“Don’t Stop Believing” and “Wheel in the Sky” are probably some of the greatest rock songs that have ever been created but of course, everyone knows Journey for these songs. In this review, I aim to bring light to some of their lesser known musical creations that are just as good. With founding vocalist Gregg Rolie, the band was on its way to…..nah….just messin’ with ya.
Journey is the latest game to be released from those artistic fellows over at thatgamecompany. It’s slated to release next Tuesday but us Playstation Plus-ers get it a week early. I knew it was worth it. Thatgamecompany brought us such games as “Cloud,” “How Flower Petals Saved the World” and “That Cell Stage from Spore.” I honestly really enjoyed these games, for their artistic aspirations and wonderfully composed music, mostly that of their latest game, “Flower.” The beauty of the environment and the ability to get lost in the colors and music was a very engaging idea and even now I show it to new people all the time. I have been anxiously waiting for the next game in their catalog to be released so I could have this experience again.
I would like to share my experience of the game with you as I played it:
The game opens with the most impressive looking sand I have ever seen. I mean, sand in real life doesn’t look this good. I rotate the camera, my character stands up and then I’m free to do whatever I want. There are dunes as far as I can see and a mountain, maybe Sauron, off in the distance. I started running in the opposite direction the game obviously wanted me to go and quickly decided I was about to get very lost in this expansive wasteland of nothingness and it would probably be a good idea to turn around. I came over the crest a hill with posts sticking out of it and I am presented with the title screen. Very nice presentation, thatgamecompany. I SSX my way down some hills (which is actually really fun) and into this graveyard looking area where I find some floating pieces of cloth that bestow upon me the greatest video game power of all; jumping. Yadda yadda yadda, three hours pass and I beat the game. Woot!
Now my thoughts:
I would like to first point out that the graphics and ambient music are top notch. More than a couple times I just had my character sit down and look at the environment for a couple minutes. I never once thought that getting lost in a desert would be this soothing…
The game itself seems to be driven by nothing other than the curiosity of the player. I feel that people who want fast-paced action or an intensive plot might not find this game very appealing. However, I absolutely love playing games that aren’t the same thing I’ve experience hundreds of time so I welcome thatgamecompany’s creations.
As you progress through “levels,” you come across new obstacles and environments to traverse which keeps things interesting. Later in the game, there are a few moments that were truly breathtaking (especially the end) but I really don’t want to give anything away. Not long after starting the game you will inevitably run into another wayward traveler. If I’m not mistaken, you can progress through the entire game with this other player if you choose to. If not, you’ll find another person shortly after separating from the previous one. From my experience, there is pretty much always someone else running around with you, whether you notice them or not. You can only communicate with them through making your character shout at different volumes which really adds to the anonymity.
The biggest downside to these games they put out is usually the length. I beat the entire game in about three hours and I know, that’s pretty damn short. The experience itself makes up for it though. The $14.99 price tag might scare some people away but if it’s any consolation, the game definitely has re-playability. I missed some of the collectibles and secrets and I actually like the idea of going through the game again. Then ending sequence was also pretty damn cool and had me yelling at my in-game partner.
If you can get past the price tag and the how short the game is, this is definitely a game worth getting.
I give “Journey” 4/5 current members of the band Journey
Also, I’d like to leave you with one of my favorite music cross-overs involving the aforementioned band: