Journey Message Board older than one year ago

#2010yearinreview What was 2010? Maybe it was the year we got past the "are-games-art" debate. Game developer Kellee Santiago hopes so. She was in the thick of it, as she discovered one very early morning back in the spring. More »

I laughed when I first saw the scarf worn by Journey's main character. I couldn't help it -- the flair it adds to the enigmatic avatar renders the figure distinctly more charming than spooky. The scarf serves a more functional purpose, too: It's a gameplay meter, measuring your character's ability to fly. The scarf depletes as you fly; fill it back up -- and even lengthen it -- by completing puzzles and discovering secrets, among other things. There's actually a variety of scarves to be collected and equipped throughout the gameworld.

Scarves, however, are not the focus on thatgamecompany's third PSN-exclusive, Journey. The focus, creative lead Jenova Chen told me at a recent press event, is to enable unique online experiences. "Everyone's on a journey towards a goal, and everybody travels through a similar landscape," he said of the game. "And at some point, their paths cross each other, and then they could be playing together."

Find out what the unique mechanics and play styles will bring to the new experience of Journey.

#psn Sorry, Nathan Drake, but you and your fully-tucked shirt are not the best thing I saw this week for the PlayStation 3. That honour goes to this trailer for Journey. More »

A conversation with the talented game designer about his newest game and its mysterious inspirations.

#iphone Jenova Chen is the designer of genre-bending, artfully crafted games Cloud, FlOw and Flower. He's the co-founder of ThatGameCompany and the recipient of a master's degree from the University of Southern California's Interactive Media Division. He's also a cheater. More »

Hello hello hello! This is Kellee Santiago, and I am honored to fulfill thatgamecompany‘s final wish for 2010 – to show you more Journey. Most of you probably watched Jenova and I on SPIKE’s special pre-VGA show last night – well, I have more for you. Below is our very first trailer to showcase some of the great things to come.

I’m in NYC right now, where we’ve been talking more about the game, and specifically about our approach to creating a unique, intuitive, and accessible online experience. So keep a look out for more info to come!

If you're curious about thatgamecompany's enigmatic mountain-approaching PSN adventure, Journey -- and if you're curious about what you're going to do while you're in the LA area on November 19 -- the developer has something planned to satisfy both kinds of curiosity.

That night, thatgamecompany is hosting a semi-public playtest of Journey. If you're between 18 and 35, familiar with PSN, and able to make the journey to Santa Monica, then contact thatgamecompany (contact details after the break) and you might be among the lucky players invited!

Since popping our heads out of the sand to announce Journey at E3 this year, we have been deep in the throes of development. But now I’m peeking up again to see if any of you might be interested in giving us feedback on the game here in Los Angeles!

As you might already know, we have an extremely iterative development process, which means that although we are still building out the game, we like to get feedback from players early so we can incorporate it into the final version. This is a great opportunity to see the game as it progresses, and get a look behind the curtain of game development. Also, we’d love to have folks from this community help us! Here’s the info:

Evening of November 19th, 2010

Requirements to participate are:

• Be between the ages of 18 and 35.
• Be an active PSN game player. We want people who are familiar with PSN games, visit the Store, and download games as a part of their PlayStation life.
• Live in Los Angeles, and have reliable transportation to the playtest in Santa Monica.

In case you missed our E3 announcement, Journey is our latest game we’re working on with SCEA’s Santa Monica Studio, following flOw and Flower for PS3. With Journey we are taking a departure from our previous two games, introducing a human-like playable character, and a narrative that is much more like an adventure. All the while we are aiming to keep the emotion and beauty that our previous projects have become known for.

Games usually make us feel like badasses. Here's a game that makes us feel small.

Lovin', touchin', squeezin' these screenshots.