Astral Ascension Steam Charts & Stats

Another game by Pixelfade, pretty much the only studio in which i can play these kinds of games as im not really fond of VN in general, but the characters in Pixelfade's game always seems to invoke something within me, ever since i played ACE Academy i have always enjoyed all their games. I haven't played this game for long but the feel of the start of the game already screams Pixelfade to me so i will recommend it for anyone that likes the genre.

I have enjoyed all of Pixel Fade's visual novels for their ability to create characters that you truly get attached to, and Astral Ascension is no different. The characters are very likable and you find yourself invested in seeing how they develop throughout the story. Before I read Astral Ascension, I would have said that Crystalline was my favorite Pixel Fade visual novel but I can honestly say that Astral Ascension has now taken that title.

So I've bought PixelFade titles before, and while they're usually a mixed bag, I did like Ace Academy a lot, so I decided to give this a shot. Unfortunately, this left a lot to be desired. Let's start with the most frustrating aspect. Entering the routes is completely unintuitive, confusing, and nonsensical. I can see why there were a few posts on the community being confused as to what route they were doing or how to do them. You are presented with many dialogue choices throughout the game. Much more than most VNs. These choices affect the route you end up on. Except the game almost NEVER tells you what choices are approved by what romance options, or if they even do anything at all. Some choices are mundane, others are philosophy-esque questions. But most are extremely superficial, which made it all the more puzzling when characters suddenly fell in love. It felt stale and forced. I just didn't feel any chemistry between the protagonist and his crew. As a result, it was difficult to care about any of the relationships. This is made all the more confusing because the game gives you zero choices of who to interact with and when, which means you're relying entirely on the obscure dialogue. It's like playing darts blindfolded and hoping for a bullseye. Which may be challenging in its own right, but it's not what I'd call fun. It's way too unintuitive. To make this problem even worse, the game never tells you what route you are on. You can spend hours on a route you never wanted to do because the game is not explicit until you're pretty far into it. It is the worst way to handle routes and a visual novel cardinal sin. And because there are so many dialogue options, it means that the 'skipping text' option on replays takes significantly longer than your normal VN. But don't worry, because while you're wasting all of this time in dialogue trying to decide which drink selection will alter the fate of the universe itself, the game's main story is the same no matter what, with the "romance" parts forcibly shoved in-between plot beats, no matter how awkwardly they may fit. And good lord is this a generic and uninteresting story. The main plot is this: Your character is a mercenary, who spends a lot of time thinking about why he was mysteriously fired from his previous job...why? Who cares? I don't work there anymore. I have no emotional attachment to it. I have a new job that pays better and is full of hot girls. Would anyone in this new situation even spend 5 seconds thinking about their old job? Heck no. The "twists," if you can call them that, you can see coming a mile away. The main character is dense, in an annoying, obtuse sort of way ("oh my deathly ill sister in the hospital called then immediately hung up. Nothing suspicious about that!"), and there are also 'dense' moments for other characters, which either felt forced or were actively annoying ("Let's save everyone even though there's only two of us and like a hundred soldiers. Also if you try to do the smart choice and just leave you'll get gameover/killed and have to reload anyway. Gotta love that player agency!") All of that sounds overwhelming negative (because it is), and you're already aware that I've given it a thumbs-down. However, there are positives here worth mentioning. I'll praise the voice acting. It's in English and almost all of it is solid. I think Vaela and Zeke in particular were outstanding fits for their characters, but they were all at least decent. The art is nice, especially the backgrounds, even if some of the character animations look funky at times. There are at least a couple characters here that are good as well- I especially liked Kai, Iris, and Celeste. Some of the character moments are genuinely funny or sweet. And while it's true that the dialogue can border on creepy and offensive at times, occasionally you can get an actually good joke with some payoff. None of that is enough to get a recommendation from me, however. There is some genuine heart to be found here, it's just buried beneath a pile of frustrating shit that I don't think is worth wading through. The story is utterly dull, and romantic relationships feel stilted and forced. For $30, I think you can find something better.

Another good PixelFade game in which I can live out my wildest fantasies like waking up early and having the energy to cook breakfast for my live-in friends who are all well adjusted, self sufficient adults whose company I enjoy. Serious review: the quality of the game is pretty high and the last few bumps are getting ironed out. The development hell did somewhat sap the momentum, but the end result is worth getting and playing. Sound is good and characters are interesting and cute, but the setting is a bit lackluster and often struggles with the conflict between modern culture and a sci fi setting. What even would 'country' music be in a sci-fi universe, for example? Art quality is high, but the animated sprites are more stilted than in previous titles (stiff A-frame arms, in particular) and I think they somewhat let down the overall very good art direction. PixelFade has a really solid formula foundation in place that they can deliver upon, but this game doesn't really innovate on their formula and although it's my second favorite after Crystalline, I am not coming away from it with the desire to play more of their work like I have in the previous games. I hope their next effort will be more exploratory.

Something about PixelFade visual novels just scratches that itch for me. I'm not sure if it's the OST, the voice cast, the character design, storytelling, or maybe the fact that pangos exist in this universe! I've played every single PF VN up to this point, and I can confidently say that Astral Ascension really shines with the tried and true PF formula. A perfect combination of comedy, emotional moments and actually believable characters truly makes this an experience to remember. I've played a lot of VNs from both eastern and western developers, and I can confidently say that PF VNs will still always hold a special place in my heart. PixelFade has come a long way since ACE Academy. Astral Ascension really is a culmination of all their efforts and lessons learned through Crystalline, Kaori After Story and Ethereal Enigma. Please keep making games with the passion and heart that you guys have put into every project thus far!

Pixelfade has outdone themselves with this one. Their practice in releasing voiced VN definitely shows. All the characters have their quirks, strengths and flaws, but none of them are annoying. The romances and dates are believable and there were plenty of moments that caused me to full-blown belly laugh. Along with that there were even a couple emotional moments that got to me. There is plenty of replayability as well, with multiple endings combinations of endings for each route you can take, none of which I have not found satisfying. All in all, highly recommend if you like VNs and I look forward to future projects PixelFade does.

Love the game so far. Will update my review more detail after the game is fully released

PixelFade continuing to set the gold standard for english voiced VNs. Great performance by the cast, good writing and overall a ride worth having.

Another masterpiece by Pixel Fade!! I did the Iris route as my first play through and cant wait to do the other routes! An amazing story and the entire time i was hooked! I cant wait to see what they do next!!!

A visual novel from Pixel Fade that shows how far they have come since their first release in the genre, a well-written story with fun characters to engage with, and a lot of choices to immerse yourself in the relationship you build with the characters that have been much more developed and refined since their first game, Astral Ascension definitely doesn't disappoint, and it's a game that will surely make you leave with a good experience.