In Stars and Time

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In Stars and Time
Developer(s)insertdisc5
Publisher(s)Armor Games Studios
EngineRPG Maker MV
Platform(s)
Release
  • WW: November 20, 2023
Genre(s)Role-playing
Mode(s)Single-player

In Stars and Time is a 2023 role-playing video game developed by insertdisc5 and published by Armor Games Studios. The game takes place in the fictional country of Vaugarde, which is in the process of being frozen in time by a mysterious figure known as the King. The player controls Siffrin, a member of an adventuring party which hopes to defeat the King and save Vaugarde. Siffrin finds themselves trapped in a time loop, which the player can manipulate to solve problems. The game features a turn-based combat system which is based on a rock paper scissors formula.

The game was based on a set of comics made by the creator in 2018, and was preceded by the prologue Start Again in 2020. It was released in 2023 for Windows and several consoles. Critics were generally positive towards the game, praising the characters and narrative, though some took issue with the looping gameplay.

Gameplay

A battle in In Stars and Time, with the player party attacking a group of enemies.
In Stars and Time's battle system allows players to perform combos based on move types (denoted in the bottom right).

In Stars and Time is an role-playing game that is viewed from a top-down perspective. Players control the main character Siffrin[a] as they attempt to lead the party through the castle and defeat the King.[1] The party navigates the House of Change and its surrounding village, where the player can initiate combat with enemies or interact with items and characters.[2][3]

Combat takes place in a first-person perspective; the game uses an active-time battle system.[1] Different characters have specialised types based on a rock paper scissors system, though they can also use attacks outside their speciality. Enemies also have these types, which are usually indicated via their hand gestures.[4][5] When the party performs five consecutive attacks of a type, a "jackpot" move is performed. These special group attacks can heal party members and deal damage to all enemies.[1][4]

Throughout the game, the player can end up repeating the same actions multiple times as Siffrin is stuck in a time loop.[6] However, they can also utilise the loops to learn how to solve problems, for example repeating conversations until they choose the correct option or find a certain item. Loops are terminated when Siffrin dies; this can either be during combat or by finding items that kill Siffrin.[1] After looping back in time, the player can skip ahead to different floors, at the cost of in-game currency.[5] If the player encounters dialogue they have already seen, they can fast-forward through it.[2]

Plot

The player assumes control of Siffrin, who is leading his party from the town of Dormont to the House of Change. The House has been taken over by The King, who will perpetually freeze the country of Vaugarde in time if they fail to stop him. Siffrin is quickly killed by a trap after entering the House but finds himself transported to Dormont the day before, unharmed. After waking up, he is informed by a mysterious, star-shaped figure named Loop that he has been trapped in a time loop. Choosing not to tell his party, Siffrin uses his time loops and Loop's assistance to defeat the King and save Vaugarde. However, he soon discovers that he also gets looped back after defeating the King; Loop assures him that they will help him escape the situation.

Siffrin uses the loops to find out more about his situation and discover a way out. Over the course of many loops, he learns that both he and the King come from a country that was erased from everyone's memory. Distraught by losing his memories, the King arrived in Vaugarde and was overjoyed by the compassion he was shown. To prevent it from also disappearing, he chose to freeze it so that it would remain "perfect." Siffrin discovers that the King has harnessed the rare powers of Wish Craft, which is capable of granting anyone's deepest wish.

While making these discoveries, Siffrin grows closer to his party members by working through their personal problems, and he begins to consider them his new family. This worsens his mental stability, as he watches his party forget their experiences with him at the start of each loop. Eventually, he deduces that the citizens of Dormont caused the loop by unintentionally using Wish Craft. At the end of that loop, he asks the Head Housemaiden for help, but she cannot do so. Out of leads and worn down by experiencing a vast amount of loops, Siffrin snaps and abuses his party, and leaves to confront the King by himself.

Incredibly strong from fighting in many loops, Siffrin traverses the House alone and comes close to defeating the King. Overcome by fatigue and self-loathing, he breaks down and is tormented by hallucinations of his party. Eventually, his actual party arrives with Loop's help, and reflects one of the King's spells back at him, freezing him in time just as he remembers his country's name.

As the party seeks assistance for a feverish Siffrin from the Head Housemaiden, Siffrin is overcome by emotion and uses his craft to become a vast monster, screaming that he does not want the journey to end and his family to leave. The party works together to calm Siffrin down, and they come to realize that the Wish Craft that was trapping Siffrin in the loops was not Dormont's, but his own. Siffrin wished to remain with the party after defeating the King, but could not admit this. The others confess that they also felt the same, and the time loop finally comes to an end. The game ends with Siffrin apologizing for his previous insults and coming to terms with each of his party members, as they end their journey and begin their next one.

If the player takes certain actions, Siffrin can have confront Loop again at the end. They admit to being an alternate version of Siffrin who wished to escape from the loop, and was sent to help the current Siffrin. Enraged that Siffrin has managed to escape the loop while they are unrecognised by their former party, Loop tries to kill Siffrin and take his place. If the player defeats Loop, Siffrin assures them that he could not have escaped if not for their help. Moved by Siffrin's compassion, Loop disappears, assuring Siffrin that they will meet again.

