Why I Can't Stop Playing Journey


I'm very, very late to the Journey party. thatgamecompany's Journey (for PS3 and PS4) has been out since 2012. I only just got around to playing it because a friend recommended it for stress relief, of all things. Anyone who has ever seen me game, would never associate my gaming strategy as particularly stress-relieving. Mostly there's a lot of swearing. 


Journey, as so many other people have written, is unlike any game I've ever played - or even thought possible to make. I never thought a company would be brave enough to make something this risky - this different from what's expected. There's a reason it won 4 BAFTA's and over a dozen more awards. There is no other game like it. Still, everything I tell you about it will sound like something you've heard before about dozens of other games. Here's why you should play it anyway.

It's extraordinarily beautiful.
The music is gorgeous.
It is an emotionally engaging parable unlike anything I have never experienced in a video game.


Jenova Chen, game designer of Journey, told Fast Company,

"I started to realize there is an emotion missing in the modern society, and of course missing in the online console games. It is the feeling of not knowing, a sense of wonder, a sense of awe, at the fact that you don’t understand, at the fact that you are so small and you are not empowered. And so our focus for Journey was to make the player feel small and to feel wonder, so when they run into each other in an online environment, rather than thinking about how am I supposed to use my gun on the other player, we wanted them to feel a connection to another player."  (Read the rest of the article here: https://www.fastcompany.com/1680062/game-designer-jenova-chen-on-the-art-behind-his-journey)
What's the same as other games?
Superficially, Journey is an open-world collect-the-things game.
You learn the history of Journey's world by unlocking pieces of the story as you travel the levels.
The default setting of the game is online with another player.
It's more important who you're playing with than what you're doing.
The focus is the feeling.
What's different?
You only get one companion to travel with at a time. 
You don't get to pick who that person is.
You can choose to cooperate, or not - but you can't compete, or impede the progress of the other player. And they can't impede yours. The game is collaborative without being forced.

It is a completely unique experience. And, as my friend told me it would be, it was also strangely relaxing. In fact, according to my FitBit, my heart drops into the 60's when I play it. For me, that's quite low. There is something soothing and captivating at the same time.

Resources for understanding the development of Journey from members of thatgamecompany

Robin Hunicke, producer at thatgamecompany, discusses the creation of their latest game, Journey, from early 2009 to the present. One of the most anticipated games, from one of the most interesting companies working in video games today.
https://youtu.be/KasceIfLySg

An interview with Jenova Chen of thatgamecompany, recorded in early March, during the Game Developers Conference 2012 in San Francisco. Chen talks about his latest PlayStation 3 game Journey, as well as the theories behind the game, his inspirations, and his earlier games: Cloud, Flow and Flower.

https://youtu.be/hOuopA60kqU

Journey Developer Diary - A Walk With the Makers of Journey - Go behind the scenes at developer thatgamecompany as they discuss their third game, Journey, as well as their philosophy behind the creation process and the video game industry in general. Journey will be available for download on PlayStation®3 beginning March 13, 2012. With music composed by Austin Wintory, this in-depth developer diary also features brand new gameplay footage never seen before.

https://youtu.be/aO-sKHz6HMI


The music, omg, the music

One last recommendation for the extraordinary soundtrack - sample it here: https://youtu.be/M3hFN8UrBPw and you support the composer Austin Wintory here: https://austinwintory.bandcamp.com/album/journey

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