The Falconeer
- July 27, 2021
- Tomas Sala
- 10h median play time
The Falconeer: Warrior Edition includes everything released so far, with stunning visuals on PS5 and even prettier visuals than before.
"The Falconeer" is an open-world air combat game set in a fantastical world of floating islands and ancient cultures. Soar through the skies on the back of a giant warbird, battling hostile faqs and completing missions for hire. Experience a unique and immersive world with a rich backstory and dynamic environment, where your choices and actions have real consequences.
Reviews
- The game features a beautifully crafted world with stunning visuals and a unique art style.
- The flying mechanics are enjoyable, providing a sense of freedom and excitement during aerial combat.
- The developer is highly interactive with the community, actively addressing feedback and improving the game.
- The controls can feel clunky and unresponsive, especially when using keyboard and mouse, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
- The story can be confusing and lacks a cohesive narrative, making it difficult for players to become fully immersed.
- Many missions feel repetitive, and the open world can seem empty, reducing the incentive to explore.
- story533 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 77 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The story of "The Falconeer" is characterized by its intriguing lore and exploration of rival factions, though it suffers from repetitive mission design and a lack of engaging narrative depth. Players appreciate the atmospheric world and the gradual unfolding of the plot, but many find the dialogue and mission structure tedious, often leading to a sense of grind rather than immersion. While the game offers a unique perspective and beautiful visuals, the storytelling could benefit from more polish and coherence to enhance player engagement.
“The storyline is great, and the gameplay fills a niche of the gaming world you don't find in other games (plus the dev is really nice).”
“The lore, setting, and story are great, and I am enjoying the fluid combat.”
“The story is easy to follow with brief to-the-point dialogue and quests that do not flood you with the urge to hit the skip button, or make you wish things would just get on with it.”
“But almost 2 hours in and it feels like 50% of the game is skipping hardly interesting (and not all that well voiced) dialogue, flying slow escort missions and then getting to redo all of that when you accidentally flunk the end-combat part of a mission, because there seem to be no mid-mission checkpoints.”
“The story is lacking, but at least it's not intrusive.”
“Game forces you to care about story missions, story is boring and missions are repetitive.”
- gameplay140 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The gameplay in "The Falconeer" is characterized by enjoyable aerial combat mechanics and a unique flying experience, though it suffers from repetitiveness and a lack of depth in mission variety. While the visuals and atmosphere are praised, many players feel that the game could benefit from better tutorials and more engaging mechanics to maintain interest over longer play sessions. Overall, it offers a mix of fun and frustration, appealing primarily to those who appreciate its artistic style and narrative elements.
“The combat was very nice and there are many cool mechanics for it.”
“Falconeer is a truly enjoyable example of interactive art with compelling gameplay and mechanics.”
“Gameplay is minimalist and emphasizes mastering the bird and learning the enemy's weaknesses instead of brute force through weaponry.”
“If multiple missions and mission segments consist of a delivery quest that basically goes 'hold button to straight up skip travel time' twice per mission, then I don't know what to tell you - other than that, even with the built-in 'skip flying gameplay' fast-forward, it doesn't respect my time.”
“The majority of gameplay consists of flying in a straight line through a beautiful but monotonous seascape.”
“There's no story to pull you in at the start, nor is the gameplay explained properly (nor are you eased into it well enough) to keep you wanting to play to find the story.”
- graphics124 mentions
- 64 % positive mentions
- 34 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have been widely praised for their stunning visuals and unique art style, creating a beautiful and immersive atmosphere. Many players appreciate the attention to detail in the world design, with vibrant environments and impressive lighting effects that enhance the overall experience. While some mention minor glitches, the overall aesthetic and artistic presentation are considered a highlight, making it a visually appealing title worth exploring.
“The visuals are absolutely stunning, and the FPS is flawless.”
“The world is just tons of fun and visually gorgeous, with a really distinct art style.”
“Would definitely recommend this—first of all, the graphics are beautiful, probably worth getting for the visuals alone.”
“There is an open world, but little to nothing to actually do outside of quests, so there is no real reason to bother exploring (aside from the views, which are lovely to look at, but for me personally aesthetics will only get a game so far).”
“Over all it's an alright experience if you are just in it for the aesthetic and the simplistic combat, but ultimately the game just isn't fun for me personally.”
“Graphically, the sea is pretty, the fog and clouds are lovely and actually quite impressive (but overabundant), and everything else is rendered in the plastic style that's become the 3D version of pixel art.”
- music69 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its immersive and atmospheric qualities, effectively complementing the visuals and enhancing the overall experience. Reviewers highlighted the soundtrack's unique elements, including tribal and harmonic throat singing, which contribute to the game's relaxing and engaging ambiance. While some noted that the music could be somewhat tame compared to expectations, the majority found it to be a standout feature that significantly enriches gameplay.
“The music is wonderful, and the art style, while simplistic, is still beautiful in its own right.”
“The music in this is highly unique and moving, from action cues to tranquil sparse instrumentation when watching the stars.”
