Cosmic Star Heroine

This take on classic turn-based RPGs struggles to give its fresh ideas room to breathe.

Cosmic Star Heroine doesn't leave a lasting impression, but it's a fun romp with some interesting ideas

Playing through took me about 12 hours, though it might take more or less time if you bump up the difficulty or stick to the critical path. None of the problems I had with this game are insurmountable, and I'm hoping that Zeboyd will be able to fix them with an update. In spite of the bugs, I enjoyed exploring the galaxy with Alyssa and her crew, but you may want to wait for a patch or two before mainlining this Heroine.

This is a homage to the classic sci-fi RPGs of the '90s that successfully takes out many of the annoying bits but boasts a fair amount of the depth and consistency. Cosmic Star Heroine is a JRPG for those who long ago grew bored of JRPGs, but committed fans might find it just a little too slight an offering.

Cosmic Star Heroine is a fun space adventure and throwback to the 16 Bit era of JRPGs while also bringing enough unique ideas to stand all on its own.

It's a solid homage to beloved 16-bit RPGs of yore, but it lacks the magic and depth that made them unmissable classics.

Cosmic Star Heroine does for the 16-bit JRPG what Shovel Knight did for 8-bit platformers. It takes everything that worked about them to remind you of why those games are classics, but builds upon that foundation with a modern-day sensibility by eliminating filler.

Cosmic Star Heroine is far more than a simple send-up of some of the genre’s most beloved classics.

Cosmic Star Heroine feels like a short, classic JRPG that has been ported from an ancient system, warts and all. Some of the glitches and usability issues are criminal, and should never be acceptable.

Cosmic Star Heroine offers about 20 hours of turn-based combat, exploration of exotic places and space environments that will please any lover of the genre without a doubt. By dispensing with the superfluous and constantly getting to the point, it's a much more direct experience than what we're used to in the genre.