Skybolt Zack

There are not many ways one can innovate the platformer genre, but that doesn’t mean developers cannot come up with something fun. Thus, even if the concepts used in games are not 100% original, players can still enjoy themselves for a few hours. On top of that, even small ideas can go a long way to make the gameplay a lot more engaging.

Skybolt Zack is a fast-paced platformer in which your goal is to pass each level by scoring as many points as possible and moving as quickly as you can. Granted, you need good reflexes and even a bit of luck in order to do a clean run, but then again you can play the same levels over and over again until you are able to anticipate what’s coming and react accordingly.

The main gameplay gimmick is that your character has the ability to attack enemies based on their color, and you must press the appropriate key to immediate jump into the said enemy. The faster you manage to press the correct keys, the faster your character moves around the level. On top of that, your range extends the longer you manage to keep this up, which makes it easier to reach far away enemies.

Each successive hit increases your score and multiplies your combo, which means that it’s very important to keep it up for as long as possible. Given the fact that your final score has a chance to reach the hall of fame, it’s only natural that it’s quite rewarding to do well during the action. On the other hand, you might need a bit of practice beforehand.

The tutorial does a good job at explaining the concept, but you still have to teach your fingers to respond as quickly as possible. This is much easier to do with a controller, but you can also use a keyboard in case you do not have one handy. The graphics are not bad at all, and each level has a different layout, and sometimes different environment styles.

All things considered, Skybolt Zack is a very polished game for an indie production, not to mention the fact that it’s completely free. Granted, it lacks content and some kind of character customization, but then again you can still play without thinking about these aspects.