Foam and Chaos: A First Impression of “Foamstars” at Gamescom 2023

At Gamescom 2023, we had the opportunity to play Square Enix’s new game “Foamstars” and get a first glimpse of this unusual multiplayer “shooter”. Amidst the plethora of games and announcements at the fair, “Foamstars” was certainly a striking highlight. Despite first impressions, the game is very different from well-known titles like “Splatoon” and promises a chaotic, colourful and bizarre gaming experience that confronts players with completely different game mechanics and ideas.

You can find our article on FOAMSTARS here:

Creative game mechanics: Building and surfing

One of the most striking features of Foamstars is the ability to use foam to build hills, erect walls or create fast “foam roads”. Characters can switch between walking on their feet and surfing on a foam board, which allows them to glide quickly across the foam. These mechanics open up tactical possibilities that could only be rudimentarily explored in the short time it took to play.
The maps in Foamstars are quite open, in contrast to the winding maps of Splatoon, leaving players plenty of room for creative strategies. The game encourages players to keep moving and immediately rush into chaos. Nevertheless, teamwork remains crucial. If a player gets hit with too much foam, he turns into a foam ball that can no longer fight back. Here it is important that the teammates intervene in time to eliminate the opponent or save their own player.

A new gaming experience: Foamstars vs. Splatoon

“Foamstars” differs from “Splatoon” in many ways. Here, it is not about winning the round by colouring in the play areas, but in multiplayer mode, like in a classic deathmatch shooter, it is about eliminating the opponents. When seven lives, which each team has, have been used up, the best player so far is appointed “superstar” and receives an extensive buff. Now it is up to the teams to protect or destroy the superstar to win the match.
We were able to test one mode on site, but there were also hints of other modes.

Character variety and music

In our play session, we had many different characters at our disposal, all of which played differently and each had certain abilities. The short time allowed only a superficial insight, but the impression was that the characters are well balanced and diverse. It seems important to have a balanced team to be successful.
The music in “Foamstars” complements the chaotic gameplay perfectly. Although we only heard a small excerpt, the soundtrack left a positive impression and fits the game well.

A promising, chaotic gaming experience

Square Enix has created a promising and unique gaming experience with “Foamstars” that clearly stands out from well-known titles. The chaotic gameplay, the creative game mechanics and the variety of characters promise an entertaining gaming experience. However, the question of long-term motivation and monetisation remains open and will only be answered when the game is released. “Foamstars” is certainly a game worth watching for more information as time goes on.

Our partnered team, consisting of Sandra, our Videodienstleister Simon, Felix and Thilo recorded a lot of content with professional equipment from RØDE and Grover. Stay tuned and hyped about our upcoming interviews and insights from the Gamescom 2023.

If you want to do something like this, but don’t have the right hardware, Grover might be able to help with the discount code created especially for us (first month free, with a minimum of 3 months rental for new customers). CREATEWITHGROVER is the code.