How many tries does it take to win against all odds?

In Stars and Time is a story rich time loop RPG created by solo developer Adrienne Bazir — aka insertdisc5 — and published by Armor Games Studios. Set in a fantasy world where people are being frozen in time by a mad king’s curse, the game follows a small group of adventurers trying to set things right. But as with all stories, things are far more complex than they might seem. 

The game casts you as Siffrin, a visitor to the country of Vaugarde, where our story takes place. A rogue with a poor memory, they have forged strong bonds with his fellow party members. There’s Mirabelle, the House Maiden chosen to save the country from The King, and Isabeau, the only Defender who was willing to fight by her side. Odile is the party’s Researcher, though what she’s researching is unknown to the rest, and Bonnie. Bonnie is a kid and isn’t allowed to fight, instead they’re the party cook, aka Snack Leader. 

Playing the Game

The game itself isn’t particularly difficult, all things considered. Mostly you talk to your party members, explore the town and the dungeon to find helpful items and new equipment, and defeat Sadnesses, the world’s monsters in turn-based combat. In Stars and Time’s combat system is wonderfully simple and engaging. It’s just Rock, Paper, Scissors. Every character has a type (one main character is dual type), and the magic system is called Crafting. Honestly, I can only describe it as charming and effective. While the story and the lore of the game builds a wonderful richness to the system, there is something so refreshing about the familiarity. Everyone knows Rock, Paper, Scissors in real life, so seeing it in a game puts us immediately on the same page as the characters. 

In the first two acts, and through the first half of the third, the combat remains engaging. Enemies require good planning to take down, and you get to utilize the entire party’s different strengths and abilities. Insertdisc5 threaded a difficult needle indeed: RPGs are notoriously challenging to balance well, even in the most straightforward situations. With In Stars and Time, this must have been even harder as the player character, Siffrin, will end up at a much higher level than his friends. You see, a side effect of the time loop is that every time you loop, only you keep the experience you earned. 

Loops

That is the other major mechanic the game is built around: looping. You loop when you die or are frozen in time, but only outside of battle, unless of course your entire party is knocked out or frozen during combat, then you will loop as expected. Thankfully, when you loop you have some freedom (usually) on where you’ll loop too. Each floor of the dungeon, the House of Change, has a save point at the start and the end, which serve as… tethers, one might say. Once you’ve saved at a save point, you’ll be able to loop to it. These save points also record your items and your party’s level and experience, so when you loop there, you won’t be starting from scratch. 

We Begin

When the curtain opens, we are already at the end of our journey. You’ve all been traveling together for months, seeking out the orbs needed to enter Dormont’s House of Change in order to defeat the King and reverse his curse. With the five orbs acquired before the start of the game, all that’s left is to prepare to, and then face, their final challenge. Sure, ascending through three floors of traps, locked doors, and powerful Sadnesses is no easy feat, but you’re fine. This is what you’ve trained for. 

Your first death is unavoidable and marks the end of Act 1. In Stars and Time is divided into six acts of various lengths, with Acts 1 and 6 being the shortest. For the purpose of limiting spoilers, suffice to say each Act Break is tied to a major shift in Siffrin’s mental state, with the first one tied to the discovery that they are trapped in a time loop. That sort of discovery would freak anyone out – but thankfully, you’re not alone here. Sure, your party doesn’t remember the loops, but your new bestie does! 

A Friend and an Enigma

Known to you as Loop, the star-shaped enigma has insight and information aplenty prepared to help you on your journey. You’re able to talk to them whenever you loop back to Dormont, and occasionally they’ll pop in psychically to give you helpful hints as you explore the House. Loop is here to help you with your loops. They’re not always super helpful, but hey! You need someone to help you remember everything that happens. It is genuinely a life saver to have a character you can go get a summary of what you’ve learned so far and pointers on what to focus on next. They get less helpful as the game goes on, but they remain load bearing to your psyche. 

In many ways, In Stars and Time is a mystery. As you loop, you learn the secrets of each floor — where keys are, which routes lead to dead ends, the best spots to pick up tonics — but the more you learn, the more questions you have. There is something missing from the world, an island that no one remembers. Siffrin is missing memories, their absence leaving a hole inside them. And of course, there’s the biggest question of all: What is causing time to loop? What will end it? Is there a way to escape? There must be! There has to be. 

