Stonefly provides an intriguing premise that lends itself to strange and fantastical gameplay. With an emphasis on aerial piloting, the combat and exploration give ample control while not feeling too fast for the laid-back spirit. While it can be confusing to shuffle through the various materials, power-up formulas can be brute-forced when necessary. Stonefly smartly lets the player control its tempo without lingering for too long, which appeals to all kinds of gamers.

A wonderful coming of age adventure wrapped up in a gameplay loop that never asks much but delivers a gorgeous world to explore. Stonefly isn't going to save the world but it might make your insides a wee bit warmer.

All in all, Stonefly is a fun experience that I’d recommend to anyone who enjoys action-adventure games. I would not, however, recommend it to people who just want to fly around a peaceful environment. While you can spend a lot of time gliding from tree to tree and mushroom to mushroom, there’s always a risk of tripping an encounter that will force you to battle bugs in surprisingly intense combat, and even the exploration sequences can be stressful if you can’t figure out how to advance.

With its charming, restful universe, its polished soundtrack and its original approach to mechas who can achieve feats in combat, Stonefly is a fun game, but more calibrated for short sessions than for long-term immersion.

Just like the sport of soaring, while everything is great when you’re up in the air, the fun comes to a screeching halt when you’re down on the ground. Cruising around on those rising currents of air is an incredible experience that truly captures the feeling of flight. You can sometimes keep your glider aloft for hours by weaving around the sky in just the right way. When you touch down, there’s no getting yourself back up into the air, though. Flight School Studio was on to something with all the gliding, but didn’t quite stick the landing.

The enemy designs were done with care and detail that stunning a cluster of the creatures and then scooting them off a leaf feels like snatching survival from their jaws. And, as more and more inventions and upgrades unlock, the rig is yours to helm and personalise. On a console, I could certainly see Stonefly being a firm favourite for younger children, especially with the multiple save slots, accessible story, colourblind modes and the assist mode that lets you switch on invincibility. There are a few wrinkles, but it's nothing that a helping of elbow grease won't fix.

Stonefly takes flight in a fantastical world where you glide amongst giant trees, branches twisting improbable pirouettes in the sky. But the initial wonder soon sputters under frustrating combat design and runs aground against the mundane grind of its progression structure.