Though you won’t see that type of star on Star Overdrive, nor will you see much in the way of civilisation either, this open world explorer from Caracal Games is worth a shot if you want the freedom to roam without having to worry about speed limits, curfews, or even gravity.
As Bios, you’re drifting through space playing some retro title with a Switch Pro Controller when a distress call reaches out to you, forcing you to exit your game and crash land onto a barren planet. Luckily, this barren planet is the location of some hot bit of stuff that needs your help in releasing them from a tower.
Upon arrival, you gain access to their hoverboard in addition to your trusty keytar. No, you don’t play music a la The Artful Escape, but you hit enemies hard with it in exchange for some shiny materials to customise your gear. For its exploration content and visual style, Star Overdrive is comparable to Haven, as well as Omno.
Star Overdrive Review (PS5)
So, you’re now exploring the planet on your new hoverboard or foot, though the latter is when entering combat and exploring abandoned tech. The movement and freedom are smooth and swift, and there are no notable invisible walls, just the limitation of your board running out of energy on certain surfaces.
The first restriction is water. Like Back to the Future II (there’s the Zemeckis reference), the hoverboard becomes stationary when wet, eventually disappearing and Bios drowning. By far, the worst part of Star Overdrive is the frequent deaths and game over scenes. These either happen in combat due to a flaky, though upgradeable shield, or when unable to move over water.
Get this: the titles flash game over, and then you can immediately continue from the same point, often with the same items you collected and enemies having the same damage. This works well as it also hinders. For the casual or frustrated gamer, getting through difficult sections becomes easier, but for hardier players, it makes it somewhat easy. In many ways, Star Overdrive also shares several similarities with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
A Breath Of Fresh Air
Exploration is very much open, and you can do as you please to squirrel away resources to customise your board with parts that make it faster, more airborne, or a new lick of paint, not just to make it pretty, but frequent sprays give it a boost. You can’t overpower as such, though investing in the board is key.
With the main objectives, you enter a tower and power it up using your board’s supply. The hoverboard is unusable in these sections, so like BOTW, you use newly unlocked skills to solve switch-like puzzles to progress. Skill points are also awarded that improve board energy, attack power, and defence. Once you hit relatively hard, I encourage some investment in the defence as it’s a bit poo.
As mentioned, exploration presents materials to boost the board, but so too does combat. Enemies can be locked onto, and you could attempt to melee them, but as stated, the defence is rubbish by default, so you start to experiment with the powers and throwing enemies at one another or zapping them with a projectile. Not only is this efficient, it’s a lot more fun than the actual melee combat.
The Key To The Planet
What was most surprising about Star Overdrive is just how big it is. Initially trapped by water, completing set pieces or challenges, such as an early Dune-like worm that you ride and slap about, will award new gear that lets you skim over water, metal and more without fear of coming to a halt. Momentum is important in the game, not just to avoid those annoying game over titles, but because there’s a fair amount of treasure hunting in awkward places, or time trials.
Thankfully, the latter is just the right blend of challenge. By the time you encounter your first one, you should have a board relatively adept at handling, instigating a bit of bum squeaking when you only have 3 seconds left on the clock and in failing, have to repeat it. But once again, that free roam element means you can move at a leisurely pace, look for new customisations, cassette tapes with some exposition, and other bits and bobs.
Star Overdrive is a visually appealing game, and the music is decent as well. Shifting from your feet to the hoverboard is easy peasy, and through natural progression, you can customise the way the board handles, its speed and whatnot. My only other reservation, besides the game over titles, is perhaps the jumping without the board. Bios has a jet pack equipped and can perform a pseudo double jump and dash, but it’s somewhat intermittent and can result in some floaty, awkward movement and repetitive areas.
Star Overdrive Review Summary
Sometimes, you know you’re reviewing a game, and it becomes a slog, but I often found myself forgetting that and leisurely playing the game as if it were a title I’d have purchased for myself. And, to be clear, yes, I would buy this, time permitting.
