Starlight Re:Volver comes from Padho Labs, a company that has grown from a solo developer to an entire studio during the pandemic. This game is inspired by MapleStory and Ragnarok Online, as well as anime and Super Sentai/Tokusatsu/“Henshin” shows you may have seen in the 90s and 2000s. Particularly in the characters’ transformations, you may see some resemblance to shows like Sailor Moon, Ultraman, Kamen Rider, or Pretty Cure.
In a preview session in early May, I was introduced to Starlight Re:Volver by the Padho Labs team and its CEO and founder, Daniel Zou. This brief presentation introduced me to the split world of Nishi Island Metropolis (NIM) and So Mi, where players will spend their time. Starlight Re:Volver is an online game where you can team up with up to three other Divers to hang out on NIM or delve into dreamworlds for a chance to return as heroes.
After a presentation led by Daniel Zou, I joined three other divers, including a Padho Labs member to guide us through some of the activities in the NIM finishing up with a trip into So Mi.
NIM has plenty to do while you’re waiting to jump into So Mi or if you just want to digitally spend some time with your friends. The Metropolis contains many regular favorites to while away the time with, like hoverboarding, fishing, stargazing, and bug catching, which all contribute to your Diver’s License. Upgrading your Diver will require plenty of materials through venturing into So Mi, but you’ll find you also need materials from fishing to complete various upgrades. Beware because fishing rods do break, so you’ll be crafting not just upgrades but also your tools. While not much is known about the game’s monetization, I do worry if it will include elements like this, as the Steam Page does confirm in-game purchases.
Whether you’re venturing into the dreamworlds or just running some errands throughout NIM, you’ll be graced by fantastic J-Pop, Chiptune, and City Pop through Padho’s internal composer Miyolophone and through collabs with artists like Sarah Bonito, Diana Garnet, and LilyPichu. LilyPichu’s contributions so far include an in-game song, “Caramel”. Eagle-eyed players may also notice that LilyPichu isn’t just contributing her musical talents to the game but is also present in the form of an NPC called Clover. While I enjoyed listening to the music in the preview session, part of me does wonder what sort of preservation efforts are being taken with a game so intrinsically linked to its music — many a game has become lost media due to music rights being too expensive or not being worth navigating.
Players had a choice between three divers for the preview session: Effy, Ren, and Kira. There was also a mysterious child on the character select screen with the number 42 on their coat, who seems to be named Vivi from promotional art. While Effy and Ren were marked “Medium” difficulty, Kira was considered “Easy”. While we don’t know a ton about these characters at present, their fantastic transformations feel like something out of Cardcaptor Sakura or Persona 5. Effy, a pink-haired girl packing a giant warhammer, talks about how she doesn’t want to let her grandpa down. Ren, a green-haired guy whose weapon can swap between a ranged mode and a melee mode, speaks about someone named Hana and not wasting this second chance. Kira, wielding laser pistols, lives in the shadow of her famous older sister and strives for perfection as a result. It’s clear these characters have a purpose, and a story is unfolding, but it’s hard to say how engaging it will be from this first look.
After we were shown around NIM, our Padho guide took us into So Mi, where multiple biomes will be available, but we were only able to venture through one at the time, called the Sacred Sky. In So Mi, you go through a number of stages in a roguelite setting. The game becomes an Action RPG at that point, and your team of divers is tasked with eliminating all enemies and avoiding their many projectile attacks. Players already seemed to be developing builds and strategies, my play time was too short to confirm whether player builds were just that strong, or if doing enough runs of So Mi makes enough of a difference in how capable a player is. After each run, I seemed to have enough resources for at least one upgrade. As you finish each roguelite level, you are presented with a choice between three levels, such as a healing stage, a merchant and trading stage, stages that reward money, abilities, charms, or revival material. Players have to democratically choose between the options, and ties are broken randomly. Players also cannot dawdle, however — running out of fuel will make it so that each player takes damage that increases until they are knocked out, though I did observe players who had high enough stats and shields to negate that damage. Finishing a level by eliminating all enemies results in a signature “We did it!” slowdown. However, any additional summoned enemies (adds) are not immediately destroyed with this slowdown, which caused me to take damage unexpectedly a number of times, and it seems unfair. These adds do eventually self-destruct harmlessly, but it feels like Padho Labs should disable their attacks or have them perish at the same time as the end of level slowdown. At the end of this run was a challenging, high-health boss The Grand Golem who engaged the player in bullet hell.
Characters have interesting mechanics even from this early stage, such as Kira putting out explosive living “berries” that buff allies and hurt enemies when destroyed, Effy rampaging across the battlefield with her giant hammer, and Ren providing shields for his team. Seeing some of the upgrades and Charms, I hope Padho Labs can follow through, but I can already see the interesting and varied design space they’re playing in. Nothing can make a roguelite experience more deflating than reaching a choice of upgrades for none of them to be appealing, or having no exciting way to spend your currency. At its worst, a lack of appetizing options can mean a failed run, so hopefully Starlight Re:Volver will deliver on this part of the game. It is also hard to say at this point if monetization or a tweaked reward drip during future development will change things.
Starlight Re:Volver is set for Early Access Release in Q3 of 2025 for PC.
