These battles are turn-based affairs where players use various attacks and spells against their opponents.

There are no random encounters, with players instead running into enemies they see to initiate a battle. It features gorgeous pixel art reminiscent of classic SNES and Game Boy Advance RPG titles, but with modern flair thanks to the lighting and colors used. Sea of Stars’ inspirations are very clear as soon as one lays eyes on the game. “It’s very interesting for me and the rest of the team to build this overarching thing that is consistent, even though we explore different genres with every production,” he concludes. In turn, the formula established by games like Chrono Trigger was what Sabotage turned to as it continues to build a connected universe, something not very common in the game industry. If you play our games, you’ll get the additional ‘Oh, I get that reference’ or ‘Oh, I understand that thing I was curious about better now.’” “ Sea of Stars is about a group dealing with higher stakes and traveling, whereas The Messenger made sense as a single-player game because it was about one character. “We’re telling this arc, and this is the genre of gameplay that tells that story,” he said. Boulanger credits the gameplay genre shift to Sabotage wanting to find the style of game that tells the story the best. It follows two Solstice Warriors who can control the time of day and use special Eclipse magic to defeat the Dweller, giant monsters summoned by the evil Fleshmancer.Įven though it looks, plays, and tells its story in a distinct enough way to stand on its own as a new IP, it’s actually a prequel to The Messenger. While Sabotage doesn’t plan to give this world an official name, Boulanger says its fans call it the “Saboverse.” Sea of Stars is set long before the events of The Messenger in the Saboverse, back when there was an archipelago and not just one island. Now it’s coming together in a more concrete format, but it’s all connected.” “All these things, in some form, were already in my head when I was like eight or something. “I have this fantasy world that I’ve been building since I was in elementary school, so we’re basically telling story arcs from that world,” Boulanger tells Digital Trends.

Instead, Boulanger embraces the fantasy world he started crafting as a child. Sabotage is going in the opposite direction, as Boulanger is not ready to let go of the world he became a game designer to create. Just look at what Shovel Knight developer Yacht Club Games is doing with Mina the Hollower. Typically, when a development studio launches a new game in a new genre, they like to declare it a new IP completely separate from past works. I got an early, hands-off look at Sea of Stars, and it’s clear that Boulanger is expanding the world he has inside his head with a game that takes all of the correct lessons from classic RPGs. While it might seem like a wildly different direction for Sabotage to go in, it’s actually part of a broader world that Thierry Boulanger, studio president and creative director has crafted since he was in elementary school.

Sea of stars switch