Journey - Review

The characters don't speak, there is no narration, the story is told almost entirely through pictures and tapestrys, there is no violence to speak of and there is no online PVP experience. With so many staples of the current crop of blockbuster games missing, you would be forgiven for asking what all the fuss is about. Surely this is just a cheap downloadable game that couldn't afford voice actors?

Journey is the latest in the Sony exclusive trilogy of downloadable games from "That Game Company", and while it would probably be a good idea to take some time to think over my time with Journey, i won't be. The reason for this is simple, I absolutely loved the experience.

In the same way that Ico and Shadow of the Colossus told amazing stories without words, so too does Journey. The game has a simple premise, get to the top of the mountain and enjoy the trip on the way.

With gorgeous graphics, fantastic gameplay and a superb, haunting soundtrack, you'll find it difficult not to.

Much has been made of the interaction between players in Journey, there are no loading times, little to no lag on the evidence of my play through, and the game is designed in such a way that, even with two random players inhabiting the same environment, there's no competition. This is a game that rewards co-operation and creates an environment in which it is nurtured and encouraged, which is just as well since pairings are completely random.

Your traveller can fly and he can sing, although the sound of your voice is more flute like than human in sound). These two abilities are represented on your controller by the X and O buttons respectively, and despite these being the only two actions available to you during your time in the desert, the gameplay is both deep and rewarding.

Singing while your partner is in range of your voice (a visible white sound wave that radiates from your position) will re-charge his ability to fly, which is elegantly represented by a tapestry that hangs from the back of every travellers robes. When charged the tapestry, and later the robe of your character, will glow with an ornate white light pattern.

The power to fly can likewise be restored in an array of other ways, including coming into contact with swirling pieces of cloth, Manta Rays and Jelly Fish that share the same light pattern as your robes.

One tiny problem that i had with the online co-op of Journey was that it doesn't list the user names of players you meet along the way in the "players met" section of the XMB. They do at least show you a list of all the players you interacted with at the end of the game, So if you liked the experience of playing with a sensible adult instead of a screaming 12 year old you may want to write those names down...

From a graphical point of view this is a game that needs to be experienced first hand, no amount of waxing lyrical will quite cover how stunning it really is. The desert stages of the game are some of the best looking that I've seen in a video game, you can almost feel the heat on the back of your neck as the traveller traipses up one side of a dune and then expertly slides down the other.

The animation of the Traveller is also excellent. There are fluid transitions between walking and flying, as well as several different types of walking animation depending on surface and angle of incline. It really is hard to believe that this is a £10 downloadable title. When compared to some full retail releases it comes away looking like the more polished product

One of the most influential aspects of this game is the Music. The Macedonia Radio Symphonic Orchestra were responsible for the hauntingly powerful soundtrack to Journey, and with such affecting music as this you have to ask why more games developers don't go the orchestral route when scoring their work.



I've said in many a review, that good music can improve a game ten fold, while bad music can rip you right out of the experience. The beauty of Journey's soundtrack is that it syncs perfectly with the singing mechanic of the gameplay, the notes you sing often changing to better complement the music in the background.

The overall feeling i took away from playing Journey was that this is a phenomenal game. The story is emotionally affecting thanks to brilliant use of music and a narrative that relies on actions rather than words, the gameplay is deep and varied despite the two button control scheme and the level of polish is staggering for a game that retails for so little.

This game marks the end of the contract between Sony and "That Game Company", a relationship that saw  Flow, Flower and now Journey released exclusively on the PS3 platform. If i was Kazuo Hirai i would tie them down to a nice long deal, because on the strength of this release, they're the best studio in the business right now.

Catherine - Review

A certain Irish Stout advert states "Good things come to those who wait" In the case of Catherine this claim holds just as true. European gamers, unlike our American cousins, had to wait an extra 7 months for an English language version of the Japanese Survival horror/Dating Sim/Puzzler, but the wait was definitely worthwhile.

Those of you that follow this blog as well as the Killer Keyboard site will have seen the unboxing video for Catherine: Stray Sheep Edition that i made back in February. I've been a little slow to get into it, but when i finally did make the time to sit down and work my way through the latest Atlus release i discovered an extremely deep puzzle game wrapped in a delightfully vibrant yet disturbing anime style ribbon.



