Any sci-fi fans out there? Yes. Cool. Then join me on this adventure.
I’ve handled a lot of reviews here at GiN. Most of the time I find myself in a world of fantasy, dragons and the sort. I love fantasy. It’s a great genre with some great stories. However, in my heart, I’m a man of science fiction. Lucky for me then that I’ve been given the chance to review Starpoint Gemini 2.
Starpoint Gemini 2 is a sci-fi game that puts players in the role of a ship pilot looking to make a name for themselves. Right off the get go, the pilot’s dad and the rest of the fleet you served in is killed. This leads players on an adventure to uncover hidden messages left behind by your father.
The story of Starpoint Gemini 2 isn’t bad, but it’s not the most entertaining. It’ feels very cookie cutter and the vastness of the world makes it seem all the less important. I found myself getting sidetracked by so many other missions that I would often forget I had a main story to complete.
While the story of Starpoint Gemini 2 may be lacking, the game itself is solid. Like I said above, I found myself getting sidetracked by all sorts of different missions. Players can mine, go after bounties, salvage wrecks and do all sorts of other activities. The game actually has a mode just for this that completely throws out the main story.
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One of the greatest aspects of Starpoint Gemi 2 is upgrading ships and expanding your fleet. Players start out with a small ship that can’t really do much. Along the way they can earn enough money to buy upgrades for the thrusters, weapons and other parts. After spending so long with one ship, players can move up to a bigger ship that has more power, cargo room and is basically better in every way. There are a lot of different ships to choose from and players can customize their color schemes. Adding additional ships and crew really gives players that ship captain feel.
When players start out Starpoint Gemini 2, they can choose between three different classes. Each of these classes offer their own advantages and making multiple characters definitely extends the gameplay. There are also different branching paths that players can take when upgrading their skills. This allows for better weapons upgrades and other bonuses.
Starpoint Gemini 2 works like a typical western RPG. Players are given tasks to complete and gain experience for doing them. This includes official missions and random skirmishes in space. The game requires a good bit of menu navigation and reading, which could be a turn off for some players. There’s also a lot of grinding to the next level and the missions can start to feel a little too repetitive at times.
The space exploration in Starpoint Gemini 2 comes in two forms. Players can choose to just fly to every destination, or they can pay to use warp gates. I’m a cheapo and decided to fly everywhere. This had me running into a lot more random events than I would have missed with the use of warp gates. There are also sometimes anomalies that can be used to speed up a player’s travels. There’s also an autopilot feature that can make it easier to multitask and deal with all the menus while heading to a new location or dealing with enemies.
The graphics in Starpoint Gemini 2 are really solid. Space is beautiful and travelling through storms looks absolutely amazing. Anomalies also add a variety to the vastness of space. The ships in the game are great to look at and its nice that the colors can be adjusted. Some of the finer details on ships, such as their name or logo, go unnoticed due to how small they are.
The audio in Starpoint Gemini 2 leaves a little to be desired. The voice acting isn’t terrible, but there is definitely better. Some lines that feel like they are meant to have a lot of weight actually come across as cheesy more than anything. The sound effects in the game are solid, but there isn’t much in the way of music. I guess this goes with the vastness of space and all that, but are you really telling me that my ship isn’t equipped with some type of music player?
Starpoint Gemini 2 is a solid game, but it does have its flaws. The rising through the ranks gameplay is great, but the missions can become a little too repetitive. The story isn’t much to write about either. Audio is a mixed bag, but the graphics are great. Players that enjoy sci-fi and RPGs will feel at home here and a few others will also probably enjoy themselves, but it’s not for everyone.
Starpoint Gemini 2 earns 3 GiN Gems out of 5!
