Hello everyone, this is ApricotGame.
This is the first devlog for SkyAid. The core development work is now complete — flight controls, search and location, rescue interaction, abilities, and procedural levels are all up and running. This post is mainly about where we're headed next.
What the game is
You pilot an aircraft and rescue every person you can from a disaster zone.
The gameplay isn't complicated. The core is this: with limited time, rescue NPCs — or keep as many of them alive as possible.
The three-way dynamic
This is the heart of SkyAid.
There are three forces in the game: the player, the NPCs, and the disaster. They keep each other in check — none of them is just an objective or a backdrop.
NPCs can be injured, can be healed, and can be equipped with survival items. The disaster threatens the player, but can be dodged or cleared. The player can use abilities, but also depends on additional items and rescue bonuses.
In every chapter, the balance of power between these three shifts. The core loop stays the same, but it plays completely differently.
Three chapters
Natural Disaster — the entry chapter
As the opening chapter, the player is strong, while NPCs and the disaster are weak. You get to enjoy the rescue itself.
But the system allows no failure: NPCs cannot die, and the disaster deals heavy damage to the player — though it can be dodged.
You have to save everyone, or keep everyone alive.
Human Conflict — the high-pressure chapter
The player has no weapon and cannot fight back. Hostile NPCs are the strongest force, armed and actively attacking you.
There's only one way to survive: rescue people. Each person you save grants you a tactical buff.
Saving lives is no longer just the objective — it's how you stay alive.
You survive because of the people you saved.
Wildlife — the trade-off chapter
The NPCs you rescue are strong here. You can give them powerful weapons or repellent equipment.
Killing wildlife doesn't block your progress, but the system deducts points and affects your final rewards.
You can let the NPCs open fire — but every shot costs you something.
Is the wildlife the threat, or is it the NPC you saved? That's up to you.
Special / Experimental chapters (TBD)
Beyond the three main chapters, we've set aside a few ideas that are "a little less serious":
Environments: deep-sea platforms, high-altitude cable cars, polar research stations.
Systems: inserting other gameplay styles to explore mechanical possibilities — not guaranteed to make the final release.
Aircraft: adding different models with clearly distinct handling.
Narrative: told through fragmented pieces — radio transmissions, field records, rescue reports.
Whether these make it in depends on feedback on the full release.
About us
We're an independent team. We're not moving fast, but every step counts. Next up is turning gameplay into content.
Wishlist us on Steam: View game pageWe'll keep posting progress here before the demo launches. If there's a chapter you want to see first, let us know in the comments.
Finally
We don't want to make just another "rescue game."
We want to keep shifting the balance between the strong, the weak, and the disaster — and see what players choose.
In the face of disaster, no one is absolutely safe. Not even you.
— ApricotGame
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