Instead of being a new, retro arcade release designed around getting a high score, Flynn’s Arcade is making a pivot by publishing the addictive Skies Above, a leviathan defending simulator. The unique premise is newsworthy and thankfully the gameplay is there.
This roguelite puts a stronger emphasis on story that directly blends into the gameplay, a refreshing sense of higher presentation values. As it turns out, space whales are trying to escape the planet by reaching the outer atmosphere, but robotic orbs are preventing them from doing so because they want to harvest their magic powers. Being the nice guy that you are, you decide to ride with these wind fishes with the goal is defeating these evil orbs from murdering you and your magical buddy during flight. With each failed attempt, you fall back to earth only to try again. And die you will.
Failure isn’t the end though. In fact, it brings new opportunities. By defeating enemies, the player collects currency that is used to unlock permanent upgrades when back at home base. So this is one of those games where you slowly grow stronger over time. This is addicting because there is always something new to unlock and the pacing grows with the player usually allowing for at least one unlockable with each run. Just when you think you’ve exhausted all the upgrade options, bam, the game hits you with a new wave. Tenacity is constantly rewarded making the “just one more run” highly engaging.
Combat is also unique and takes a little time to fully understand. Instead of shooting a gun or bouncing on heads, the player instead slingshots to each enemy and hops from baddies to baddie like a flea. With each bounce, the enemies are destroyed. Eventually, enemies will require multiple hops to kill, some might shoot/move faster than others to create a priority system, and large enemies yield better drops. This flea hopping gimmick takes skill though. If you miss, you need to fall to the whale to reset the additional jump. In other words, missing your target takes an extra second or two, which could very well be the difference between life and death in this action-packed experience. There is also a fun auto-grapple technique, allowing the player to zip across the stage in an instant, but it is a on cool down timer which can eventually be shortened through upgrades. Additional jumps can also be unlocked, again, making the players stronger and faster over time. This is probably one of those instances where reading about it doesn’t make sense or sound interesting but is much better in practice.
The amazing pixel art is also fitting for this mythic, faster speed game. Not only does the whale and combat look good during flight, the time of day and weather is constantly changing. If these details were omitted, it would still play the same, but it is one of those things that brings so much welcomed detail to the world. The soundtrack is also excellent. My only complaint in the presentation department are the jarring frame drops and stutters when casually navigating the hub screen. Also, frames can drop heavily when the screen gets overloaded with enemies.
The setting. The premise. The combat. And the constant unlocking of new abilities. All these well-designed features result in a quality, fun, and highly addictive experience. Over the last few years, I have been bashing roguelikes because they have been heavily overplayed, but Skies Above is different. It is an action game done right, it is easy to see the developers put their heart into this and were willing to approach the rogue genre a little differently (protecting a space whale during flight? Really?!), and the end result is nicely balanced and satisfying. Even though this is a little out of the norm for Flynn’s Arcade, this is easily one of their best published titles to date.
SCORE: 9/10
Also Play: the other Flynn’s Arcade titles
Better Than: the dozen other rogue titles released this week
Also Try: a tower defense game
By: Zachary Gasiorowski, Editor in Chief myGamer.com
X/Twitter: @ZackGaz
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