Better Together - JOURNEY

OVERVIEW

Journey is a very relaxing game. It expresses a universal theme, and allows the players to have their own interpretation. No matter what kind of enlightenment you may get from the game, it remains a lonely journey. However, the multiplayer feature gives the players a chance to have a meaningful social experience, and enhance the core gameplay. So how did they enhance the core gameplay through their multiplayer feature, and how is it different from other games?

NATURAL ENCOUNTER

They presented a multiplayer system that mimics real life encounters. In reality, a person never really just appears out of nowhere. Everyone is travelling from one place to another, and the encounters will happen whenever we cross paths with each other.

Whenever you start the game ( with internet connection ), there's no telling if you're going to encounter another player, and you won't know who they are, not until at the end of the game. The server will randomly pick anyone within a distance and pair you up. The pairing happens in the background, without any notification. The uncertainty gives a delightful surprise whenever an encounter happens.

The server will not pair up when players are not within the distance

The server only pair up players that are within the distance.

This approach usually leads to the following scenario:

• You catch up to someone

• Someone catch up to you

There are also cases when players just travel through the level without noticing another player nearby. This would be an unfortunate case. When both players are in very close proximity, the camera will zoom out. In such cases, it is easier for players to know another player is really close.

At least in my playthrough ( multiple times ), I never had the chance to see the character disappear in front of my eyes. It is always either the other players are travelling so far ahead that they went beyond the distance, or I am the one that leave them behind. Whenever someone got disconnected from the game, you'll see the other character goes into a meditative pose. The character will also go into a meditative pose whenever the player pause the game. If the other player choose to wait for you, and you're both still connected, then the both of you can continue the journey together upon resuming the game.

This attempt of explaining how the feature works is purely based on my observation after multiple playthroughs.

NO CONVENTIONAL IN-GAME IDENTIFICATION

From what I understand, the developer faced a lot of resistance from Sony, when they decided not to display player's name in the game. The developer's sentiment may not be a popular one, but I do agree with their justification. Often, the player's name are uninspiring and offensive. This is not to say that every multiplayer game should not display the player's name, but at least for Journey, it can be a distraction and pollutes the aesthetic of the game.

The left side : Clean presentation, maintain aesthetic.

The right side : Cluttered, uninspiring.

With no conventional in-game identification, players can perceive the others without pre-judgmental thoughts, and also be perceived by others without any prejudice. However, there will be cases when the players formed a meaningful bond in the game, and they wish to continue, or at least know who the other person is. In such cases, the players can get those names at the end of the journey. The game will list out all the names that you have encountered during the game.

The game shows a list of companion you met along the way.

I covered the names for privacy purpose.

LIMITING COMMUNICATION TOOLS

So they excluded voice and text chat features. The players can only communicate with each other through their own action, and a ping function. The ping function is not designed exclusively for communication between players, it is also being used as a way to interact with in-game creatures.

Conveying intentions, be it good or bad, can be difficult at first, but it reduces the chance of players portraying toxic behaviours in the game. With very limited means of communication, the players are forced to be creative in conveying their intentions, and as the players get into the flow, that is when the magic happens.

Quick Ping.

Elongated Ping.

Interacting with in-game creatures.

BETTER TOGETHER

Removing conventional identification and limits the player’s communication tool also means that all possible differences of beliefs, motives, and languages are stripped off in the game. When there are no more differences between the players, all that is left is a common journey to go through, together. Here are some of the possible moments you might experience when playing with other strangers.

Teamwork!

Recharge each other's scarf to fly further.

Show them where are the hidden locations.

Show them where are the hidden glyphs.

Lead them away from danger.

Goes through hardship together.

CONCLUSION

Those were the techniques used in Journey to deliver a unique multiplayer experience, and I see their achievement as a meaningful impact. The developer tried their best to reduce toxic behaviour in the game, accommodate positive experience through gameplay and give the players a chance to connect with others after they have formed a meaningful bond.

It is important to understand that while making Journey, the developer was trying to address some of the issues in the game industry prior to the conception of their game. So your observation today will affect your response towards the game industry, and shape your game design expression in the future.