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Summary
Flockis a creature collecting adventure that transports players to a mesmerizing world filled with delightfully strange wildlife. It comes from developer Hollow Ponds, which previously produced titles likeI Am DeadandWilmot’s Warehouse, and indie darling publisher Annapurna Interactive, known for releases likeStrayandWhat Remains of Edith Finch.It combines the exhilarating feeling of flight with the excitement of discovery to create a captivating experience that is easy to get lost in for hours.
In a2022 interview withFlock’s developers, Richard Hogg said the game is in some ways a spiritual successor toHohokum, and that certainly comes through in the game’s color palette. However,Flockis much more accessible, providing more clear-cut objectives while still being very free-form - players will be helping their Aunt Jane, a zoology professor, with her creature research, butcan approach this entirely at their own pace. There’s no way to fail atFlock, and the game as a whole cultivates a visceral feeling of freedom and wonder that’s uniquely impressive.
Traversing The Vibrant World
The Exhilarating Freedom Of Flight
Traversal inFlockis incredibly fluid, with all movement taking place from the back of a large bird mount. All navigation of obstacles is taken care of automatically by the game through gentle adjustment, meaning that all players need to worry about is where they’re headed and when to use R2 to get an extra boost from a stronger wing flap. The PS5’s adaptive triggers are great for this, and it’s satisfying to feel the difference between a light tap of the trigger versus fully pressing it down.
The world is dotted with different ways of helping players better take in their surroundings, like wind tunnels that can push the bird extremely high up, and perches from which players can zoom in on the wildlife below in greater detail. There are also a myriad of stone structures scattered about that allow for high speeds when ridden through, in turn offering transportation that’s both efficient and exhilarating.Flockis a very nice blend of these swift moments alongside the slower, more contemplative onesthat come with creature hunting and aimless exploring.
The world ofFlockcontains several diverse biomes to explore, from vibrant flower fields to a moss forest filled with giant mushrooms, all with a day and night cycle. As players progress with their species discoveries, the cloud layer of the island will lower, exposing new types of ecosystems that all hold their own special quirks and details. The map has several useful features that achieve a good blend of helping and letting players track down things on their own, like the ability to view where a species was first spotted and setting custom markers.
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Identifying & Charming Creatures
Building A Flock & The Delightful World Of Zoology
There are 12 different creature families - which have whimsical names like Gleebs and Sprugs - that consist of several unique species. Thevideo game creature designsinFlockare so delightfully distinct, drawing from a range of real-life inspirations like birds, fish, and bugs in a wide palette of colors. They all have their own habitats and behaviors, andcan vary greatly in how hard they are to track down. Some are right out in the open, others camouflage, and some are even more complex, like requiring tracking a male back to its nest to reveal the female creature.
When a new creature is spotted, first players will need to place it in the correct family, then choose from a list of species based on short descriptors; these amusingly range from simple sentences about markings or calls to things like “is a menace.” Once identified, it can be charmed into the player’s flock with a call from a specialized whistle for each family, which must be played from just the right distance away. The flock that follows players can grow to over 20, and any previously-charmed creatures can be freely swapped with current flock members.
At its core, helping Aunt Jane with her research feels genuinely satisfying not because of the rewards that come with it, but because it’s legitimately interesting to deduce creatures' patterns and make new discoveries.
Players will also have a slowly expanding squad of sheep, which chow down on meadows that are spread across the map to reveal Burgling Bewls and their stolen treasure - typically either new whistles, clothing, or baubles, which allow for larger flock size - and can be sheared regularly for wool. The creature guide has subtle ways to help players, like the option to only highlight missing creatures that are currently possible to find, and offering a single small hint for locating each one. However,the game does a good job of balancing its helpful bits with letting players learn themselves.
Making progress inFlockis largely measured by these discoveries, though there are also auxiliary clothing unlocks that can be bought with wool. This isn’t the heartiest form of progression, but gaining access to a new bespoke sweater manages to feel just a bit exciting in its own way thanks to the uniquely laid back tone set by the game. At its core, helping Aunt Jane with her research feels genuinely satisfying not because of the rewards that come with it, but because it’s legitimately interesting to deduce creatures' patterns and make new discoveries.
Final Thoughts & Review Score
4.5/5 - “Must-Play” By Screen Rant’s Review Metric
Overall,Flockruns quite smoothly, with only a few clipping incidents relating to sheep in meadows, and a single incident of a quest item not triggering when examined. Flying with a large flock can get convoluted at some angles, and this is essentially the only time the game’s control style is slightly more of a detriment than a benefit. It should be noted thatFlockalso has an online co-op feature, but pre-release this wasn’t an option to try out.
The mechanics ofFlockare much deeper than the sort ofobservation found in games likePokémon Snap,making the player feel like a zoologist-in-training that’s actually learning things, despite the actual “science” being utter fantasy. When a creature I’d diligently tracked for an entire day finally led me back to the female at their nest, I felt such immense satisfaction and sense of achievement I involuntarily cheered aloud. This may not be the sort of thing that appeals to every player, but it fulfills a very specific David Attenborough-esque niche that’s very enjoyable.
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The main story is only a few hours, but finding every creature will take a solid amount of extra time.Flockdoesn’t just provide a great sense of wonder, but a large amount of relaxation as well, and forces you to be very present - the smallest movement in the grass can mean a new discovery. The world is remarkably beautiful, and the act of something like simply flying through the forest with an eccentric-looking flock as the sun rises, listening to the wind and the calls of animals, is amazingly serene, and makesFlocka truly special experience.
Screen Rantwas given a PS5 code for the purpose of this review.
