324:, with the writing mirroring Bazir's connections with their friends during that time. Additionally, they wanted to expand on the video game trope of replaying sections after dying by having the main character remember previous iterations. Parts of the game were intentionally made repetitive to emphasise the situation Siffrin is in and convey those feelings to the player, with Bazir aiming to create a player experience that was "authentic" to Siffirin's story. The player's annoyance as dialogue is repeated was designed to mirror what Siffrin would also be thinking, with Bazir stating that "art should make you feel bad emotions sometimes". However, they were also inspired by
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House, but finds himself waking up in
Dormont the day before, unharmed. After waking up, he is informed by a mysterious, star-shaped figure named Loop that he has been trapped in a time loop. Choosing not to tell his party, Siffrin uses his time loops and Loop's assistance to defeat the King and save Vaugarde. However, he soon discovers that he also gets looped back after defeating the King; Loop assures him that they will help him escape the situation.
311:. Bazir was inspired by the latter when writing, wanting to avoid undue focus on Siffrin by making each member of his party distinct and ensuring that they had a "very interesting and rich inner life". From their perspective, Siffrin would not even be the central character in the events that occurred before the start of the game, with another member explicitly being named as the "chosen one" in-game.
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Wish Craft was trapping him in the loops: he wished to stay with his party after defeating the King, but could not admit it. The others confess that they also felt the same, and the time loop finally stops. The game ends with
Siffrin apologizing for his previous insults and coming to terms with each of his party members, as they end their journey and begin their next one.
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eventually views them as repeating lines in a play. He comes to believe that the citizens of
Dormont unintentionally trapped him in the loop due to Wish Craft, but fails to get help. Out of leads, impatient, and worn down by experiencing a vast amount of loops, Siffrin snaps and insults his party, before leaving to confront the King by himself.
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generally only terminated when
Siffrin dies; this can either be during combat, or by finding items that kill Siffrin. After looping back in time, the player can skip ahead to different floors, at the cost of in-game currency. If the player encounters dialogue they have already seen, they can fast-forward through it.
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Incredibly strong from fighting in many loops, Siffrin traverses the House alone and comes close to defeating the King, only to be slowed down and frozen in time. Overcome by fatigue and self-loathing, he breaks down and is tormented by hallucinations of his party. Eventually, with Loop's help, he is
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Throughout the game, the player can end up repeating the same actions multiple times, as
Siffrin is stuck in a time loop. However, they can also utilise the loops to learn how to solve problems, for example repeating conversations until they choose the correct option or find a certain item. Loops are
164:. The game takes place in the fictional country of Vaugarde, which is in the process of being frozen in time by a mysterious figure known as the King. The player controls Siffrin, a member of an adventuring party which hopes to defeat the King and save Vaugarde. Siffrin finds themselves trapped in a
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The game's art direction was largely praised; Parsons described the illustrations as "beautifully drawn", and
Wachter said that the enemies were "distinctive and full of personality" and the monochromatic palette was "a bold and interesting choice" that thematically cohered with the narrative. Lada
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The combat also received a positive response; Stonham said that it was entertaining and could become surprisingly challenging, and Lewis described the jackpot system as "incredibly satisfying". Parsons and Castle also praised the game's battles, but criticised them for remaining the same throughout
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If the player takes certain actions, Siffrin can confront Loop again at the end. They admit to being an alternate version of
Siffrin who wished to escape from the loop, and was sent to help the current Siffrin. Envious that Siffrin has managed to escape the loop while they are unrecognised by their
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The party help
Siffrin recover, but inadvertently raise the prospect of splitting up, causing him to have a meltdown. The power of Wish Craft enlarges him to a gigantic size, and he laments that he does not want his family to leave. Working together to calm him down, they realize that Siffrin's own
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Siffrin uses the loops to find out more about his situation and discover a way out. Over the course of many loops, he learns that both he and the King come from a country that was erased from everyone's memory. Distraught by losing his memories, the King arrived in
Vaugarde and was overjoyed by the
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praised the option to skip forward during repeated dialogue, calling the game "considerate of your time". Lewis stated that the loops were not overly repetitive, but found some of the required backtracking tedious. Conversely, Parsons criticised the game for causing "a feeling of being stuck" but
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was developed by solo creator
Adrienne Bazir, also known as insertdisc5. The game originated as a set of webcomics featuring the then-unnamed protagonist Siffrin in 2017. Bazir found the concept of prophecy and repetition to have potential for a role-playing game, and developed a short prototype:
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that is viewed from a top-down perspective. Players control the main character Siffrin as they attempt to lead the party through the castle and defeat the King. The party navigates the House of Change and its surrounding village, where the player can initiate combat with enemies or interact with
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compassion he was shown. To protect Vaugarde from meeting the same fate as his country, he chose to freeze it in time to preserve it so that it would remain "perfect". Siffrin discovers that the King has harnessed the rare powers of Wish Craft, which is capable of granting anyone's deepest wish.