Vincent Brooks is the main character in Catherine, a man who avoids commitment and growing up at all costs. His girlfriend of 5 years, Katherine, is restless with the current state of their relationship and is starting to exert pressure on our man to commit to her long term (yep, the M word people) However, his increasingly complex life takes yet another turn when the morning after a heavy night's drinking he wakes up next to his dream girl, who strangely enough is also named Catherine, but as you can see it's with a C not a K.

Katherine and Catherine

 The game is, at this point, split into 2 main parts. During Vincent's waking hours you see him eating with friends, and can take control of him when he goes to the Stray Sheep bar to drink and talk to his friends. In the bar you can talk to the patrons, check your phone for messages, drink until you drop (the drunker you are the faster you move in your dreams) use the jukebox to play music that is unlocked as you progress through the game, and play a strange game called Rapunzel which bears a striking resemblance to the Nightmares that you will have to play through in the other half of the game. Texting is an important part of your waking life, the messages you send can alter how the story plays out so think carefully about how to end your texts in-case they give the wrong impression.

This Nightmare half of Catherine is where the puzzle elements come to the fore. Every night when Vincent goes to sleep he finds himself in a weird nightmare world where everyone else looks like sheep, and he must climb giant block mountains if he is to survive the night. Because as the theory goes, if you die in your dreams you die in real life too. The puzzle portion of the game is surprisingly deep and extremely addictive, the emphasis during the nightmare is to ascend the tower as quickly as you can while the blocks below you fall away. on top of this there are some stages where you will be pursued by your worst fears, be that a demonic chainsaw wielding baby or a shadowy reflection of yourself.



At regular points during your nightmare you'll reach a base camp of sorts which more closely resemble a church than anything else. During these levels you can save progress, talk to other sheep to figure out what's going on and even exchange techniques that could better help you climb the towers still to come. If you look closely you may even recognise a few of the sheep you talk to at this base camp...

As you progress, the towers will get more and more difficult to ascend, and more varieties of blocks will be brought into play. Immovable blocks, heavy blocks, black holes, exploding blocks and spike traps are just a few of the varieties you'll have to learn to use to your advantage because, and i forgot to mention this before, you might not be the only one climbing the tower, and the other sheep won;t think twice about throwing you off the block and down to your death.

When Catherine was originally released in Japan a lot was said about how difficult the game was, and that it was prohibitively difficult for Western audiences let alone the Japanese. Luckily Atlus patched the Japanese release to lower the difficulty, and included that coding in the EU and US releases of the game. There's also a "Very Easy" mode available if you're really having a hard time of it, but for the most part i have to say that Easy is rather forgiving while still frustrating you every now and then. Rapunzel, the arcade game in the Stray Sheep Bar also offers some fantastic alternative gameplay as it focusses more on solving the puzzle rather than getting it done as quickly as possible. It really is the hidden gem inside the larger hidden gem that is Catherine.

Music, as most of you will appreciate, is a very important part of any game and in Catherine this is just as evident. The Music is excellent, there's a good mixture of songs available on the Stray Sheep's Jukebox so everybody should be able to find something listenable there, while the classical music used in the nightmare stages is unsettling and atmospheric. As a fan of Samurai Champloo it was nice to see some J-Hip-Hop used in the Game intro as well, you really get the feeling that Atlus appreciate how music can improve the game play experience.

Graphically the game looks superb, Atlus themselves have said that it serves as "an experiment for Persona 5" and there's no doubt it was a success as the engine runs superbly. The animations are smooth and natural while the cell shade style gives it a unique look that few games can match. Studio 4 degrees C have done a stand-up job with the story animations as well, they mesh perfectly with the rest of the game thanks to the cell shade colouring of the in-game engine.


Fans of Japanese games will lap this up while most gamers who enjoy a puzzle game should find plenty to enjoy about the game too. The multiple endings give Catherine decent replay value as do the nightmare levels themselves as they all have multiple solutions. Rapunzel offers something different while the additional Babel and Colosseum game modes offer something different for anyone who wants to slide some blocks around outside of the main story. 

