Mobile game reviews

James Pinnell reviews the latest games for android & iOS smartphones & tablets.

Pixel Starships: Galaxy TO INFINITY, AND BEYOND!

Free with IAP

Pixel Starships is one of those incredibly difficult games to put in a box. On the surface, it is a gorgeous, funny, surprisingly deep strategy MMO set in space with a clever AI system with various options for play and a strong team environment. Developed by an Australian team out of Melbourne, SavySoda, Starships has you building and running a large space freighter with varying objectives, from piracy to mining.

Under the surface, it is still unquestionably clever to the point where the internet is full of guides on how to compete in the higher ranks – regardless of the currency issues it faces that I will touch on in a moment, it utilises an AI system of scripts based on a real-world programming language that allows your ship’s crew, weapons and systems to act autonomously during both real-time PVP/PVE combat and when you are offline.

This AI scripting allows for hundreds of customised strategies in the competitive league tables, and the skill-based focus, while flawed to a point, still allows players who do not buy currency or special items to hold their ground. However, Starships is still a Gacha game at heart.

This is combined with an ad-focused currency system which means that without real world cash, you are going to be hopping in and out every few hours to keep up. It is unfortunate as Starships would have arguably been better suited to a fixed fee.