Bounty Star Review – Contemporary Nostalgia

Bounty Star Review

On paper, Bounty Star sounds like a nostalgic dream title as a mech-based third-person 3D action game, but it also infuses contemporary elements such as farming and base building. At first glance, the title instantly drew me in with its gameplay and graphics seemingly taken from a different time. I wasn’t sure what to expect beyond that, but what I did experience left me questioning what I wanted from these sorts of titles.

Bounty Star puts players into the role of Clem, an ex-soldier who is looking to rebuild their life after the events during the opening of the game. As a mech pilot and fighter, Clem acts as a bounty hunter in a post-post-apocalyptic version of the American Southwest. For a mech-based action title that was seemingly pulled out of a console generation from years ago, Bounty Star has a narrative that was surprisingly insightful, giving players a glimpse into a life being rebuilt after tragedy. Clem’s strong personality, along with her situation, provides players with a meaningful path forward throughout the story.

The game’s primary gameplay loop revolves around three key gameplay elements: customization of your Desert Raptor MKII, combat, and base building. While the early portion of the game is a bit slow due to the number of tutorials and gameplay systems, it does pick up over time, and it really gets going once you have more unlocked. Customizing your mech is a must in any game with mechs, and Bounty Star does a good job in providing players with a variety of weapons and upgrades, including melee weapons, siege weapons, high-speed thrusters, and more.

Gameplay First

A key component of any mech game is its combat, and Bounty Star does a solid job of keeping the combat simple but engaging. Each enemy type has its own weakness, and each weapon feels different enough to make a difference. The various conditions of the bounty also play a part in how one might approach a particular mission.

Earlier in my review, I mentioned nostalgia as well as the game feeling like it originated from a previous console generation, and the combat portion is what I was specifically referring to. The combat isn’t exceptionally fast-paced or methodical, like a simulation, but it feels more like an action-adventure platformer/third-person shooter than anything else. Of course, some contemporary quality of life improvements and gameplay elements supplement the gameplay base, but the title’s combat does feel a bit more “arcade-like”. This isn’t a detractor or even praise for the game, but it is a nice callback to simpler times if that is what you’re looking for.

The farming and base-building element was not personally my cup of tea, and at times feels like an additional aspect of the game meant to give players a way to sink more time into the game. While base-building elements can be very enjoyable, it didn’t seem like it needed to be a major part of Bounty Star. That said, I did appreciate being able to purchase the missing materials required for a craftable item without having to either find the item or purchase it individually.

Aesthetically, the game has solid visuals and runs really well. The game’s setting also combines a solid rendition of the American Southwest along with some of its more fictional aspects of the post-post-apocalyptic vibe, such as neon-lit trees. While the graphics aren’t going to be what you expect from big-budget titles, it does more than enough to be enjoyed.

Overall, Bounty Star provides players with an arcade-like experience involving customizable mechs, which is surprisingly not an oversaturated niche yet. The solid combat and customization options highlight an overall polished product that is accompanied by an overall insightful narrative and smooth gameplay on console. For any mech fans, Bounty Star is worth checking out and is also currently a part of Xbox Game Pass at the time of this review.

*** A review code was provided by the publisher ***