Anyone looking for an off the wall puzzle game with charm and personality could do a lot worse than giving Catherine a try, This is a great example of a game being different and better for it.

It's (not) in the GAME

As some of you are no doubt aware, an internal memo from GAME (transcribed below) was recently leaked which detailed the reasons as to why the beleaguered high street chain will not be stocking EA releases in March.

Dear all,
Last week we held an event for our partners in the industry and explained the challenges we are facing in the short term - and we asked for their support.
We asked them to trade with us using manageable credit terms, and for them to continue to do that whilst we work through the strategic review and refinancing of our business.
We gave the industry commitments - we committed to integrity and openness in our dealings, and working with everyone equally.
We committed to only stocking products on which we could get the right credit terms, regardless of the title or the supplier. We will not stock products if the terms are not right for our business - we will not sacrifice long-term credit requirements for short-term sales opportunities.
As a result of us taking this position - a position that we believe is critical to our long-term health as a business - we have taken the very difficult decision to not stock EA's March releases, including Mass Effect 3.
As a specialist retailer dedicated to games and gaming, it is never easy to make a decision not to stock a title, particularly one with such a strong fanbase. But it is imperative that we treat every supplier evenly, that we stick to our commitments, and that we don't sign up to payment terms that will hamper us further in the future.
It is even more critical that we manage this appropriately with our loyal customers. We know they will be disappointed regarding Mass Effect in particular and in recognition of this, we will be contacting our Mass Effect pre-order customers and as a gesture of goodwill we will be offering them £5 of reward card / elite points.
I know that many of you will have to manage customer and supplier feedback directly, and I would like to thank you in advance for your support and am happy to answer any questions you have directly - just grab me as I walk around.

While it's commendable that GAME will not back down over the issue and is trying to deal with all publishers/distributors on an even playing field, it strikes me as strange not to put off the decision so that they can stock two of the most hotly anticipated EA titles of the year, Mass Effect 3 and the SSX reboot. The timing really couldn't be any worse for GAME, as these two titles, ME3 in particular, would have made a decent profit for the group.

Perhaps the bigger concern for GAME going forward is that if this stand-off continues they may find themselves on the outside looking in when FIFA13 comes out later this year. As many readers are aware FIFA12 set the record for both the highest and quickest selling sports game of all time, so to remove yourself from the equation seems tantamount to corporate suicide to me.

GAME recently said that they would be willing to consider giving publishers a cut of their used game sales, perhaps they could bring this to the table in an attempt to get a more flexible arrangement with EA ratified? I certainly think this is a case of GAME needing EA rather than the other way round, especially with the increase in games sales on-line at places like Play.com and Amazon.

Either way, this situation needs to be sorted out, and fast. EA represents a large chunk of the gaming pie, and GAME can't afford to do without their games on their shelves.

UPDATE 

Mark Photiades, a market analyst with Singer Catalyst Markets has estimated the capital loss to GAME from not stocking Mas Effect 3 at around £2.5million. In a Post by Nick Fletcher on the Guardian website, Photiades is quoted as saying -

"Working on the assumption that a decent triple A title sells 0.8m-1m titles in the first few weeks of release in the UK and assuming Game has around 20% share, we calculate that by not stocking Mass Effect 3, Game is potentially missing out on around £6m-£7m of revenues in the UK given the title will retail for £39.99,"

 That is a massive loss for a company already forecasting losses of around £8million for this year alone. Interestingly he also states that profit margins on new titles stand at around 24%. Also of interest is the opinion of Nick Bubb in the same piece who doesn't seem to understand the market at all.

So, had you heard of this new so-called blockbuster game Mass Effect 3 that comes out next week? Well, nor had we, and despite all the tut-tutting about how ominous the EA supply problem is, we suspect that it is just a storm in a teacup in a seasonally quiet time of year, as the big game suppliers can't really afford to do without Game at Christmas, given its huge share of the market. We are more concerned about the lack of news on the overseas disposal front.

Idiot...