Gathering Sky (Android) Review

Starting off with a single, lonely bird, Gathering Sky is a short, 30-60-minute adventure about guiding a flock of birds through an ever-changing sky. As the bird flies, it can be controlled through the touch screen to guide it around obstacles, or it can just be left to soar on its own accord. Either way, it will slowly fly through six different levels, gathering a flock of birds on the way.

While the pastel, watercolour-esque art style is certainly eye catching, the real treat is the score. Composed by Dren McDonald and performed by the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, the musical stylings fit in perfectly with the flow of the birds moving through the sky. The arrangements match the weather and feel of each section, but the individual parts flow so well into each other that it's a bit remiss to call them sections at all.

From beginning to end, Gathering Sky is less about challenge or skill, and more about experiencing the game in a way that will most improve your enjoyment of it. If that happens to be sitting back and watching the changing colours and listening to the soothing compositions, then awesome. If seeking out each and every bird across every stage is more your game, that works too.

Either way, Gathering Sky is definitely worth a look. From beautiful visuals and amazing compositions, it's one of the more artistic indie titles out there. While its replay value might not be super high, it's worth taking a second look at the stages, as they're surprisingly large and detailed. It's also worth mentioning that it's an experience (at least for mobile) that's best suited to the larger screen of a tablet, rather than a smartphone.