Until recently, I had Journey written off as one of those critically acclaimed indie darlings that get harped on about by everyone just for looking pretty and having a deliberately obfuscated story. I admit now that I was an idiot and will repent my erroneous ways.
I had never played Journey up until its re-release on PS4 and the time I had with it was genuinely incredible. Unlike many other of these ‘walking simulators’ or ‘open games’, Journey has more signature moves than Kevin Owens, from the desert to the mountainous ascent, it keeps an excellent sense of pacing between the solemn, reflective moments and the puzzle-platformer sections.
Many other walking-sims get caught up in providing the player with an ‘experience’ they forget to add in any gameplay that extends beyond finding clues to another person’s story. Journey nails it in the sense that the origins of your circumstances are unfurled as you go, while you are also living through the consequences of those revelations. Game developers that want to produce a great game need to realise that there is no fun in being a fly on the wall when you have no bearing on the outcome whatsoever.
What enthralled me the most was quite surprising. One of the first mechanics introduced is that collecting white runes increases your jump time and, more importantly, makes your scarf longer. This hooked me and pretty soon I was searching every nook and cranny, like a mad hipster during a Topman sale, to find the upgrades to have the most luxurious scarf in all the land. I’d meet other players and twirl for ages as I bade them to gaze upon my scarf in all its glory.
Speaking of other players, I had someone with me during the final harrowing climb, which made it far more excruciating than I would have anticipated. We dodged the obstacles together and even budged over to make room for one another when you had to dive into cover. What made it worse was that upon reaching the finale, overjoyed, I turned to scan the horizon for my friend only to find they hadn’t made it with me. So I continued on till the games end with a surprisingly heavy heart because my companion was not there to share in it.
If you haven’t played Journey, I strongly recommend doing so. It’s one of those games that you sit down with and get through in an hour or two. I guarantee that, when finished, you’ll sit back and not regret spending your time on it.
Any fans of thatgamecompany games may want to wait until 2 October 2015 so as to get their hands on the Journey Collector’s Edition on PS4. This includes Flower and flOw as well as some extra content but at a rather steep £25 to £30 I think I’ll wait till the other games are on PS Plus.
Featured image via thatgamecompany.com.
