The Dev Team is Ready For the Inevitable Storm of Puns
Flight School Studio’s upcoming chill action-adventure title Stonefly is almost here, and the devs are paving the way for its release next week with a ton of new information and a short new trailer. The new details focus on the game’s mechanics, including its three categories of abilities: core abilities, utility abilities, and defense abilities. All three groups will be invaluable on your journey through these enormous swamp, briar, and canopy biomes, but only core abilities and defense abilities have upgrades. When it comes to utility abilities, you’ll have to decide which ones are the best fit for your current mission. Fortunately, the game will give you a quick preview of new abilities before you unlock them, and if you make a mistake in your load-out, you can return to camp at a checkpoint and resume the mission with better gear. While the game is linear, it promises a lot of sprawling, replayable levels you can explore at your leisure. Don’t worry about getting lost–a tip on where to go next will be located at the bottom of your menu, and you can always rest in order to get an idea of what protagonist Annika has on her mind. Also, there are so many bugs in this game and they are adorable. Just look at them scurry around in this trailer.
Yes, we’re talking about actual bugs, as in creepy-crawlies, though Entomophobic gamers shouldn’t be too concerned–we’re hard-pressed to describe the many creatures Annika will encounter on her journey as creepy. Their bright colors, simplified designs, and inability to do anything more dangerous than push Annika off the edge of the map make them downright adorable. The only exceptions to this rule are the Alpha Aphids. These giants make up for their terrifying appearances by being covered in valuable minerals that will have players eagerly seeking them out. Alpha Aphids are walking timed missions that reward the bold with a ton of loot, provided you brought the right abilities and you stay focused on the prize, not the countless smaller insects competing with you for it.
According to Flight School Studio, the biggest thing new players should keep in mind when starting Stonefly is that their mech can fly. Most games have the player stay on the ground and occasionally jump, but Stonefly flips that to create an experience where the player flies around and occasionally lands. This focus on aerial speed and maneuvers works fantastically with the game’s click controls and gorgeous animation. We’ve never seen anything like it before.
Stonefly will be available for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series S|X, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC on June 1st, 2021.
What bug would you model your tiny mech after? Let us know down in the comments, or hit us up on Twitter or Facebook.