Luftrausers: the studio closed its doors, the plane never stopped falling

More than 125 plane builds fill the hangar; outside it, there's only survival — no campaign to guide the pilot.

125 plane builds, a single battlefield

The hangar holds more than 125 combinations of weapon, body and propulsion system. Beyond it lies a single scenario: a fight against battleships, submarines and rival aces in a burning sky, with no pause to catch your breath. You pick your loadout on the ground; that choice changes how the plane handles up there, and how it goes down when a shot finds its mark. Every part also reshuffles the soundtrack — composed by KOZILEK — which takes on a different face depending on the plane you've assembled.

Released on March 18, 2014, the game bears Vlambeer's signature, with Devolver Digital handling distribution. Unlocking new part-and-color combinations takes more than 100 completed missions — the reward for surviving is more freedom to build your next plane.

Vlambeer shut its doors a decade after it began

Vlambeer has shut its doors, according to the announcement posted on September 2, 2020. The studio was born in 2010, founded by Rami Ismail and Jan Willem Nijman, and the exit was the founders' own decision — they called the decade one full of achievements and said the time had come to move on to other projects. Open the studio's announcements board and you won't find a single update from them after that farewell.

From one hour to fifty-six, the same reason to come back

Newcomers tend to leave recommending it. A September 2014 review, logged after 1 hour of play, was already praising the pace of the fights against battleships and submarines. In 2017, another one — 6 hours in — echoes the same charm: the look and the rhythm hook you within the first few minutes.

The same pattern holds among those who stick around longer. It's easy to see yourself in it: you miss, you crash, you climb back up, and little by little you memorize the enemy's pattern. An August 2026 review, logged after 56 hours, describes the difficulty as rewarding and notes that the soundtrack shifts with the plane and with the damage it has already taken. Another, from September 2026 with 11 hours in, recalls the moment an alarm went off because the radar had filled up with enemies — and that scare became the scene they remember most.

Not every bit of praise comes without a caveat. A May 2021 review, with 3 hours logged, admires how the game plays but complains about its short length and the thin variety of parts for customizing the plane — the price even a fan pays for a small game.

The complaints come from those who barely got off the ground

On the other side, those who didn't enjoy it almost always give up early. A June 2017 review, with no playtime on record, came from someone who got the game as part of a larger bundle and complains about everything: a plane that's hard to steer, no fullscreen, no menu and no campaign — all that's left is survival mode, with nothing around it. With no fullscreen and no menu, it feels like you've opened half a game.

A November 2014 review, with 1 hour played, compares the pace to simple mobile mini-games and advises against the title. A Chinese-language review from August 2026, also with no playtime recorded, complains that the pace demands too-quick reflexes and sums the game up as thin on substance.

But these dissenting voices are rare — and it's on Steam, where the listing used here points, that those who climb into the cockpit walk away recommending it.

Who stays, and who quits without building a second plane

Anyone looking for a story here won't find one: there's no campaign, just the loop of climbing, shooting and going down into the same burning waters. You'll crash many times while learning the right attack pattern — that's the game, not a flaw in it. Anyone who enjoys chasing a better score with each fresh crash, and doesn't mind starting over from scratch every time the plane blows up, will find a few-minutes-a-run addiction here. Anyone who needs progress saved between sessions, or a larger mission tying it all together, gives up without building a second plane.