The community behind Canadian video game Sea Of Stars has doubled an initial crowdfunding target, with three weeks still to go, thanks in part to the credibility of previous release The Messenger.

As the second title from a studio well-respected for award-winning action game The Messenger, Sea Of Stars brings Sabotage's talents to a new genre: that of the classic Japanese role-playing game.

Shooting for a March 2022 release, Sea Of Stars will contain turn-based combat that doesn't need a separate combat screen and fighting mechanics that blend menu-selection strategy with action game timing.

An adoption of open-world sensibilities means that players will find themselves running, swimming, climbing and jumping to almost anywhere they can see, per the studio's president and creative director Thierry Boulang.

Even if it accommodates a different art style and genre, the new project shares a universe with Sabotage's last game, The Messenger.

That's a big part of the Sea Of Stars appeal, if not for story reasons, then for the pedigree it represents.

Launched in 2018 on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and PC, pixelated ninja mission The Messenger collected an armful of accolades from The Game Awards, Game Developers Choice Awards and the Montreal Independent Games Festival, among others.

Already shot through with humour and a keen understanding of the 2D action platformer format it was built upon, Quebec's Sabotage bolstered The Messenger with a free content update, Picnic Panic.

With an audacious confidence, it took the main game's mechanics and leapt into an alternative timeline set in sunnier climes.

Sabotage hasn't specified which console platforms Sea Of Stars will be made available on when it launches in March 2022 - new PlayStation and Xbox machines debut toward the end of 2020 - but has assured fans that it is "in touch with the key players of our industry, and that the game will be wherever the players are."

At the same time, and in addition to PC,"all current generation platforms" will be supported, suggesting Sea Of Stars will also find a home on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.

The Kickstarter campaign lasts until April 18.

 - AFP Relaxnews