Contrary to many ardent beliefs, no one IP or studio owns the sole rights to an entire sub-genre or even micro-genre. Though their names may be used as portmanteau, neither Metroid nor Castlevania can be considered the kings of the exploration-focused side-scroller, when so many modern classics have redefined that respective niche we more commonly refer to as the Metroidvania. Nor can FromSoftware be touted as the only studio to bring fresh and creative ideas to the concept of real-time, action RPGs. And must we list the endless number of roguelites and roguelikes that have graced any and all platforms over the past ten years? In the case ofFoamstars, easy as it may be to instinctively pass it off on quick glance as nothing more than a cheap imitation on Splatoon, who’s to say that Square Enix – or in this case, developer Toyfair – have no right to challenge or at least build on Nintendo’s territory-based shooter of previous?
True, the comparisons are more direct and a little more forgivable to throw out this time. A 4v4 shooter centered around the use of specific, class-defined weapons, whereby shooting the titular foam has the potential to manipulate the very arena around you. Aiding yourself and those on your team, while subsequently hindering those on the other. Taken at its broadest face value, the comparison is understandable. But to simply conclude that would not only downplay the minor feats of solid foundationFoamstarsmanages to create for itself, but on the flip side, willingly ignores all the other areas – outside of its similarities to Nintendo’s “squid-now-kid-now” IP – this latest online, live-service, multiplayer outing sadly falters on. The disappointment felt isn’t through some abject failure, or thatFoamstarsis completely devoid of occasional enjoyment. Rather,Foamstarslets both itself and its players down via everything else going on in and around the core gameplay. From poorly-balanced systems to underutilized building mechanics, right down to an egregious monetization system – that even during its first week has the gall to charge what it does – the biggest take-away from Square Enix’s latest attempt to cash in on the multiplayer framework, is just how lacking a lot of its elements end up being.
That’s not to sayFoamstarsis completely devoid of some enjoyment here and there. Even for a multiplayer cynic such as myself: finding one’s self on a reasonable streak of kills (sorry, “chills” as the game would prefer you deem it), getting the better of an opponent team through a calculated use of synergized player-character skills and built-up foam alike. When the game isn’t too precious about reminding you of its positive, upbeat and cheery attitude towards competitive multiplayer. Better still, when arguably the game’s best aspect – namely its soundtrack – doesn’t find itself drowned out by all the visual and verbal noise going on around it.Foamstarsdoes have the potential to grab you, even if in small doses, regardless of your affinity to competitive play, let alone an affinity to a series such as Splatoon. The problem isn’t that there’s no meat to these foam-covered bones.
Everything Everywhere All At Once
The problem is that everything else equating to the usualFoamstarsexperience feels like unwarranted excess. And not just unwarranted, but off-putting too. What your left with then is a hollow shell of a game trying too hard to look trendy and compelling, rather than necessarily earning those monikers. Regardless of how high or low on one’s priority list a game’s believability of its world comes off, all the glitz, glamour and grand showman-like prestige of its aesthetic can’t stopFoamstarsfrom feeling deprived of a direction. Toss its gameplay mechanics and turf-based premise to the side and consider for a second how easy it was to appreciate the world of Splatoon as a setting. At the risk of beating a dead horse and overdoing it with the Splatoon comparisons, the point here is that unlike that series,Foamstarsspends way too much time trying to convince you of its setting and as a consequence, unintentionally casts a harsh light on just how superficial and forced a lot of it feels.
It doesn’t help that prior to release, Square Enix have admitted/acknowledged that AI in some capacity has been used in the development/creation of the project. And while efforts have understandably been taken to assure us that it accounts for an extremely small portion, even the very mention of AI is enough of a sown seed to cast immense doubt and skepticism on the validity of a lot of the game’s visuals. “Is this AI, is that AI, that gives the impression that’s been churned out by an AI algorithm but is it?”. It doesn’t help that Foamstars comes across as the latest series to incorporate the, what I would call, “padded-cell of focus group-tested art styles” in that everything feels designed to be as bold, as inoffensive and as sanguine as possible. Complimented with the kind of menus and UI experience that, by contrast, feels as lifeless and devoid of character as any boardroom-approved design direction can get.
For What Purpose?
This lack of care in whatFoamstarswants to show and how it wants to show it quickly bleeds into the very roster of game modes it has on offer. Of which there are two on offer: Versus, the default 4v4 competitive offering…and Missions, a wave-based, PvE variant that can be played either solo or co-operatively with other players. On the Versus side, you have the regular Deathmatch-esque formula with Smash the Star. Albeit, the slight twist employed is that after a certain number of kills are attained by a team, the star player on the opposing team becomes the sole target whom you must take out in order to win. On paper, this small tweak to the formula sounds interesting and enough of a drive to dig into the game’s own turf-based mechanics. But much like the other modes sadly, what you usually end up with is a chaotic hodgepodge of special effects and visual noise who greatest strides and personal accomplishments all seem accidental, rather than intentional.