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The player assumes control of Siffrin, who is leading his party from the town of Dormont to the House of Change. The House has been taken over by the King, who will perpetually freeze the country of Vaugarde in time if they fail to stop him. Siffrin is quickly killed by a trap after entering the
259:
While making these discoveries, Siffrin grows closer to his party members by working through their personal problems, and he begins to consider them his new family. This worsens his mental stability, as he watches his party forget their experiences with him at the start of each loop, and he
272:
former party, Loop tries to kill Siffrin and take his place. Regardless of the outcome, Siffrin assures them that he could not have escaped if not for their help. Moved by Siffrin's compassion, Loop disappears, assuring Siffrin that they will meet again.
545:'s Rebekah Valentine described the game as one of their favourite RPGs of 2023, and Izzy Parsons, of the gaming news site RPGFan, included it as one of their favourite games of the year. It was an Honorable Mention for both the
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and several consoles. Critics were generally positive towards the game, praising the characters and narrative, though some took issue with the looping gameplay. Following release, it received nominations for the
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lauded its "powerful twist". The writing was described by Lewis as being "delivered flawlessly" and having characters portrayed "in ways that brilliantly convey their differing personalities".
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called it "unsatisfying filler". Wachter said the repetitive nature of looping could be "exhausting" and a "punishment" but conceded that it made progressing "incredibly rewarding".
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system, though they can also use attacks outside their speciality. Enemies also have these types, which are usually indicated via their hand gestures. When the party performs five
525:
s Jordan Rudek stated that the repetition was "fairly tedious" and difficult to keep track of, but somewhat alleviated by changes in dialogue, while Katharine Castle of
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and the final game to remain relatively small in scope, but both projects grew as development progressed. The black-and white graphical style was chosen for simplicity.
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The narrative was praised by reviewers. Parsons described the narrative as the "true heart of the game" and "wonderfully heartfelt and thematic", and Sam Wachter of
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was also cited by Bazir as a "conscious inspiration" for the game in its approach to creating a "conversation with the player" and instilling a sense of "unease".
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woken up by his actual party, which reflects one of the King's spells back at him, freezing him in time just as he finally remembers his country.
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formula. It was based on a set of webcomics made by the developer in 2018 and short prologue in 2020 as a prototype for the final game.
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of a type, a "jackpot" move is performed. These special group attacks can heal party members and deal damage to all enemies.
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817:"In Stars and Time developer on why their RPG 'has to be frustrating' - 'it is art, and art should be annoying sometimes'"
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described it as a "a must-play for fans of quirky indie games" but "repetitive more often than I would like".
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2024 RPG Roundtable: Baldur's Gate 3, Avowed, Cyberpunk 2077, In Stars and Time, The Elder Scrolls designers
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different loops, claiming that they eventually encouraged the player to skip them or use the escape button.
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reviewer Catherine Lewis stated it stuck with her "for a very long time after playing" and Izzy Parsons of
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noted that it fit the story: "as Siffrin is getting frustrated with the loops, so too is the player".
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s battle system allows players to perform combos based on move types (denoted in the bottom right).
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The looping narrative was influenced by the repetitive and solitary nature of lockdown during the
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to add moments where the repetition is broken and the player is "completely caught off guard".
