Journey: Collector's Edition Review

The Journey: Collector’s Edition captures three of the most breathtaking experiences in gaming over the past 10 years and puts them on one disc, each in full 1080p and as beautiful as ever. For the first time ever you can play the award winning flOw, Flower, and of course, Journey, all on one Blu-Ray disc.

Put your feet up and relax.

Lets face it, there is nothing about these three titles that will make you feel like you are in a race against time, killing other people, or any action or intensity at all. ThatGameCompany makes soothing experiences that are there for you to interpret the way you wish.

flOw sees you maneuver through an aquatic world as you consume other life forms to grow larger and dive deeper in the abyss. You glide across the screen using the DualShock 4’s motion control capabilities, its all one relaxing game session accompanied by a whimsical soundtrack that truly captures the game’s essence. The game plays well on the PS4, to say there was even one issue would be a lie. Controlling your organism through the game worked flawlessly and the game’s dynamic difficulty adjustment enabled me to make it harder if I felt like a challenge.

Flower is my second favorite of the three games, the idea behind it and its simple yet intriguing design just takes your breath away as you fly through the valleys interacting with other flowers along the way, healing the world. In Flower you play as the the wind guiding a petal through a large environment interacting with other flowers and growing your swarm of petals as you go along. In each level you need to either bring the life back to an area, or just get to the whirlwind at the end of it. As you move through the land you control your swarm with the DualShock 4’s motion control, diving and soaring through the air. Again, Flower captures its own message of a world turned into darkness by pollution, and now mother nature has come to heal it, one flower at a time.

Although Journey might look like a tranquil game, its more serious tone makes it extremely compelling. As you awaken in an unknown world, you control a mysterious being through vast-landscapes while learning of your past and purpose being part of a mysterious civilization that has been all but destroyed. Your main goal is to climb to the summit for whatever lies on top will finally put you at rest.

Along the way you will find other players thanks to the game’s online mode, here you can travel with them on their journey to the summit, and playing with other players online changes your experience in the game. Collecting glowing objects as you explore the world will enhance your character’s scarf allowing him to glide further and higher than before, but be warned as one hit form an enemy will tear your scarf, and there is no way to get it back once it is gone.

The Journey: Collector’s Edition is a showcase of three breathtaking experiences that should not be missed out on. The games only last around 5-7 hours each, so they are bite sized but not lacking in context. There is nothing serious about them, rather they are beautiful stories told by interaction and interpretation. It is up to you to make up what you think is going on, and it all depends on how you feel that day, as the next day you might feel completely different about the situation and see the games in a different light