Gotta Fly! for Mac

Gotta Fly! is a free flying game for Mac that takes inspiration from Studio Ghibli's ‘Porco Rosso’. In this side-scrolling game, you fly a little plane above the surface of the water and must stay airborne as long as you can without getting struck by any of the planes coming in the opposite direction.

As the first game published by developer Goonbargames, its simplistic nature suggests that it’s also possibly one of the first games they've created. If you're interested in a flying game that you can use with your Oculus Rift, Floculus Bird is an interesting option. For similar casual games, you can try Haikyuu Otome and Good Dog.

Controlling the plane

The controls in Gotta Fly! couldn't be more straightforward, although you have two options for using your keyboard. You can move in four directions: up, left, down, and right, using the W, A, S and D keys, respectively, or with the corresponding arrow keys.

Gameplay

The premise is to simply avoid hitting other planes in the sky. Three hits means ‘game over’. However, since the other planes come from just one direction, the game is only as challenging as you want it to be. 

If you just want to relax and play at a leisurely pace, you can fly in the centre of the screen, or further left. Alternatively, if you want to test your reflexes and increase the difficulty, you can stay at the right of the screen, giving you less time to react as the other planes appear.

Casual flying action

For a developer's first completed game, Gotta Fly! isn't a bad effort. The graphics are 8-bit quality which gives the game a distinctly retro flavour. It's a simple game, but it works perfectly, so if you just want to kill some time and possibly challenge yourself to reduce your reaction time, Gotta Fly! is a charming, no-frills bit of fun.

Of course, there are other flying simulators that deliver more action, so it’s a small title that won’t hold your attention for too long. It hails to retro arcade games and might bring a sense of nostalgia to the table.