First Star Beast art, details
Thanks to the game’s Facebook page, we have the first art and details for Star Beast.
We should preface this by saying that it’s not entirely clear how much of this information is still relevant. Most of the gameplay ideas are probably still intact, but the page does mention that the Wii and 3DS are targeted platforms. That’s no longer the case as a LinkedIn profile states that the game will be released on the Wii U, PC, and mobile devices.
In any case, you can find all of the content below.
About
Take control of the universes’ most deadly weapon and plow through the depths of hell to secure the survival of the human race.
Description
THE UNIVERSE NEEDS YOU!
Take control of the D.R.A.C 01 and plow through the depths of hell. Star Beast takes you across a barren earth, through space, and into a hostile alien planet. Our team at Pixel Entertainment is hard at work producing Star Beast, an innovative 2.5D horizontal shooter which will change the way players think about the genre, for the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo 3DS. Taking influences from Gradius, R-type and Nanostray, Star Beast is a game where players pilot a ship on a mission to secure the survival of the human race.
CINEMATIC STORYLINE
In the distant future, humanity has finally mastered space travel, enabling us to travel the stars in search of the big question: Is there life out there?
We searched and searched until we finally found an amazing life form which we called Stellamorph. These creatures reached out to us, asking for our help. The Stellamorph were dying.
Humanity tried hard to save the species but we only managed to save one. Angered by the demise of his species, Rahu bellowed out to all of humanity, “You will all pay for the death of my people!” With that he disappeared for many decades.
Humanity began colonizing on the planet of the Stellamorph, forgetting the word of Rahu. We called the planet Stellar.
After many decades; attacks started raining down on the Planet Stellar. Rahu was behind these terrible attacks. Rahu had nearly destroyed all of the colonies on Stellar and started unleashing his attacks on earth, until Humanity finally unleashed its final weapon, The Drac-01 Project.
This lone warrior ventured out into open space seeking Rahu to stop him once and for all and give humanity hope.
DYNAMIC DIFFICULTY SELECTION
Star Beast will feature a three layer, level set up. The top level, which is exposed and easy to access, will be the easiest of the three layers, containing minimal creatures but a significant lack of minerals. The middle layer, which is less noticeable and blocked, will have a moderate amount of enemies and rewards such as mineral deposits. The bottom layer, which will be hidden, will be crawling with creatures and contain extremely large mineral deposits.
MULTIPLE ALIEN BIOMES
Players will be able to experience unique environments and biomes. While reminiscent of those on Earth, planet Stellar has taken each biome and created its own distorted versions
-Forest: More like a desert than a real forest. Various plant-like organisms live here, the more tree-like ones clumping together. Despite its barren-looking landscapes, this biome has the most species inhabiting it.
-Caverns: Massive tunnels and caves created by ancient creatures millions of years ago. It’s said that these tunnels can go as deep as the planets inner core. Although not as diverse as it once was, it still boasts some of the most unusual and hardy creatures.
-Swamp: A fairly new biome, only forming a few hundred years ago. As a result there are few species fully adapted to living in this environment. Despite this it’s becoming a fairly widespread ecosystem, growing about a foot in diameter every five years.
-Inner Core: The oldest of all the biomes, the inner core is home to some of the most ferocious creatures on the whole planet. Nothing but diamond hard rock and magma filled caverns, it’s no wonder that this biome has the smallest number of species out of all the other environments.
UNIQUE ECOSYSTEM
Star Beast features a unique ecosystem on an alien planet very different from Earth. Each creature interacts with its surroundings differently making everything feel more immersive.
-Dracosaur– Highly aggressive, attacks with a combination of physical and ranged acid blasts. Weakness: Ribcage
-Serpentisaur – Incredibly fast flyers with pinpoint accuracy, they shoot successions of rapid bullets. They move swiftly around the screen but pause for a few seconds after firing. Weakness: Ribcage
-Petrataurus – Slow to react but will retaliate with extreme force, firing a long cone of fire. It takes a while to charge before firing, keeping its mouth wide open. Weakness: Blade and inside the mouth
-Thanatosadon – Attacks the ship by either snapping with its huge jaws, or by swinging its massive claws. Weakness: Ribcage and inside the mouth
-Mucrosaur – Fast, small, and hard to hit, they will mob and cling to the ship, preventing the player from using most of the ships weapons. Weakness: Burst and overheating the ship
-Kleptosaur – Although graceful flyers, they become sluggish after gorging themselves on the ships energy. If not dealt with quickly, it will explode inflicting massive damage. Weakness: Burst and overheating the ship
COLLECTIBLE ITEMS
Star Beast will include 3 types of collectable items. These items include fossils, artifacts, and data chips. Each of these items will provide background information about planet Stellar.
-Fossils: These items (when every piece is collected) will provide the player information about the creatures that live on Stellar.
-Artifacts: These items will contain information on the Stellarmorphs that lived on the planet before disease killed them off.
-Data Chips: These items will include logs of the humans that lived on the Stellar before it was taken back.
SEAMLESS COOPERATIVE PLAY
Star Beast will feature a unique version of drop in/drop out cooperative play. The game will have an option for players to turn cooperative play on or off, when they load up their files. Players will also be able to permanently turn this feature on or off within the options menu. When a player is in a level with co-op active, any other player can join into the game at any time. Each player’s ship (when carried over into cooperative play) will have the attributes that the player has in the loaded profile. For example, if player one is playing a level and player two decides to join in, the stats from player two’s save file will be carried over into the cooperative game.
5 UNIQUE WEAPONS
Players will have access to five deadly weapons, all of which are upgradable and have special attributes.
-Swift is an energy based beam which can pass through enemies and certain objects.
-Blade is a sharp blade which cuts through thick armor like butter and the toughest vines and roots.
-Burst is a flame thrower like weapon which burns leaves and sets enemies ablaze.
-Strike is a lightning bolt weapon which allows players to turn on switches and stun enemies.
-Force is a powerful blast which sends enemies flying and helps move big objects, like boulders, away.
Each weapon puts a strain on the ships boiler, causing the ship to overheat. Each weapon puts its own amount of stress on the boiler. This mechanic will be used to regulate the players’ use of each weapon.
UPGRADE SYSTEM
Players will be able to collect minerals littered across the planet and use them to upgrade their ship and weapons. The game will also feature a skill tree where players can tailor their ship in their own image. This allows each player to have a unique ship.
IN CONCLUSION
Star Beast is a collaborative effort between talented artists, writers, game designers, musicians, and programmers. We, at Pixel Entertainment, are looking to create an engrossing adventure that takes players across the stars in search for sanctuary.
TOGETHER, WE WILL SAVE THE UNIVERSE!
Thanks to Joe for the tip.
