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Journey Reviews Thread

Reviews make it look like I'll have the same reaction to this as I did to Flower. Short and not entertaining at all. Oh well, will pass.
 
Also worth pointing out, I think, is that while the core appeal of the game may be similar to Flower's, the experience probably differs in many regards. Depending on what you want from your games, or the types of emotions it evokes, you may like Journey a good deal more.



Not out yet. It gets released to the public on March 13th.

Oh i'm buying this. I like these sort of games.
 
That's not how match matching works. Just because there would be two people in the world in Journey at the same time doesn't mean they'd be playing together. For a start, they have to be in the same physical location in the game, it doesn't warp you to people. If the game about two and half hours long, it's probably made up of about fifteen distinct levels, maybe more (the beta was three, and was about half an hour long), so straight away you don't need two, you need like seventeen people playing for two of them to be even viable, assuming their connection is good enough. Will that happen occasionally? Of course, but the chances are going to be low, and the drop off will be significant.

TGC have already said they designed the game knowing the multiplayer wouldn't be long lived and the game has to be fully worthwhile without it.

There are 8 areas in the game.
 
There are 8 areas in the game.
That's strange, presumably they get a lot longer, or the beta is a huge chunk of that game.

EDIT: Actually, considering you only see the end of two levels, the final level cuts off prematurely, and the middle one doesn't actually start at the start of that level, I guess they're incomplete parts of those eight.
 
That's not how match matching works. Just because there would be two people in the world in Journey at the same time doesn't mean they'd be playing together. For a start, they have to be in the same physical location in the game, it doesn't warp you to people. If the game is about two and half hours long, it's probably made up of about fifteen distinct levels, maybe more (the beta was three, and was about half an hour long), so straight away you don't need two, you need like seventeen people playing for two of them to be even viable, assuming their connection is good enough. Will that happen occasionally? Of course, but the chances are going to be low, and the drop off will be significant.

TGC have already said they designed the game knowing the multiplayer wouldn't be long lived and the game has to be fully worthwhile without it.

Oh, I'm sure; I guess what I'm saying is that I'd be surprised if the game had <20 simultaneous players even a year after launch. Maybe that's just the optimist in me.
 
http://www.vg247.com/2012/03/01/journey-reviews-go-live/

And their piece on it :)

http://www.vg247.com/2012/03/01/forward-thinking-sonys-risks-with-unique-ideas-pays-off/
In short: I love Journey. A lot. It is, bar none, my game of the year, even though we&#8217;ve just entered March. What thatgamecompany&#8217;s created is nothing short of incredible. While flOw and Flower only scratched the surface, Journey finds the studio Jenova Chen and Kellie Santiago founded in 2006 breaking through as one of the best independent studios today, and one of the best in its class.
 
Wow...this game is out already?? Ohh...out soon...I can't wait to get my hands on this!

Reviews looks promising so far....but I'm gonna get this either way!
 
That's strange, presumably they get a lot longer, or the beta is a huge chunk of that game.

EDIT: Actually, considering you only see the end of two levels, the final level cuts off prematurely, and the middle one doesn't actually start at the start of that level, I guess they're incomplete parts of those eight.

please do not make yourself believe that this game has big open levels (chapters).. this is not an open level game at all.. the levels in the beta are/were complete (almost), and they actually represent some of the bigger levels..
 
Playing with a partner sounds magical:

Videogamer said:
And if Journey is mesmeric on your own, it's a revelation with a partner. That early reticence to engage will dissolve as you realise that these vast expanses are much easier to traverse with two. A jab of the circle button from either player sends out a noise that sparks the other's inner powers, and instead of trudging slowly across hilly dunes, you'll glide over them. Arduous ascents become spectacular flights, each leap seeing the pair of you carried upwards in a magical dance created by your own interactions. At times your humanoid avatars feel more avian, your communication a delicate, intricate courtship of otherworldly sounds and graceful, almost balletic movements. In an arena dominated by conflict, it's an astonishing achievement to imbue players with the desire to co-operate. And not just to co-operate, but to co-habit, to share this bizarre, beautiful experience. It's no real exaggeration to say that, at times, it feels like the first flutterings of romance. Here, it is you and this other person against the perils and hardships of the world: you pull together to get through the bad times, you dance and sing in unison with joy at the good. Alone, you feel lost, fragile; together, you're empowered. You may have experienced similar in the silent but unbreakable bond of friendship found in Ico. But never quite like this, never with another player.
See you guys online...maybe ;)
 
How short are we talking here?

Took me about 3 hours to beat the first time.

Since then I've played it multiple times and I can now rush though it in less than an hour without missing a collectible along the way. Edit: Not that this is a bad thing. Just saying. Even Dark Souls can be beaten in less than 2 hours :D
 
So how much more is there to the final game than was in the beta?
I'm asking as I spent almost 2 hours in the beta alone, so unless that was 80% of the game then these length comments are really throwing me off.....
 
please do not make yourself believe that this game has big open levels (chapters).. this is not an open level game at all.. the levels in the beta are/were complete (almost), and they actually represent some of the bigger levels..
How can three levels out of eight, which are amongst the largest, and only last thirty minutes, result in a two hour game?

I don't have an issue with the game's length, if it's an hour, I don't mind, it's not a question of me making myself believe anything, I'm just a little confused.
 
