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Stardust Vanguards Short Review

By Omar (@siegarettes)

• Stardust Vanguards
  
• Developer- Zanrai Interactive
  
• Publisher- Zanrai Interactive
  
• PS4, PC (Steam)
  

Stardust Vanguards is a game that is sits squarely within the revival of the local multiplayer genre. It’s a game that demands four players, any less and it feels as if it’s missing parts of the game. It took a while to even get together a group large enough to play it (it kind of demands to be played at a gallery or party setting). Each player controls a separate faction, piloting a mech that commands a small squad of space fighters. There’s a focus on an interplay between bullets and blades, presented with an aesthetic of 80’s mech anime. Each mech can dash, shield, cut, and fire a limited burst of bullets. What makes it stand out, however, is the ability to call in space fighters to fight for you after a few kills.

It creates this interplay of maneuvering around the map to score a clean hit, batting away shots or firing off your own to push back enemy players. As you build momentum you’ll spend the points gained from destroying other players to summon a fleet proportional to the amount of points you spend. Here’s the kicker: you lose all your points when you die. It creates a tension, with you betting the opportunity for an overwhelming attack on your opponents against your chances for survival. Wait too long and you increase the chances of making a wrong move and losing it all. Cash in too frequently and your fleet won’t be big enough to really make an impact.

When it works, it works well. Aside from some stiffness in animation, the art communicates the energy of the situation. Even the menus carry that energy, and there’s a satisfying impact to taking down an opponent. The chaos sometimes makes it difficult to communicate the nuances, especially within a genre that doesn’t leave a lot of space for explaination. It means the appeal of the game is lost easier than something like Samurai Gunn. It’s something I can see being popular if you have a group of friends you frequently play with, but a harder sell for others.