Genre: Adventure, Platformer
Year: 2012
Developed by: Thatgamecompany
Published by: Sony Computer Entertainment
Platforms: PS3, PS4, PC, iOS
#52
Feeling Like: Buddy language
I came home from eight hours of drinking at Irish Times, a local pub on Government St. It was March 17th, St. Patrick’s Day. Also my birthday – I’ve never had a difficult time convincing people to go out to celebrate me getting one year older.
So I walked home, inebriated and content. I managed to pace myself so I wasn’t staggering along the streets. I wasn’t wary when I passed police cars patrolling for overly eager imbibers. I wanted to play a video game, and I’d just downloaded Journey the previous day. I knew it was getting positive reviews and was a shorter experience. Perfect. I didn’t have much attention span anyway and there was a very good chance I would fall asleep in the middle of a level. Why not give it a try?
What I didn’t realize is that I was about to experience one of gaming’s greatest experiment, an experience that relies entirely on the superb visuals and an amazing soundtrack unlike anything else I’ve played. There isn’t any text explaining who you are, what your goal is, or even where to go next. The desert is a lonely place and wandering it would be annoying, so Thatgamecompany wisely nods towards where to go – the camera is your friend, auditory cues will pop up occasionally when you’ve resolved a puzzle and buildings in the distances always seem to call to you. Come on over.
It’s such a soft, gorgeous world. It really is. There are obstacles in the way, but the road ahead is more of a meditative procedure that focuses on making you feel, rather than collecting powerups or defeating bosses. Not every game can get away with it – not only does Journey get away with it, they may have created it. This type of lofty platformer may be a dime a dozen these days and there were previous examples of developers trying to merge art with gaming, but nobody did it as well before. Or since.
There were moments that were so beautiful, I wanted to pause the game and stare. Surfing along sand dunes in a ruin while the camera swings to the side is the game’s most iconic shot and still takes my breath away. With Austin Wintory’s masterful score highlighting the scene, and friendly beings flying around you, it is a transcendent experience. Even if I wasn’t able to fully comprehend balance with my senses dulled, I could still tell this was a moment I would never forget. With the sun swimming over the sand, and my muffled footsteps crunching the landscape, all I could do was smile, and fly.
Special consideration should be given to the soundtrack, and it was. Composer Auston Wintory was nominated for a Grammy, one of the rare instances that anything video games sniff a major entertainment award. It’s not as if Journey is afraid to be silent, it’s more the music motivates you along. It’s a part of the landscape. It makes you feel like what you’re trudging towards is important.
“The Road of Trials” encompasses this struggle, and hope.
“Threshold” is magnificent – playful and curious, yet solemn.
“Apotheosis” may be what snagged Wintory the Grammy nomination in the first place. I queue this one up when I’m feeling a little downtrodden about my own journey to a mountaintop on the 500. The violins really get to me, just incredible.
Lisbeth Scott’s vocals are magical in “I Was Born for This“.
Few soundtracks have the impact that Journey’s had on me, and it remains as one of the best I’ve ever heard.
There’s another factor that launched Journey into spot #52 and it’s something so unique and brilliant, I’m not surprised other developers adopted it. It involves the multiplayer aspect.
Journey is not really a multiplayer game. There’s no split-screen component, so to even see another human controlled player, you’ll have to play online. There isn’t a lobby as such, players will just randomly appear in your world, or you in theirs. You aren’t given a notification that they’re there, or what server you’re in. You’ll just be gliding along the dunes, or flying past mountains and you’ll see another one of you.
You aren’t able to communicate over voice chat. Absolutely not, Thatgamecompany knew this could yield disastrous results. There was too high a risk of interrupting one’s zen-like peace, or flow state with a yahoo screaming in your ear that they’d just had sexual relations with your mother. The profane has no place in Journey. You can’t even see their username!
But, you can vocalize. With the press of a button, you emit a small light and a chirp. That’s it. Considering the game can be completed by yourself, having a friend along is a bonus not a requirement. This is another inspired choice, as an uncooperative buddy will not hamper the ride at all. You’ll barely notice they’re there. No harm, no foul.
But if you got another like-minded player, focused on facing the trek together, it elevated an already enjoyable time into a superb one. Because you can’t directly tell your partner what to do, you need to adapt a different strategy to communicate. If you want them to follow you, chirp and go in that direction. If they still don’t get it, go back and forth. Lead them to your desired path. It’s remarkable how much can be conveyed with a single vocalization and body language, even if it’s not your body.
I’ll never forget a moment when we were trying to make our way through a snowy area. We were nearing the summit, my excitement was palpable. I was on the edge of my seat and I had to remind myself to blink. Foolishly, I fell off the landing and into the snowy depths below. Thankfully, you can’t really die in Journey so it was more of a time penalty than anything, but I was fearful of losing my companion. Over the last hour, I felt we’d formed a bond of trust. I didn’t want to lose them! I navigated my way back via a steep, circular pathway around a cliff, and got back to where I was.
My companion was still there! They saw me, ran towards me and chirped multiple times. I chirped back. It was so wholesome, right out of a Disney movie. We circled around each other, before finally making our way to the summit. I couldn’t believe they waited for me, it was at least a few minutes! They didn’t know I was coming back, and I certainly didn’t know they’d stick around. One of my favorite multiplayer memories, and I don’t even know who it was with.
As if Thatgamecompany needed another element to show gamers how great Journey was, they added a “Companions Met Along the Way” screen in the end credits.
This wasn’t my companion screen, I snagged this from the Journey wiki, but you get the gist. I’ll never know who played alongside me nearly the entire time, but I am grateful for their help and company on a legendary journey. For how singular minded Journey is, it sure does allow for some innovative choices.
They waited for me!
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The 500 