Towards the distant Light

 

I’ve played a lot of games in my life, far more than I could count or recall, but after a lot of thought, I believe I have a clear favorite.  Of all the thought-provoking, emotional, and satisfying games I’ve played, there is one that I hold in the highest regard.  There are several games I have played that I consider masterpieces of design, ones that I can’t stop talking about (or playing, for that matter) but from the most unlikely source, I found a game that is, in my personal opinion, perfect in almost every way. 

Well, I’ve set the bar for this game awfully high.  There are multitudes of reviews and articles that sing this games’ praises, and none of them, including this blog, can truly do it justice, because it’s something that must be experienced for oneself, similar to how one has difficulty describing a painting or symphony using only words.

A couple of years ago, a trailer for a game was released at a major convention that didn’t make any sense.  A strange being that appeared to be made of cloth wandered a vast, empty desert.  Not doing anything noteworthy or eye-catching, just walking.  In the distance, looming beyond the horizon, a mountain rose into the sandy sky.  At its summit, a pillar of light between twin peaks.  The cloth-being was walking towards it.  Eventually, a second one joined the first, and together they slowly kept walking, journeying, together.  And that was it, the trailer for the simply-titled Journey, a game that stood out from all the others at the convention. 

This game immediately caught my attention due to its unique premise and mysterious atmosphere.  Many games release similar mysterious trailers, and they usually mean one of two things:  The game is so boring that they couldn’t have made the trailer interesting if they tried, or they are deliberately under-advertising it because the rest of the game is so amazing, they don’t want to spoil any of it.  Sincerely hoping that it was the latter in this case, I bought the game on the PlayStation Network as soon as it was released.  And for the next two hours, I walked my cloth-clad character towards the distant mountain, overcame all of the obstacles set before me, experienced a fascinating and deep story, felt stronger emotional ties than I ever have to a game, and at last, when I completed it with tears in my eyes, I silently set down the controller and turned off the system.  I have played it fifteen times since then.

 

Part of me wants to gush and rant about the game’s every detail and describe just what kind of journey you undertake once you see that light on top of the mountain.  But, not only would this post be several thousand words long, nothing I could say would do the game justice.  Like I said earlier, it’s something that must be experienced in order to appreciate it.  However, what I will say is that this game showcases the vast potential of video games and how meaningful and enjoyable they can be.  The art style and visuals are awe-inspiring.  The story, told completely without dialog, is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.  And the music, oh my god, the music. Austin Wintory, the lead composer, ingeniously weaves an amazing symphony into the gameplay, such that it feels as though the game were made for the music, instead of the other way around.  I’m not exaggerating when I say that as I listened to the soundtrack perfectly accentuate every step of your journey, I felt some of the strongest emotions in my life.

As if all of that isn’t enough, there is also the fact that this game is multiplayer.  Rather than the traditional ‘invite a player to your game’ system, you randomly find other players along the way.  The only way to communicate with each other is with musical chirping sounds.  It sounds limiting, but in fact, it’s the most free and pure form of communication I think I’ve ever seen, as it transcends language barriers, biases, and prejudice.  It doesn’t matter who each player is, what they’re doing, or why they’re playing the game.  You’re both taking the journey together now, both of you heading towards that light on the mountaintop.  Even if they’re just chirping noises, I’ve never had a problem understanding what the other player is saying.  You can tell I love a game too much when I talk about how the multiplayer system is deep and thought-provoking.

 

 All-in-all, this is a weird and sort of pointless post, but on a blog about video games, I felt the need to talk about my favorite game of all time.  I wanted to talk about it more, but I don't want to deny anyone the experience of playing it for themselves by satisfying their curiosity with spoilers.  I hope that everyone reading this reaches their own personal mountaintops, and that they find the pillar of light waiting for them at the summit.  But remember, it isn’t only the destination that’s important.  It’s the Journey.