Learn to Fly 3

About

Learn to Fly 3 is a single player casual management game. It was developed by Light Bringer Games inc. and was released on May 12, 2017. It received very positive reviews from players.

Build your spaceship from scratch, earn funds and invest them into building a bigger, better spaceship as you try and fly your way up to space!

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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95%

Audience ScoreBased on 8,953 reviews

story46 positive mentions

grinding96 negative mentions

Fun and addictive gameplay with a simple upgrade and launch loop that appeals to fans of incremental and flash games.
High nostalgia value, especially for players who enjoyed the earlier Learn to Fly series or flash games in general.
Free to play with optional microtransactions that are not necessary to enjoy or complete the game.

Performance issues including lag and crashes, even on high-end PCs, affecting playability.
Repetitive gameplay and grind-heavy especially for completionists aiming to get all achievements and upgrades.
User interface and game design feel dated, with some players finding certain mechanics unbalanced or poorly optimized.

story
230 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
75%
5%
The story in Learn to Fly 3 centers on a penguin's humorous and charming quest to reach the moon, blending simple narrative with incrementally challenging missions and upgrades. While some find the plot light, repetitive, and grind-heavy, many appreciate its fun tone, minimalistic storytelling, and the sense of progression it provides, with unlockable modes and achievements adding replay value. Overall, the story is seen as serviceable and entertaining rather than deep or complex, enhancing the gameplay experience without being the main draw.
- “Learn to Fly 3 tells the story of a penguin trying to reach the moon, blending humor, ambition, and a spirit that feels very similar to Shopping Cart Hero.”
- “Through witty dialogue, clever mission names, and environmental cues in the upgrades themselves, the story of the penguin’s journey coalesces into a tapestry of ambition, rebellion, and triumph over natural law.”
- “This game has touched me deeper than no other; the deep themes hidden beneath an innocent facade are worthy of extensive theses. The hidden message about cultural neo-liberalism and its effects on the development of our young influenced by anarcho-conservationism has been burned deep inside my psyche. This game's message helped me out of dark spots and depression. I recommend this game to everyone in desperate need of a life-changing experience; you will be amazed by the rich storytelling and wonderful ending of Learn to Fly 3.”
- “The story is uninspired, characters are bland.”
- “The monotonous grinding required just to complete 4,000k story mode is absurd, and is nothing like how the previous games tackled replayability.”
- “Just bad... the layout of the game is horrid, the way the story is meant to progress is lackluster and annoying.”
gameplay
214 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
64%
5%
The gameplay is widely praised for its addictive, simple mechanics centered around launching and upgrading a penguin to reach space, with a satisfying progression system and a nostalgic flash game feel. While some find it repetitive and slow at times, most appreciate the variety of upgrades, customization options, and multiple game modes that add depth and replayability without requiring purchases. Overall, it offers a fun, casual experience with accessible yet engaging gameplay loops, suitable for long or relaxed play sessions.
- “Extremely simple graphics and gameplay with a huge number of items and progressive upgrades, wrapped in an addictive arcade loop.”
- “At the heart of Learn to Fly 3 lies its gameplay loop, a finely tuned balance of strategy, timing, and resource management that demands experimentation, persistence, and resilience.”
- “The gameplay is accessible, but also offers enough depth to keep players engaged for long periods of time.”
- “Progression is slow and repetitive, upgrades are expensive, making gameplay tedious.”
- “The gameplay across all game modes was incredibly boring, consisting of you flying until you run out of fuel for your stages/boosts.”
- “What makes it unacceptable is extreme shallowness and repetitiveness of basic gameplay loop - launching and ascending upwards.”
humor
189 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is widely praised for being consistently funny, charming, and clever, often described as hilarious and cute with amusing penguin antics and witty upgrades. It blends lighthearted, silly, and meme-inspired comedy that adds to the addictive and enjoyable gameplay experience. Overall, the humor is a key highlight that enhances the game's appeal and replay value.
- “This is a hilarious game that is more addicting than it has a right to be.”
- “It's a must-have for achievement hunters, the game is also pretty funny, so it's definitely worth playing.”
- “Every upgrade feels alive, with its own lore, humor, and potential for experimentation lurking beneath the surface.”
grinding
108 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
3%
8%
89%
