BOUNTY STAR Review for Steam

Bounty Star Review for Steam

Bounty Star, developed by DINOGOD and published by Annapurna Interactive, is a third-person mecha shooter that focuses on RPG (Role Playing Game) elements. The overall emphasis of the game is its mission-like structure that focuses on the player gaining resources over time and upgrading the base they live at. As for the gameplay loop, it is quite obvious after a couple of missions, as the player will adjust pretty quickly to the overall speed of the game itself. A major benefit of this game is the combat and customization already present in the game, offering players chances to replay certain missions with new equipment that better suits their play style. As for the overall narrative, it seems like a box-standard hero’s journey with a twist to ensure that the player’s attention is retained.

The gameplay is really where most of the love and attention went into from the development team, as players will easily lose track of time. Players will take control of a mech called “Raptor” that will be customized over time with various paints, weapons, and equipment for it. After completing the tutorial, they will need to develop the place they live at and learn more about the world through the eyes of a jaded soldier. That survived the destruction of her home, and the game picks up on how she has to survive after what has happened. To get back on track in regard to the gameplay, players will need to master spatial awareness of not only the raptor’s location but also the enemies. This makes each encounter feel a little different, as with each mission, players will need to adjust to certain weapons, with each having their own specialized range and projectile spread. So, players will need to adjust the equipment on their Raptor to suit either the mission or player preference. And as the player completes each mission, they get some money based upon their performance, with some sub-objectives added in to challenge the player. By challenging the player in this way, it ensures that they treat each challenge with some critical thinking, as each weapon has its benefits and downsides.

Players also get a base that they can build up over time as they progress in the story as more unlocks become available to them. These unlocks come in the form of upgrades, with some allowing the player to generate income, paint their Raptor, and so forth. Some of these unlocks can be built multiple times and interacted with, sprucing up the base and making it really feel like the place is alive. Which is such a nice way to show the player how far they have progressed in their journey, as each upgrade costs some form of money. These high costs are offset by the increasing rewards from completing bounties (missions) as the game focuses on a mission-per-mission-like structure that ties into the narrative.

As for the story of the game, it seems to have taken a backseat in the game so as to allow the player to focus more on the gameplay. However, the pace of the narrative itself is tied into the gameplay and provides some much-needed respite when playing mission after mission. So, the overall impact of these story beats hit just that sweet spot of progression, allowing players to keep playing to progress even more. This is amplified by random visitors going to the base, expanding the world to ensure that it feels more alive, and some of these visitors are very important for story progression and possible vendors.

Bounty Star is a solid game, not amazing per se, but it’s really good at what it does, and that by itself is proof that it’s an enjoyable experience. As a third-person mecha shooter, it is quite remarkable and really showcases that ability-based games have a presence. At one point while reviewing the game and doing missions to understand the loop a little bit better, it kept my attention until 4 in the morning. So, Bounty Star’s gameplay loop really grabs onto the player’s attention, and that makes this game a solid 8/10 just solely based on gameplay itself.

Bounty Star is available for PC via Steam.

Related: Reviews by Kyle Manila

Kyle Manila

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I would describe myself when interacting with games as a strategist with a pension for stealth and loud explosions.