honestly just a downgrade from MK11 and even that was a downgrade from MKX but thats another story. they removed all cosmetic customization except for like 1 accessory per character that you can change. and some skins you can buy for real money :| the premium version of the game literally costs $110 and there are still purchaseable cosmetics in the store FFS.

they locked many characters behind "kameos" which are just sidekick/assists that only do 1 thing when you press a dedicated button.. some popular and notable characters that I would rather play the game as are locked behind this feature like Jax, Sonya, Cyrax/Sektor, etc... also the cutscenes are really stuttery and laggy for whatever reason. There are even less characters in the base roster than MK11, and as the cherry on top, the "kombat pack" will be releasing 1 singular character each month. hysterical

also you can't customize the characters moveset like how in MK11 you could choose invididual special moves to give your character and make different builds with different combinations of moves, which actually allowed for a lot of character variation and like I said before, builds. Even in MKX you could choose between 3 moveset presets per character that sometimes even changed the appearance of the character based on the moveset which was really cool. However in this game theyve completely removed that so its just back to a normal fighting game where you pick a character and play.

the gameplay itself is alright, it feels pretty similar to MK11 with the addition of the assist characters, though you also can't interact with objects in the stages anymore which was a weird choice to remove that feature. another weird removal of a beloved feature was combo tagging... you used to be able to go into the options, and add a little star to multiple combos to then have them overlayed on the screen in training for you to practice. well they removed that as well for seemingly no reason.

overall it just feels like a significant downgrade to MK11 in pretty much every single aspect. and if you're one of those people who care about the visual appeal and graphics of a game, it looks exactly like MK11. For $70 this is completely unjustifiable. Maybe if you are a huge MK fan then it would be justified but otherwise I would recommend maybe waiting until you can buy it for like 40% off at the least.

The pixel art in this game is among the most beautiful I've seen this year with great lighting effects to showcase the cool glowing auras of the characters and the glowing visual effects for the attacks and skills. The music seems basic at first, but as you progress in the game and the story it becomes increasingly fun. It may also be nostalgic for SNES rpg fans.

The combat is super interactive and unique and allows you to affect how much damage a move does or which targets it affects depending on where you use it by pressing certain button inputs during a movie or at the right time a spell hits, etc. In this game there are also combos and ultimate attacks, which are both special moves that you can perform in battle by building up a meter throughout. These moves typically involve performing a skill with another party member and unleashing your ultimate signature move to deal tons of damage, respectively. Mechanics like these in combat is what makes sea of stars very fun and memorable and prevents it from becoming repetitive. As you unlock new party members, progress the story, and explore new areas, you will unlock new ultimate attacks and combos to use in battle. The combat also takes place in real time rather than entering a loading screen or some flashy animation to start combat. When you engage a target, or vice versa, the characters hop into place and immediately are ready for battle. It's practically seamless and is another reason why the combat doesn't get stale, unlike some rpgs like Pokemon with its extremely repetitive and long intro random encounters.

Another cool feature is that you can cook meals in this game. Instead of your standard elixirs and potions you would normally find in other rpgs, this game allows you to cook meals at rest spots like bonfires or stoves with ingredients you have collected along the way or bought from a merchant. each meal has amazing and appetizing pixel art in the menu as you cook them, and of course their own healing and mana restoration effects. Little deviations like the aforementioned from the standard formula of an rpg is what makes Sea of Stars such a breath of fresh air.

The story is really cool from the start, but picks up even further around halfway through the game to tell an epic story of all the characters you will meet. I don't want to spoil anything because it's so great so I won't say more on it, but if you're looking for a story-centered or story-driven rpg, I 100% would recommend this game. All of the different aspects I have mentioned as well as the story cement this game as my 2023 GOTY for sure. Buy it!

buggiest game ive ever played. many many gamebreaking bugs. people say it has gotten better from the numerous patches they've released but I'm writing this on january 18th 2023 and its still a buggy mess. Ive fallen through the roads multiple times, crashed, gamebreaking bugs like one where my character couldnt move or shoot and none of the sound effects besides the music would work. Im on all high settings and the framerate is great because my specs are pretty good, so the issue is not that my computer can't run it, its just extremely buggy.

its just overwatch 1 with a few tweaks and terrible server and loading issues. However the issue lies in its business plan.. Before, the game was pay to play, which was fine. 1 purchase to play the game forever, and you can earn lootboxes and cosmetics for free.... and they had their own in game currency that you could earn by playing 100% for free, but now that the game is free to play in an attempt to revive the game and boost player count, you have to pay for nearly every cosmetic in the game... lootboxes dont seem to exist anymore, you can only buy legendary skins with the paid currency, there is a paid battlepass, and you have to play hundreds of games to unlock the heroes..... and the PVE story mode thing isnt even out on release......