flOw (2006)

Genre: Relaxing | Players: 1 - 4 | Developer: thatgamecompany

In flOw you play as a wormlike thing, some kind of early multi-celled organism(?) and have to guide he/she/it through a series of top down levels as he (I'm calling it a he) grows and transforms into a larger wormlike thing. Thatgamecompany sure do make it tough to review their games.

Each level is a layer in an aquatic environment. Picture a dozen layers of glass vertically atop each other, each time you move up or down a layer you’re moving to a new pane of glass. There are no menus or instructions to tell you what to do, so you’re left to simply swim around and try to figure it out through trial and error. After a while you’ll realise what is required of you to progress, but I won’t spoil that process by detailing it here.

Controlling your worm (*chuckle) is an art in itself. You tilt the controller in the direction you want him to go, but it’s not merely left and right, you’re on a pseudo 2D plane, so in order to turn him back on himself you have to tilt in 3D. Yup, that makes about as much sense as I thought it would when I was writing it. It needs to be played to be understood, and while it’s initially confusing it soon becomes an extension of your hand; you’ll soon be zipping your little worm in and out of tight spots, avoiding danger like a pro.

flOw’s appeal is limited, as is the gameplay element; in fact, it’s not really a game in the traditional sense, it’s more like an extended and interactive artwork/tech-demo, but if you've enjoyed the subsequent 'non-game' releases from the same developer (flower and Journey) then it’s an interesting insight into their origins and the thought process of the designer Jenova Chan, as well as being a relaxing and occasionally engaging experience. When the “are games art?” argument is raised among gamers, flOw will feature heavily.

The PS3 version has multiplayer for up to four players.

Buyer's Guide:
Available for PS3 and PSP but can only be bought from the online store. There's also an earlier flash version, but I can't imagine how that would work without the tilt mechanism.

3 growth spurts out of 5

Journey (2012)

Genre: Adventure | Players: 1 or Co-op | Developer: thatgamecompany

You awake alone in a desert. In the distance is the tallest landmark. It seems the obvious place to go, because logic says the higher up you are the more you can see, and the more you can see the more you can understand your environment.

Along the way you’ll encounter other players, but they won’t be identifiable with a username and text/voice chat is impossible. You’ll have to decide if it’s worth accompanying them or for them to accompany you. Your only means of communication is a button press that draws their attention, if they even notice you to begin with. You can go solo, or meet someone else, or you may meet the same person; there's a way to know if you pay attention. There's a definite advantage in having a companion, sharing the journey, having someone walk where you walk; what that is you can discover for yourself.

Find a piece of cloth and you can fly for a short time. You can extend the time allotted by collecting something else, but you’ll have to go exploring for that.

Stylistically. Journey's a weird hybrid of cell shading, realistic sand and gradient textures. It manages to vary the landscape so it never gets dull. Like the developers previous game, flower, there's no map or instructions to guide you, no visible HUD to annoy you. It forces you to experiment and rely on your wits and emotional responses. The director claims the initial concept was to create something that didn't involve the egotistical “defeat/kill/win mentality" of most video games. I applaud that, but I'm biased.

It’s very short, you’ll finish it in one sitting, so you'll have to ask: is it worth the money? That depends on the individual. You’re paying for an experience filled with wonder and joy. Can you put a price on joy? It’s like being in love: it’s magical the first time you go through it; the second time it’s less engaging, but you can be guide for someone having their first play-through. If that’s worth more than money to you, then it’s worth it. Everyone else, wait for it to be on offer.

Buyers Guide:
Available from PSN only. Price: £9.99 / $14.99

5 meaningful climbs out of 5

Flower (2009)

Genre: ??? | Players: 1 | Developer: thatgamecompany

In flower you play as an air current that exists inside the dream of a potted flower that sits by a window in a city block. I know that sounds kind of weird.

You pick up a single flower petal and by using the PS3 controller's tilt mechanism direct the petal toward unopened flowers, steering by tilting left or right, gaining height or swooping down by tilting forward or back, and accelerating with a button... any button, they're all the same. It’s the only game I've played that’s managed to make proper use of the tilt-sensing aspect of the controller.

Once you've mastered the control system (30 seconds) it’s relatively simple to encourage your petal passenger serenely along your chosen path, and as you brush past other flowers they blossom and add more petals to your cargo.

Get enough of one colour and something wonderful will happen. Get all of every colour and the world comes alive with a vibrant picturesque response, similar to Clover’s Ōkami (2006). The sense of serene, uplifting achievement as the landscape changed because of my actions is hard to express; I felt like Van Gogh, the controller was my brush, the game world my canvas and I was an artist.

Personally, I despise FPS games. I hate the grey and brown shades that accompany the generic bald jarhead thug so popular nowadays. If you feel similarly then flower is a welcome relief and may be the game for you. At heart it’s simple, but is executed with such beauty and passion that it’s easy to lose hours in the poetic unravelling of colour and life.

It's a PSN game, so is available via download only. There’s a demo of the entire first level so it won’t cost anything to try.

5 interactive paintings out of 5