A closer look at the turn-based combat in Sea of Stars

blog.playstation.com:

Sabotage was founded with a clear goal in mind; presenting our own “definitive editions” of the game genres we grew up playing. By combining retro aesthetics and modern design, we shoot for experiences that capture what we loved about games of old while leaving behind the elements we feel might hold them back today.

For our very own turn-based RPG, we started with a few simple guidelines; there would be seamless transitions from navigation to combat, no random encounters, and no grinding. Combat is obviously a big one, so let’s dive a bit deeper.

In Sea of Stars combat is purely turn-based without any time bars, avoiding pressure in order to let the player make decisions at their own pace instead. Each of the six playable characters come with a small kit of four spells/skills with differing damage types and patterns, which can be combined with other characters’ moves.

MP has a very low cap but regenerates when using normal attacks, creating a flow where using magic in a regular fight is expected, while the big heavy hitter spells have to be paced with some normal attacks when fighting a boss.

No random encounters means every fight is designed manually to offer a unique pattern of enemies that can be analyzed and optimized by the savvy Solstice Warrior, and other combat features come together into a dance between utility and damage. 

Enemies that mount spells or special skills will display a bar with locks, each with an icon of a certain damage type. Breaking locks will weaken the upcoming move, while breaking all of them will cancel it altogether.

Each of the six playable characters can dish out damage efficiently in one or two of the types, further supported by their skill/spell kit which offers pattern variations (like