Development

In Stars and Time was developed by solo creator Adrienne Bazir, also known as insertdisc5. The game originated as a set of comics featuring the main character Siffrin in 2017, which was followed by the prologue game Start Again in 2020.[6][7] Bazir used RPG Maker MV to develop the game. They initially intended both Start Again and the final game to remain relatively small in scope, but both projects grew as development progressed. The black-and white graphical style was chosen for simplicity.[7][8][1]

Key inspirations included RPGs such as Undertale and Tales of Symphonia.[6] Bazir was insprired by the latter when writing, wanting to avoid centring Siffrin by making each member of his party distinct and ensuring that they had a "very interesting and rich inner life". From their perspective, Siffrin would not even be the central character in the events that occurred before the start of the game, with another member explicitly being named as the "chosen one" in-game.[8][7]

The looping narrative was influenced by the repetitive and solitary nature of lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the writing mirroring Bazir's connections with their friends during that time.[7][6] Parts of the game were intentionally made repetitive to emphasise the situation Siffrin is in and convey those feelings to the player. The player's annoyance as dialogue is repeated was designed to mirror what "Siffrin is also thinking", with Bazir stating that "art should make you feel bad emotions sometimes". However, they were also inspired by The Stanley Parable to add moments where the repetition is broken and the player is "completely caught off guard".[6]

The game was announced by Bazir and Armor Games Studios in March 2022, and it was showcased in IGN's Summer of Gaming event in June 2023.[9][10] It was released on November 20, 2023 for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Windows.[11]

Reception

In Stars and Time received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator website Metacritic.[12] TechRadar reviewer Catherine Lewis called it "unmissable" and Izzy Parsons of RPGFan described it as a "must-play" but occasionally "repetitive".[13][1]

The narrative was praised by reviewers. Parsons described the narrative as the "true heart of the game" and "wonderfully heartfelt and thematic", and Sam Wachter of RPGamer called it "fantastic" with a "powerful twist".[4][1] The writing was described by Lewis as being "delivered flawlessly" and having characters portrayed "in ways that brilliantly convey their differing personalities".[13] Nintendo Life writer Em Stonham praised the "strong" worldbuilding, recommending it to fans of Undertale and EarthBound.[3]

Reactions to the looping mechanics were mixed. Jenni Lada of Siliconera praised the option to skip forward during repeated dialogue, calling the game "considerate of your time".[2] Lewis stated that the loops were not "too repetitive", but found some of the required backtracking tedious.[13] Conversely, Parsons criticised the game for causing "a feeling of being stuck" but noted that it fit the story: "as Siffrin is getting frustrated with the loops, so too is the player".[1] Nintendo World Report's Jordan Rudek stated that the repetition was "fairly tedious" and difficult to keep track of, and Katharine Castle of Rock, Paper, Shotgun called it "unsatisfying filler".[5] Wachter said the repetitive nature of looping could be "exhausting" and a "punishment" but conceded that it made progressing "incredibly rewarding".[4]

The combat also received a positive response; Stonham said that it was entertaining and could become surprisingly challenging, and Lewis described the jackpot system as "incredibly satisfying".[13][3] Parsons and Castle also praised the game's battles, but criticised them for remaining the same throughout different loops, claiming that they eventually encouraged the player to skip them.[1][14]

The game's art direction was largely praised; it was called "gorgeous" by Parsons and "full of personality" by Wachter, the latter calling its monochromatic palette "a bold and interesting choice" that fit the narrative.[4][1] Lada described the colour scheme and user interface design as effective.[2]

IGN's Rebekah Valentine described the game as one of their favourite RPGs of 2023, and Izzy Parsons included it as one of their favourite games of the year.[15][16] It was an Honorable Mention for both the Nuovo Award and the Seumas McNally Grand Prize at the 2024 Independent Games Festival Awards.[17]

Notes

  1. ^ In the game, Siffrin is referred to using both he and singular they.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Parsons, Izzy (2023-11-20). "In Stars and Time". RPGFan. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  2. ^ a b c d e Lada, Jenni (22 November 2023). "Review: In Stars and Time Makes a Time Loop Seem Manageable". Siliconera. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d Stonham, Em (2023-11-20). "In Stars and Time Review (Switch eShop)". Nintendo Life. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Wachter, Sam (13 December 2023). "In Stars and Time Review". RPGamer. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d Rudek, Jordan (2023-11-20). "In Stars and Time (Switch) Review". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  6. ^ a b c d e Lewis, Catherine (19 January 2024). "In Stars and Time developer on why their RPG 'has to be frustrating' - 'it is art, and art should be annoying sometimes'". TechRadar. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  7. ^ a b c d Valentine, Rebekah (13 November 2023). "In Stars and Time Looped Me In, and Didn't Let Go". IGN.
  8. ^ a b Writing IN STARS AND TIME — Interview with Creator Adrienne Bazir. Lits Play. Penguin Random House. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  9. ^ Fuller, Alex (22 March 2022). "In Stars and Time Announced". RPGamer. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  10. ^ Zollner, Amelia (10 June 2023). "Future of Play Direct 2023: Our 10 Favorite Games". IGN. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  11. ^ Romano, Sal (2023-10-11). "In Stars and Time launches November 20". Gematsu. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  12. ^ a b "In Stars and Time". Metacritic. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  13. ^ a b c d e Lewis, Catherine (2023-11-20). "In Stars and Time review: narrative gold". TechRadar. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  14. ^ Castle, Katharine (4 December 2023). "In Stars And Time review: a grind of a groundhog day". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  15. ^ Bailey, Kathryn (14 December 2023). "The Best RPG of 2023". IGN. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  16. ^ Parsons, Izzy (2 February 2024). "RPGFan Games of the Year 2023 ~ Editors' Awards: Izzy Parsons | RPGFan". www.rpgfan.com. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  17. ^ "Visai Games' 'Venba' Leads Finalists for the 2024 IGF Awards". Independent Games Festival. 2024-01-11. Retrieved 2024-01-17.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=In_Stars_and_Time&oldid=1217350426"