If you are looking for a game with a fully-developed storyline, intense combat, and beautiful artistry, Original Journey from publisher Another Indie and developer Bonfire Entertainment has you covered. In this space adventure, you play a rookie soldier of the Ato alien race, which has just landed on the monster-ridden Planet Shadow on a desperate mission to save its home world. To prove your worth, you travel deep into the depths of Planet Shadow and complete missions assigned to you by the Captain and other Ato officers, facing an impressive variety of lethal creatures and collecting precious crystals along the way. The intense amount of work and creativity that went into designing this game is on full display, from the intricate layout of the Ato’s home base to the exquisite hand-drawn pencil graphics. As a gamer, you are completely sucked into the screen and transported to a different world.
One of the reasons why Original Journey feels so real and, well, original, is because it truly makes you feel in control of your own individual character. Although there is a basic narrative to follow, you are still free to make decisions and explore the world at your own pace. As mentioned before, the Ato’s home base is a maze full of different rooms and workshops, from weapon arsenals to suit armories to your own character’s personal room. You can also hitch a ride from a friendly flying droid called Vacuum Baby and strike out on your own journey, fighting monsters and collecting supplies that you can later sell at the home base. Furthermore, you can upgrade and buy new weapons and suits as you stock up on crystals, which can give you a distinct advantage in harder missions. Another unique aspect of the game is the ability to make decisions that affect the outcome of the game; for example, you can choose whether to learn extra information from the database, or whether you want to accept another character’s business offer. This independent decision-making makes the gameplay more realistic and interesting, and it feels empowering being able to determine your character’s own destiny.
Even the battle scenes in Original Journey showcase immense creativity and variety. Every fight is unique, with diverse monsters that all look and attack differently. The terrain changes every time, too—sometimes the ground is smooth, while other times there is thorny vegetation that can inflict as much damage as enemies do. As you acquire different weapons, you will discover that certain guns are better suited to fight certain monsters, which makes combat all the more stimulating. On certain levels there are also other Alto warriors who provide you with backup and even pay you crystals in return for helping them. I found that in order to preserve your health, you must constantly hold back and let the monsters come to you. I had some trouble with that initially, but battles became much easier to win after I started doing that.
In conclusion, Original Journey is stellar in its story concept, game design, and artistic composition. It struck the perfect balance of serious and yet fun, complex and yet user-friendly, dark and yet beautiful. I would absolutely recommend this game, and it definitely ranks among my favorites!
Rating: 10/10
Here is the Original Journey Release Date Trailer:
Original Journey is available for PC via Steam. Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One releases are planned for Q1 2018.
PC Review
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Overall Score - 10/1010/10
From the moment I first played Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy on the original Xbox, I have always had an avid curiosity and enthusiasm for video games. I admire their ability to immerse us in completely different worlds, and I am always eager to see how they integrate the newest breakthroughs in digital technology to make virtual reality feel real. I am currently a senior at UC Berkeley, but when I'm not studying I always make time to play Xbox One with my younger brother.
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