The game is notably grindy, especially when aiming for 100% completion, maxing out upgrades, or unlocking achievements, often requiring hours of repetitive play or farming in-game currency. While some players find the progression slow and tedious, others enjoy the grind as part of the challenge and nostalgic appeal, with all content unlockable without mandatory microtransactions. Overall, grinding may feel excessive for casual players but rewarding for completionists and fans of upgrade-focused gameplay.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “It seems truly free to play, isn't too grindy and allows for very casual play.”
- “I remember completing the flash version a long time ago, so I'm not grinding again.”
- “What used to be a free flash game was modified to be as grindy and slow as possible, with microtransactions added that were never needed before.”
- “Progression is slow and repetitive, upgrades are expensive, making gameplay tedious.”
- “The monotonous grinding required just to complete 4,000k story mode is absurd, and is nothing like how the previous games tackled replayability.”
graphics
107 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
70%
5%
The game's graphics are characterized by simple, colorful, and cartoonish 2D visuals that fit its lighthearted and quirky theme, often praised for charm rather than technical sophistication. However, performance issues such as lag and crashes are commonly reported, especially due to the CPU-intensive vector-based graphics, with limited resolution and graphic settings restricting customization for different PCs. Overall, while the graphics are not cutting-edge, they effectively support the gameplay and atmosphere, though optimization could be improved.
- “Extremely simple graphics and gameplay with a huge number of items and progressive upgrades, wrapped in an addictive arcade loop.”
- “The game's visuals are simple yet charming, featuring colorful and cartoonish graphics that contribute to its lighthearted atmosphere.”
- “Colorful, vibrant graphics along with a lively soundtrack make for a fun and immersive experience.”
- “Runs like trash no matter what graphics settings after a few minutes, and sometimes even crashes.”
- “Absolutely horrible performance for a game with graphics that come from the early 2000's.”
- “The game looks like a piece of trash even on highest graphics, you can't change the resolution in the game.”
music
79 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
56%
6%
The game's music is generally praised for its catchy, upbeat, and customizable soundtrack that enhances the fun and immersive experience, with many players enjoying unlocking tracks and associating the music with memorable gameplay moments. However, some find the soundtrack limited, repetitive, or occasionally annoying, leading to muting during extended play sessions. Overall, the music is viewed as a positive aspect that complements the game's charm, despite occasional criticisms about variety and repetitiveness.
- “From the charming soundtrack that accompanies your launches to the quiet tension before each mission, every aspect of the game is meticulously crafted to evoke a sense of excitement, wonder, and determination.”
- “The rush of acceleration, the comedic splat of failure, the triumphant music when reaching new heights—each auditory cue serves to heighten the atmosphere and make every run memorable.”
- “The music is good and I really like that you can customize the tracks you listen to, as well as clothing and color options.”
- “Music tracks are extremely limited and not really good at all in my opinion, and as for the sound effects, they are really basic.”
- “However, this new installment is simply a cash grab game, with a multitude of microtransactions and a limited/irritating soundtrack.”
- “Sadly, all the songs sucked a lot and I found myself very annoyed by them and having to constantly switch songs so that I wouldn't get annoyed.”
monetization
77 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
65%
13%
The monetization in "Learn to Fly 3" is characterized by the presence of microtransactions, primarily involving a premium currency ("sardines"), but these purchases are optional and not required to complete or fully enjoy the game. While some users find the microtransactions somewhat intrusive or a cash grab, most agree that the game remains fun and fully playable without spending money, with all content unlockable through grinding over time. The absence of ads and the reasonable balance between free progression and paid shortcuts are generally appreciated, though opinions vary on the necessity and implementation of the microtransactions.
- “Learn to Fly 3 is quite fun, it's free, and the microtransactions are unnecessary, even if a little intrusive.”
- “Microtransactions exist but can be ignored as they are not needed to beat the game or get any needed unlocks.”
- “It is always nice when a game doesn't require you to purchase microtransactions but instead makes you feel like you should because you enjoyed it so much.”
- “What used to be a free flash game was tuned to be as grindy and slow as possible and had microtransactions added that were never needed before.”
- “Egregious microtransactions for a flash game without adding much content.”
- “For half of the screen is taken up by aggressive microtransaction advertising with bonuses available for purchase before you can even see any gameplay to understand what they mean.”
optimization
53 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
47%
32%
