Indie games have a unique way of portraying messages about the people who create them. The mere existence of indies send the message that anyone can create something to be enjoyed by others without development being confined to the traditional publisher system. You don’t need a massive team to deliver an impactful piece, and that is exactly what the developers at Playables have accomplished with their title, Time Flies.
Time Flies is not just a silly game about being a fly (okay, it mostly is), but it is also an endearing piece about stopping to smell the roses and making the most of the time we all have. In an age where it feels like the world is constantly moving at a breakneck pace and it’s easier than ever to get caught up in mass hysteria over a variety of topics, Time Flies takes a brief moment (particularly 76.4 seconds if you’re in the United States) to remind you that life is short and that time does indeed fly by before you know it.
Time Flies is a very simple game to play with a literal list of things for you to do, as the main objective is to complete everything on your bucket list before… well, game over. The controls are as simple as using the control stick or D-Pad to move around and pushing a button to pull up your bucket list to see what you have left to do.
The kicker? You have under two minutes to do it all.
When starting a run (or I guess a fly?), the game tells you how much time you have to complete the bucket list based on the average life expectancy of a fly in your country, which is pulled from actual data from the World Health Organization. The game selects your console’s country by default, but you can scroll through the list of nations to browse other countries and their ‘fly times.’ It’s here that I want to give a brief shoutout to the country of Japan, whose flies have an average life expectancy of 84.5 seconds, making it the most optimal for working on this review. Meanwhile, if you’re looking for a challenge, try picking Lesotho, which only gives you 51.5 seconds!
There are 10 bucket list items in each of the four maps and can be found by just flying around. Don’t let the time limit intimidate you, as dying is necessary to get a lay of the land.
These tasks involve learning an instrument, which you do by flying through strings on a guitar, and “just rolling with it,” which involves running on a roll of toilet paper until it runs out. These tasks are all simple to do, and it’s the right amount of silly that puts a dumb smile on my face when I cross off a new objective.
Aside from the 10 list items, there are other secrets to look out for as well. There are 12 puzzle pieces hidden around the house, and they require you to think outside the box to find them all. Another thing to keep an eye out for on your brief quest are traps. Just like real life, flies can die quickly from many different things. As you explore the house, you’ll find things like fly paper and Venus flytraps which will immediately end your run, so be careful of what you fly towards.
Beyond those objectives, the game also has a handful of achievements for you to pursue by doing random things like turning back the hands on a clock, which adds more time to your lifespan. Between the 13 total achievements, the puzzle pieces, and the bucket list, players can expect to complete everything in just a couple of hours.
That playtime is also taking into consideration the player appreciating the small details that add just a touch more charm to an already fun title, such as the book that falls off the shelf containing different words each time you read it.
Time Flies not only shows that truly anything can become a video game, but that it’s important to take your time in life. Sure, we may have lifespans longer than that of a fly, but our time is still limited and we should continue to practice the art of enjoying life and everything it has to offer. Time Flies was able to wrap that message up in a fly-sized package, creating a brief but entertaining experience.
Time Flies spreads its wings to Steam, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 5 on July 31.
Indie games have a unique way of portraying messages about the people who create them. The mere existence of indies send the message that anyone can create something to be enjoyed by others without development being confined to the traditional…
Indie games have a unique way of portraying messages about the people who create them. The mere existence of indies send the message that anyone can create something to be enjoyed by others without development being confined to the traditional publisher system. You don’t need a massive team to deliver an impactful piece, and that is exactly what the developers at Playables have accomplished with their title, Time Flies.
Time Flies is not just a silly game about being a fly (okay, it mostly is), but it is also an endearing piece about stopping to smell the roses and making the most of the time we all have. In an age where it feels like the world is constantly moving at a breakneck pace and it’s easier than ever to get caught up in mass hysteria over a variety of topics, Time Flies takes a brief moment (particularly 76.4 seconds if you’re in the United States) to remind you that life is short and that time does indeed fly by before you know it.
Time Flies is a very simple game to play with a literal list of things for you to do, as the main objective is to complete everything on your bucket list before… well, game over. The controls are as simple as using the control stick or D-Pad to move around and pushing a button to pull up your bucket list to see what you have left to do.
The kicker? You have under two minutes to do it all.
When starting a run (or I guess a fly?), the game tells you how much time you have to complete the bucket list based on the average life expectancy of a fly in your country, which is pulled from actual data from the World Health Organization. The game selects your console’s country by default, but you can scroll through the list of nations to browse other countries and their ‘fly times.’ It’s here that I want to give a brief shoutout to the country of Japan, whose flies have an average life expectancy of 84.5 seconds, making it the most optimal for working on this review. Meanwhile, if you’re looking for a challenge, try picking Lesotho, which only gives you 51.5 seconds!
There are 10 bucket list items in each of the four maps and can be found by just flying around. Don’t let the time limit intimidate you, as dying is necessary to get a lay of the land.
These tasks involve learning an instrument, which you do by flying through strings on a guitar, and “just rolling with it,” which involves running on a roll of toilet paper until it runs out. These tasks are all simple to do, and it’s the right amount of silly that puts a dumb smile on my face when I cross off a new objective.
Aside from the 10 list items, there are other secrets to look out for as well. There are 12 puzzle pieces hidden around the house, and they require you to think outside the box to find them all. Another thing to keep an eye out for on your brief quest are traps. Just like real life, flies can die quickly from many different things. As you explore the house, you’ll find things like fly paper and Venus flytraps which will immediately end your run, so be careful of what you fly towards.
Beyond those objectives, the game also has a handful of achievements for you to pursue by doing random things like turning back the hands on a clock, which adds more time to your lifespan. Between the 13 total achievements, the puzzle pieces, and the bucket list, players can expect to complete everything in just a couple of hours.
That playtime is also taking into consideration the player appreciating the small details that add just a touch more charm to an already fun title, such as the book that falls off the shelf containing different words each time you read it.
Time Flies not only shows that truly anything can become a video game, but that it’s important to take your time in life. Sure, we may have lifespans longer than that of a fly, but our time is still limited and we should continue to practice the art of enjoying life and everything it has to offer. Time Flies was able to wrap that message up in a fly-sized package, creating a brief but entertaining experience.
Time Flies spreads its wings to Steam, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 5 on July 31.
by Michael Fertitta
