Kickstarter Project of the Week: Sea of Stars

For this week’s Switch Kickstarter Project of the Week, we will be looking at Sabotage Studio’s Sea of Stars. Sabotage Studio was the talented team behind The Messenger and their next game is slated to release approximately in March 2022 on PC and consoles.

Here’s the overview:

Sea of Stars is a turn-based RPG inspired by the classics. A prequel story set in The Messenger’s universe, it tells the story of two Children of the Solstice who will combine the powers of the sun and moon to perform Eclipse Magic, the only force capable of fending off the monstrous creations of the evil alchemist known as The Fleshmancer. 

Promising the Sabotage touch in every system, Sea of Stars aims to modernize the classic RPG in terms of turn-based combat, storytelling, exploration and interactions with the environment, while still offering a hearty slice of nostalgia and good old, simple fun.

Features

• Engaging turn-based combat. Combat gameplay includes active player input during attack animations (timed hits), multi-character combo attacks, boosting, and strategic defense options to hinder enemies while they are channeling powerful attacks or spells. For a more immersive experience, there are no random encounters or transitions to separate battlefields, and no grinding. Both navigation and combat happen in the same environment.
•  Unshackled traversal. Swim, climb, vault, jump off or hoist up ledges as you run through the world with a navigation system based on platformer expertise that breaks free from the classic bound-to-the-grid tile-based movement.
•  Prequel story set in The Messenger’s universe. Dozens of original characters and story arcs will take you on a captivating journey. Sometimes epic, sometimes silly, and other times emotional, Sea of Stars does its RPG duty of exploring classic themes of adventure and friendship, while also being chock-full of the unexpected twists and events you’ve come to expect from a Sabotage production.
•  Full-on dynamic lighting our custom-made render pipeline allows the creation of a breathtaking world coming to life by pushing the limits of 2D pixel-art games.
•  The Sabotage treatment on the turn-based RPG genre. Every system has been deeply analyzed to create an experience that pays respect to retro classics, while reworking some elements in order to offer a modernized experience free of irritants and overly lengthy sequences.

After ten seconds of watching the Sea of Stars reveal trailer, you just know that this is going to be something special. As the pixel are style is clearly inspired by the 16-bit era, there was just no way that anyone could have achieved this stunning beauty on the SNES or Genesis/Mega Drive. The combat takes the familiar combat of the cult classic Chrono Trigger and that is sure to make any fan excited, especially with this stunning presentation and developer pedigree.

Sea of Stars required CA$133,000 and it is currently sitting at CA$287,359.72 after a whopping 6,212 backers with 27 days remaining. If you’d like to support the development of this game, click the link below to visit the Kickstarter page.

Thank you to our $5 and up Patreon Backers for their ongoing support:

• Andrew Caluzzi (Inca Studios / Camped Out!)
• Belinda Cubitt