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2023 was undoubtedly the year of RPGs. There were some absolute bangers from both AAA companies and indie developers. However, the one that enthralled me and became my favorite and personal RPG of the year was Sea of Stars. I could gush about it for hours. It was so memorable that no other pixel art-focused game comes close to what Sabotage Studio did. Now, Throes of the Watchmaker is upon us, and I have one thing to say: I can’t believe this is a free DLC. Sea of Stars: Throes of the Watchmaker improved upon some of the minor complaints I had about the base game while adding many interesting features to keep this RPG fresh.
The Other Side of the Solstice Warriors
Sea of Stars: Throes of the Watchmaker follows a seemingly minor thread of the base game’s main plot. To recap, the Sky Council was doubtful about Keenathan’s name. At the time, we didn’t follow up with it and simply continued with Valere and Zale’s adventure. However, the DLC starts from that and unfolds in a self-contained adventure that surprised me even more than the base game in some ways. Mainly the protagonists’ character development.
My only minor gripe about the base game was Valere and Zale as characters. They weren’t bad by any means, but Garl always felt like the protagonist. Valere and Zale, on the other hand, felt like a canvas that got painted as we progressed through the game. It was an interesting idea, but one that always left me wanting more in-depth character development for the Solstice Warriors. Yet, I loved Garl with every fiber of my being, so I liked what Sabotage Studio did to him.
Fast-forward to 2025, and we have a Valere and Zale-centric storyline, and I loved it way more than I thought I would. I’ll avoid spoiling the juicy bits, but some might already know what the DLC is about. We enter the domains of the Watchmaker, and the Puppeteer creates two clones of our beloved heroes. At first, I thought they would only be there to provide an eventual encounter. But by Valtraid’s muscles, the story arcs they provide are fantastic.
Without revealing too much, Zale and Valere have to face some demons, and when it happens, it is amazing. The plot is also elevated by its presentation. There are a lot of 2D animated sequences, the music remains top-notch, and all the characters, new and old, shine in ways I was not expecting. The base story of Sea of Stars will always have a special place in my heart. Still, Throes of the Watchmaker delivers a masterclass in DLC narrative in this 10-hour voyage.
It’s Showtime
To avoid tampering with some of the game’s currencies, equipment, and progression, Sea of Stars: Throes of the Watchmaker introduces its own systems, including a new class for each of our protagonists and a new playable party member. For the first two, we have Zale as a Juggler and Valere as an Acrobat. Initially, I was skeptical. I’ve grown accustomed to spamming fireballs with Zale and summoning moonlight beams from the sky as if they were an orbital strike with Valere. However, the new classes are some of the most fun I’ve seen in modern RPGs.
As a Juggler, Zale’s abilities focus more on the “tapping buttons” part. For example, one of his skills is shooting flaming torches. You must tap the button at the right time to keep the torches lit as they bounce between you and the enemy. On the other hand, Valere felt a bit more challenging to use, but not in a bad way. Most of her skills rely on hold-and-release mechanics. For instance, she can use a pole to vault toward an enemy. However, you need to release the button at an exact moment to do more damage. When the DLC started, I enjoyed Zale’s new class more, but after I unlocked more skills, both became equally enjoyable.
Beyond that, Arty finally joins the crew. He brings devastating attacks and a lot of utility to the team, in and outside of combat. His skills felt more precise than Zale and Valere’s. Also, they felt that it was more fun to use. At one moment, Arty can summon cannonballs, and he has to make them bounce while moving around the arena with a trampoline. While the combat of Sea of Stars was already highly creative, Sabotage Studio made it even better with the DLC.
Also, the combat changes and in-depth mechanics don’t apply only to the heroes. Enemies are quite challenging, and players will see a spike in difficulty, especially without Relics. All foes have hard-to-decipher attacks, and the new weakness lock system makes everything even more difficult. However, I loved it because it encouraged me to experiment with all my skills. Furthermore, there are many QoL features, with my favorite one being the ability to keep combo points after combat.
Puzzle Galore
It’s been a while since I played Sea of Stars, and I still remember how intricate its puzzles were; Throes of the Watchmaker isn’t the exception. However, I felt there were too many, but then again, it’s been a while since I played the base game, so it might’ve been me just getting used to them again.
Even if there were a lot of them, they were proper brain teasers. There are new puzzle-solving mechanics on top of the ones we already had. You still use your grappling hook and move blocks around with your palm. Beyond that, there are new mechanics like shrinking to enter a device, a drone of sorts that can move elements around to create new paths, and so on.
Regarding map design, Throes of the Watchmaker felt as if it had more verticality. Creating a map in 2D that has this level of depth is a huge undertaking and something that Sea of Stars still nails down perfectly. While I loved all the new areas in terms of art style, when it came to exploration alone, Zale’s clone area is an absolute marvel. The others weren’t bad, but some puzzles were a bit more challenging and usually affected the story’s pace slightly. Nothing bad by any means, but I felt a few areas could’ve been smaller.
Raising the DLC Bar
As I wrapped up my time with Sea of Stars: Throes of the Watchmaker, I couldn’t help but think about No Man’s Sky; hear me out for a bit. Hello Games has pumped out free updates after free updates for years. All of them are of the highest quality. Naturally, it comes a time when players say, “Please, take our money.” That’s what this DLC made me feel. I love that Sabotage Studio gives us this for free, but this adventure deserves our money.
Beyond giving us a fresh voyage for the Solstice Heroes, it adds superb combat mechanics, two excellent classes, a terrific new playable character, and the fantastic art style and music that Sea of Stars is known for. Furthermore, it delves into the personalities of Zale and Valere even further, which was my absolute favorite thing about this DLC. Fans of the game will have a blast with Throes of the Watchmaker, and newcomers will experience the ultimate Sea of Stars experience.
