Merchant of the Skies

A chill resource-trading sim that builds and evolves into weird places makes for a good time.

85%Game Brain Score

story, gameplay

grinding, optimization

87% User Score Based on 1,361 reviews

Critic Score 75%Based on 1 reviews

Platforms

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About

Merchant of the Skies is a single player casual role playing game with economy, business and kids themes. It was developed by Coldwild Games and was released on April 17, 2020. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and positive reviews from players.

Become the captain of a flying ship! Sell items, gather resources and build your own trade company in the clouds!

+23

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87%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,361 reviews

story90 positive mentions

grinding107 negative mentions

Charming and visually appealing pixel art style with engaging and quirky characters.
Addictive and relaxing gameplay loop combining trading, exploration, and resource management that rewards strategic planning.
Well-paced progression from simple trade to complex economy and automating caravans with a satisfying campaign and sandbox modes.

Early game can be frustrating due to limited fuel capacity and steep learning curve with little tutorial guidance.
Interface and UI are clunky and sometimes slow, with cumbersome inventory and map controls that hinder smooth gameplay.
Repetitive and grindy late-game with static trading prices, limited endgame content, and underutilized automation features leading to reduced challenge and motivation.

story
421 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
76%
3%
The story in this game is minimal and largely serves as a backdrop to the trading and resource management gameplay, featuring mostly simple fetch quests and light lore about the world and its quirky characters. While some players find the story charming and a nice complement to the gameplay, others view it as forgettable, repetitive, and lacking depth or meaningful progression. Overall, the narrative provides basic structure and goals without overshadowing the sandbox trading experience.
- “It masterfully blends automation elements (like caravan routes) and supply chain management with a unique, engaging storyline.”
- “The story advances as you complete quests, and you’ll learn about the story of the islands, the mythical hero that settled them and the guilds that operate there.”
- “Merchant of the skies combines trading, mining, upgrading and a few story quests into a well-designed and addictive game.”
- “The story is truly forgettable and apart from some characters like the singing carrot, the turtle island, and the giant fish, everything else is forgettable as soon as you close the game.”
- “Storyline and missions were very dull and underwhelming.”
- “The game is like if you took all the interesting and good things out of dredge, made it 2D, leaned into the lackluster minigames, ruined the UI (map bad - needs zoom and more, and it's the primary interface), gave it egregiously arduous and mostly unnecessary micromanagement (shipping between islands), and made it a forgettable story.”
gameplay
302 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
65%
8%
Gameplay in "Merchant of the Skies" offers a simple and accessible trading simulation with a satisfying core loop of buying low, selling high, and gradually expanding via quests and base-building elements. While the mechanics are charming, easy to learn, and well-integrated with the art and atmosphere, many players find the progression somewhat shallow, repetitive, and grindy, with limited complexity and a short overall playtime of around 7–12 hours. The game’s lack of tutorials and occasional clunky UI may frustrate newcomers, but its relaxing pacing and cozy vibe make it an enjoyable casual experience for fans of trading and merchant sims.
- “Core gameplay is easy to learn; exploration feels rewarding, and resource/fuel management is well done in the early game.”
- “The gameplay loop involves buying low, selling high, upgrading your ship, and expanding your trade empire, providing a satisfying and engaging merchant simulation.”
- “The game offers simple yet robust trading mechanics combined with quests, production setup, and trade routes, making the gameplay loop fun and varied.”
- “Neutral rating – the game looks cute and polished, but it's a bit too barebones and grindy in terms of gameplay.”
- “The gameplay loop can be repetitive: you buy low, move to other regions, sell high—this loop will continue for some time until you have enough money.”
- “While the game has very nice pixel art and a passing soundtrack, the gameplay is dull and tedious as nothing really ever happens while you're traversing the cloud sea; it's all monotonous deliveries with no surprises past the first hour.”
graphics
179 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
42%
2%
The game features charming, well-crafted pixel art graphics that perfectly complement its whimsical, relaxing theme and vibrant floating world. Reviewers consistently praise its cute, colorful, and aesthetically pleasing design, which evokes nostalgia while enhancing the overall cozy atmosphere, though some note the visuals are simplistic and not highly detailed. Overall, the graphics are a strong highlight that contribute significantly to the game's unique charm and appeal.
