Full Review

If you were to believe a certain catchy Disney song from the early 90s, you would think that things are much better under the sea. After a few minutes playing Sea Stars, you'd definitely be giving the argument some thought. There's something about the colors, the gliding mechanics and the collectables and upgrades that make this game just a joy to play.

Control as well as the style of game is similar to Tiny Wings. Pressing down on the screen gives you weight, plunging you to the bottom of the ocean, while lifting will send you soaring up, eventually diving out of the water. During this weaving to and fro, you'll be collecting coins, and avoiding deadly jellyfish and missile crabs. The main goal is to survive but the game is full of tiny goals, or missions if you will, that reward you with coins and experience upon completion. These range from meeting all the sea buddies that carry you along with a greater sense of risk and reward, to jumping enough times to engage rainbow bird mode, to just traveling a certain distance or collecting a certain amount of coins.

Coins are the currency for the shop. Not only can helpful power-ups such as shields and speed boosts be purchased, but bonuses in game can be upgraded, new characters can be unlocked, and even missions can be tagged out for another if one is giving you particular trouble. Now the game does tend to focus a little too much on the shop. Granted its unlocks are what helps to prolong play, and the extra money the developers will make from people purchasing coins to unlock everything they want to is fair enough, but its constant intrusion mars the joy of the gameplay somewhat.

Sea Stars is full of color, charm and enjoyable music. The game opens up quickly and before long you'll be defeating your high scores, ticking off missions and saving up coins for the next unlock. Sea Stars takes an established game type, and makes it its own. Great for short bursts of gameplay or those who like having goals to work towards.

App Store Info