Is this a journey worth enduring?
I missed out on Journey when it came out originally on PSN, which I regretted after it got so many Game of the Year awards. But now I finally had a chance to play the acclaimed game and a few other of thatgamecompany’s hits like Flow and Flower in their compilation “Journey Collector’s Edition”, but is it worth the price of admission?
For Journey alone, I think it’s a little pricey but thanks to the additions of Flow, Flower and 6 mini-games that were made in 24 hours, it’s one that is definitely worth the price tag. For those who haven’t played Journey, it’s hard to describe what it’s all about…it’s a spiritual journey across the desert but the story has no voice-acting or long cutscenes, it instead focuses on its setting and teamwork with a friend online.
Across the vast desert, you’ll come across upgrades that will make your scarf longer and allow you to float longer between jumps, but the game isn’t merely just barren wastelands…there are snow covered mountains and other areas that are all level of crazy. I wasn’t too sure about the art style, but it does work…especially at the end of the game. The only problem is that Journey is incredibly short at 1-2 hours long and the only replay value is for trophies that you can earn from gaining collectables or restarting the game after a week break.
You can play the game offline or online, but if you leave it online a random player will join the game. There’s no mic support, so working together is more difficult. To be honest though, it’s only worth playing online for trophies since the difficulty isn’t that high. You can’t die at all in the game either, the worst that can happen is being hit by a Guardian’s laser and losing part of your scarf.
Visually, the games are unique and worth a look just for their art style and symbolism. The music is also incredibly well done, each game has it’s own strengths and very few weaknesses. It’s a good compilation overall.
The Verdict
The Journey Collector’s Edition is a worthwhile purchase for any PS3 owner, while it may be brief it’s incredibly memorable from start to finish.
