Sea of Stars

Sea of Stars is a 2023 role-playing video game developed and published by Sabotage Studio. It is set primarily on an archipelago of islands in a fantasy world, where the player controls either Valere or Zale, Solstice Warriors who use the power of the sun and moon. They journey throughout the world on a quest to destroy powerful monsters called Dwellers, and to stop the immortal alchemist who created them. The game is presented in a fixed isometric view using two-dimensional pixel art, similar to Super Nintendo Entertainment System-era RPGs such as Chrono Trigger (1995). Valere and Zale are Solstice Warriors, individuals who have control over Eclipse Magic.

Their power is the only magic able to harm the Dwellers, otherworldly monsters created by a god-like alchemist called the Fleshmancer. On their journey to defeat the last known Dweller, the Dweller of Woe, they are assisted by their childhood friend, a warrior-cook named Garl, and then an assassin named Seraï. The four track down and defeat the Dweller alongside the other Solstice Warriors—Erlina, Burgaves, and Headmaster Moraine—after which the former two betray the group and summon a cult serving the Fleshmancer. The acolytes use the monster’s remains to revive the powerful Dweller of Strife. Determined to defeat the Dweller, the party travels to Mesa Island. 

They discover the home of an alchemist named Resh’an, who is later revealed to be the Fleshmancer’s rival and former associate. Together, they created the elixir of life, which granted them immortality. Over time, the Fleshmancer became cynical and misanthropic, leading him to create the Dwellers to spread chaos. In response, Resh’an began training the first Solstice Warriors, sparking a conflict between the alchemists spanning countless parallel universes. The conflict continues in each universe until the Dwellers grow into apocalyptic beings called World Eaters, or the Solstice Warriors gain enough power to become guardian gods. Sea of Stars is a role-playing video game (RPG) set primarily on a set of islands in a fantasy world, in which the player-character and their allies navigate the terrain and fight off hostile creatures.

The game world is divided between an overworld map, depicting the landscape from a scaled-down view, and navigable areas such as forests and towns that are depicted as more realistically-scaled. Both of these are presented in a fixed isometric view using two-dimensional pixel art, similar to Super Nintendo Entertainment System-era RPGs such as Chrono Trigger (1995). In the navigable areas, the player can converse with locals to procure items and services, solve puzzles and challenges, or encounter enemies. The player navigates the game world by controlling either Valere and Zale, the Solstice Warriors, which they select at the outset of the game. The other members of the active party, up to two characters, follow them. In co-op mode, each player controls one of the three characters.

The characters can freely run, swim, and climb the terrain as if it were a fully three-dimensional world. Enemies, typically monsters, are located in specific locations throughout the game world, and will attack upon being approached, with battles taking place in fixed positions at those locations. Battles are turn-based, with no time limit on turns. On each of the player’s turns, they can have one of the active party members take an action: attacking, using a unique ability, using an item, or using a special charged ability. Once a character has taken an action, they cannot take another one until all active party members have done so. Enemies have countdown timers for the number of player turns until they can take an action; multiple enemies can take an action on the same turn if their timers run out simultaneously.