It seems strange that relative to the utter hysteria of the past week my first blog upon my return from PAX East should regard a game that was not even present at the show. However, I can only play the cards I am dealt. Arriving home after a gruelling 7 hour flight, collapsing, then waking up only to begin drinking the copious amounts of duty free Vodka that I has purchased (with unprecedented foresight), I found myself with the first empty stretch of time I have had for several weeks. Disoriented, I stumbled my way through several games of Dota 2, but that didn't itch my scratch, nor vice versa. I needed something fresh. Journey is... well... it's something else.

I'm going to begin with a bold and stark statement; Journey is the most beautiful game I have ever played. I don't mean that purely from an aesthetic sense, though would be an easy case to argue. Journey balances precariously between playful exploration and sinister existentialism. Though you may spend parts of your adventure in the company of another, this is a pilgrimage of singularity, of scale, and of reflection. This is about you.

It's hard to capture exactly what makes Journey so shatteringly insightful. The echoing chimes that haunt your footsteps across the desert, offset by the playful chirps of the ribbons that guide you, creates a wonderfully reverential tone, reinforcing the weight imposed by the sheer magnitude of the desert and the magisterial history of the ruins you negotiate. The length of your scarf, a source of pride, is stripped with such brutality that you cannot help but feel pity for those who are subjected. Companionship exists through shared hardships, nothing more. The tentative chirping of the players acts not as a form of communication, more as a despondent cry for reassurance. To receive no reply, to spin around suddenly concious of your isolation is... overwhelming.

Journey manages to subtly and eloquently communicate meaningful resilience and determination in a way that is hauntingly rewarding to it's players. I walked from start to finish in one sitting and, having completed my Journey, sat staring at the screen for a long time. Now it's over, I don't particularly want to play anything else.

Except fuckin' Pooyan, obviously.

Thanks For Reading
Love Sweep

It seems strange that relative to the utter hysteria of the past week my first blog upon my return from PAX East should regard a game that was not even present at the show. However, I can only play the cards I am dealt. Arriving home after a gruelling 7 hour flight, collapsing, then waking up only to begin drinking the copious amounts of duty free Vodka that I has purchased (with unprecedented foresight), I found myself with the first empty stretch of time I have had for several weeks. Disoriented, I stumbled my way through several games of Dota 2, but that didn't itch my scratch, nor vice versa. I needed something fresh. Journey is... well... it's something else.

I'm going to begin with a bold and stark statement; Journey is the most beautiful game I have ever played. I don't mean that purely from an aesthetic sense, though would be an easy case to argue. Journey balances precariously between playful exploration and sinister existentialism. Though you may spend parts of your adventure in the company of another, this is a pilgrimage of singularity, of scale, and of reflection. This is about you.

It's hard to capture exactly what makes Journey so shatteringly insightful. The echoing chimes that haunt your footsteps across the desert, offset by the playful chirps of the ribbons that guide you, creates a wonderfully reverential tone, reinforcing the weight imposed by the sheer magnitude of the desert and the magisterial history of the ruins you negotiate. The length of your scarf, a source of pride, is stripped with such brutality that you cannot help but feel pity for those who are subjected. Companionship exists through shared hardships, nothing more. The tentative chirping of the players acts not as a form of communication, more as a despondent cry for reassurance. To receive no reply, to spin around suddenly concious of your isolation is... overwhelming.

Journey manages to subtly and eloquently communicate meaningful resilience and determination in a way that is hauntingly rewarding to it's players. I walked from start to finish in one sitting and, having completed my Journey, sat staring at the screen for a long time. Now it's over, I don't particularly want to play anything else.

Except fuckin' Pooyan, obviously.

Thanks For Reading
Love Sweep

Journey is such a great experience. Filled with moments that can just take you breath away. I found myself adjusting the camera in ways that showed off the best view of the action. From the surfing sections to the depths that felt almost underwater like, Journey should be experienced. The story as well, told in the fashion that it is just shows how to convey what is going on, without really explaining what is going on. I too played in one sitting and feel that is the way that game should be played. From the seamless multiplayer that you start to wonder when the person running along with you changed from user to user. Feeling bad when your fellow traveler gets spotted, and you realize there is nothing you can do to help him. And the trek up to the final area of the game has to be one of my favorite "levels" of this year so far. It makes you feel like almost breaking your controller by holding the stick in one direction.

Fact! Everyone should experience Journey! Fact!

After reading this interview with Jenova Chen I gained a ton of respect for the dude. If I had a PS3 I'd pick it up day one.

I plan on picking this up soon. Very soooon.

So uhh do you shoot dudes in this game or what?

I didn't have the highest expectations for it as I wasn't too intrigued by Flower, but Journey was amazing. I loved that other players are present in your game.

Man, I missed your blogs. I'm going to go and read the rest of them now. (p.s. more PAX stories pls)

Just realised that blog was my 5000th post on Giant Bomb. Seems strangely fitting.

@dvdhaus: FACT.

And at a time when my PS3 is broken... shit

Thanks for the read.

@Sweep said:

Except fuckin' Pooyan, obviously.

That's the most frightning cover art I've ever seen.

@Sweep said:

Just realised that blog was my 5000th post on Giant Bomb. Seems strangely fitting.

@dvdhaus: FACT.

LOL!.

Guess you can say it's been a long Journey to get to 5000.

Thank you goodnight!

I really liked this game and I found the actual journey in Journey to be the best part

Interpretive art to me is a religion... and JOURNEY is THE SHIT

@VisariLoyalist: I was deliberately trying to avoid using the A-word :(