I love thatgamecompany. They’re behind some of my very favourite games – the last of which are exclusive to Sony’s PlayStation 3. They’re the people behind fl0w and Flower – two incredible, genre-busting games that perfectly demonstrate their design philosophy: They begin by deciding on the emotions and feelings they wish to invoke in the player.
From reviews, it sounds like their latest game, Journey, might just be the best game released on the PSN – and one of the best games available on any console at the moment.
Here are the game’s current review scores, all of which point to it being an unmissable experience. Destructoid says its how interactive art should be done, saying “Its greatest achievement, however, is showing the world exactly how to make a piece of interactive art that is both compelling and fun, without compromising any one element.” OPM is equally full of praise, saying “It’s one of the few games you’ll genuinely reflect on after completion, and an object lesson in how less can be more when it comes to crafting narrative and eliciting investment. This is a game about which I would change nothing, and I can’t remember having said that too many times before.”
According to Push Square, “Experiences like Journey don’t come around very often in any form of media. thatgamecompany’s crafted an interactive tour de force that’s triumphant in its ability to cycle through human emotions. It’s a game that demands your involvement on a spiritual level, rather than a purely mechanical one, and while it’s never preachy in its philosophical intentions, it’s hard not to get wrapped up in the divine nature of Journey’s tale.”
- Eurogamer – 9
- Videogamer – 9
- TheSixthAxis – 10
- Destructoid – 9.0
- OPM UK – 10
- SPOnG – 10
- Beefjack – 8.6
- CVG – 9
- Push Square – 10
- Edge – 8
- GodisaGeek – 10
- MediaKick – A+
- GIGA – “Outstanding”
- Play – 87%
- Digital Spy – 5/5
Journey will be available on the PSN next Thursday – for $14.99, or a little over a hundred bucks in South Africa. That’s an amazing price for a piece of art – and a day one purchase for me.
Last Updated: March 2, 2012