The Art

The black and white art of In Stars and Time sets it apart visually. At first, I thought this was just an inspired stylistic decision, but no! Color doesn’t exist in the world of the game. It used to, but it has been gone so long that its existence is only just being discovered. This doesn’t greatly impact the story of the game, but it does add a nice texture to the world and world building. The limited color pallet makes each character’s design really pop. There’s a focus on shape and pattern. Every silhouette is unique. Bazir’s cartoonist background has definitely served her well here. 

Speaking of their background in comics, I have to take a moment to appreciate how Bazir handles CGs in their game. The rhythm in which they are shown, through placement and subtle animation, mimics the pacing of a comic book page. In battle, character’s special moves will cause a panel break effect. During intense emotional moments, panels will fade in in time with the dialogue as you click through it. Honestly, it’s hard to properly highlight because it just feels so right to have CGs presented like they are in In Stars and Time. 

The Music

The game’s music is also no slouch. Despite my personal disappointment in the lack of character specific themes, there is an abundance of character in every track on the OST. There’s a real eye — or rather ear — to the specific emotions each track elicits in the listener. The use of leitmotifs cleverly weaponizes familiarity, and every unique track hits like a truck and snaps you out of the intentional monotony the saturates the later acts of In Stars and Time. The game is constantly setting you up for these crystalline moments of psychological catharsis, and its music displays this excellently. 

My Experience

So, what is In Stars and Time about? I’ve told you about the mechanics, the setup of the plot, and discussed some of the game’s artistic merits (of which there are many). Now it’s time for the rest, the substance. Right? Well, truthfully, I’m not sure if I can. Not objectively, anyways. Not when this game reached into my rib cage and pulled something precious out. Something gleaming, like a gem or even a star.

At the very end, my loop count was just shy of 65, about 80 hours in. I played the whole game over the course of a long weekend, and two of my three roommates played it at the same time. The third was the one who recommended it to us all. Not only did I get to experience the game blind, I got to watch others experience the game blind too. We all started out excited and intrigued. We fell in love with the characters, we chatted about moves they were learning, what enemies we’d run into. As time passed, we got quiet, focused. The experience changed. 

That’s Great, But Seriously

In Stars and Time is a game about many things. It isn’t fun in a straight forward way, at least not for long after the second act. You get caught between the gears of despair and sucked into the depths of the grief metaphor. The narrative is choked with loss, the smell of fear and loneliness is cloying. This is a game that viscerally reminds you of what the word catharsis means. Forces you to take every desperate step forward side by side with Siffrin. When I was deep in act 3, I said to my friends, “I can’t stop playing for too long, I don’t want to leave him alone in the time loop.” 

In Stars and Time is a game about many things, but I think if it’s about one thing, it’s about love. Maybe that’s a cop out. Maybe it’s cliche to say that. I don’t know. What I do know is that this game’s narrative walked me through the familiar roads of deep depression and grief — but the whole time, it told me I was loved. Even at his lowest point, Siffrin is loved. Even if they can’t see it, you can. Playing Siffrin, you can show him he is loved by helping him get out of this mess. Put one foot in front of the other, make a wish, and keep going until you break free. 

Final Thoughts

I played this game on the Nintendo Switch, and one of my roommates played it on PC. It ran excellently on both systems. But if you play on the computer via Steam, you’ll be able to earn achievements which add another layer of brilliant humor to the game. There is a major visual glitch that can be encountered on the Switch if you leave the game running in idle mode for more than a few hours. However, if you close and reopen the game, the problem is fixed. I only encountered one, minor glitch. Occasionally, the Favor Tree graphic had a weird perspective warp if I did… something. I don’t remember what. Leaving that screen and coming back fixed the issue every time. 

There’s nothing else I can wax poetic about without well and truly spoiling In Stars and Time for you, so I won’t. If anything here has hooked your attention, go play the game. No matter how much of the experience speaks to you, it’s a journey well worth taking. There’s an engaging story, fascinating characters, and unique framing that breathes new life into familiar gameplay conventions. Bazir’s writing and art is phenomenal, and I personally hold them in great esteem and cannot wait to go insane for her next game. 

In Stars and Time is available on Nintendo Switch, Playstation, and PC through Steam. It retails for $19.99 and released worldwide on November 20th 2023.