The developers of Sea of Stars at Sabotage Studio have released another gameplay clip and provided more juicy details about the game.
First of all, we get to see a boss battle in the usual weekly gameplay clip, showing the “Arcane Singularity” special attack. It’s certainly rather flashy.
You can watch it below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=/Y5qx7XGFfBA
Next, the developers published an extensive Q&A video in which they provided plenty of details, including some about the game’s rich soundtrack directly from composer Eric W. Brown.
A super-interesting element is that the game will have a pirate band that you can meet in the taverns. The music by that band is performed by one of Brown’s friends who has a collection of traditional Irish instruments, and they will perform music that the player has unlocked (among a list of 40-50). Yet, they basically work like a jukebox, as you can go up to them and you can ask them to play the song you want.
Each pirate plays a different instrument and has his own animation loop, and when you talk to a specific pirate, he’ll stop playing visually and his instruments will be muted, which shows how much attention to detail went into this.
Another interesting detail is based on the Super Nintendo’s technical limitations. The console only had 8 audio channels, so developers had to mute the drums of the music whenever they had to add a different sound in battle. Brown has deliberately reproduced this limitation in Sea of Stars using a filter. It’s not too noticeable, but it’s a little touch that recreates the retro atmosphere from past JRPGs.
We also hear about the music created by guest composer Yasunori Mitsuda, who will have about 10 tracks in the game, while Brown composed approximately 150 tracks. Mitsuda-san composed a variety of tracks including a town theme, a boss theme, and more. Incidentally, none of his tracks included in the demo are by Mitsuda-sensei.
Speaking of the demo, which was released only for Nintendo Switch a few days ago following the latest Nintendo Direct, we hear that it’s also coming for the game’s other platforms later this year.
You can watch the full video here, with plenty more interesting details.
Sea of Stars is releasing on August 29 for PS5, PS4, Nintendo Switch, and PC. It’s a prequel set in the universe of Sabotage’s Studio acclaimed game The Messenger and it has been funded with a successful Kickstarter campaign that reached its goal in a single day.
It comes with retro-style turn-based battles that aim to renew the formula with timed attacks and defense, tactical use of damage types, and more. Of course, it also comes with absolutely beautiful pixel art visuals enriched by the dynamic lighting that you see in today’s trailer.
The story includes dozen of characters and story arcs, promising a “captivating journey,” but if you want a break, you can still enjoy side activities like fishing and minigames, including the in-game tabletop game “Wheels” that you can play at taverns.
