Skyroads

Skyroads is a brilliantly simple 1993 DOS arcade game in which the player pilots a small futuristic craft across suspended roads floating above strange alien landscapes. The objective sounds easy enough: reach the end of the course without falling, crashing, or otherwise making a spectacular mess. In practice, the tracks quickly become a demanding combination of jumps, gaps, speed changes, obstacles, and sudden changes in direction. The controls are easy to understand, which makes the increasingly difficult courses feel particularly fair when they defeat you. The game's bright graphics, energetic music, and fast pace give it an unmistakable personality. Skyroads is one of those rare games where failure immediately produces the thought, “I know exactly what I did wrong.” Then you do precisely the same thing on the next attempt. Its simplicity is its greatest strength, making it easy to pick up and surprisingly difficult to put down.