You might be looking at the score down below and asking yourself how can a release that runs for a mere few hours, skirting the boundaries of what a videogame actually is garner such high marks that it’s a hop, skip and a jump away from the likes of Batman: Arkham City and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim? Valid point.
While some titles may have claimed to help forward the cause of videogames as an art-form, those dudes at Thatgamecompany have managed to spin gold with Journey, a game that is sure to leave an indelible impression upon anyone who plays it.
The set up is simplicity itself. You are a lone, cloaked wanderer about to embark on a pilgrimage, tasked by an elder (presumably spiritual by the way it radiates white light) entity, to the summit of a distant mountaintop. The story is related with no spoken or written words breaking the immersion. There’s no save points with the idea that you complete the trek in a single sitting, and you’ll want to.
A desolate wasteland is a fitting kick-off with little more than the beam of light emanating from the mountaintop as your focal point. Cloth is a large component of Journey with many ruined or swept away structures housing levers or creatures cut from the same… ahem… cloth as yourself. Interacting with these either sets them free of their cages or often opens pathways long closed as you navigate your surroundings to proceed onwards to the next meditation point.
While meditating you reflect on recent events with your tale’s progression told through beautiful hieroglyphics bringing with it an inherent sense of mysticism, mystique and almost childlike wonder. On your travels you’ll come across collectible highlighted glyphs. Seeking each of these out adds length to the cloth scarf wrapped around your neck allowing you to jump and glide greater distances, which are perhaps the only traditional “gaming” elements to Journey.
So Journey isn’t a game in the traditional sense. Following in the footsteps of its previous creations Flow and the tremendously underappreciated Flower, Thatgamecompany pushes the boundaries of what you perceive a game to be while offering a unique and introspective experience that stays with you long after you’ve planted your spiritual flag on the summit.
Visually it impresses with a subtle colour palate infused with warm earthy hues. Characters and structures are created with an impressive economy of line and are yet instantly recognisable. This is wonderfully complimented by a magnificent and poignant score by the Macedonia Radio Symphonic Orchestra that utterly envelops and immerses you, mimicking the physical peaks and valleys; the emotional highs and lows, you’ll traverse. It really is a triumph in understated design.
On your own Journey is a test of endurance of character as you approach your destination beckoning in the distance. The co-operative component allows two players to share the wonder and work together towards a common goal. I was lucky enough to encounter another pilgrim fairly early on and contrary to usual online selfishness, we both felt an unspoken and overwhelming urge to persevere onwards together.
Journey doesn’t penalise you for playing by yourself and only adds to the awesome in co-op. We became a unit joined at the hip as we reached dizzying highs and out of the way ledges, notified the other via musical chant of hidden glyphs and always made sure we operated in tandem for the hour and a half we gamed together. It was the single most memorable and unselfish gaming experience I’ve ever had the pleasure to be a part of and it’s one I won’t soon forget.
It still astounds me that a couple of hours of gameplay left such a profound impact. I found myself unconsciously pondering the trek whilst daydreaming – musing even -- over the spiritual implications and was eager to take it for another spin hoping to find another wanderer in the desert to share an unspoken pilgrimage with. Journey makes you feel like a leaf on the wind, helpless in the face of adversity -- small in the grand scheme of things. Embrace the elements, give yourself over to it and soar to new heights.
Posted 04:00pm 20/3/12
Overall, a very, very artistic and great game. The people that claim video games can't be art, are so, so wrong.
Posted 04:14pm 20/3/12
Posted 04:23pm 20/3/12
Posted 04:28pm 20/3/12
Yeah, boourns, after that glowing feedback. :/
Posted 04:49pm 20/3/12
Pitty it is a PS3 exclusive.
Posted 05:48pm 20/3/12
I also found it interesting how even though you have no knowledge about the person you're playing with, and almost no means of communication, the connection you make just seems that much stronger. I stuck with the same person the entire way through my second playthrough. I had only intended to play for a little while to get a few extra trophies, but as soon as the other player appeared, we just set off and explored until the very end.
The big reveals of the environment don't lose their impact when you've already seen them either, it still looks just as amazing.
Posted 06:23pm 20/3/12
Posted 06:33pm 20/3/12
Everytime I slide down past that column monument, it just...so beautiful.
Posted 06:59pm 20/3/12
Posted 08:03pm 20/3/12
Posted 08:42pm 20/3/12
Very simple tutorial if you can call it that - just on how to move and jump/tweet and the rest is up to you to explore.
The multi-player in this game is unique and I wish more games created the same sort of co-op experience as this one. I like how the ending credits lets you know who the people were that you connected with during your 'journey' - nice touch to put it at the end instead of some out of place name bubble.
Extremely impressed with this game, which I bought on a whim, so much so I may get their other titles.
Posted 08:52pm 20/3/12
/wonders if watching it on youtube will suffice.
Posted 10:54pm 20/3/12
Posted 05:53pm 08/4/12
I don't think it quite moved me to the same degree as it has others though, I've had a few facebook friends post about how its the only video game that made them cry, and I don't get, there was nothing in it that made me want to get all teary. Maybe its an artist thing, cos they were all artists, I dunno. Very cool nonetheless.
Posted 06:10pm 08/4/12
Posted 06:24pm 08/4/12
Smart move there on the part of TGC, these days Gen Z won't touch many games if they don't have twitter integration.
Posted 06:57pm 08/4/12
Posted 09:04pm 08/4/12
Not sure what would have made them cry. I got goosebumps a few times from a combination of the music and the awesome reveals, but getting teary from it seems like a bit of a stretch. Maybe they were on their periods.
Posted 01:34pm 09/4/12
Posted 02:09pm 09/4/12
Icwutudidthar. Yeah I didn't get teary, but the ending was a tad sad, ending a journey always is.
Posted 02:14pm 09/4/12
Posted 09:18pm 09/4/12
Posted 09:37pm 09/4/12
Not "owned" by Sony, but the developers had 3 titles made only on Sony.
Posted 10:46pm 09/4/12