- “The art style is on point; it's a non-violent game with a vibrant world, and it plays great on Steam Deck.”
- “I greatly appreciate the art style and artistic design of this game — the visuals are charming and endearing.”
- “The real magic is the added depth to these systems, and to a greater extent, the artwork: every frame feels like a well-composed living watercolor painting.”
- “Seriously, the developer is charging more money for this console game than you can get games like Elite Dangerous or X4 for... and they couldn't even be bothered learning how to do 3D graphics.”
- “A choice was made to use obsolete, decades-old retro pixel "art" as a substitute for contemporary PC graphics.”
- “While there are options to change the resolution for the game, all this does is scale up the simplistic 2D art assets used to make the game, which makes little or no difference to the graphics quality.”
music
118 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
45%
11%
The music in the game is generally praised for its charming, calming, and fitting style, complementing the pixel art and overall relaxing atmosphere. However, many reviewers note the soundtrack is very limited, with only a few short tracks that quickly become repetitive and monotonous. While the tunes are pleasant and enhance the experience, a greater variety and length would improve long-term enjoyment.
- “Excellent pixel art and excellent music, it made me happy to play this game.”
- “The serene landscapes and calming music make trading journeys a therapeutic experience.”
- “The creative blend of cuteness, weirdness and orientalism gives a bold & unique aesthetic - in the hands of lesser developers this could have been a big mess, but the art, music and writing are all consistently on point, so it ultimately succeeds in evoking a sense of charm, adventure and comfiness.”
- “The music is ok, but each of the 3 tunes are very short and the constant repetitive looping will drive you up the wall.”
- “Soundtrack is what, 4 songs or so, and they can get annoying.”
- “The music is extremely repetitive (and in my opinion bad, but that's personal preference) and maybe 5 minutes long in total.”
grinding
108 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1%
99%
Grinding in the game is frequently described as repetitive, tedious, and involving extensive micromanagement and back-and-forth resource gathering, especially in the early to mid-game. While some players find the progression rewarding and enjoy setting up automation to reduce grind later on, others feel the gameplay lacks depth and becomes a slog, particularly with inventory management and travel. Overall, the grind may appeal to fans of economy sims but can be frustrating or monotonous for those seeking a more streamlined or dynamic experience.
- “There is no way to see what resources are needed for what buildings to be built (maybe even upgraded not sure) from the map. You have to go down on your planet, see what resources you need, note them down and fly out to get them. This gets tedious fast.”
- “The early game is kind of a slog but the game becomes better the more you play. The game rewards you for your curiosity handsomely. Before automation through caravan ships are introduced, the game is rather tedious and requires lots of micromanaging. After caravans get unlocked the game becomes miles easier and you can progress rather quickly.”
- “It gets a bit tedious after a few hours but ultimately it offers a good gameplay loop that is fun to play while doing other things like watching videos or movies.”
replayability
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
70%
13%
Replayability in the game is generally considered limited, with randomized maps and multiple goals offering some variation, but gameplay mechanics and objectives tend to feel repetitive after the initial playthrough. While some appreciate the relaxed pace and sandbox mode for added replay value, many find the experience fairly short and lacking long-term engagement. Overall, replayability is modest and may not justify a higher price for players seeking extended or varied playtime.
- “Whether you choose to immerse yourself in the narrative or focus solely on the business aspect, the game offers versatility and replay value.”
- “There is also a sandbox mode that allows for more replayability.”
- “Randomized islands make for good replayability.”
- “Virtually no replay value to be had but overall not a bad way to spend an evening or two.”
- “There's not a lot of replayability per se; the map may be randomly generated, but the play mechanics (trade, invest, buy, produce, set up caravans, corner the supply market etc) will always be the same, and so will the goals.”
- “Only complaint is that the game does not have the best replayability once you finish the story.”
atmosphere
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
20%
13%
The game boasts a charming, relaxing, and whimsical atmosphere enhanced by its lovely pixel art, fitting music, and quirky characters, creating a warm and inviting world for players. While the gameplay is relatively simple and light on deep mechanics, the unique, calm, and enchanting ambiance stands out as a key highlight that draws players in and offers a pleasant, feel-good experience.
- “Its charming visuals, engaging story lines, and quirky characters create an enchanting atmosphere that draws players in.”
