Journey

petrushka

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Dec 2, 2014
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It's not a new title so I'm sure some of you have played this before. But I just played Journey and while I love the concept, the unique gameplay and the beautiful world, I finished it without the sense of completion or catharsis that is apparently the point of the game.

So it was a bit underwhelming for me. :|

It's definitely not the game's fault because I think it's really well-done and you could tell the developers were passionate about creating an entertaining but unique game that will be distinguished among other games. But when it ended and I see my character at the location where everything started I... just went, "Huh? That's it?"

I probably need a repeat to properly enjoy it, but has anyone else played this before? And did you feel what the developers wanted you to feel at the end?
 
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Nah, you're probably missing on its best thing - just like I did, and still do: multiplayer. It was said that Journey's multiplayer was the best experience, since you were suddenly joined by another "live thing" in the distance, among its vacant desserts, going on your Journey together.

I never played it like that, and I also found the single player experience a bit underwhelming. It was stunningly beautiful, a joy to watch and listen to, but as a game it didn't have anything new to offer, and story-wise it was a rehash of things we saw many times in the past.
 
See, I did have someone travel with me during my playthrough. It was just a short time (I think there was just one mural when I wasn't alone?) and I did feel that ecstatic feeling of suddenly seeing someone in the vast isolation of that desert.

But the ending still underwhelmed me. I felt a bit lonely when I saw my character slowly losing strength and the stage after that was just beautiful. But the ending was still a, "Huh?" moment for me. From the reviews I've seen online - personal reviews, not the commercial ones - most of them were praising the "journey" itself, rather than having met someone through multiplayer.

But I'm glad I'm not the only one, haha! Sad it didn't do much for me but at least I'm not an anomaly. :p
 
Journey was amazingly done, but like you said- underwhelming. I loved pretty much every aspect of the game itself, and I'm not very much into those kind of those story-complex games. But this game! Despite having no spoken words throughout the entirety of the game, it give the player purpose and meaning in their adventure.

Only if it was longer! I couldn't get enough of it, and when the game ended like it did, you just can't help and think "So now what? That's it?". Beautiful game otherwise.
 
@petrushka @glen As good as it was, problem (from my point of view) is that it doesn't hold a candle to, say, Ico. Similarly it's a "silent" game, where the journey itself is what matters. Difference is that with Ico you're actually getting your money's worth, with a proper game that lasts quite a while. Journey felt like it was cut abruptly, more like one of those great-but-a-bit-shallow made-for-Internet concept movies, from budding film makers hoping someone will notice them and offer them a budget to make bigger and better things.

Now that I think of it, Journey was, like, exactly like that! And they even did manage to get noticed and receive support for bigger and better things through their "mini-Internet-movie" gaming equivalent! :-D
 
Journey felt like it was cut abruptly, more like one of those great-but-a-bit-shallow made-for-Internet concept movies, from budding film makers hoping someone will notice them and offer them a budget to make bigger and better things.
I don't necessarily think Journey was cut abruptly, really. It fulfills pretty much all the narrative elements that constitutes a well-done story and when the avatar dies and then revives in that wondrous place, it really feels like the ending of a story. If there wasn't that return to the start bit, I wouldn't really feel this underwhelmed because that really was a, "Huh??" moment for me.

I can't really compare it to ICO either because ICO was the journey of Ico and Yorda from the start and seeing how Ico's protection for an entire game was rewarded in the end by Yorda protecting him in turn was not just satisfying because of the story's journey but because their affection for each other was palpable. They're relationship is a very human and adaptable element of the story. Journey doesn't have that because you're mostly alone and when you do meet someone else, you're basically going on a similar journey rather than your own different stories that meet in the middle. So Journey is more focused on self-actualization, whereas ICO is self-actualization and the accumulation of the affection brought forth by spending so much time together in this beautiful but lonely castle.

I think Journey fell short for me because the Avatar was too removed from myself. To others who were able to sync with their avatars, those are probably the people who were really moved by this game.
 
I can see why a lot of people consider Journey an incredible game, and it is done well. It's just not my type of game. I don't have the patience to travel without doing much, and I'd rather be playing something more action-oriented. Still, I can appreciate what Journey accomplishes without requiring players to do much of anything. It's definitely a unique game at the very least.
 
Very unique indeed! Very beautiful too. But I agree that it's probably just not the type of game for me, even though I thought it might have been. I finished this game in a few hours for one thing when I like long games with a lot of exploration and grinding, and while I might have missed a bit, I don't know how well it would hold on repeat playing.

I do love the cinematic and music though. Definitely a beautiful game.
 
The game itself was beautiful between the music and the exploration of the game. I played through it once just to see what all the hype was about and while I did enjoy it, it wasn't a repeat game for me. I kind of wished there was more purpose to it though other than just basically exploring. The creators tried something that hadn't really be done to much and they were successful. I think more could have done with it though since overall there wasn't much to do plus the ending wasn't all that exciting.