Well, hell. The anticipation for this title is too much! TWO WEEKS. thatgamecompany really is remarkable- Flower was so perfect. The beta for this game was so wonderful!
 
How can three levels out of eight, which are amongst the largest, and only last thirty minutes, result in a two hour game?

you really have to play it to understand..
and no, the three parts you mention did not take you 30 minutes to complete the first time you tried them, maybe on your next replay, but not the first time.. if so then you must have rushed through the beta.
 
It will probably last at least two or so hours longer for me due to the fact that I will likely be spending quite a bit of time just sliding around on dunes and stopping to take in the scenery. Regardless, this so called 'game' is something that I am going to view as more of a relaxing experience to just chill and sort of meditate with from time to time. Something to put me in a good mood.
 
I'm sure I'll enjoy this. But I'm pretty sure the pontification by reviewers and people claiming that it's some higher gaming experience will be vomit inducing.

you mean like this?

"As much as Journey is a game, it is also a metaphor for life. We travel onward though life – perhaps aimlessly, perhaps with purpose – but always with those experiences shaped by the friends, family and loved ones around us. The fact that Journey has so effectively condensed the experience into a two-hour interactive poem is an astonishing achievement. It is the evolution of Jason Rohrer's art game Passage, bringing an unmatched humanity to the experience through its multiplayer."
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/gaming/review/a368672/journey-review-ps3.html

:)
 
you mean like this?

"As much as Journey is a game, it is also a metaphor for life. We travel onward though life – perhaps aimlessly, perhaps with purpose – but always with those experiences shaped by the friends, family and loved ones around us. The fact that Journey has so effectively condensed the experience into a two-hour interactive poem is an astonishing achievement. It is the evolution of Jason Rohrer's art game Passage, bringing an unmatched humanity to the experience through its multiplayer."
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/gaming/review/a368672/journey-review-ps3.html

:)

LOL. Love it.
 
you mean like this?

"As much as Journey is a game, it is also a metaphor for life. We travel onward though life – perhaps aimlessly, perhaps with purpose – but always with those experiences shaped by the friends, family and loved ones around us. The fact that Journey has so effectively condensed the experience into a two-hour interactive poem is an astonishing achievement. It is the evolution of Jason Rohrer's art game Passage, bringing an unmatched humanity to the experience through its multiplayer."
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/gaming/review/a368672/journey-review-ps3.html

:)
Make sure Amir0x doesn't see this.
 
you mean like this?

"As much as Journey is a game, it is also a metaphor for life. We travel onward though life – perhaps aimlessly, perhaps with purpose – but always with those experiences shaped by the friends, family and loved ones around us. The fact that Journey has so effectively condensed the experience into a two-hour interactive poem is an astonishing achievement. It is the evolution of Jason Rohrer's art game Passage, bringing an unmatched humanity to the experience through its multiplayer."
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/gaming/review/a368672/journey-review-ps3.html

:)
I feel sick. Interactive poem? Literally just repeating the rhetoric from the developers. Dude should go into PR.
 
Is 'I want to go to there' from something popular in American culture? I've heard it a few times in 30 Rock, but I just assumed it was from that show.
 
PSNStores 5/5

If you've ever wanted to explore the unknown, find solace in a complete stranger's presence, all the while experiencing something utterly unique, then you need to play Journey. I can think of nothing better in a game than exploring the desert, and seeing what secrets the sands have to offer.
 
Judging from the beta i've played these review scores are not surprising at all.I don't care to read them though,i always knew that the game was gonna be incredible.

If Sony has an ounce of a brain left in them they should buy ThatGameCompany ASAP.
 
you mean like this?

"As much as Journey is a game, it is also a metaphor for life. We travel onward though life – perhaps aimlessly, perhaps with purpose – but always with those experiences shaped by the friends, family and loved ones around us. The fact that Journey has so effectively condensed the experience into a two-hour interactive poem is an astonishing achievement. It is the evolution of Jason Rohrer's art game Passage, bringing an unmatched humanity to the experience through its multiplayer."
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/gaming/review/a368672/journey-review-ps3.html

:)

Oh come on!

lol
 
2-3 hours is kinda :( And at $15 it asking a lot.

That being said, it looks totally worth. I'm sure it will inspire multiple playthroughs, thus making the it's length irrelevant.
 
It costs way too much for a 3 hour game in my opinion

Think of it like this: there are 15$ games out there which technically last longer than Journey but suck so much that you practically play them for 15 minutes before deleting them from your HDD.
 
I'm sure I'll enjoy this. But I'm pretty sure the pontification by reviewers and people claiming that it's some higher gaming experience will be vomit inducing.

this??

"My second journey, however, was spent with a companion. The isolation I had felt previously was replaced by a legitimate sense of camaraderie and affection for the duplicate of myself I had found in the desert. The game stopped being about me and started being about us; focusing the experience on the relationship between my companion and me, the literally unspoken bond we shared, our quest to reach the mountain and, above everything else, our desperate need to stay together. For those two hours, we were all each other had in the whole of existence."
http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/01/journey-review-i-want-to-go-to-there/

ill get the game... :)
 
I've been waiting for this ever since Flower came out. Thatgamecompany gets how to convey experiences in games without sacrificing gameplay better than most in my opinion.
 
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