Sea of Stars is a Must Play & Even Better Than You Expect
Console: Nintendo Switch (Also available on Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S)
Time Played: 37 hours
Let’s get two things out of the way before we really delve into Sea of Stars. Firstly, I am not typically a fan of video games with the 16-bit inspired pixel art found in games such as this one. I usually enjoy JRPGs, but definitely prefer 3D games, with recent example like Dragon Quest XI and Shin Megami Tensei V springing to mind.
Shin Megami Tensei V
Other games designed in a style similar to Sea of Star’s 2D sprite/pixel type of art, like Octopath Traveler and Triangle Strategy, might be very highly regarded, but I’ve never been able to get far into them just because of how they look. I know many gamers have nostalgia for the visuals of these types of titles, but I didn’t play many SNES games when I was younger so that doesn’t factor in for me.
Octopath Traveler
Secondly, I 100% believed after playing The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom a few months ago that it would be my favorite game of 2023. That game is definitely a masterpiece and I’d highly recommend it to anyone with a Nintendo Switch.
However, after playing Sea of Stars over the past couple of weeks, I have been forced to reconsider my opinion on both this sprite art style and also on what will likely be the game of the year. Because not only did I grow to appreciate the 16-bit inspired art over the course of my playthrough of Sea of Stars, but I believe that if I had not given Sea of Stars a chance I would have missed out on the best game of 2023 so far.
Sea of Stars is nothing short of fantastic. As far as the art is concerned, I realized as I played the game that it has a certain charm that modern 3D art often lacks. This 2D art style can still be beautiful in its own way.
As I got past those first initial hours, I found that I was enjoying the game not just in spite of how it looked, but that how the game looked visually was actually having a positive impact on my experience. A lot of that has to do with how the art has a somehow heartfelt feel to it that fits perfectly with the story. There are also scenes in key moments done in an animated style that are visually great.
Speaking of the story, it’s another strength of Sea of Stars. It’s hard for any JRPG to have a unique plot, with almost every game drawing from those that came before it. Sea of Stars is no different in that respect, with it clearly paying homage to older games, but at the same time, it brings some unique ideas to the table. It also manages to have real emotional weight to its story in a way that the far majority of games do not.
It’s uniqueness and thoughtfulness in this respect almost reminded me of a game like Undertale. Both are games that packed an emotional punch – games that make you consider the impact of your choices and feel something on a deeper level.
The turn-based combat system in Sea of Stars works well and has some interesting components to it. For example, when enemies ramp up for major attacks they display several locks that show which move types the player needs to do to stop them from attacking. Simply put, battles involve a lot of strategy. Even basic battles that would normally be used to just rack up experience points in other games require more thought and planning on the part of the player in Sea of Stars.
There are other puzzle aspects in the game as well. In combination with the battles, they create an experience that’s the right amount of challenging and fun to get through. I never found Sea of Stars to be too easy while at the same time, unlike a game like Tears of the Kingdom, I was never frustrated by any of the puzzles it presented.
As is sometimes the case with JRPGs, you definitely need to play Sea of Stars past the initial end credits to get the “true ending.” This is really necessary to find fulfillment with the story, even more so than it is with most games that offer post game content.
My one minor complaint with Sea of Stars is that there’s not an easier way to fast travel between locations. There’s a mechanic that makes traveling quicker that you unlock late in the game, but being able to travel instantly to places I’ve been is something I would’ve preferred. Still, this didn’t really detract much from my overall experience.
As a whole, Sea of Stars is one of the top two or three best games I’ve played on this console. It’s a game that I connected with on an emotional level that I think many others will as well. It’ll definitely be hard for another game to top this one as my top game of 2023.
Grade: 10/10