostly coming from the game's flaws rather than intentional comedy.

    • “So while you are waiting for the bug fixes or the releases you are looking for, find yourself a good group and share laughter at some of the silly things that happen with the bugs (I mean, come on, spawning in as a pile of sticks is too funny) and have a measure of patience.”
    • “Everyone wants AAA titles for free, and I thought it was funny that one of the titles you can get is 'Cheapskate'.”
    • “The stick figures and headless ones were quite funny, but they've already sent out two notices about the problem and possible fix.”

  • atmosphere

    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Users appreciate the game's unique and immersive atmosphere, highlighting its innovative voxel terrain and the concept of air as a fluid. Despite being an early access product, the intricate skill trees and building system contribute positively to the overall ambiance.

    • “I really like the idea of the game and the overall atmosphere they are going for.”
    • “I am enjoying a fascinating take on voxel terrain and atmosphere (no really, air is a fluid too).”
    • “The atmosphere is intricate and immersive, enhancing the overall game experience.”

  • character development

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    Users found the character development lacking, citing poor design and movement that contributed to a negative overall impression, leading to quick refunds.

  • emotional

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Users express a deep emotional attachment to the game, highlighting a sense of loss and nostalgia tied to the decline of sandbox MMOs like Star Wars Galaxies. This reflects a strong emotional impact stemming from changes in the genre.

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Play Times

5h Median play time
175h Average play time
2-37h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 6 analyzed playthroughs
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Videos

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Game News

SWG lead's new MMO, Stars Reach, almost lost me—until I met an animal conservationist mayor

August 22 on pcgamer.com

Stars Reach's Raph Koster wants the MMO to be as "wiki-resistant" as possible to keep "the magic more alive"

June 9 on pcgamesn.com

Stars Reach could be the second coming of the sandbox MMO, with player-built cities and 40+ Star Wars Galaxies-style professions to give me hope

June 9 on pcgamer.com

Stars Reach Early Access is Coming This Summer

June 3 on mmorpg.com

Playable Worlds' Growing Roleplay Series Reveals Its Ambitions for Stars Reach

March 8 on mmorpg.com
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Frequently Asked Questions

Stars Reach is a open world role playing game with fantasy and science fiction themes. Common tags for Stars Reach include futuristic, 3D, trading, stylized, crafting and others.

Stars Reach is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 175 hours playing Stars Reach.

Stars Reach was released on August 18, 2026.

Stars Reach was developed by Playable Worlds, Inc..

Stars Reach has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked Stars Reach for its gameplay but disliked it for its story.

Stars Reach is a single player game with multiplayer support.