With a hoverboard in a place of a horse, a silent protagonist with a wide open planet to explore, towers to activate and powers to unlock, Star Overdrive might just as easily have been called Breath of the Galaxy. That’s not to say the game is a blatant clone, but more of an interstellar love letter to modern Zelda titles.
In fact, the facets of the game that make it unique are where it shines the brightest. Mainly the pure exhilaration of taking your upgradeable, customizable hoverboard zooming at eye-watering speeds across beautifully-designed alien landscapes, and launching off peaks and ridges to exact speed-boosting tricks. The ripping, guitar-driven soundtrack works better than you’d expect, given the overall sci-fi setting. The game even allows you to choose your vibe by swapping collectible cassette tapes in and out as you please.
The game falters a bit in a few key areas. On-foot movement feels sluggish, but this is mitigated by limited dash and rocket boost abilities. Cumbersome movement can also make combat awkward and frustrating at times. Some of the environmental puzzles are on the obtuse side, but at the same time I appreciate that the game doesn’t hold your hand or baby you along.
Overall, Star Overdrive is truly an impressive effort for such a small development team, and the game is respectably short for an open world adventure. Fans of the modern Zelda formula, action-sports games, and sci-fi settings will find a lot to enjoy and appreciate here, particularly for those with the empathetic patience to overlook some of its minor shortcomings.
Thank you to Caracal Games and Dear Villagers for trusting us with a copy of Star Overdrive for this review.
Adam (@octorock1982.bsky.social) is a musician, podcaster, and Nintendo enthusiast. Co-host of RetroGroove, a weekly music podcast, and very occasional streamer and content creator at youtube.com/@OctoRock_1982 and twitch.tv/octorock_1982.
