Skytail begins in a serene setting, where it describes your tranquil life travelling between small floating islands on the back of Skytail – a large bird-like companion reminiscent of Trico from The Last Guardian (a character I adore). However, the tranquillity is shattered when thieves steal her eggs, disrupting the peace you’ve always known and prompting you to embark on a quest to rescue Skytail’s eggs.

This journey involves moving from one island to another, but the once safe and clear paths are now filled with corrupted foes. Naturally, the only way to navigate through them is to confront and defeat them, which is where the main gameplay mechanics come into play. You will initially face basic enemies attempting to hinder your progress, but at each island you visit, you will acquire new abilities to aid you in combat, required for new enemy types that are added – all your attacks are executed through gesture-based telekinetic powers, while Skytail handles the flying to your next location.

As you progress in Skytail, new abilities and enemy types are introduced, keeping the wave-based combat fresh and engaging, despite the rinse-and-repeat gameplay loop. However, as you become accustomed to your new skills and the various enemy types, you begin to mix and create your own projectiles, reflect enemy projectiles, smash foes together to break shields, and squeeze them until they explode. This makes the combat feel surprisingly visceral for a game that appears so cozy. Since all actions are gesture-based, it was crucial for these gestures to be intuitive and effective. The basic gestures—grab, move, release, and throw—function smoothly, and these are the primary actions you’ll frequently use.