The game suffers from significant optimization issues, including frequent stuttering, severe frame drops, memory leaks, and crashes, even on relatively capable hardware. While it remains fun and lightweight, poor performance hampers the experience, particularly during extended play or high-intensity moments. Improvements in optimization, especially for lower-end systems and longer sessions, are highly needed.
- “Next 20 hours: spreadsheet-level optimization to shave 0.2 seconds off your ascent.”
- “The graphics are all vector based, which is great for keeping file sizes down, but as a result, the performance of this game suffers greatly.”
- “The browser version of this game is better optimized and runs better.”
- “Unfortunately this game is horribly optimized and even with settings on low it became unplayable once I reached 25,000ft.”
- “However, the game runs absolutely terrible, frequent stuttering, constant frame drops from the highest it gets at 67fps (on an i5-7600k with a 1060) down to under 30fps whenever it spawns a new obstacle in your way, no windowed option and it is prone to crashing.”
- “There is a memory leak and if you run the game for more than a few hours at a time you will get performance issues and eventually a crash.”
replayability
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
50%
8%
The game generally offers strong replayability through numerous unlockables, upgrades, and achievements that encourage repeated play across multiple modes. While some players find it addictive and fun for hours, others note that it may become monotonous after extended play, with replay value ranging from moderate to almost infinite depending on individual preferences. Overall, it is highly recommended for fans seeking engaging progression and variety in gameplay.
- “Going for all of the achievements definitely added some great replay value as it is not too difficult to beat each mode.”
- “There's a ton of different parts to buy for your penguin's launch setup plus booster cards you can get when you finish a mode to unlock even more crazy stuff, giving the game a replayability that many launch games don't have.”
- “The real fun in replayability, however, comes from the bonus upgrades, which do things like permanently reduce drag, increase the amount of fuel in your boosters, and give interest on unspent cash.”
- “The monotonous grinding required just to complete 4000k story mode is absurd, and is nothing like how the previous games tackled replayability.”
- “There isn't a lot of replay value, but at least you can blow your money on packs or something.”
- “Great game, not much replayability though.”
stability
38 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
3%
97%
The game is frequently described as buggy and unstable, with common issues including freezes, crashes, lag, and screen glitches, especially when using movement controls. Despite these technical problems, some players still find the gameplay enjoyable, though the stability significantly hampers the overall experience.
- “This is a great game and it has no glitches or anything 10/10”
- “The game has broken a lot with age, it freezes every time I press left or right.”
- “Extremely buggy, pressing A and D makes your game freeze and stutter.”
- “Fun but very buggy, after the first couple of runs in story mode it crashed and won't open without causing my monitor to cut out, and is taking up over half the CPU on my computer and 10x the amount of memory that it takes for me to run a more demanding and intense game, also causing audio issues resulting in my headphones and normal audio to be read as not connected.”
atmosphere
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
58%
21%
The atmosphere in Learn to Fly 3 is praised for its lively auditory cues and charming, cartoonish visuals that create a lighthearted and memorable experience. While some find it exhilarating and humorously engaging, others feel it lacks the depth and imagination of its predecessors, with minimal gameplay impact from atmospheric changes. Overall, the bright colors and playful tone contribute to a fun and enjoyable atmosphere.
- “While Learn to Fly 3 is renowned for its addictive gameplay and hilarious humor, it is also a masterclass in minimalist storytelling and atmosphere.”
- “But perhaps the greatest triumph of Learn to Fly 3 lies in its atmosphere.”
- “The rush of acceleration, the comedic splat of failure, the triumphant music when reaching new heights—each auditory cue serves to heighten the atmosphere and make every run memorable.”
- “For the atmosphere is so bland and unimaginative, feeling so far less than what Learn to Fly 1 & 2 offered.”
- “Gameplay, atmosphere, graphics.”
- “Storytelling and atmosphere”
emotional
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game delivers a deeply emotional and heart-wrenching story, particularly centered on a penguin's journey filled with hardship and triumph. Many players found the narrative so moving that it brought them to tears, praising its powerful impact and emotional depth.
- “♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ Why is this so emotional? Top tier story, ten iced out Eggman chains out of ten.”
- “Beautiful game, I cried when the penguins finally reached the moon.”
- “Heartbreaking story about a penguin and its journey to space.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Character development is creatively praised through the example of fuel cans, which evolve from being initially cumbersome and ineffective to becoming valuable when paired with balloons, showcasing a well-crafted progression and balance.