Fugl [Steam, Official Site] is a relaxing exploration game where you take flight, with no set goals or timers it's time to chill out.
Direct Link
Disclosure: Key provided by the developer.
Fugl is a sandbox game where you create the story, playing as a shape-shifting bird. Relax and feel the breeze under your wings as you glide serenely across picturesque landscapes, or kick up the excitement and soar up steep cliffs like an eagle. With no set rules the free roaming gameplay lets you discover the beauty and secrets of the world at your own pace and dares you to make your own meaning for a stress-free experience.
Relaxing it is, but I'm unsure what to do with myself when playing it. I flew around for a while taking in the scenery, watched a few other birds fly by and contemplated the meaning of life. I also saw some jumping fish, that was sweet.
It's strange, relaxing and an odd idea for a game. It's one of those experiences that some people might not say is a game, since there's nothing to really do but fly around and explore. I will be interested to see where they take it, considering it's still in development.
For now, I'll stick to Fruits Of a Feather, which has a similar "you're a bird" mechanic.
I think they really captured what I would imagine soaring like a bird would feel like, and audio is a big part of that.
In small doses it can be healthy, but for most this is probably more of a "buy it on sale just to see if I would enjoy that kind of stuff" game, rather than a must-have. This is definitely not for everyone, and not for extended periods of time.
So it's like a (faux) voxel tech demo? Would it be so hard to think of some optional goals at least to keep players interested? I love exploration in games and I don't mind casual experiences either, but I need something to work towards. I lost interest in pure sandboxes around the time I got too old to play in actual sandboxes. YMMV.Why faux? It at least looks like for once the rendering is done with "actual" voxels and not polygonal cubes.
edit: okay got and actually played it, it looks like it does actually also use polygonal cubes so you're right :D
Lovely thing for what it is!
Last edited by qptain Nemo on 20 October 2017 at 11:07 pm UTC
Fugl fills a very special niche for me. Sometimes I am too mentally exhausted to play anything that requires focus, and this game has a certain soothing effect on me.
I think they really captured what I would imagine soaring like a bird would feel like, and audio is a big part of that.
In small doses it can be healthy, but for most this is probably more of a "buy it on sale just to see if I would enjoy that kind of stuff" game, rather than a must-have. This is definitely not for everyone, and not for extended periods of time.
I recommend Fruits Of a Feather, which fills a similar niche and is free on Itch.io. It doesn't have a shapechanging mechanic, but it's pretty chill and I like it.
https://samuraipunk.itch.io/fruits-of-a-feather
But wow is the low-rez looking bird ugly.
I think it looks great and works well with what they have shown. To each their own I guess.
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