Star Luster (FC) (1985)
Developer: Namco

Review by Faididi and Co.

Needs more polish

Story: Average

The hostile alien forces known as the Battura are attacking the human colonies across the reaches of space. The hero must pilot the Gaia starfighter and save the day.

Gameplay: Average

Namco's Star Luster is a starfighter simulator that tests not only reflexes but tactical planning. The hero's mission is to defeat the enemies before they destroy all the planetary colonies in the sector. That's easier said than done, because while the hero engages a group of bad guys at one place, the other enemy forces will continue their advance.

Defending the friendly starbases is also important, as they are the only places that can fix up the hero's ship. The Gaia starfighter is armed with twin laser blasters, which have infinite ammunition, and photon missiles, which are limited in supply but can be used to instantly blast entire enemy groups no matter where they are. The ship's energy shields slowly regenerate over time, but taking hits when the shields are gone will start to affect the ship's performance. If the engine is damaged, for example, the hero won't be able to speed-boost. Or, if the scanners are damaged, the radar display will blink on and off erratically. Suck up too much damage without stopping by a starbase for repairs, and the whole ship goes KABOOM! Balancing the needs of the colonies, starbases, and the hero's own ship forms the true thrill of Star Luster, and the game is at its best when the hero must rush back and forth across the entire sector, determining which enemies to stop first and which enemies to risk letting run free.

Unfortunately, the short draw distance ruins a lot of the fun. Objects don't appear on the screen unless they are very close to the hero, so a broken radar makes finding bad guys and starbases frustratingly difficult. The component damage aspect may be more interesting than having a traditional, simple stamina system for the ship, but when the draw distance is so poor, having the wrong component break shouldn't leave the hero wasting several minutes trying to find large metallic targets in clear space.

Controls: Excellent

At least the Gaia handles responsively. Pitching, yawing, controlling its speed, and firing its weapons are all easy to do. For some extra variety, the game also comes with three modes. The training mode serves as a basic exercise that may be enjoyed by Players of any skill level. The command mode is the full experience, where the hero finishes the stages by clearing out the enemy forces. By contrast, the adventure mode is an endurance challenge, where the hero tries to hold off against infinite waves of bad guys for as long as possible in an endless stage.

Graphics: Below Average

No matter how little slowdown there is and how awesome the starfields look (especially when the hero warps around within the sector), the visuals will always suffer from the lousy draw distance.

Audio: Excellent

The game sounds better than it looks. The gunfire and the explosions are loud and plentiful, while a catchy jingle marks the start of every stage. The sounds of the humming engine and the quietly beeping computer do a great job at creating the feel of being inside a starfighter.

Overall: Average

Star Luster loses its shine with its terribly short draw distance, which makes enemies and starbases too difficult to locate when the hero can't rely on the radar. That's a pity, because this is an otherwise interesting starfighter simulator with great controls and sound effects.