Lightbox Interactive’s 3rd person shooter released just recently for the PlayStation 3, and has got game critics split on its merits. Some say this is the best there is to offer on the PlayStation 3. Others say that the developer missed badly in its execution.
From the creators of Warhawk comes a bold new 3rd Person shooter adventure where you can change the battlefield instantly in the heat of combat. In the future, humanity’s last hope lies in the lawless frontier of space where factions battle over the universe’s most precious resource, Rift Energy. Caught in the middle is Emmett Graves, an outcast gunslinger who is drawn back to the planet that abandoned him, to face a fierce outlaw and his warband of followers.
Experience intense frenetic combat on foot, in vehicles, or in the air and discover a new type of shooter gameplay with the new “Build & Battle” system. Gain the tactical advantage by calling upon an arsenal of weapons, vehicles, and fortifications, violently delivered from an orbiting drop ship to help turn the tide of battle. Engage in epic 32 player online battles and see maps dynamically change depending completely on each player’s strategy or team up with friends and protect your claim against waves of AI opponents in online and offline Co-op modes.
IGN – 90 – This is multiplayer at its finest, and it’s among the best you’ll find on any platform. “This is multiplayer at its finest, and it’s among the best you’ll find on any platform.” -IGN
PlayStation Universe – 85 – Starhawk gives new life to the very generic online shooter genre by requiring careful teamwork in this Build & Battle combat system. Don’t expect much from the single-player adventure, but get ready to enjoy a truly exhilarating online experience.
Meristation – 85 – Team tactics is something really rare to see in shooters, specially in close combat, but Starhawk provides the tools to enjoy great battles where the strategy is as important as the aiming skills. LightBox Entertainment did a great job redefining the original Warhawk, from the aesthetics to the gameplay.
Game Trailers – 83 – With a mix of on-foot gunplay, full on dogfights, and strategic base-building, Starhawk lets you find your niche or switch roles at the drop of a hat. While it doesn’t leverage this versatility to create new game types to call its own, its territory-based gameplay offers a wide range of tactical options to explore.
GamesRadar – 80 – One of the most unique multiplayer experiences we played in a long time. The RTS elements create significant strategic depth and the action is a blast. Once we got a hang of the somewhat complicated gameplay systems of building bases and driving the various vehicles we didn’t want to put the controller down. If you’ve been looking for engrossing, chaotic, large-scale multiplayer battles, Starhawk is going to satisfy your needs.
Gaming XP -79 – Despite flawed controls and disappointing graphics, Starhawk delivers a great online multiplayer experience with a varied gameplay and innovative features.
Game Informer – 75 – While I appreciate the large player counts and wide-open battlefields, the on-foot gunplay and lack of multiplayer modes are disappointing.
Polygon – 65 – It’s not that Starhawk is a bad game. It’s not offensive, and it demonstrates a surprisingly broad range of influences in its attempts to be something different in the online shooter space. But Starhawk feels half-there, like its pieces don’t quite fit together, and it can’t keep pace with other, better multiplayer titles out there.
“It’s merely a loose collection of bullet points and underdeveloped ideas” – Metro
Metro – 60 – Survival mode is the only time Starhawk comes together to create a properly entertaining whole. In all the other game modes it’s merely a loose collection of bullet points and underdeveloped ideas, ones which never gel together into the multiplayer classic this could so easily have been.
Machinima – 60 – Starhawk is definitely a game that was made; I just don’t know if it was a game that was designed. Its scope seems at odds with its mechanics. There’s nothing inherently broken about Starhawk, it’s just painfully straightforward, as if the question of “why” was never asked. And it’s one I continued to ponder as I played the game and don’t think I ever really came up with a satisfying answer.
