The Falconeer shows off more of its world and giant bird-based combat

Set above the Great Ursee, a vast ocean world that hides the secrets of long-forgotten gods and ancestors, The Falconeer is an aerial combat game with action-RPG elements. We last saw a teaser trailer for the game at Gamescom in August. Now, Wired Productions has released a new Xbox announcement trailer with an additional minute of footage.

The Falconeer is a unique take on aerial combat games. The classic dogfighting mechanics are still in effect – you’ll dive, roll, and weave your way through a hail of bullets and other projectiles as you attempt to take down enemies. But in this fantasy world, the enemies you fight are weirder and more wonderous than in other aerial combat games. You will fight other Falconeers, but also a fantastic bestiary including War Falcons, Weaver Dragons, Mantarays, Razorbeetles, and large lumbering airships.

Let’s fight already

In the new The Falconeer announcement trailer, we don’t see our character fighting back or showing off their skills. Fortunately, there’s an October update video on the developer’s YouTube channel which gives us a taste of what giant bird-based aerial combat will be like.

In this video, we can also see what traversing the world and soaring above the seas will entail. You have an energy resource that lets your falcon flap its wings and gain altitude, meaning you must manage this while you fly. There are also thermal air pockets around that will refill your energy resource bar. There’s no confirmation of what happens if your falcon uses up its entire energy bar, but it looks like you’ll just cruise along at the lowest altitude.

From what we can see in The Falconeer announcement trailer and the gameplay footage, the world looks beautifully designed, and it’s certainly creative. The factions warring over technology and access to resources in this unique environment are intriguing. I love how large-scale aerial battles will break out around the open world as the various factions encounter one another. And you can soar in and out of them, as the mood strikes you. You can see this unfolding in the October update video.

Sink or soar?

The Falconeer is poised to be a winner. I just hope the world and the story have enough depth for players to immerse themselves in. Plus, there’s a whole aspect of the game we haven’t seen yet – the character and falcon development and progression. That system needs to feel rewarding, and it has to be substantial.

Maybe it’s the visual style or the instanced based missions, but I’m getting flashbacks to Dauntless. It looked like it was going to be an amazing game, but it was let down by its lack of depth at launch. Since then, the developers have added a lot to make it more substantial, but how many players did they lose before they got to that point? Hopefully, The Falconeer learns from Dauntless and the other games who have made the same mistake.

The Falconeer is due to land on PC sometime in 2020. For now, you’ll have to settle for adding it to your Steam wishlist and finding out more about the world on the game’s official website. Meanwhile, if flight combat with a little action-RPG thrown into the mix is your thing, check out our preview for Everspace 2.