But I get facial tics when I remember the last 10 or so hours, hunting for the very last one, hoping desperately for that audio cue to save me. There was something about the audio cues and the high-pitched throb as you collected them that trapped me.
It’s not as if Crackdown was difficult, far from it: I was just one of those misguided people who went after every Agility Orb in the game. Twinklies, twinklies everywhere, and not one of them is a bloody feather.Īs a slight aside, it gave me anxiety flashbacks from Crackdown.
Scanning the map, you’re beset by twinklies and – more likely than not – none of them are what you’re after. Now, imagine both of these as you’re desperately searching for that last collectible. If that wasn’t bad enough, picking up a feather leaves a golden circle behind, that – again – looks indistinguishable from a collectible. The collectibles are the same colour, animation and size as the checkpoint items, so you’re constantly mistaking them for each other.
The issues with the collectibles are so glaring that you wonder how the series has got to the third game without resolving them. Collect them all and you can finish the level, returning to the hub to move onto another. The one that developers EpiXR Games have chosen is collectibles and, more specifically, finding 10-20 golden shinies that litter the level. It was perhaps inevitable that Aery wouldn’t just let you fly around forever – at some point it was going to have to drop the meditation sim and force you into a conventional objective. Then there’s the sedate speed, which is fine when you’re in a zen-like state, floating at your own pace, but not so hot when there’s a collectible on the other side of the level and you…just…want to…grab it.Īh, collectibles: the major flaw in Aery – Sky Castle, plucking feathers from the experience and stopping it short of greatness.
The flying is generally great, but could still do with a few nips and tucks: the parrot has real trouble with vertical climbs or drops, spinning the view wildly – the camera seems to be carried by a second (jerk) parrot, who merrily bangs its head on the obstacles that you’ve cleared. This is when you can absorb the level on its own merits, encountering landmarks like crystallised dragons and flying whales. Aery is at its best when you’re first getting to grips with the level, and the collectible-hunt hasn’t quite begun. It’s not quite Microsoft Flight Simulator, but it’s close: particular favourites were a couple of underground levels, both semi-fantasy themed, and a jungle level, complete with hidden waterfall and a central mega-tree. There’s no combat or time limits here just a leisurely swoop through distracting areas. Some levels are an absolute joy to sail through, and the feelings of serenity do start creeping in.