"Stardrop Sprint" & "Stardrop Blaster" (lost delisted iOS mobile games; 2012-2017)
The app icon from presumably earlier versions of the game.
Status: Lost
Stardrop Sprint is a video game released on IOS devices on July 27th, 2012. It was developed by Trevor and Jaron Lowe, with the latter of the two publishing it. It looks to be an auto-runner with platformer elements and the premise was about a sentient shooting star having to save Earth from a race of aliens known as the Xenorgs.[1]
On August 23rd, 2013, Stardrop Sprint would receive a sequel known as Stardrop Blaster. This sequel game is also currently completely lost.
Development
The game started development in the summer of 2011 when Trevor and Jaron bought a Mac Mini. Jaron learned how to program for IOS while Trevor designed the gameplay, made the concept art, and sketched the concept for Stardrop Sprint within a week. Thanks to Trevor being a full-time lifeguard lieutenant at the time, Jaron also being a student at FIEA as well, with all progress mostly done on nights and weekends. They expected to complete the game by the end of the summer but it ended up taking an entire year to complete with the tail end of development being the finishing touches. [2]
Release and Disappearance
When Stardrop Sprint was released, it was available for $0.99. Upon release, the game received very little attention but that doesn’t mean it was completely unnoticed. Stardrop Sprint was part of a series of app reviews by game reviewer Ryan Poolos on Kodeco[3] and while there were other examples of other websites featuring this game, most of it was left unarchived. Stardrop Sprint was frequently updated from 2012 to 2017, however, it was suddenly delisted from the Apple App Store at an unknown date. Unfortunately for the game’s obscurity, not much was archived from it aside from screenshots from either the developers’ websites and social media posts or third-party websites.
Legacy
A year later after its original release in 2012, on August 23rd, 2013, Stardrop Sprint would receive a sequel known as Stardrop Blaster which unlike its predecessor, was an auto-runner/platformer hybrid instead of an endless shooter. Much like its predecessor however, Stardrop Blaster is also lost[4]. Perhaps the most notable aspect of Stardrop Sprint and its sequel is its titular character and its crossover appearances.
In 2018, Trevor and Jaron Lowe, alongside a few others, released a game called Indie Pogo, an indie game where the main gimmick is that your character is always jumping. Since Indie Pogo was made by the same people behind the Stardrop duology, the titular character was a playable character in the game[5]. In 2020, other indie developers known as McLeodGaming and Team Fray would reveal a game they’ve been working on known as Fraymakers.
Another indie game crossover platform fighter much like Indie Pogo although the gameplay is much more in line with games like Super Smash Bros. or Rivals of Aether. Shortly after Fraymakers’ announcement, McLeodGaming would reveal on X that Stardrop (being based on their appearance in Indie Pogo) was being added into the Fraymakers as a part of the game’s assist mechanic. Although Fraymakers has been in early access since January 2023, Stardrop has yet to be added in and it’s currently unknown what Stardrop will do to aid the player in battle[6].
See Also
References
- ↑ Stardrop Sprint app advice page. Retrieved 27 Jun '24
- ↑ Stardrop Sprint - Trevor Lowe Retrieved 27 Jun '24
- ↑ Readers’ App Reviews – August 2012 Kodeco.com Retrieved 27 Jun '24
- ↑ App Advice Stardrop Blaster page Retrieved 27 Jun '24
- ↑ X.com LoweBros tweet Retrieved 27 Jun '24
- ↑ [1] X.com McLeodGaming