Foamstars Choked Hard A Mere 2 Months After Release; What Went Wrong?

Have you heard of the game Foamstarts? It came out not too long ago. If you’ve forgotten about it, I won’t even blame you, a lot of people have. This Splatoon lookalike was released as a free addition to the PS Plus catalog and even received some attention, but that was all short-lived. It didn’t manage to keep people entertained even for two months, as its player count has plummeted hard, and today I’ll list the reasons why.

Foamstars, A Vain Splatoon Clone 

First, let me discuss what exactly Foamstars is. A third-person live service that has you maneuver around a PvP arena and cover your enemies in foam, that’s the whole idea. Sound familiar? Here’s the first and most important reason for its failure. Foamstars tried to imitate Splatoon and failed horribly at it. There’s a reason why Splatoon is so popular and well-received, and Foamstars didn’t get even one of those things right.

There’s no mechanical depth here, no creativity in the gameplay. The unique art style and splashy presentation intrigue you at first, but the whole thing’s a big fat chore. Guns feel horrible, moving around is clunky, shooting is hollow and impactless, the game modes reek of monotony, it’s just all flash no substance. 

I played 40 min of Foamstars and then bought Splatoon 3.
byu/D-TOX_88 insplatoon

Why would anyone even go for Foamstars when the much more enjoyable Splatoon is around? Splatoon presents this flashy and colorful aesthetic much better, as it delivers a solid gaming experience underneath the visual flair. 

Another Hollow And Repetitive Live Service

First, they make Foamstars a mechanically hollow game devoid of enjoyable gameplay, and then also a live service? This game was doomed from the moment of its launch. Especially considering how much hated the concept of live service is these days. With every other game out to drain your wallet, at least you’ll spend on a good one, not an uninspiring game like this.

The live service concept itself is not bad if properly handled, but lately the industry has misused it so much that it has become essentially synonymous to a hideous and predatory tactic. A long-running game needs consistent content and updates to sustain it, not cosmetic packs and ridiculous microtransactions.

Live service games were a mistake
byu/stanthetulip ingaming

There isn’t a speck of gameplay variety in Foamstars. With the few game modes since the launch, this hasn’t been improved since. Once you go through it, it all becomes so dull and repetitive so fast that there is no incentive left for you to continue it. Live services are scrutinized a lot harder, and Foamstars fails badly. 

Overshadowed By The Much Better Helldivers 2

Let me ask you a question. If you’re playing a horrible game and suddenly a much superior one arrives, wouldn’t you opt for that game instead? Forcing myself to sit through a bad game because nothing else is available is acceptable, but I think I’ll switch in a heartbeat if given the chance. And that’s exactly what happened with Foamstars when Helldivers 2 came out.

It goes without saying that Helldivers 2 proved to be one of the most surprising releases of 2024 so far. No one, not even Sony was expecting the game to blow so much out of proportion. Plus, the game deserved all the attention as it was solid enough to back it up. When such a brilliant game just became available, did Foamstars stand a chance? I don’t think so.

Helldivers 2 is one of the best games I've played in 32:9. Every shot in this game is just so amazing to look at! pic.twitter.com/SzHCoAJ2u6

— Terry (@TerryHB_) February 16, 2024

I believe this is what you call unfortunate circumstances. If Helldivers 2 wasn’t such a massive hit, people might’ve stuck to Foamstars for a little longer, waiting for future content, giving it the benefit of the doubt. But would you wait for who knows how long for a game to get better, when one clearly more enjoyable one is available right now? I’ll let you be the judge of that.

Exclusivity For A Multi-Player Game

For a moment, consider Foamstars was a very good game. I still don’t think it could’ve competed with Helldivers 2 in terms of popularity. Why’s that? Helldivers 2 has a much larger possible audience. Foamstars is a PS exclusive. Helldivers 2, on the other hand, was released on Day One on the PlayStation consoles as well as PC, which is one of the main reasons for its overwhelming success.

A multi-player game by design requires a large player base. Making it an exclusive is counterproductive and serves only to limit its chances. Single-player games are best suited for being exclusives, online multi-players perform much better when on multiple platforms. PC did wonders for Helldivers 2’s popularity. I still fail to understand why it isn’t on Xbox, guess that’s Sony being petty.

Helldivers 2 has surpassed 400,000 concurrent players on Steam
byu/radbrad7 inGames

Verdict

In a nutshell, although Foamstars was a victim of some unfortunate circumstances, the fact that it was a fundamentally flawed game riddled with problems remains the same. A boring and repetitive game will become dull pretty soon, especially if it’s a live service. It is a warning against the over and misuse of the concept, which ought to be heeded.