Heartbreaking: Sea Of Stars Demo Only Exacerbates Hype

In case you’re new around these parts, I’ll let you in on a secret:

Sea of Stars is one of, if not the, most anticipated game on my calendar for 2023.

So you can imagine my sheer delight when it was announced in yesterday’s Nintendo Direct that the demo for said game would be live in the eShop for immediate consumption and enjoyment.

And indeed, I did drink deeply of the Sea of Stars cup late into the evening, and where I had hoped my soul would be sated until it’s arrival in August, it is instead left wanting - in the best way possible.

My hype for this game is reaching levels previously unheard of, but this is the obvious result of Sabotage Studios’ meticulous care in crafting a game that has been set up by many nostalgic millennials as the second coming of Chrono Trigger.

A lofty goal, to be sure: but if any studio was going to do it, I would trust the folks that brought us The Messenger.

The recently released Sea of Stars demo is extremely well-designed: a great sampling of the narrative, the combat, exploration features, as well as the lush environments and stunning soundtrack. You have an opportunity to pick between the blue-haired “Moon Child” Valere or the golden “Sun Boy”, Zale as the quest begins. Of course, their close friend (and cook), Garl, is close behind.

Almost immediately, the world of Sea of Stars pulls you in with its vibrant, pixelated settings and characters. Shortly after making a trek down the mountain, you enter a port town known as “Brisk”, and engage in a parlay with pirates. Their individual designs are vivid and interesting, with nuanced body language and charming scenarios that harken back to that 90s era.

While you may be getting lost in the aesthetics, take care not to get too distracted, as the combat rears its head within the first few minutes. A number of the core battle mechanics reward well-timed responses, from Valere’s moonerang technique, that rewards keen timing with additional hits and damage, to Zale’s Sunball, which deals optimal damage when released at the right time. In addition, as you damage enemies they drop motes of energy, which you can then absorb to give a character a “boost” of MP and power. These elements (and others that have been alluded to in previous sneak peeks) result in a combat system that is wholly engrossing, without a single action or moment wasted.

Lest you think the combat is easy enough that you can get by simply by spamming “attack” - I will say it’s refreshingly challenging. A balance of using the boost feature and improving your timing with the various skills will lead to a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment throughout the handful of battles the demo offers up. For those that want to enjoy the narrative, I also appreciated the presence of a “relic” that increased max HP by 100 and healed 75% of said health after each battle. This relic could be toggled on or off with ease from the menu, and provided a good exit strategy if you hit a particularly challenging patch in the demo.

Thankfully, when (not if) you have a character that goes unconscious, unlike traditional RPG elements, you don’t have to rush for a phoenix down to bring them back into the fray. Making it through a round or two will often have them re-join the battle, at least on their first knockdown. A secondary KO typically means extended downtime, and more healing may be in order.

Sea of Stars is a game that encourages engagement - not just in combat, but throughout its beautifully constructed world. At times you might feel like you’re playing a platformer with the way the characters scale walls, leap across chasms, and interact with items and trap mechanisms.

This invitation to participate in everything you can see helps to heighten your personal investment in the world, and ultimately your role in striving to defend it from the evil forces that seek to do it harm.

In short, the Sea of Stars demo has begun to fulfill its own Great Promise - while time will tell if it will successfully carry the weight of expectation that thousands of gamers have now hoisted upon it, this is certainly an encouraging first look at what could be one of the best games of 2023.