Made worse by the fact that something like Smash the Star, through its premise, makes controversial/unpopular tactics like camping in select corners and parts of a map until round’s end, not only viable, but the only way to secure victory. Not least when games can become so cluttered to the point of finding it hard to get a read on what’s even happening on-screen. Made worse by the application of class-based “super moves” that can make arenas feel like unavoidable deathtraps – and deathtraps that can easily have you stun-locked into submission whereby one’s health-bar is eaten away in a matter of seconds. Brimming with potential its core gameplay may be, it’s just not all that engrossing or worthwhile to get involved in. Even the idea of having to tag your opponent to secure a kill, or in the opposite case, tagging your teammate to help them avoid death, is weighed down by how sluggish it can feel to move around an arena. It’s an interesting idea that is sadly far from as refined as it needs to be in an environment this manic.
Lost in the Scramble
What’s more in need of refinement, as much a second look at, is the current balancing of characters. With one or two examples in their present state being so domineering and overpowered to the point it stops being ironic and comical at that. Spend even a small amount of time getting accustomed to the character of Soa – the pink-haired girl you’ll most likely have seen as the prime associate with the marketing – and it won’t be long before her high-output, wide-reaching style of attacking becomes the key to being the MVP on your team in most instances. Trying as I would to experiment with the roster, to then return to using Soa and shake my head in disbelief at how easy it was to rack up a consecutive number of player kills, regardless of the end outcome. Made worse by the fact that character-specific special abilities are too so scattershot in their application, few feel like meaningful or otherwise helpful abilities that serve an offensive, defensive or supportive role.
Sadly,Foamstars' other modes don’t perform any better in the pursuit of finding a meaningful middle-ground for its roster to battle it out. Rubber Duck Party,Foamstars' take on the Payload/Escort-style concept, feels terribly skewed in favor of the team that manages to take control of the titular giant duck first. Less a tense tug-of-war as these modes should often be and more a case where everything feels immediately stacked against the team not in control. Even a game likeExoprimalmanaged to sidestep the pitfalls such a mode could bring by having it designed more around a PvPvE form of progression. Something which, in a broad sense,Foamstarsmight have benefited from, rather than focusing solely on the traditional PvP format. Flawed as Capcom’s own multiplayer-centric IP was, even that game had far more of an appealing tone and sense of direction than whatFoamstarspitiably applies.
Review: Exoprimal
A non-existent campaign coupled with limited variety of content means Exoprimal’s fate will live or die by its post-launch, mid-to-long term support.
But if we’re talking pitiable levels of substance, then that not-so-coveted award goes to the Missions mode. A laughably lackluster PvE prospect wherein players defend an energy device from a set number of waves of monsters. And while the game would want to have this be framed as an opportunity to get accustomed to the roster of characters, whilst also learning more about the world and its denizens, sadly only one of these statements rings true. And if the overly-long, unskippable conversations between character profiles don’t grate, then it’s down toFoamstars' eye-rolling take on excitedly upbeat demeanor to its writing that will put you off. Not that the level of challenge (or lack thereof) employed isn’t enough of a deterrence with objectives that offer no real creative or improvisational thinking to the way they’re dished out. Some incredibly-brief bullet-hell style attacks to avoid aside, enemies offer little by way of a threat to one’s goals. Achieving the glorious S+ rank, far from acclaimed as it might sound.
Future’s Future
There’s simply nowhere near enough content – and depth to what’s on show – to feel likeFoamstarshas, in its first week at present, come out swinging. Even by the “standards” of live-service styled releases and the usual cycle with which this format of trickle-down content is employed, it’s hard to see whereFoamstarsgoes from hereon. A start that isn’t helped by its limited number of game modes and maps especially. In the latter case, maps that all encompass the same Las Vegas-like glitz of an aesthetic that it’s easy to have them all blur together and lose any semblance of individuality or notoriety.
It doesn’t help that, as noted, even from its very first week the game has already gone the way of egregious monetization via its in-game store. Of the cosmetics, emotes and even larger packs that bundle together assortments of different items for specific characters. That a free-to-play title has the gall to ask £36+ (roughly $45) for each individual pack. To put that into perspective, you can purchase a copy ofVoid Stranger,Everhoodand something likeCelestefor the same amountFoamstarsasks to decorate a chosen character in a new costume, weapon set and the like. It’s one thing that most of the locked-away items in the game can only be accessed via microtransactions such as this, it’s another that Square Enix have deemed it fit to go this hard this early on.
Closing Comments:
As promising a foundation there may be here,Foamstarssadly finds itself buried beneath a malaise of lackluster content and an underdeveloped world alike. Occasionally enjoyable and suggestive of greater potential the foam-centric mechanics can be, as both an offensive and defensive tool alike, it’s everything going on in and around the core gameplay, that ultimately makes the experience feel hollow and at worst, jarring to deal with. From its all-too-cheery presentation, to its laughably one-dimensional attempt at instilling personality into its world and characters. Right down to the horrid monetization practices at the very start of its life-cycle. A commitment to further updates and new content may stave off a small amount of concern, but it’s hard to see whereFoamstars' longevity will land. By no means the worst attempt at a multiplayer-centric experience by way of its handful of hopeful, admirable elements here and there, but still one that could’ve been far better given the promise.
