Star Overdrive rolls onto the PS5 with ambition and charm, delivering a sci-fi adventure built around gravity-defying hoverboard antics. At its core is Bios, racing across the wastelands of planet Cebete in search of his missing partner, Nous – his journey punctuated by floating ruins, sandy dunes, and vistas that speak to more than mere exploration. The game’s visual identity leans heavily into a cel-shaded palette reminiscent of modern open-world games, yet it remains strikingly original, weaving sweeping vistas, dusty stockades, and crystalline structures into a discreetly vibrant sandbox.
Traversal is undeniably the star of the show. The hoverboard offers a rich ebb and flow, letting players glide up ramps, chain tricks, and perform stunts in ways that evoke skate and snowboarding thrills. Upgrades are meaningful, too – tinkering with board parts directly translates into better speed and handling. Yet, while high-speed thrills shine, the controls falter a bit in tighter spots or during platforming challenges, hampering momentum and occasionally frustrating progress.
Movement and traversal aside, the narrative structure leaves something to be desired. Rather than a sweeping story, players often jump from one trigger point to another – activating beacons, riding to next site, etc. Nous’s audio logs offer occasional emotional beats, but they’re fragmented and often fail to fully draw players in. The ending feels rewarding, though the path there isn’t always engaging. Moments of narrative clarity are welcome, but they’re disruptions rather than threads tying the journey together.
Combat and powers are functional but not groundbreaking. The Keytar doubles as weapon and shield, with a suite of elemental abilities (like a magnetic pull and time freeze) adding some flair to encounters. Boss fights shine – stellar moments where hoverboard boosts and board-assisted puzzles converge in satisfying rhythms. Yet, regular skirmishes lack depth: basic attack combos, absence of camera lock-on, and underwhelming enemy behavior weaken the underside of combat once the novelty wears off.
Technically, the game performs well. On PS5, it maintains fluidity even in sprawling areas, while the soundtrack – equal parts driving synth and electric guitar – beautifully complements the open-air solitude and sporadic action beats. Still, environmental ambience misses association; large swathes of the world can feel unnervingly quiet when not in motion . A few rough edges like camera quirks show through at times – though it never feels catastrophic.
Where Star Overdrive truly excels is in its sense of wonder and movement. Its strengths lie in quiet pauses across open dunes, boards humming in zero-G winds, and glimpses of narrative through scattered logs. It fumbles when pushing players into narrative rigidity or demanding finesse in cramped combat zones. Still, the overarching experience is undeniably charming, offering a fresh indie vision of sci-fi traversal that beats to its own drum – even if it sometimes feels rough around the edges.
Whether you’re drawn to infinite skies, gravity-bending tricks, or a quiet mystery stretched across alien landscapes, this indie ride offers enough style and heart to recommend a journey through Cebete. Just be ready to accept a few rough patches in its drive.
Score: 7.2/10
Press Play Media 