Starlink Battle for Atlas is the new, open-world space saga for the Nintendo Switch. What is an open-world space saga? Basically, it means that using the special controller and modular design of the ships, you can go anywhere and do anything. Modular design? What’s that? We’ll get into that shortly. If I were to give this a blanket statement, I would call this Starfox on Steroids, and that’s a very good thing. A very good thing, indeed.
Starlink Battle for Atlas Premise
The premise of this game is basically Starfox meets Skylanders. Set in open space, players must use their flight skills, pilots, ships, and weapons to survive. The Starfox part of the game is easy to see. You fly around space in a ship. In fact, the special Starfox-themed pack I got has both Fox McCloud and the Arwing. It makes for a wonderful mix of nostalgia and modern graphics which is smooth to play and pretty to look at.
The Skylanders feel comes from the modular designed I mentioned before. Much like Skylanders, Starlink Battle for Atlas features a modular system allowing you to use different pilots, ships, and weapons on the fly. The game comes with a specialized controller featuring a mount for any of your collected ships. You simply insert your pilot of choice, mount your ship, and configure it based your current criteria.
Starlink Battle for Atlas Gameplay
Starlink gameplay is just quick enough to be exciting but not so quick that changing weapons and ship configurations becomes an exercise in frustration. Customizing my ship on the fly was both easy and enjoyable, and I got a real visceral charge out of watching it change right on the screen as I played.
Configuration Counts
One of the best parts of this game is that configuration does matter. You can mount your wings to different ships. Those same wings can be mounted right side up or upside down for different bonuses to stability, speed, and other flight and battle attributes. In the same way, different weapons can be mounted to different ships to give you the right mix for any situation. The same can be said for pilots. So while at first glance, the configuration portion may seem like a gimmick, it’s actually an integral part of gameplay that greatly adds to the excitement and playability, allowing you to feel fully in control of any given situation.
Actual Exploration in a REAL Open World
Exploration is real in this game. The open-world isn’t like some you’ve played with invisible barriers. Everything is at your disposal. Af of right now, I’m marooned on a planet, and I can go anywhere. I can also scan flor and fauna to upload to the database as well as expand structures and generally explore anything I feel like. It’s open world in the truest sense which can still be hard to come by these days.
Controls are Quick to Learn
If you’re like me and you love games that maybe you aren’t so good at, you’ll love the controls for Starlink Battle for Atlas. It features various difficulty settings perfect for advanced starfighter or novice as well as an auto targeting system which can be turned on or off as well as adjusted. As a lover of both shooter and flight games – and as a person who is also TERRIBLE at them – I thoroughly appreciated this.
I won’t like. I set the difficulty to easy and maxed auto-aim, and I don’t feel bad about it one whit. It allowed me to feel the frenetic energy of the game, enjoy the exploration, and have fun adjusting my ship without losing my intergalactic marbles, as it were.
What You Get in the Starfox Starlink Battle for Atlas Box
My special Starfox box was a great starter for the game. It came with two characters, the iconic Starfox ship, as well as two blasters for mounting on the wings. All of these can be connects to the special Switch controller hub which was also included. A handy two-sided poster is included, as well, with one side featuring a Starlink scene and the other side featuring characters and ships to be collected.
Fox McCloud
Mason Rana
The Arwing
Two-Sided Poster
Three More Starlink Battle for Atlas Bundles
In addition to the Starlink Battle for Atlas Starfox Box, I also received three other bundles. The Lance Starship pack features the Lance ship, Hunter Hakka pilot, and Imploder weapon. A weapons bundle included the Crusher and Shredder MK.2 weapons. Finally, I received the Levi McCray pilot pack.
Lance Starship Pack
The Lance Starship Pack is a particularly fun one because it contains a ship, a pilot, and an extra weapon type. This pack offers even more customization options, and it adds a nice element of immersion to the story because I have yet another pilot to play with.
Levi McCray
Another chracter to play with is always great in a game that features the characters prominently. The ability to switch out pilots both adds to the sense of immersion in the story as well as giving the ability to use unique special moves.
Crusher and Shredder MK.2 Weapons Pack
Starlink Battle for Atlas focuses heavily on using the right pilots, ships, and weapons for the task at hand, so a weapons pack is always a good thing. This pack gave me two more option for dealing with the enemies trying to stop me from accomplishing my mission to save the universe.
Starlink Battle for Atlas is the Perfect Game and Gift
I thoroughly enjoy Starlink Battle for Atlas, and I think everyone else out there will, as well. It has all the nostalgic feels of Starfox, the exploration of No Man’s Sky (but, you know, good), and the extra fun aspect of switching out characters and ships, a la Skylanders. All in all, it’s a game that combines the best aspects of some of my most beloved games into one super game that really works. I like to think of it as the Voltron of video games.
If you have a gamer in your life, or if you are the gamer in your life, I encourage you to go out and snag Starlink Battle for Atlas. It is an exceptionally well-done game that is fun from the moment you pick up your controller to the moment you put it down.
Starlink Battle for Atlas is available on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. If you’re Christmas shopping, now is the time to snag this game. From December 2nd through December 8th, you can save $25 on Starter Packs, plus buy one get one 50% off on all Starlink toys. From December 16th through December 22nd, save $25 on Starter Packs, plus save 30% on Starlink toys.
