Skybolt Zack

You almost need to have a masochist tendency of taking pleasure in your own defeat with nobody else to blame but yourself. What makes failure even harder to digest is when realising that the track is clearly laid out before you with all the signposts there for you to read. Yet, the gratification of overcoming the addictive plough of constantly feeling rubbish and inadequate becomes all the more satisfying once you succeed.

Unique and high quality indie games like Skybolt Zack don't come around often so if you enjoy 2D action games then give it a try.

Skybolt Zack is exactly the kind of game that benefits from playing the same stage over and over again. Learning the patterns and routes for each will eventually have you zipping through, but it’s going to take plenty of tenacity to get to that level.

With a polished, colourful visual style and an excellent, reactive soundtrack, Skybolt Zack is a game with a unique feel and rewarding gameplay for players who are up for the challenge. It can be brutally unforgiving, however – and, given the tight level design, the cost of making just one tiny mistake can often feel overly punitive. It’s not for everyone, then, but for those players who do get their heads around Skybolt Zack’s fast pace and colour-based mechanics, there’s definitely enjoyment to be had here.