Ludography
86/100
Players27 ratings
83/100
Critics3 reviews
Super Stardust HD cover

2007 · Remake · Housemarque · Shooter · Arcade

Super Stardust HD

PlayStation exclusiveRemake

Super Stardust HD is a downloadable game for the PlayStation 3 video game console, developed by the Finnish company Housemarque. In Japan it is known as Star Strike HD.

Released
28 June 2007
Platforms
PlayStation 3PlayStation Portable
Genres
ShooterArcade
Developers
Housemarque
Publishers
Sony Computer Entertainment
Modes
Co-opSingle-player
Perspective
Bird view / Isometric
Themes
ActionScience fiction

About

Super Stardust HD is a 2007 multidirectional shooter video game developed by Housemarque and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 3. It was released on the PlayStation Network, with a PlayStation Portable version titled Super Stardust Portable releasing the following year. An HD remake for the PlayStation 4 developed by D3T was released as Super Stardust Ultra in 2015. In 2016, Super Stardust Ultra VR, a PlayStation VR-compatible version that contains Super Stardust Ultra, was released as paid downloadable content and a separate product in itself.

The game combines the mechanics of Asteroids and Robotron: 2084 with a level of action found typically in modern games such as Geometry Wars. The game is an enhanced version of Super Stardust, developed by Bloodhouse, a predecessor of Housemarque, for the Amiga; Sony acquired the rights to the game before remaking it. Super Stardust HD was the first title with trophy support on the PlayStation 3.

›Story

In Super Stardust HD, the player controls a space fighter craft that can move in any direction on a spherical shield surrounding a planet, while simultaneously firing in any direction independent of its movement. The primary threats against the player are three types of asteroids and various enemy spacecraft, which appear on the playfield at certain time intervals. The ship is equipped with three upgradeable weapons, a limited arsenal of bombs, and a boost capability that grants temporary invincibility and recharges after use. Each weapon is more effective against certain types of asteroid and enemies than others. Items include weapon upgrades and a shield that absorbs one fatal hit against the player's ship.

Keywords

  • space mining
  • shoot 'em up
  • death
  • shmup
  • spaceship
  • custom soundtrack
  • high score
  • split-screen multiplayer
  • platform exclusive
  • playstation trophies
  • super-ness
  • 60 fps on consoles

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

In Super Stardust HD, the player controls a space fighter craft that can move in any direction on a spherical shield surrounding a planet, while simultaneously firing in any direction independent of its movement. The primary threats against the player are three types of asteroids and various enemy spacecraft, which appear on the playfield at certain time intervals. The ship is equipped with three upgradeable weapons, a limited arsenal of bombs, and a boost capability that grants temporary invincibility and recharges after use. Each weapon is more effective against certain types of asteroid and enemies than others. Items are dropped onto the planet at certain time intervals, these items include weapon upgrades and a shield that absorbs one fatal hit against the player's ship.

Super Stardust HD provides several modes of play, each with their own online leaderboards. The default game mode, Arcade, takes the player through a series of five planets, each consisting of five main phases, the last of which is a boss battle. Planet Mode allows the player to play any one of five planets in the same way, ending the game after the planet is complete. Both of these modes support both single-player and two-player cooperative play.

Reception

The HD edition of Super Stardust received "favorable" reviews, while the Portable, Ultra, and its VR version received "average" reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. In Japan, where the Ultra version was ported for release on March 12, 2015, Famitsu gave it a score of one eight, one seven, one nine, and one eight for a total of 32 out of 40.

In 2013, the game entered IGN's "Top 25 PlayStation Network Games" list in the 4th position.

Legacy

Super Stardust HD was one of the games given for free by Sony as part of their 'Welcome Back' package due to the PlayStation Network outage in 2011.

A remake, Super Stardust Ultra (known in Asia as Star Strike Ultra), was released in North America and the PAL region in February 2015 for the PlayStation 4. It adds an exclusive mode called Interactive Streaming, which is an endless mode where the game is streamed live over the Internet, and viewers are allowed to help or hinder the player. A port of Super Stardust Ultra titled Super Stardust Ultra VR, offering a unique perspective from within the cockpit, was released as a launch title for the PlayStation VR. The title was developed by UK based company D3T.

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
PlayStation 328 June 2007North America · Europe 27 December 2007 · Japan 18 September 2008

Editions and related releases

Included in
3D Collection
Downloadable content
Super Stardust HD Team Add-on PackSuper Stardust HD Solo Add-on PackSuper Stardust HD Impact Mode
Part of
Super Stardust
Ported as
Super Stardust Portable
Remastered as
Super Stardust Ultra

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Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.