There is something magnificent about flying that us humans get all caught up in. This fascination probably comes from the fact that we can’t naturally obtain flight ourselves and we do love things we can’t have! That’s why we flock to games like The Falconeer to get our flying fix. To soar, twirl, and feel like we’re freefalling with the grace that only a bird has.

The Falconeer is an open world flight game that mixes elements of adventure, air combat, and dogfighting mechanics. It was also an Xbox Series X/S launch title and has become a bit of a hit with those looking for exclusive titles to play on their new Xbox systems.

Its development story is also touching. Its dev, Tomas Sala, came up with the idea when he gave up on another project that he realised was too dark and was being too influenced by his state of mind during a personal/relationship breakdown. From the ashes of the previous game, he built The Falconeer, a game that he says incorporates some of those dark qualities (the depths of the ocean and not knowing what lies beneath) but also elements of hope and light (exploration that brings forth a ‘zen’ like feeling). With all these cool things going for it, I really wanted to love this game.

The Falconeer is set in the mystical world of Ursee that is made up of different ports that are scattered around the ocean. As a Falconeer you and your falcon complete jobs and tasks for the people of Ursee. This world is filled with unrest and lots and lots of pirates in the shape of other Falconeers, who try their best to kill you whenever you are on a job. The interesting thing about Falconeers is that you can barely see them. They are just a speck on the back of their bird, even though it is them you are controlling who are in turn controlling the falcon. Yeah, it’s a total Russian Dolls situation.

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Your weapons are powered by thin electrical looking tubes that are strapped to your falcon’s back. To charge these tubes you must make your way to the “thunderstorm” areas of the map. The electricity here will charge the tubes up, but be careful, they may become too electrified and burn out. You can actually physically see this burn out occurring, but I’m not too sure what this does in regards to firepower.

Dying, which I did quite a bit on the pirate heavy missions, sends you to a cut scene where a woman in a bird suit (who I’m guessing is a symbol of The Falconeer and his falcon – half bird, half human) waxes lyrical about trade, or death, or war. I’m really not sure where this bird suit woman fits in. I’ve seen the game referred to as being part of the “fantasy” genre but only this character seems to fit that bill.

At the beginning of your first playthrough, you can select an appearance for your Falconeer. It was nice to see a selection of different skin tones to choose from but it was unfortunate to see that every single character was male. Out of about fifteen skins, not one was a woman. In the hours that I played, I only came across, other than the bird suit lady, one other female character. Very disappointing for a game made by a dude in 2020.