[PlayStation 5] Starlight Legacy Assessment

Starlight Legacy fromDecafesoft and eastasiasoft is a bite-sized JRPG that wears its inspiration on its sleeve. From the second the primary scene pale in, I used to be transported straight again to the SNES period—particularly to Ultimate Fantasy V. The long-lasting pixel font, basic overworld visuals, and acquainted JRPG construction create a love letter to the golden age of 16-bit video games. Be taught extra in our Starlight Legacy overview!

Return to the fashion of 16-bit JRPGs in Starlight Legacy, a non-linear journey impressed by style classics! Set in a post-medieval world within the Evaria Kingdom, discover an unlimited kingdom created with lush 2D pixel artwork, a nostalgic turn-based battle system and non-linear story the place the 4 provinces of the dominion might be explored in any order of your selecting.

Set within the divided world of Evaria, Starlight Legacy from Decafesoft and eastasiasoft revolves round a rising battle between King Lennox and a insurgent faction in search of independence. The story’s inciting incident is the destruction of the Eternity Tree, the life supply of the land. From there, your journey begins to search out the scattered Starlight Relics and hopefully restore steadiness.

Although the primary story is pretty easy, its non-linear construction offers gamers the liberty to discover the 4 areas in any order. This freedom—coupled with cities, characters, and environments that visually echo Ultimate Fantasy V—fuels a strong sense of nostalgia. Villages look almost equivalent to these basic SNES layouts, and that instantly drew me in. The interconnected world is without doubt one of the highlights of Starlight Legacy. Dungeons are pleasantly brief, often taking round 10 to fifteen minutes to finish.

The sport affords a basic SNES-style turn-based JRPG system with random enemy encounters triggered whereas traversing the world. Sadly, the encounter charge felt a bit too excessive, even in areas that weren’t dungeons. Characters enter Rage Mode after they take sufficient injury, doubling their assault energy quickly. Every get together member additionally has a singular particular talent, although oddly, these are hidden behind the D-pad’s down arrow—one thing I didn’t discover till nicely into my playthrough.

Fight is fast-paced and paying homage to SNES-era JRPGs, along with your choices being attacking, casting magic, or defending. Every character additionally has a singular talent—oddly hidden behind the down arrow on the D-pad—which I missed for a great portion of the sport. Whereas enemies are visually diverse, battles rapidly change into repetitive because of the lack of strategic depth. Whatever the foe, you’ll typically end up utilizing the identical assault patterns, making encounters really feel monotonous over time. The absence of a mini-boss battle theme and under-average visible results additional dampen the joy.

There are some quality-of-life choices that modernize the expertise, notably, the flexibility to disable enemy encounters from the menu—identical to within the Ultimate Fantasy Pixel Remasters. One questionable design alternative is the sport’s store system. Whereas villages are scattered the world over, all of them promote the identical stock and are pushed by the story development. Moreover, whereas the graphical engine shines with some neat Mode 7-style results, the shortage of anti-aliasing makes it look overly pixelated—particularly on bigger shows, like my 55-inch TV.

Starlight Legacy captures the spirit of a 16-bit RPG with pixel artwork and visible results that, whereas often tough, nonetheless handle to be charming. The background soundtrack, nonetheless, is inconsistent. Some tracks really feel lush and acceptable, whereas others sound extra like low-quality MIDI recordsdata—lacking the emotional punch of a real 16-bit period rating.

Starlight Legacy affords an easy trophy listing that includes 2 Bronze trophies, 12 Silver trophies, and seven Gold so that you can work on throughout your trophy run for that shiny Platinum trophy on the finish of the journey. The vast majority of the trophies are tied to essential story development and finishing the sport’s 4 essential areas. A handful of miscellaneous trophies reward you for actions like defeating a set variety of enemies or acquiring key story-related objects. It’s a manageable listing for completionists, with most unlocks coming naturally as you play.

A Nostalgic Journey By means of Acquainted Stars

Starlight Legacy is a heartfelt homage to basic JRPGs, significantly the Ultimate Fantasy entries of the SNES period. It succeeds in delivering a fast-paced, nostalgic expertise with accessible gameplay and a world value exploring. That mentioned, a repetitive battle loop holds it again from true greatness. Nonetheless, for followers of retro RPGs and pixel artwork adventures, Starlight Legacy affords an gratifying journey. Starlight Legacy is obtainable as a Cross-Purchase title, so your $12.99 buy will can help you obtain the PS4 and PS5 variations of the sport at no additional price.

Disclaimer
This Starlight Legacy overview relies on a PlayStation copy supplied by eastasiasoft.