Skyward Frontier

Skyward Frontier is a slow-burn strategy game with a lovely floating-island setting. You gather resources, expand your settlement and defend it while pushing outward to new islands. The economy is the star — everything feeds into something else, and planning ahead really pays off.

Combat is present but secondary; this is more about building a machine that runs well than about micromanaging fights. We appreciated that it never rushed us with timers.

There's a lot to learn, and the tutorial could hold your hand a bit less clumsily, but once it clicks it's hard to put down.

What we liked

• Deep interlocking economy
• Relaxed, no-pressure pacing
• Charming floating-island world