Game review: Dead Star offers revamped old-school thrills and truly great online multiplayer

Dead Star

Armature Studio

3.5/5 stars

Dead Star is currently free for PlayStation Plus members. I’m starting with that bit of info because it’s unlikely that, even after reading this review, you’ll ever end up buying it. That’s a little sad though, because it’s a fun little game, if not exactly as world-building or genre-spanning as the big-league entries that dominate the market.

Also available for the PC, Dead Star is a “shooter” in the most traditional sense, long before Doom and its future FPS buddies forever POV’d our perspective: this is arcade-style intergalactic combat, your little pew-pew spaceship taking on the universe. Think Space Invaders, but jacked up for modern times and pushed into the multiplayer world.

Players are armed with a future-cool variety of weapons, from fast-shooting lasers and missiles to begin with, all the way through to massive energy orbs and beasts of destruction as the game progresses. Upgrade options span an impressive range of ship types, and choosing the right vessel – from quick-moving speeders to tank-like frigates – is crucial to your success.