Starseed Pilgrim

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Starseed Pilgrim
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Developer(s)droqen
EngineAdobe Flash
Platform(s)Windows, OS X
ReleaseApril 16, 2013[a]
Genre(s)Puzzle-platform
Mode(s)Single-player

Starseed Pilgrim is a 2013 puzzle-platform game from independent developer droqen. Players plant 'starseeds' which grow into plants, each with different growth patterns and interaction mechanics. Players plant these starseeds on floating platforms and on fully-grown plants in order to traverse the game world. The game was developed in Adobe Flash and was released in April 2013 for Windows and OS X.[a] Reviewers praised Starseed Pilgrim's game mechanics and the process of learning their interactions, but criticized the learning curve as steep. The game was a finalist for the Excellence in Design award at the 2013 Independent Games Festival.

Gameplay[edit]

Starseed Pilgrim is a two-dimensional puzzle-platform game.[2][3] The player begins the game in a hub world consisting of floating platforms.[3][4] From the hub world, they can enter a different platforming world, which consists of a floating platform made out of blocks.[4][5] The player is then given a few 'starseeds' at random, and can plant them in blocks to grow plants.[5][6] Each plant has a different growth pattern and interaction mechanic based on the starseed's colour: for example, pink starseeds create a slowly growing vertical plant, and their blocks can be dug up to obtain more starseeds. The player grows plants on top of each other in order to reach keys floating above, while staying ahead of a corruption originating from the starting platform that steadily corrupts blocks.[7][8]

If the player touches a corrupted block, they are transported into an inverted version of the current world: plants and blocks turn into open space, and the previously-empty space turns into solid blocks.[8] The player navigates this inverted world to return to where the starting platform was; there, the player can use a key they collected to return to the hub world.[4][8] This also allows the player to bring with them any unused seeds from the platforming world, as well as any starseeds collected in the inverted world.[3][9] The collected starseeds can then be planted on the hub world's platforms in order to gain access to other floating platforms.[3]

Development[edit]

Starseed Pilgrim was developed in Adobe Flash by Alexander Martin,[10] also known as droqen,[11] an independent game developer from Toronto.[12][13] droqen released an initial prototype of the game on October 11, 2010, and completed most of the game 18 months before release.[10] Ryan Roth contributed the sound effects and music, and Mert Batirbaygil created the art and visual assets; droqen also credits Allan Offal with providing important feedback during development.

The game was released on the distribution platform Steam on April 16, 2013,[14][a] for Windows and OS X.[b] This release was done through an agreement between the Independent Games Festival (IGF) and Valve Corporation, the developer of Steam, that offered all 2013 IGF finalists a Steam distribution agreement.[14][17]

Reception[edit]

Starseed Pilgrim received "generally favorable" reviews according to the review aggregator Metacritic.[18] Reviewers praised the core gameplay loop and interactions between game mechanics, particularly the process of learning them, but criticized the learning curve as steep. Rich Stanton of Eurogamer praised the game's mechanics as "an absolute delight" once understood, particularly the inverted world which "delivers on a concept both narratively and mechanically", though characterized the learning curve as a "wall".[5] Stanton also praised the sound effects as pleasing, while also functioning as a gameplay indicator of the corruption's spread. GameSpot staff described the visual and sound design as utilitarian but aesthetically consistent and effectively communicating information, but singled out some sound effects as "harsh and discordant".[3] The staff cautioned that learning the mechanics "can be exceptionally challenging", but that it ultimately rewarded players with "an intense feeling of satisfaction" from exploring and learning how the game works. Writing for The Telegraph, Phill Cameron also praised the core gameplay loop, characterizing it as a process of "incremental understanding" that is continually subverted by new mechanics interactions to consistently surprise the player.[20] Cameron opined that the lack of in-game explanations made the learning process more interesting, and that the randomized growth patterns of the starseeds rewarded player "improvisation and adaptation". Anthony Fordham was more critical of the lack of explicit instructions: in their review for PC PowerPlay, Fordham described Starseed Pilgrim as "a very interesting exercise in game design" and its mechanics as "original", but criticized the process of learning the game's systems as unclear and obfuscated.[19]