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339:'s Summer of Gaming event in June 2023. It was released on November 20, 2023 for
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1168:"RPGFan Games of the Year 2023 ~ Editors' Awards: Izzy Parsons | RPGFan"
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described the colour scheme and user interface design as effective.
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Combat takes place in a first-person perspective; the game uses an
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received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according to
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Writing IN STARS AND TIME — Interview with Creator Adrienne Bazir
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system. Different characters have specialised types based on a
1193:"Visai Games' 'Venba' Leads Finalists for the 2024 IGF Awards"
669:"Review: In Stars and Time Makes a Time Loop Seem Manageable"
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Reactions to the looping mechanics were mixed. Jenni Lada of
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1114:"In Stars And Time review: a grind of a groundhog day"
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981:"Future of Play Direct 2023: Our 10 Favorite Games"
850:"In Stars and Time Looped Me In, and Didn't Let Go"
292:to develop the game. They initially intended both
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874:Watts, Rachel (May 2024). "Breaking the Cycle".
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573:In the game, Siffrin is referred to using both
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848:Valentine, Rebekah (13 November 2023).
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335:in March 2022, and it was showcased in
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1166:Parsons, Izzy (2 February 2024).
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979:Zollner, Amelia (10 June 2023).
702:Stonham, Em (21 November 2023).
667:Lada, Jenni (22 November 2023).
1005:Romano, Sal (10 October 2023).
953:Fuller, Alex (22 March 2022).
496:writer Em Stonham praised the
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1:
955:"In Stars and Time Announced"
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1303:Video games about time loops
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747:"In Stars and Time Review"
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191:Seumas McNally Grand Prize
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1083:review: narrative gold"
286:Start Again: A Prologue
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158:role-playing video game
1142:"The Best RPG of 2023"
708:Review (Switch eShop)"
224:items and characters.
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1268:Nintendo Switch games
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1011:launches November 20"
786:Nintendo World Report
520:Nintendo World Report
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288:in 2020. Bazir used
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1119:Rock, Paper, Shotgun
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528:Rock, Paper, Shotgun
172:which is based on a
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333:Armor Games Studios
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1201:. 11 January 2024
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467:review aggregator
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1278:Indie games
1094:21 November
1020:20 November
791:20 November
719:21 November
643:20 November
547:Nuovo Award
398:Publication
294:Start Again
276:Development
187:Nuovo Award
76:Platform(s)
46:insertdisc5
1242:Categories
1205:17 January
1054:2023-11-20
1048:Metacritic
673:Siliconera
592:References
515:Siliconera
507:EarthBound
471:Metacritic
451:Siliconera
382:Metacritic
373:Aggregator
156:is a 2023
1088:TechRadar
821:TechRadar
579:singular
502:Undertale
476:TechRadar
440:TechRadar
364:Reception
359:Reception
302:Undertale
166:time loop
1177:30 March
1151:30 March
932:PC Gamer
910:30 March
826:29 March
756:29 March
678:29 March
557:Awards.
549:and the
469:website
201:Gameplay
129:Genre(s)
1125:5 April
1015:Gematsu
990:2 April
964:2 April
959:RPGamer
938:27 July
751:RPGamer
488:RPGamer
353:Windows
182:Windows
140:Mode(s)
108:Release
99:Windows
1172:RPGFan
882:Future
638:RPGFan
481:RPGFan
433:80/100
429:RPGFan
386:85/100
351:, and
64:Engine
561:Notes
523:'
401:Score
376:Score
219:is a
1207:2024
1179:2024
1153:2024
1127:2024
1096:2023
1022:2023
992:2024
966:2024
940:2024
912:2024
877:Play
828:2024
793:2023
758:2024
721:2023
680:2024
645:2023
581:they
577:and
504:and
455:8/10
423:7/10
413:8/10
305:and
247:Plot
189:and
1146:IGN
985:IGN
855:IGN
543:IGN
510:.
473:.
445:4/5
337:IGN
197:.
1244::
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343:,
116:WW
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