With the Switch 2 and a number of launch titles having been announced, many may be ready to move on from their Nintendo Switch. Ready or not, there are still 2 months before Switch 2’s release and Star Overdrive deserves a shot to fill that time before launch day. This ambitious sci-fi adventure places you in a Breathe of the Wild-like open world with a hoverboard! This massive open world is layered being full of collectibles, challenges and puzzles. While it doesn’t quite live up to the ambition I initially saw in the demo, the game does bring its own sense of style with fun hoverboard traversal, interactive abilities and an octane musical soundtrack. Star Overdrive is rough around the edges but the fun I had justifies why I’d recommend a play through.
Incoming distress call!
Bios receives a distress call from his partner, Nous. She is stranded on Planet Cebete where she was hired for a gig to do planetary research. Suddenly, their resources started to disappear. Soon after, their equipment started to be sabotaged and everyone on the planet disappeared. Nous did pick up peculiar readings of energy coming from a strange source. Could this have something to do with these anomalies? Our Lead, Bios is tasked with saving the one he loves and figuring out the mystery taking place on Cebete.
While I wouldn’t say the story is an aspect I’d recommend playing this game, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t genuinely curious to find out what happens to Nous. Throughout the game you are finding these recordings of Nous’ experiences and how she is able to fend for herself on the desolate planet. And How and why she ends up sending her distress call. You learn a lot about her, and somewhat about the relationship between her and Bios. I would have liked to see more characterization of Bios, but he is pretty much a blank slate. You see some reaction from him at the finale, but I wanted more from him. Speaking of which, the finale is epic and somewhat touching. I was satisfied and frankly surprised at how the story ended, but It’s the highlight of Star Overdrive.
The shine of Star Overdrive
From the get go the world opens up allowing you to explore and ride along to each objective at your pace. On your way to the objective there will be plenty to encounter like resources to collect, Nous’ tapes, and riding challenges. These are all fun to find and complete, but by far the most rewarding to come across are the mines. Mines serve as dungeon puzzle rooms. Think Breath of the Wild shrine! Here you will need to use your wits with interesting abilities to find your way through the mine. And these puzzles here are no slouch! I was very impressed with the tools they give you and what these puzzles push you to do to solve them. One of my favorite solutions was using this bond ability to attach this ball to this contraption to create a makeshift slingshot. The reward for completing these mines is receiving a part which can be spent to upgrade the skill tree. Upgrading the skill tree provides some noticeable upgrades like improving damage done, improving health and increasing energy.
Another highlight of Star Overdrive is the riding mechanic which feels as good as gold. The demo was just the tip of the iceberg when it came to traversal on the hoverboard. I mentioned before how the mines will require the use of unique abilities. These abilities also grant an additional ability for hoverboarding. For instance, the aforementioned bonding mechanic provides a much needed boost to the hoverboard which I found to be lacking from the demo. The use of all 6 abilities plus the skill needed to keep your momentum while traversing truly makes you feel like Tony Hawk. It’s always a blast traversing from one objective to another. It’s notable to mention that there is a fast traveling option, but why would you when hoverboarding feels so good?
It doesn’t stop there cause you are also able to customize the hoverboard’s design and performance as you see fit. If you want a bigger boost after landing or to make sharper turns you can create components for the hoverboard. If you want a Pink hoverboard with white trim you can have it. You just need to find the resources to make them. The performance enhancements are crucial to completing challenges especially ones that involve riding on special surfaces like water or steel. Lastly, there are also mods that can be installed on the hoverboard which can provide additional attributes like jumping when performing tricks, ricocheting enemies or just being an aesthetic addition. The hoverboard and its customization, game mechanics and design are all refined and fun. It’s truly the star of Star Overdrive, but there were some conflicting gameplay in my playthrough.
The critiques
Like I mentioned, there are some aspects that brought down the experience that should be addressed. In my preview I mentioned that the performance of this game was good enough. The frame rate does drop constantly. It doesn’t drop too much when riding and this didn’t bother me as much. However, it’s the crashes that became somewhat bothersome. One crash occurred while I was in the middle of a lengthy puzzle which I ended up having to restart. The game crashed on me a total of 3 times. Another critique is the objective guidance system. When selecting an objective it doesn’t show in the overworld. It only shows on the mini map which can be confusing because it’s very easy to pass objectives traveling at such high speeds.
The final and most important critique is the middling combat. Bios wields one of the coolest weapons, the keytar, which doubles as a weapon and an instrument. It’s unfortunate the gameplay for it just doesn’t meet the same highs as the hoverboard. I found myself relying on abilities to get through combat. It was more fun just picking up enemies with the grab ability and throwing them. It’s a shame because the music that comes during a fight is top notch. At first, I would intentionally go pick some fights so that I could just hear that theme song. But there’s so little enemy variety that it just got stale so fast. Also, I was expecting a bit more from the bosses. Design wise they are all imposing and awesome, but the gameplay just boils down to just get as close as you can to the weak point and mash Y.
The verdict
While I initially thought the demo shined bright, I think the full release of Star Overdrive still shines, albeit just a bit dimmer, than expected. Personally, I found the story genuinely curious and having a satisfying ending for both Bios and Nous. The real pinnacle of Star Overdrive is its speed-inducing hoverboard. Being highly customizable with so much depth, blasting from end to end of the map never became tiresome. Puzzle-wise this game packs a punch with its numerous amount of mines showcasing distinct abilities. Where Star Overdrive under delivers is its slow combat and simply designed boss battles. Still, I had fun with my 10 hour playthrough and I would recommend a playthrough for those looking for a puzzle sci-fi adventure with a high speed hoverboard.
The Review
GOOD
