There are a few ways you can go with a piece of DLC.
One is to simply make more content for your original game; maybe a lengthy side quest or a new party member. Another is to create a semi-sequel, exploring new gameplay mechanics, settings, and basically testing the waters for your next game.
Sabotage Studio, the developers of 2023’s Sea of Stars, went with the first option for their free bonus-adventure DLC, Throes of the Watchmaker. Although there are a few new and compelling gameplay mechanics, it still feels very much like the original game. In other words, more Sea of Stars. If you enjoyed the first game, you’ll enjoy this, too!
Just before their final battle with the Fleshmancer, Valere and Zale, the Solstice Warriors, pay a visit to the mysterious Watchmaker in her Clockwork Castle. There, they learn about her creation of the world of Horloge, an entire world and (very French and cirque-based) civilization ingeniously hidden inside a clock. Tragically, this perfect clockwork world has been infested by one of the minions of the Fleshmancer, Puppetmaster, an evil doppelganger of the Watchmaker. Shrinking down to enter Horloge, the Solstice Warriors quickly find themselves at the mercy of the Puppetmaster, who magically creates evil doppelgangers of them, stealing their Solstice powers in the process. To save Horloge, our heroes must learn the ways of the circus combat, confront their dark counterparts, and reclaim their true powers before the Puppetmaster can unleash her evil upon the entire world!
As Throes of the Watchmaker is a post-endgame adventure, you must reach at least the first ending of Sea of Stars to get access. As Valere and Zale are basically gods at this point, entering the clock requires them to do the “Samus Shuffle™” and immediately lose their powers. Starting from level one allowed Sabotage to develop two new and slightly ridiculous classes: Valere becomes a ferocious Acrobat and Zale a fire-wielding Juggler. These two new classes are visually hilarious, with engaging new abilities. And as your usual crew of fighting companions can’t join you inside the clockwork world, you get a new third party member — and old friend — the Artificer! I can’t really talk more about who he is without spoilers for Sea of Stars, but I found his character to be the highlight of the main game and a delight to play (not to mention reminiscent of a beloved character from Chrono Trigger).
The strongest part of Sea of Stars is its turn-based combat, which functions pretty much identically in Throes of the Watchmaker. Success in battle is dependent on timed strikes and blocks. By hitting the button at the exact right time, you can mitigate an attack or deal extra damage to your foes. But even with perfect timing, doom awaits you unless you can learn to break your enemies’ concentration while they are casting their most powerful abilities. When an enemy is about to use one of their most potent spells, a series of elemental locks and a timer appear above them. By using your elemental attacks to “break” these locks, you can reduce the potency of their attack or maybe even stop it completely. I loved this element of strategy in the main game, and if you want to survive Watchmaker, you will need to become a master, as the DLC ramps up the difficulty considerably.
Another highlight of Sea of Stars and Watchmaker is their visual presentation. Watchmaker offers a splendidly designed pixel art steampunk-inspired world full of clockwork creatures and cirque-inspired enemies. There’s a lot to look at here, and all of it is pretty. The music in the DLC is also excellent. Many of Sea of Stars’ most identifiable themes return, but have shifted to take on a more circus motif. While almost all of the music in Throes of the Watchmaker (and Sea of Stars) is terrific, a few musical themes do sound more like they belong in an action game rather than an RPG (which makes sense, given Sabotage’s pedigree with the phenomenal Metroidvania The Messenger). Still, I found myself humming the themes when I wasn’t playing, and that’s a sign of an excellent soundtrack.
My main issue with Throes of the Watchmaker is the same as with the base game: the writing. In both, the story and characters almost feel like an afterthought, acting as set dressing for the visual presentation and combat system. The writing also tends to switch back and forth between “playing it straight” and “super meta” within the same scene, resulting in an uneven story tone. Unfortunately, the “evil twin representing their darkest traits” plotline calls the paper-thin characterization of the Solstice Warriors into even sharper relief. Zale’s malevolent doppelganger represents his vanity, making him a preening, vain monarch who demands everyone’s attention. Valere’s dark side, on the other hand, represents her feral and furious side, taking on a werewolf-esque motif. The problem with this conceit is that we have never seen examples of these character traits in the past. It would be one thing if Zale ever showed an egotistical side or if Valere repeatedly had to push down her anger in the main game, but as we never even got hints of these personality traits in the Solstice Warriors in Sea of Stars, seeing them here in physical form doesn’t have any narrative impact.
Making things worse is that neither of their evil doppelgangers ever interact with each other. Most of the game’s charm comes from Zale and Valere’s relationship with each other and their best friend, the Warrior Cook Garl. These relationships could have offered a much richer story vein to mine than their two-dimensional depictions. I would have loved to see the interactions of their evil twins as a dark reflection of the Solstice Warriors’ own relationship. Maybe they could have cared about each other just as much as our heroes do? How do they feel about Garl? Sadly, Sabotage leaves these potential compelling questions by the wayside, making the doppelgangers fee even more lifeless than their do-gooder counterparts.
With Sea of Stars, Sabotage set out to create a spiritual successor to 16-bit JRPGs of yore, succeeding in some ways but failing in others. With this DLC, you will find the exact same strengths and weaknesses as in the main game. Throes of the Watchmaker is a very good piece of DLC for a very good game! Though the combat system and visual presentation are triumphs, the story and characters might leave you feeling underwhelmed. It would be interesting to see how Sabotage could improve on this solid RPG foundation, but I suspect they plan to move on to other pastures. Much like how they declined to make a sequel to The Messenger, my money says that their third game will also be a completely different genre and likely outside of our coverage. Given the baffling number of Super Punch-Out!! references present (yeah, the game is still meta), maybe they will be diving into a new take on that classic SNES title! But as this studio consistently delivers mechanically engaging, visual treats to the eyes, I am willing to explore whatever direction they take next!