- “The pixel art is cute and atmospheric and has many winning touches like the tiny figure in a red hat who represents your trader scurrying between buildings on the floating islands.”
- “If you enjoy mild economic simulation and whimsical atmospheres, it's wholly worth playing through the relatively short campaign once (perhaps on discount?), but there's really nothing here which will hold your interest beyond that playthrough.”
- “This game reminds me of Transport Giant but with a different atmosphere.”
- “The game has a relaxed atmosphere without pirates and other dangers you find in other trader games; here the world is friendly, quiet, and you can just go and enjoy yourself in it.”
humor
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its charming and humorous elements, featuring quirky characters like the fish god Sam and amusing special encounters that add a lighthearted, entertaining touch. Its humor complements the relaxing, low-pressure trading gameplay, making it enjoyable and funny without being overly complex. However, some note the game's short campaign length despite its comedic appeal.
- “The special encounters that are roaming the world are wild and hilarious pretty much every time.”
- “A nice chill little game with some basic business management and a load of lovely cute and funny stuff, from big singing carrot to my best buddy Sam.”
- “It's a low-pressure trading game with several funny and interesting tidbits that fit the feel of the game (e.g. fish god, majestic carrot) and great for when you want to play something with your brain turned off.”
emotional
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is widely praised for its wholesome, heartwarming emotional tone and relaxing atmosphere, often evoking tender feelings and even tears. While the minimal writing and backstory may disappoint some, the charming pixel art and engaging gameplay contribute to an overall heartfelt and compelling experience.
- “I cried at the ending a little bit.”
- “Beautiful, fun, wholesome game which has clearly been made with love and care.”
- “A really nice and wholesome game; it is rather unique but very compelling.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Optimization in the game shows mixed results: while overall performance runs smoothly and is stable, some users note declining performance over time and point out that aspects like automated trading routes, resource distribution, and user interface controls could be better optimized for convenience and efficiency.
- “Performance is stellar.”
- “This game contains trade route optimization, light exploration, and resource expansion and management elements.”
- “A very special little experience that, aside from some quality of life adjustments, runs smoothly and has a nice charm to it.”
- “Performance got noticeably worse over time even though I had only claimed about 1 in 6 production locations and had not set up automated trading.”
- “There are optimization issues with resource delivery to developed islands and limitations on trade ships, such as lacking a way to let ships trade automatically without a fixed route, using limits on resource quantities for buying and selling.”
- “Text boxes pop up in weird places and do not disappear, icon sizing and placement are inconvenient, and some key and mouse controls are not optimized.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is generally solid with rare bugs, but some users experience occasional graphical glitches, potentially due to compatibility issues with certain systems or improper porting from its original version.
- “And the game is a bit buggy from being an old Newgrounds game that wasn't ported properly.”
- “There are small graphical glitches that weren't fixable by the instructions on the game message board, maybe related to my distro (Debian Buster) in particular.”
- “Bugs are very rare, although glitches are occasional.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for avoiding intrusive microtransactions, setting it apart from typical freemium base-building games. However, players feel the gameplay lacks depth and originality despite the appealing airship theme and pixel art.

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75%Critics’ scoreBased on 1 critic reviews

Merchant of the Skies (Switch)
A chill resource-trading sim that builds and evolves into weird places makes for a good time.
Nintendoworldreport.com
75%

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11h Median play time

12h Average play time

10-15h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 29 analyzed playthroughs

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Frequently Asked Questions

Merchant of the Skies is a casual role playing game with economy, business and kids themes.

Merchant of the Skies is available on Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, PC, PlayStation 5 and others.

On average players spend around 12 hours playing Merchant of the Skies.

Merchant of the Skies was released on April 17, 2020.

Merchant of the Skies was developed by Coldwild Games.

Merchant of the Skies has received mostly positive reviews from players and mostly positive reviews from critics. Most players liked Merchant of the Skies for its story but disliked it for its grinding.

Merchant of the Skies is a single player game.

Similar games include Airborne Kingdom, Forager, Stacklands, Flotsam, Blueprint Tycoon and others.

Merchant of the Skies

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