Starseed Pilgrim was nominated for the Excellence in Design award at the 2013 Independent Games Festival, with honourable mentions for the Seumas McNally Grand Prize and the Nuovo Award.[21] The game was also showcased as a finalist at the 2013 IndieCade exhibition.[22]

The game sold around 1,000 copies before being listed on Steam.[13][a]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Starseed Pilgrim was released on Steam on April 16, but had been released at an unspecified date on other platforms prior to its Steam listing.[1]
  2. ^ News articles about the game's release on Steam mention its platforms either as Windows and OS X,[15] or Windows, OS X, and Linux.[14] However, the Steam listing for the game lists only Windows and OS X as platforms.[16]
  3. ^ Score based on 12 reviews.

References[edit]

  1. ^ Pitcher, Jenna (April 9, 2013). "Starseed Pilgrim arriving on Steam April 16". Polygon. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  2. ^ Proctor, Lewie (May 29, 2014). "Starseed Pilgrim PC review". PCGamesN. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e f GameSpot Staff (March 26, 2013). "Starseed Pilgrim Review". GameSpot. Archived from the original on February 17, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c Schmädig, Benjamin (May 3, 2013). "Test: Starseed Pilgrim" [Review: Starseed Pilgrim]. 4players (in German). Archived from the original on December 24, 2017. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  5. ^ a b c d Stanton, Rich (March 29, 2013). "Starseed Pilgrim review". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on August 13, 2020. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Edge Staff (April 26, 2013). "Starseed Pilgrim review". Edge. ISSN 1350-1593. Archived from the original on May 7, 2013.
  7. ^ Smith, Adam (April 19, 2013). "Wot I Think: Starseed Pilgrim". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Archived from the original on March 14, 2021. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  8. ^ a b c Dinicola, Nick (January 27, 2014). "The (Mis)Education of the Player". PopMatters. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  9. ^ Wolinsky, David (8 April 2015). "Starseed Pilgrim Game Review". Common Sense Media. Archived from the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  10. ^ a b Cifaldi, Frank (March 8, 2013). "Road to the IGF: Starseed Pilgrim". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on November 28, 2020. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
  11. ^ Ewalt, David M. (2014). "30 Under 30 - Games". Forbes. ISSN 0015-6914. Archived from the original on January 6, 2014.
  12. ^ Kotzer, Zack (January 22, 2016). "The big and the small of Toronto's gaming industry celebrate milestones". The Globe and Mail. ISSN 0319-0714. Archived from the original on April 23, 2017. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
  13. ^ a b Rigney, Ryan (April 22, 2013). "Starseed Pilgrim Will Challenge Your Videogame Literacy". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Archived from the original on May 25, 2018. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  14. ^ a b c Conditt, Jessica (April 8, 2013). "IGF design nominee Starseed Pilgrim lands on Steam on April 16". Joystiq. Archived from the original on April 9, 2013.
  15. ^ Conditt, Jessica (April 17, 2013). "Antichamber chops half off its price, Starseed Pilgrim takes off on Steam". Engadget. Archived from the original on February 18, 2021. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  16. ^ "Starseed Pilgrim on Steam". Steam. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  17. ^ "IGF, Valve to offer Steam distribution agreements to all 2013 Main Competition finalists". Independent Games Festival. December 6, 2012. Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  18. ^ a b "Starseed Pilgrim for PC Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on February 17, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  19. ^ a b Fordham, Anthony (June 2013). Hindes, Daniel (ed.). "Starseed Pilgrim". Review. PC PowerPlay. No. 216. Australia: nextmedia. p. 94. ISSN 1326-5644.
  20. ^ Cameron, Phill (April 29, 2013). "Starseed Pilgrim Review". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on July 3, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
  21. ^ "2013". Independent Games Festival. 12 September 2016. Archived from the original on February 18, 2021. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
  22. ^ McElroy, Griffin (September 11, 2013). "IndieCade 2013 finalists revealed, include Gone Home, TowerFall and more". Polygon. Archived from the original on February 19, 2021. Retrieved February 19, 2021.

External links[edit]

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