The Blue Flamingo

About

In "The Blue Flamingo," players navigate a pastel-colored world as a flamingo with a propeller hat, completing whimsical tasks and solving puzzles. Using unique movement mechanics, such as flapping and dashing, players traverse various levels filled with charming visuals and quirky characters. With no set objectives or time limits, this game encourages exploration and creativity at one's own pace.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

60%

Audience ScoreBased on 116 reviews

gameplay8 positive mentions

story4 negative mentions

The game features stunning handcrafted visuals and a unique art style that stands out.
The soundtrack is enjoyable and complements the game's aesthetic well.
The gameplay offers a simple yet engaging score attack mechanic that can be fun in short bursts.

Controls are overly sensitive and imprecise, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
The game lacks content, with only two levels that repeat without significant variation or bosses.
There are no health regeneration options or permanent upgrades, making the gameplay feel repetitive and limiting.

gameplay
56 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
75%
11%
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it simplistic and repetitive, particularly due to the lack of a tutorial and the rogue-like permadeath mechanic. While some appreciate the straightforward mechanics and tight controls, others criticize the imprecise controls and the overall blandness of the gameplay experience, leading to a sense of boredom over time. Despite its appeal to a broad audience, the game struggles with depth and finesse, making it feel more like an art project than a fully realized gaming experience.
- “The mechanics are simple, the gameplay is tight, and the game is all in all pretty decent.”
- “The core gameplay itself is as simple as it can get for a shmup: you shoot enemies who primarily appear from the top and sides of the screen, all the while earning points with which to upgrade the flamingo between stages.”
- “This simple gameplay loop works wonderfully well.”
- “None of the control mechanics feel right; gamepad, keyboard, and mouse are all awkward in their own ways.”
- “Always starting back at level 1 gets old really fast when the core gameplay feels so contrived.”
- “The gameplay, however, is repetitive and basic.”
graphics
52 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
56%
6%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their unique art style and clean visuals, with many reviewers noting the impressive use of real-world models and hand-crafted elements. However, some criticism arises from the limited asset variety, leading to redundancy, and occasional glitches that detract from the overall experience. While the aesthetic is charming and visually appealing, it is sometimes overshadowed by gameplay issues such as imprecise controls and a lack of depth.
- “The visuals are amazing and definitely unique, but with very limited assets, the visuals quickly become redundant.”
- “One of the blue flamingo’s most distinguishing features is its use of real-life sources as graphical and audio assets – each and every one of the sprites seen in the game has been made using still images of hand-crafted, real-world models.”
- “I love the visuals because I appreciate the time, effort, and care that went into making everything.”
- “The shortness in terms of content is likely due to the limitations of the art style, which constrained them to only having one model for the terrain because building an impressively detailed 32-foot-long model is hard and only so many models for enemies, as those too had to be hand-built and hand-painted, but the loose controls are less forgivable, as they combine with the lack of ability to restore your health to make a game where you're rewarded for playing very conservatively, which ends up feeling rather boring.”
- “Novelty graphics and sound effects that, while beautiful and charming, quickly wear out their welcome after only a few minutes of dealing with the horrible controls (even menu control with an Xbox 360 pad is atrocious).”
- “I would love to see this graphical style applied to a good game.”
music
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
53%
37%
10%
The music in the game is generally described as pleasant and relaxing, with some reviewers appreciating its catchy and jazzy elements that enhance the atmosphere. However, there are criticisms regarding its repetitiveness and lack of diversity, particularly as levels progress, which detracts from the overall experience. While the audio design is well-balanced and complements the gameplay, some find the music uninteresting and standard, failing to elevate the game's intensity as expected in a death race scenario.
- “The real-world audio also adds a good touch to the game’s aesthetics, and is complemented by a charming musical score that fits quite nicely with the setting while feeling relaxing at the same time.”
- “The catchy music and beautiful environments make this simplistic shooter a joy to play as you find that perfect balance to achieve your high score.”
- “Beautifully made levels and models, nice jazzy music, and an interesting upgrade system keep your score to rise on the leaderboards quicker or spend it on temporary ship upgrades.”
- “What could be one of the best indie/arcade games developed during its time, got to the finish line just to drop the ball... excellent game for the first three rounds, after which a pattern emerges; levels repeat without any diverse change, and the music continues on the same beat every round.”
- “The audio is great as it doesn't distract from the game itself, the music doesn't drown out the sound effects, nor does the reverse happen, it's a great balance.”
- “There are two soundtracks in this game.”
story
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
65%
20%
The story in "Blue Flamingo" is minimal and straightforward, primarily serving as a backdrop for its endless shooter gameplay, which involves upgrading weapons between missions. While some players appreciate the simplicity and find it sufficient for the game's style, others criticize the lack of depth and rushed presentation, noting that it feels generic and underdeveloped. Overall, the narrative aspect is not a focal point, with many players expressing indifference towards its simplicity.
- “You can have all the 'generic shmup', 'pretty visuals, shallow gameplay', 'imprecise controls' that you want, for my money (and I did pay full price, gladly) this is a great little game... there may not be a whole lot of depth in the story but I couldn't care less about that, at least there is a bit of story in it, rather than just shooting up some stuff.”
- “Blue Flamingo does not try and get fancy with a crazy story about an elite pilot taking on an entire army or a prototype jet that needs to eliminate an evil alien race.”
- “Blue Flamingo has one caveat that makes that quest for the highest score that much more interesting.”
- “However, the menu interface uses a 1990s era 'blink' interface to tell you what's selected; there is no real story and it generally feels rushed.”
- “Only survival mode is available, so there is no story, just the same crappy enemies that get more hit points.”
- “Blue Flamingo does not try to get fancy with a crazy story about an elite pilot taking on an entire army or a prototype jet that needs to eliminate an evil alien race.”
replayability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game "Blue Flamingo" has been criticized for its low replayability, with many players feeling that it lacks sufficient content to encourage multiple playthroughs. It may appeal to those who enjoy high-score challenges, but overall, it does not offer much for gamers seeking varied experiences.
- “The second major complaint is replayability; this critique actually has some weight behind it.”
- “Hence, there is very little replayability for the honest gamer here.”
- “Blue Flamingo doesn't offer a ton of replayability unless you're the type that can rack up a massive score and enjoy defending it.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its humor, which is effectively enhanced by amusing fireworks sound effects and visuals, along with a well-crafted music and sound design that contribute to its overall lighthearted atmosphere.
- “Music, sound design, and handmade construction all come together to create a good-humored game.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate that the game's optimization requires significant improvements, particularly in ship movement, input responsiveness, and overall gameplay creativity. Players are calling for smoother mechanics and more engaging story elements to enhance the overall experience.
- “All the designers need to do is add some story aspects, better and smoother ship movement, way less input stuttering, and 1000 times more imagination into gameplay and level/enemy design.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features appealing graphics, but users have reported occasional noticeable glitches that affect overall stability. Despite these issues, the experience remains enjoyable.
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and unengaging, detracting significantly from the overall experience.
- “It's a sorry excuse for a shm'up, extremely tedious to play.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is not clearly articulated in the provided text, which primarily focuses on gameplay mechanics and the need for caution in combat. There is a lack of emotional depth or narrative elements that evoke feelings, making it difficult to assess this aspect based on the given information.
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of the game is praised for its satisfying graphics and explosive effects, creating an engaging experience, despite minor lag issues with the cursor keys. Overall, it effectively enhances the enjoyment of gameplay during short breaks.
- “The graphics, atmosphere, and explosions are all highly satisfying, making it a great way to kill the lunch hour.”