Starbound’s combat update should make fighting more interesting

Secondary abilities, new weapon types

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I’ll admit: my hype for Starbound is nowhere near the level where it was two years ago. Being in beta for that long can do that. After my group exhausted the quest lines for the first iteration, we never really went back, despite a big update releasing early this year.

Still, if this latest trailer is any indication, Starbound is making its way to becoming something I can sink another hundred hours into if I ever jump back in. This update is mostly focused on making combat more than the old click-to-swing slog. Weapons now can have secondary abilities like target marking, homing projectiles, a juggle combo-starting uppercut, and placed barriers.

Also included are unique alien creatures designed for specific biomes, new weapons like boomerangs and claws, and a hoverbike built for two. I’m not sure if I’ll get back to it soon or if I’ll just continue waiting for a “final” release, but the new stuff does look pretty neat.

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Darren Nakamura
Darren is a scientist during the day. He has been a Destructoid community member since 2006, joining the front page as a contributor in 2011. While he enjoys shooters, RPGs, platformers, strategy, and rhythm games, he takes particular interest in independent games. He produced the Zero Cool Podcast for about four years, and he plays board games quite a bit when he can find willing companions.
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