“I adore everything about this game, from its atmospheric soundtrack to its amazing visual aesthetics, and I am finding it an absolute joy to play.”
“Also, the music is okay, but rather tame compared to what I expected after playing Divinity: Dragon Commander.”
“Some sound effects were incredibly loud, while others were incredibly soft, and there were no separate settings for music and sound effects.”
“The music in this is highly unique and moving, transitioning from action cues to tranquil sparse instrumentation when watching the stars.”
- optimization24 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The game is well-optimized, delivering smooth performance and stability even on modest hardware, with high framerates and resolution. While it is primarily designed for controller use, players can adjust settings for keyboard and mouse controls, though this may require some initial tweaking. Overall, it runs exceptionally well, with no reported bugs or performance issues.
“I feel that also contributes to its odd charm though, and it should be noted that performance is incredible (some AAA should take note) and is perfectly stable.”
“This game is well optimized.”
“Performance: this game aims for smooth performance with high framerate and resolution.”
“The game is optimized for controllers and doesn't work well with keyboard and mouse, but controls are relatively simple and easy to get the hang of even if you don't use controllers often.”
“The world map is playing or running slowly.”
“It took a bit to get the hang of, since I am on a computer and it's optimized for a controller, but if you turn the mouse sensitivity down and set the flight control (not camera) to mouse, it works pretty well.”
- atmosphere24 mentions
- 83 % positive mentions
- 17 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its gorgeous visuals, immersive soundtrack, and rich world-building, creating a contemplative and soothing experience. Players appreciate the blend of meditative exploration and engaging combat, although some find the gameplay itself less captivating. Overall, the game's atmospheric qualities significantly enhance the overall experience, making it a joy to play despite some criticisms of its engagement level.
“I adore everything about this game, from its atmospheric soundtrack to its amazing visual aesthetics, and I am finding it an absolute joy to play.”
“The atmosphere is immersive, and the soundtrack complements it greatly.”
“It's a gentle and soothing sandbox game that has helped me relax with its soothing music, atmosphere, and fluid feeling of flight.”
- grinding16 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 13 % neutral mentions
- 88 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience; while some appreciate the challenge it brings, others find it tedious, particularly when it comes to tasks like gathering ammo or earning gold. The initial grind can feel necessary for progressing in plot missions, but many note that grinding is optional, allowing players to focus on story missions instead. Overall, the combat remains exciting, though it can become repetitive over time.
“Pacing/missions-- in the beginning there is a bit of grinding to do to actually hold your own in some of the plot missions.”
“The combat is exciting but can become tedious after a while.”
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- replayability6 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 17 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game offers a moderate level of replayability due to its open-world design and diverse missions across major cities, which unlock new mounts, credits, and business opportunities. However, the extent of replayability remains somewhat uncertain among players.
“There is some replayability as the game is an open world with various missions in each major city, giving you access to new mounts, credits, or opportunities for doing business with other places.”
“Very good game with a decent amount of replayability.”
“There is some replayability as the game is an open world with various missions in each major city, giving you access to new mounts, credits, or passes for doing business with other places.”
“I think there is some replayability, but I do not know for sure how much.”
“There is some replayability as the game is an open world with various missions in each major city, giving you access to new mounts, credits, or passes for doing business with other places.”
- stability6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game features appealing graphics and aesthetics, but users report frequent glitches that can disrupt gameplay, particularly when interacting with buttons. Despite these issues, the ability to easily pause the game for screenshots is a noted positive aspect.
“Every time you click a button, it glitches and disappears.”
“The game offers some nice graphics and a nice aesthetic, although there are some ugly glitches here and there.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by a standout character who comically embodies the traits of a drunken individual, providing a humorous and exaggerated portrayal that resonates with players.
“My favorite character so far is a drunk character that is pretty funny, as it is an obvious imitation of someone grossly drunk.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional impact of the game is diminished by an abundance of easily obtainable rewards and a lack of challenge, which can lead to a sense of disengagement and frustration for players seeking a more meaningful experience.
Critic Reviews
The Falconeer Review
A generic fantasy setting, confusing story and boring gameplay means The Falconeer fails to impress.
50%The Falconeer Review
The Falconeer is at its best when you’re finally able to hold your own against the many dangers that await you. Working your way up to that point feels far too slow, as many of the side missions are repetitive and the falcon moves way too slowly when you’re traversing from place to place. When the story ramps up, and you’ve invested the time to improve your pilot and its falcon, you’re finally rewarded with an interesting, mostly fair and fun experience, where the world-building meets frenetic gameplay and you realize you’re playing a game unlike any other. But there are many minor flaws to the experience that prevent The Falconeer from reaching its full potential. Shoring up the repetitive side-missions with more variety, speeding up the downtime, and balancing the difficulty curve will do a lot for The Falconeer’s appeal. Until then, it’s still a fun game, with some rough edges.
70%The Falconeer Review – The Bird Is The Word
Interesting indie game that’s not quite as good as it wants to be, but still aims for the sky and hits.
70%